Dan Lauria and Wendy Malick to get out the vote in Philadelphia

October 31, 4:46 PMBaltimore Celebrity Headlines ExaminerCheryl Taragin

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Baltimore Celebrity Headlines Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Life doesn’t always work out the way you plan. Mick Jagger was right, you can’t always get what you want.

In my case, I wanted a few moments of up close and personal time with Broadway and film star legend Bernadette Peters. Ms. Peters will appear in a benefit performance tomorrow night for Chimes and I was this close (hold thumb and forefinger two inches apart) to getting up close and personal time with her. If local forces would have their way it would have happened. Alas, it was not meant to be.

But sometimes when you’re least expecting it, if you try sometime, you stumble across something even better than whatever it was you couldn’t have. Yeah, you get what you need. An amicable telephone interview with Dan Lauria, co-star of television's The Wonder Years, soon to appear as Dolan in the hotly anticipated Christmas Day film, The Spirit. Lauria plays Spirit’s boss and says he gets to yell a lot and act angry.

Over the telephone, however, he was an absolute pussycat. Lauria and activist friend Wendy Malick (yes, that Wendy Malick) will be stumping door-to-door in Plymouth Meeting, PA at 3031 Walton Road beginning 10:30 a.m. tomorrow morning. Contrary to what many believe, this is a tight election and both celebrities want to do their part to influence the swing state of Pennsylvania. Lauria and Malick are flying in all the way from California just to get out the vote for Democrat nominee Barack Obama. Why? Because Lauria agrees with General Colin Powell's assessment of the candidates.

'[Obama's] demeanor, self confidence, his steadfast attitude – his intelligence is something we need in this country right now,' Lauria says confidently. 'We need a thinker and we need somebody who’s going to restore America’s image around the world. I really feel Senator Obama can do that. But that's just my gut feeling,' he is quick to add.

Lauria, a former Marine stationed offshore during the Vietnam War, says he doesn’t know much about politics, but he does have a vested interest in the outcome of this election. He is passionate about veterans' causes and says John McCain’s voting record on veterans’ issues is “absolutely horrible.” Lauria wants all veterans to carefully review that record online before casting their ballot.

Fridays are my worst day for conducting interviews, but when the opportunity to speak with Lauria fell smack dab in my lap, I simply couldn’t resist. Wish I had more time to write more about our conversation, but unfortunately time is in short supply. You’ll just have to settle for my YouTube video below.

Unfortunately, the sound is terrible. Reminder to self: buy more expensive recording equipment over the weekend.

Oh, and some quick sound bites. Lauria is passionate about the arts and has a plan for Howard Schultz, President of Starbucks, for an endowment that won't cost a dime. Listen to my gawd awful video for details.

Look for Lauria’s next gig in New York City, a play called Dinner with the Boys.

And be on the lookout for Lauria and the sexy Wendy Malick tomorrow, you lucky ducks in Philadelphia.