Walking on the Moon
written by Chris Bliss and Josh Weinstein
(Copyright © 1999 – all rights reserved)
These “chapters” are excerpted from my one-man show, co-written by my good friend J. Elvis Weinstein, (who also produced and directed the show in Minneapolis and Los Angeles in 1999).
The show revolves around my relationship with my brother Douglas, beginning the night of the moonwalk and ending the night of his death, including his request (after his diagnosis with AIDS) that our family assist him in controlling the circumstances leading up to his extraordinary final moments.
Also covered: the tragic story of my rise to the pinnacle of the juggling universe.
As for the title, the show originally was called “Walking On The Moon”, but with the flood of moonwalking references resulting from the 30th anniversary of Apollo 11, we decided to change it to “I Was The World’s Most Famous Juggler (and other Dirty Laundry)”. Thus the graphic.
The next (as yet unscheduled) production will revert to the original title (even though I really like the graphic).
Walking on the Moon – Chapter One
CHAPTER ONE (SOUNDTRACK: The last 60 seconds of audio from the descent of the Apollo 11 lunar landing module, finishing with the famous “Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”) July [...]
Walking on the Moon – Chapter Two
CHAPTER TWO I spent my senior year trying to find that inspiration, and lose my virginity – with equal success. None. My biggest accomplishment that year was learning how to juggle [...]
Walking on the Moon – Chapter Three
CHAPTER THREE The whole ride back to Eugene, I was psyched. Now that I’d finally taken control, I just knew that something important was going to happen. And sure enough, less [...]
Walking on the Moon – Chapter Four
CHAPTER FOUR Almost every time I’d juggle, somebody’d come up to me afterwards: “Wow! How long did it take you to learn that?” Always intended as a compliment. But by the [...]
Walking on the Moon – Chapter Five
CHAPTER FIVE The next time I saw Doug would be at my mother’s house, two Christmases later. I was doing well with my transition to stand-up, already headlining in some of [...]
Walking on the Moon – Chapter Six
CHAPTER SIX I don’t know if what I’d witnessed was a visitation or a hallucination, but what I saw from Doug in those three weeks had no resemblence to mental impairment. [...]
Walking on the Moon – Chapter Seven
CHAPTER SEVEN I woke to the sound of Mom puttering in the kitchen above me. I showered and dressed quickly, then joined her. I don’t remember if I went up to [...]