Mandy Patinkin in Prague, April 1998
My report about the press conference
This message was posted to the Mandy Patinkin mailing list on Tuesday, 7 April 1998:
Hi folks,
thanks to all of you for your support in my "difficult moments".
My message is rather long so at first the most important resume.
I visited the press conference. I watched our man from the 1st
row (among the photographers) all the time. I didn't speak to
him more personally except of usual ask for his autograph etc.
But I'm satisfied. The most imporant is that he said he would
come back to Prague for concerts in the end of this year or so!!
I'm sure I'll have better opportunity to meet him visiting this
concert and going backstage afterwards.... He spoke really very
very nice about my city, Prague. (And believe me he is right!!!)
Here goes my report:
Well, nothing that "special" has happened EXCEPT I saw HIM live
at last. I was almost a personal shame for me... never see him
LIVE. His visit was strictly Mamaloshen CD promoting, no concert
or so. But I'm already looking forward to promised concerts....
Of course, Mandy was extremely busy during his 3 days stay in
Prague. He was accompanied by our commercial TV station which
made the documentary about his visit. He made a lot of
sightseeings. They said it'd be on the TV on April the 25. We'll
see. He has been a guest on our TV morning show but I haven't
seen it, it was too late and I was at work already.
Ok, there was the press conference in the music megastore on
Monday at 2 pm. It was said (and written on posters) that the
meeting is ,open". But when I arrived there I was said it is
only for press, will you show me your press card.......of
course, I haven't got any. I thought maybe the truth would be
the best. So I told the good man at the entrance about our
mailing list, our Internet fan club, and that it's impossible
for me to tell all of you that I wasn't able to visit the press
conference my only chance to see Mandy in Prague. He sent me to
ask a responsible person. This lady (I repeated whole story
about us on Internet) said yes and accompanied me back to the
entrance. There we've met the director of the whole store and
the (important) lady said to him : ,This is a fan can we let her
come in?" This was all what rested from my long story about our
friendly mailing list. Well, the result is important, I was
inside.
The meeting has 1/2 hour delay.
I listened to journalists and
photographs talking about their previous meetings with Mandy
(during previous days) and they all talk about him as a very
kind, nice and modest man. (But WE know this quite well, don't
we).
But here he comes. What a surprise he
has his black jeans, black T-shirt and his usual baseball (?)
jacket (black with light sleeves), and the sport shoes, of
course. I was almost in the first row among the photographers.
They begin to take pictures, a lot of flashes. I take my photos
, too. After the introduction the questions:
1) The first one not too original but understandable: How do you
like Prague? He answers that Prague for him is the most
beautiful city in world, even more bueatiful than Paris and this
is because of the people, they are nicer than those in Paris. He
reminds his first stay here in 1982 (filming Yentl) when he has
been here together with his newborn (younger) son who was only
10 days (!) old that time. (Maybe you don't know but we have
quite a lot of Jewish monuments here in Prague, several very old
synagogues, and very nice Jewish cementaries, all located
mostly within several streets in a historic part of the city.)
It is really quite picturesque and these places are visited by
crowdes of tourists. ---- No I don't work at a travel
agency.... it's all
true.
2) Later on he talks about Joseph Papp. He says he and our
president Vaclav Havel (who was originally writer of theater
dramas) are kind of brothers because Joseph Papp is their common
father figure . He says that Joseph Papp produced all Havel's
pieces on stage on Broadway during years when V.Havel was
disident and the enemy of communist government here in
Czechoslovakia. 3) Who he consider himself to be in the first
row : an actor or a singer ? An actor definitely. What
interests him in songs is : language, words, story... not music.
4) Plans for next days. He leaves on Monday night for Milano,
than to London ( !! u.k.fans ALLERT!!) and back home.
All this is to promote his
Mamaloshen CD. He was invited to participate in celebration of
50 years of the state Izrael. But he will not go there. He is
proud to be a Jew, he loves Izrael , but he's very sored and
angry how Netanjahu (spelling??) destroyed the peace process
there and that's why he refused to go there now.
5) The family
of his father came to the U.S.A. from Poland in 1911 (??).
6)About his sons (the question was
whether they also sing): The older has other interests and just
likes to listen to music, but as for music Mandy is absolutely
proud of his younger who plays wonderfully piano and can sing
excellently. Mandy says when he listens to his son singing he
is amazed and that his son will surpass him one day by far. He
was so proud....
7)He talks about Mamaloshen, the choice of songs etc.
He says how important is to draw from one's heritage, from the
culture of one's ancestors etc. He talks about the holocaust,
too. 8)He said: ,My wife telephoned to me here: You've come to
Prague, you've come home." (Big applause,of course).
We were said he was in time pressure as he had to prepare himself for
departure to airport . We were challenged to let him give
autographs. I ask him to sign my Experiment CD and only managed
to tell him that I'm from his Internet fan club. (He answered
by thanks) .I gave him the little present: CD of Jewish song of
our Czech composers. Of course, he was very nice, polite, in a
good mood, relaxed, making little jokes, using Czech words from
time to time (ahoj=hi, dobre=well, dekuji=thanks). We all know
this: he is a good man and a very nice person.. I couldn't do
anything more as there was quite a lot of people waiting for
autographs and he was in a hurry. As we all came out of the
store to the street (the very center of the city) I was
observing reactions of people , Mandy was often recognized as
dr.Geiger from Chicago Hope (though we have got here only season
I and II and it is no more or our TV for about two years, but
the serie was a great success).
Well, that's my story. I'm glad it came my turn , too, at last.
And I hope at least some pictures, I took, will be ok. I hope
he really will come for Mamaloshen concerts one day and be sure
I'll be there...
I apologize the message is that long. Bu I hope
you will understand my excitement and my feelings I simply had
to share with you. Thanks for listening and have a great day,
Vera in Prague.
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Created by Vera , Prague, Czech republic, March 1999
Last updated March 4th, 1999