Randolph Mase&#8217;s Weblog

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Death Inside Diamond Head (under construction)

Nathan Hale

Posted in About New York City | Leave a Comment »

Happy February 27th Birthday!

February 27, 2015

It’s February 27, so a hearty Happy Birthday wish (past and present) to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, David Sarnoff, John Steinbeck and Gene Sarazen (same year), Joanne Woodward, Elizabeth Taylor, Van Williams and Ralph Nader (same year), Howard Hesseman, Mary Fran, Chelsea Clinton, Josh Groban, and…me! I’m not being narcissistic; I just realized that I’m in pretty good company, three of us are writers, and two of us were born in New York. If you want to find out what famous people share your birthday, one resource is http://www.famousbirthdays.com. But you won’t find me on the February 27 list…yet…

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Death Inside Diamond Head (under construction)

Nathan Hale

Posted in Observations on the Strange and Unexpected and on Life Itself | 1 Comment »

It’s NYC Restaurant Week® Winter 2015!

February 20, 2015

The winter version of Restaurant Week (there’ll another one this summer) began last week and continues through March 6 (but you have plenty of time, as the weeks are often extended). This time, almost 300 restaurants are participating, and offer either a three-course prix fixe lunch for $25 or a three-course prix fixe dinner for $38 (some restaurants offer both). And the list of participating restaurants is quite impressive, including:

City Hall Restaurant
The Capital Grille
Delmonico’s Steakhouse
Ocean Grill
Tavern on the Green
The Red Cat
.ViceVersa

See the restaurants and make reservations through http://www.nycgo.com/restaurantweek/?pid=hp-hero-1-full_image. I’m getting hungry already…

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Death Inside Diamond Head (under construction)

Nathan Hale

Posted in Things To Do In New York City | Leave a Comment »

Happy Presidents Day!

February 16, 2015

When I was a kid, I used to love February. My birthday’s in this month, and we also celebrated two holidays – and had two days off from school – in February as well. What kid wouldn’t love that?

We were off on February 12, Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday, and February 22, George Washington’s Birthday. Then in the 1970s, some lawmakers had the wonderful idea to move the celebration of Washington’s Birthday to the third Monday in February, and in the following years Lincoln’s Birthday was dropped as a holiday and the new holiday became a celebration of all of our presidents. It just seems strange that Presidents Day never falls on the actual birth date of George Washington (it’s always somewhere between February 15 and February 21). And it’s also strange that only 4 of our 43 presidents were born in February. But all I know is that we lost a day off from school…

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Death Inside Diamond Head (under construction)

Nathan Hale

Posted in Observations on the Strange and Unexpected and on Life Itself | Leave a Comment »

Do You Have Friggatriskaidekaphobia?

February 13, 2015

Not too bad, right?

But you’re probably wondering what the heck I’m talking about, aren’t you? It’s very simple, really…it means the fear of Friday the 13^th, that’s all. Some claim that this superstition has been around forever, but the first written evidence of this superstition in English appears in an 1869 biography of renowned opera composer Gioachino Rossini: “…was surrounded to the last by admiring and affectionate friends; and if it be true that, like so many other Italians, he regarded Friday as an unlucky day, and thirteen as an unlucky number, it is remarkable that on Friday, the 13^th of November, he died.”

Is 13 unlucky? Is Friday unlucky? Who knows? But whether or not you tend to be superstitious, you may be a little nervous on Friday the 13^th…which is today, of course (and one month from now as well!). So watch out for black cats and broken glass and ladders, and whatever you do or say today, do or say it carefully….

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Death Inside Diamond Head (under construction)

Nathan Hale

Posted in Observations on the Strange and Unexpected and on Life Itself | 1 Comment »

Another Two Answers from Jeopardy!

February 8, 2015

The final answers on a couple of Jeopardy! episodes during the past several months related to Broadway; the categories and answers are shown below. Let’s see if you know the questions:

Broadway Actresses: She originated 2 famous Broadway roles: one later played on film by Marilyn Monroe, another by Barbra Streisand.

Broadway Musicals: “Iowa Stubborn” was the second song heard in this show when it opened on Broadway in 1957.

Think you know them? Leave a comment if you do; I’ll share the answer with you in a future post!

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Death Inside Diamond Head (under construction)

Nathan Hale

Posted in About New York City | 3 Comments »

It’s Groundhog Day!

February 2, 2015

Many of us have probably seen the movie with Bill Murray, essentially about reliving something many times, until we change our behavior and transcend it. And most of us probably associate Groundhog Day with Punxsutawney Phil, the famous prognosticator in western Pennsylvania who predicts the arrival of Spring each year, based on whether or not he sees his shadow. However, did you know that each year no fewer than 15 groundhogs make their predictions? Take a look at this list:

Balzac Billy – in Alberta, Canada
Dunkirk Dave – New York
French Creek Freddie – West Virginia
General Beauregard Lee – Georgia
Jimmy the Groundhog – Wisconsin
Josh Porter – Ohio, I think (I couldn’t find a more specific reference)
Malverne Mel – New York
Octoraro Orphie – Pennsylvania (Phil’s rival)
Punxsutawney Phil – Pennsylvania
Queen Charlotte – North Carolina
Shubenacadie Sam – Nova Scotia, Canada
Sir Walter Wally – North Carolina
Staten Island Chuck New York
Wiarton Willie – Ontario, Canada
Woodstock Willie – Illinois

Interestingly enough, half of the furry creatures typically predict six more weeks of winter each year, and the others predict an early Spring. So who do you believe? I think the best way is to do it yourself: walk out of your house at daybreak and see if your shadow appears. I would have done it, except the weather forecast was morning snow and cold. I’ll stick to the electric blanket and let the groundhogs do the work…

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Death Inside Diamond Head (under construction)

Nathan Hale

Posted in Observations on the Strange and Unexpected and on Life Itself | 1 Comment »

Questions to How Well Do You Know Broadway?

January 26, 2015

Here are the questions to the Jeopardy! answers about shows in the category “Christmas on Broadway” that I posted a couple of weeks ago:

“White Christmas,” featuring the songs of this beloved composer, finally came to Broadway in 2008. – Who is Irving Berlin?
This musical about a boy born to dance features a catchy protest number, “Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher.” – What is “Billy Elliott?”
In 1989 “Meet Me in St. Louis” came to Broadway along with this yuletide tune introduced by Judy Garland in the movie. – What is “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas?”
“Here’s Love” was Meredith Willson’s stage adaptation of this classic film with a street that crosses Broadway in its title. – What is “Miracle on 34^th Street?”
Songs from this show based on a movie include “Red Ryder Carbine Action BB Gun” and “Ralphie to the Rescue.” – What is “A Christmas Story?”

I didn’t do too badly; I knew four. How did you do?

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Nathan Hale

Posted in About New York City | 2 Comments »

Half Price Broadway Shows!

January 20, 2015

That’s no misprint – and in fact, it’s here! From today until February 5, Broadway Week is being celebrated, and you can buy 2-for-1 tickets to some of the best shows in the City, including Chicago, Honeymoon in Vegas, On The Town, Mamma Mia!, Jersey Boys, You Can’t Take It With You, and Wicked! As part of the celebration, you can also get a free children’s ticket when you purchase one full-priced adult ticket. Good deals – you can find full details at http://www.nycgo.com/broadwayweek.

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer

My Novels:

Death on Broadway

Death Beneath the Streets

Death in Central Park

Death at the Cloisters (just published!)

Nathan Hale

Posted in Things To Do In New York City | Leave a Comment »

Let’s Remember Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 19, 2015

Since today is the celebration of Dr. King’s birthday (he was actually born on January 15, and would have been 86 years old this year), it only seems fitting that I share a few words about Dr. King. In case you don’t know, he was a leader of the movement to end segregation and discrimination in the 1950s and 1960s, leading to his receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, as well as posthumous awards of the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. His life was tragically cut short in 1968, at the young age of 39. His most memorable and inspiring speech likely was “I Have A Dream,” delivered at the Washington Mall in August of 1963. If you’ve never heard it, I strongly suggest that you watch the March on Washington and Dr. King’s speech here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smEqnnklfYs.

Randolph Mase, Fiction Writer