Kuso...Thanks for the welcome!

Kenny...Thanks for the welcome, and thanks for the offer!



Wow...Inherit The Wind...They are not f**kin' around over there! Awesome! I'm sure this is going to be a great, if not occasionally painful, learning experience for you. I look forward to reading more about it, if not here, in your other journal. Good luck and give it all you've got!

HitmanXL

Where'z tha t filthy video?

>olina?

KennyG...

I'm happy to hear the Chubbuck book is helping...Yeah, I think it's a great and practical method of getting some of those Stanislavski / Meisner fundamentals into your acting game. And I agree, objectives are VERY helpful in putting together a character, kind of gives you an anchor.

I also tuned in to Bodog yesterday and saw the $10/ $20 tables, though I missed KG. Another level for you to look forward to conquering, eh? I posted an official BTP introduction, and I just started a poker journal here, so I wanted to invite you, and all you other KennyG groupies, over. After all, you are going to be the star of the show!

Lastly, I had a thought regarding something you wrote about your recent acting experience. You said the director is telling you not enough emotion, energy, etc. This seems like a problem of fear. The analogies between poker and acting (or really anything that you want to succeed at in life) are numerous and sometimes obvious, but just as you cannot be a fearful poker player and win, so you cannot be a fearful actor and deliver a winning performance. So, how do you get rid of the fear? It's tough, but try giving the director too much emotion, energy, etc. This will likely help with two problems: 1) your fear will be diminished or perhaps eliminated because you have just done what you were afraid of doing, namely, taking a big sh*t on the stage, and rehearsal is the time to do this; 2) the director will have more to work with; it's easier to sculpt down a performance that is too "big" than try to coax a bigger performance out of a fearful actor. Just something you might want to try...go ahead and make a fool out of yourself in front of everyone involved with the play...this is much better than doing it in front of an audience. In this way, you give others a chance to help you become better (the director, the other actors, etc.). I hope this helps.

HitmanXL

Wednesday, March 29, 2006


It's not all intellect ...in acting or poker.
Current mood: awake

When I play $1000 No limit and $2000 No limit, there's one thing that gives me a distinct advantage over the opposition... I have heart.

Most of the players I face-off against have the technical skill to be decent winners at most limits. Yet they lack in imagination, instinct, and bravery.... all of which I attribute to heart.

Heart gives you the initiative. You'll make the strong raises when you feel their weak, you'll call what might be a bluff, and you're willing to chance they won't call all-in against your draw etc etc.

Heart makes you a stronger player in the long run. Opponents start to fear your bets and raises, sometimes even your checks. They know that you have it in you to pull a move they can't react properly to.

I thought of this while I was studying acting. Obviously I'm a much better poker player then actor... but really it relates pretty well. Actors can have all the technical skill in the world, but if they don't have the heart in the performance... it loses all of its luster and shine.

How can an audience react postively to someone without heart? The performance will not be real; it will lack the human element. It's just an actor standing on stage pretending to be someone else.

I'm going to try and let it all go in my performances of Inherit the Wind. It's taking me longer then I thought... My technical skill is still low and I haven't been able to really shine through yet. I hope with hard work and dedication I can shred my emotional layers and be Bert Cates, heart and soul.

One more thing...

In whatever you do, if you don't have heart, is it even worth doing? I want to live a life that's full and worth every second.

Many pros I play with will never understand that. A sad truth.

Nicely stated.

Yes, less of the Meryl Streep, more of the Brando.

Actually, like many poker observations, this applies to life in general.

Sounds like Kenny is the online version of Doyle