Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Legally Brown: Episode III



Episode 3! Matt's awesome. As you will see. And you can see me in the background for a second as I'm furiously scribbling down the lines for the judges off of my computer!

The Marathon On The Horizon



I'll be running the 2008 ING NYC Marathon in support of The Children's Tumor Foundation. The Children's Tumor Foundation.is a non-profit 501(c)(3) medical foundation, dedicated to improving the health and well being of individuals and families affected by neurofibromatoses (NF). NF is a set of distinct genetic disorders that cause tumors to grow along various types of nerves. In addition, NF can affect the development of non-nervous tissues such as bones and skin. My extended family has a very personal connection to this disorder, as my 11 year-old-cousin, Lauren Loose, has been meeting the challenges of neurofibromatosis her entire life. Her courage, strength and amazing sense of spirit has been a huge inspiration to me over the years and especially throughout my training for this event. I'm so happy to be able to raise awareness and money for this important cause through participating in this year's marathon!



The success of my fundraising efforts depends in part on your generosity. If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation to my Marathon Run for NF, please follow the link to...

MY NF FUNDRAISING PAGE: http://www.active.com/donate/nfnewyork2008/runowenrun

It is a completely secure and an easy way to make a contribution. Plus you'll get to see fun pictures of me running and a nice picture of me with cousins Lauren and Grace from this summer. A donation of any size would be greatly appreciated. If you prefer not to donate online, you can also send me a check made out to "The Children's Tumor Foundation" at the following address:

Owen Panettieri
21-38 31st St. 2S
Astoria, NY 11105

Even if you cannot donate at this time, thank you for support and well wishes. I will be sending updates as the race gets closer, so you can track my progress online the day of the race. Or you can come out and cheer me on in person! I have included some more informative links below if you would like to hear more about Lauren or The Children's Tumor Foundation.

If you would like to learn more about Lauren's Story you can read all about her current updates at: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/laurenloose

There is also a website for the incredible non-profit football camp that her parents have set up in Lauren's name: www.laurensfirstandgoal.org

And if you would like to learn more about the work CTF does, you can visit their website as well.
www.ctf.org

Sunday, September 7, 2008

I still love you, Rafa!

Dearest Rafa,

I'm sure you're disappointed about not making it to the US Open Finals this year. I am sad for you. But let's face some facts. It's HARD to win 3 majors in one year on three different surfaces PLUS win the Olympic gold. You and I both know you were tired coming into this Open. You played so well, but I could tell you were... well, I wouldn't say "weakening" but you and I both know that if you want to beat the top players you have to keep digging deep, and there just wasn't that much deeper left for you to dig against Murray this weekend. You need some rest, papa. You've earned it. And let's stop for a second and take stock of this year's accomplishments. Still undefeated at Roland Garros! A Wimbledon victory in what might be the greatest match ever played! Olympic Gold! Plus, you've made your best showing to date at the US Open and the Australian Open as well. 8 tournament titles and a #1 ranking in the world. All that ain't exactly chump change.

I'm glad I got to see you practicing while I was at the US Open on Labor Day. It was such a treat. Best of luck at the Davis Cup match in two weeks (I hope you win your matches, but ultimately Spain should lose to USA. Go USA!) and then there is the end of the year tourney still for you to try and dominate.

Even though I'll be seeing you less on the television this fall, and missing you muchly,I will still be loving you with the same level of intensity. Maybe even stronger. If that's possible.

Love Always,

Owen


Saturday, September 6, 2008

Legally Brown is Online!

I am excited to report that Legally Brown: The Seach For The Next Piragua Guy is up on YouTube for your viewing pleasure. It's been very rewarding to work on this from behind the scenes and see it actually be put out there for public consumption. Written by me and Lin-Manuel and starring a whole parade of awesome Broadway Actors it is our loving spoof on the Legally Blonde Reality Show and on reality competition shows in general. I don't consider myself a good auditioner which is probably why I don't like doing it and that is ALSO probably why i don't do as much acting work as I would like. I find the very idea of auditioning over the course of several weeks on a nationally televised show to be a rather horrifying. While I enjoy watching these competition shows on TV it is beyond me why anyone would actually want to be a participant. Sure I guess it's a quick way to open doors for you, and a certain amount of the population will always be fame-whores who will do anything for attention. But i think most people by now should know that most people don't come off looking good by the time they lose, and it's not that easy to expand your 15 minutes of fame beyond the season you appear on. Hell, there are people on American Idol who were in the top 24 (or even top 10) than i couldn't remember having ever seen or heard by the time they got trotted back out on stage for the Grand Finale. But people keep auditioning for stuff in front of America, and I keep tuning in. And now with this project, those gluttons for punishment have become a sort of artistic inspiration. There will be more Legally Brown clips coming in the future. I hope you enjoy.




You should also go to this youtube link and then check out usnavi's other youtube clips because they are all really funny and worth your time. Enjoy!