O's Commercial

Jason in HD

A couple of the commercials I shot for the Orioles are on the air. If you can stand the sight of my big head in HD, check 'em out. They shot ten all together and I was in five of them. So far, I've seen two of the spots that I was a part of. Y'know I'll be watching for the rest!

Marty

My friend Marty Baum passed away this morning.

Just this month, we had re-connected on Facebook after several years and I was looking forward to hearing all about his recent adventures, including his upcoming wedding. But I procrastinated and the next I heard he was in the hospital battling a mysterious infection, from which he never recovered.

Back in the day, when I was first embarking on my attempts to be a rock star, the band I was in would rent out local places, put a few bands together and put on concerts. We'd usually sell out with 100-150 kids. It was actually kind of a cool scene and as we searched for new ways to make the shows interesting, I came up with the idea of having Marty open one of the shows.

Marty was a poet. This was before Russel Simmons decided to make the slam poetry scene a cool thing and, frankly, Marty's style was a lot better than that.

I had no idea how he would go over, but when he took the stage, the kids were in awe.

We did a couple of more shows before we eventually "aged out" and had to start getting real and start playing the clubs of Baltimore and DC, but when we played in our hometown he tried to have Marty with us. He made us look cooler.

R.I.P. Marty. Your words always inspired me!

A friend sent this letter to The Washington Post.....
Our beloved friend, Marty Baum, died today. He was forty-four years old. He lost his job last Winter: no job, no health insurance. He had an infection in his leg; by the time he got to the hospital, it was too late.

Marty wasn’t a US Representative or a Senator or even a radio talk show host. He was just a great guy who loved life and spread joy and warmth to everyone he met. He couldn’t afford the Best Health Care In The World.