Santa Monica Mirror 6-5-2020

S A N TA M O N I C A

REFLECTING THE CONCERNS OF THE COMMUNITY

smmirror.com

INSIDE

CALLS FOR POLICE CHIEF RECALL

PAGE 4

June 5 – June 11, 2020 Volume XXXIX, Issue 44

Santa Monica Grapples With Aftermath of Looting

Photo: Sam Catanzaro

A member of the National Guard stands by near the Santa Monica Pier Monday morning.

Over 400 arrested in Santa Monica

By SAM CATANZAro A citywide curfew was in place in Santa Monica five straight days as the community grapples with the aftermath of widespread looting with over 100 businesses damaged.

The City of Santa Monica issued curfews Saturday through Wednesday in response to

widespread looting and vandalism that began Sunday.

As the looting was taking place separate groups of peaceful demonstrators marched throughout the city protesting the police killing of George Floyd. It does not appear the looters and the peaceful protestors were related.

With a community-wide cleanup effort underway, the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD), in partnership with the National Guard and Fire Departments are on the ground this week

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to protect Santa Monica from potential threats.

“This is an active and fluid situation throughout Los Angeles County. Our primary focus in Santa Monica will remain life safety and the security of our community. We have zero tolerance for looting and the organized criminal activity we saw last night,” said SMPD Chief Cynthia Renaud. “Santa Monica Police Department with the support from the National Guard are on alert to respond to any potential threats. Our police force is hard at work and their professionalism

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was evident last night with no loss of life and no serious injuries.”

A Reddit thread shows that over 150 Santa Monica businesses were damaged by looters, including many small businesses that had just reopened after being closed due to COVID-19.

One of these businesses is Sunny Optometry, located at 1355 4th Street.

Santa Monica Grapples, see page 4

Open as an essential service for: • Taxes, consulting, help with all the new programs and problems, etc • Can work long distance, with email or the U.S. mail

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Santa Monica Fitness Instructor Called out for Racist Post

June 5 – June 11, 2020

Suspect at Large Who Shot at Police in Venice Officer shot at on May 31 on Lincoln Boulevard near Santa Monica border

By SAM CATANZAro

Johnson’s post apologizing for her post deemed by many racist.

Los Angeles Police are searching for a vehicle whose passengers or driver fired shots at officers Sunday in Venice near the Santa Monica border.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), on May 31, between 4 and 6:30 p.m., two shooting incidents occurred at Pacific Division officers. The shootings, which took place on Lincoln Boulevard between Rose and Machado streets, both involved a black Jeep

pictured above.

The first incident occurred around 4:15 p.m. when a female officer sustained a bullet ricochet injury to the foot. The Jeep seen in the photo above was spotted driving past the scene as the officer was shot.

While officers were holding the perimeter in response to the shooting, a police SUV was hit by bullets. According to the LAPD, officers observed the same eep in the area right before the second shooting before spotting it fleeing at a high speed after the shooting.

No persons have been identified as a suspect in this incident.

The LAPD is asking anybody who thinks they have encountered the Jeep pictured to contact Robbery-Homicide Division Detectives Santillan (ext. 30742) or Keyzer (ext. 30775) at (213) 486-6890.

Photos: Instagram

Sierra Johnson’s Instagram story from Tuesday.

Sierra Johnson, local fitness instructor, posts #WhiteWednesday tag on Instagram story

By SAM CATANZAro A Santa Monica fitness instructor is getting backlash for a post many are calling racist.

Fitness Racist, see page 4

Photo: LAPD

A Jeep involved in a police shooting in Venice.

County Cancels Junior Lifeguard Program COVID-19 health concerns put program on hold for 2020

By Toi Creel

The Los Angeles County Fire Department Junior Lifeguard Program has been around in LA County for years serving youth and teens of LA. However, in a recent May 13th Facebook post, the Lifeguard Division announced that the 2020 youth program has been suspended due to health concerns.

“At the direction of the Los Angeles County Fire Department and our partners at the Department of Public Health, the decision

has been made to suspend the 2020 Junior Lifeguard Program,” the caption reads.

In a letter sent out to participants and family members, the Department said they had been looking at ways to continue the program since March, but were not able to come up with a system consistent with public health guidelines.

The Junior Guard Program is offered to all boys and girls in Los Angeles County. The program is designed to instruct youth (ages 9 through 17) in beach and ocean skills. The program provides instruction in water safety, swimming, body surfing, surfing, physical conditioning, competition skills, first aid, lifesaving, rescue techniques, CPR and the use of professional lifesaving equipment.

For more information, visit www.fire.lacounty.gov/lifeguard

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June 5 – June 11, 2020

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June 5 – June 11, 2020

Petition Calls for Recall of Santa Monica Police Chief Following Looting Petition circulating calling for the recall of Santa Monica Police Department Chief Cynthia Renaud

By SAM CATANZAro Over 10,000 people have signed a petition calling for the immediate recall of Santa Monica’s police chief following widespread looting that occurred on Sunday.

The Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) has arrested over 450 people who have taken advantage of peaceful protests by looting and vandalizing hundreds of local businesses.

41 were made Monday and 438 were made on Sunday, according to the City, who has recorded 347 damage reports, including 84 reports of graffiti and 292 reports of damage to retail businesses, of which 155 indicated significant damage.

Despite these arrests, a petition is circulating calling on SMPD Chief Cynthia Renaud to be recalled due to the Department’s handling of the looting.

“After seeing the widespread looting and

Santa Monica Grapples, from page 1 “The team at Sunny Optometry was overwhelmingly excited to welcome back patients after a two month closure from the COVID-19 pandemic. After months of grueling planning, we managed to safely reopen our doors to serve our community and restore our teams’ lost jobs. On Sunday, May 31st, only two weeks after reopening, waves of brazen rioters and looters destroyed all that our team has built since 1985,” the store said in an email. “Amid

Fitness Racist, from page 2 On Tuesday, Sierra Johnson–a local fitness instructor–posted a photo on her public Instagram story with the hashtag “WhiteWednesday” (see above). The story was posted during “Blackout Tuesday”, a day promoted by activists to mourn and bring about policy change following the police killing of George Floyd with millions is users on Instagram posting solemn messages featuring stark black backgrounds.

In addition, Johnson singled out black people for destruction and damage that occurred in Santa Monica Monday, while people of all races participated in the looting.

While Johnson followed up on Wednesday with posts apologizing for her actions (see below), Burn Fitness– a workout studio on 3rd

vandalism of our city and local businesses, we can do better. After seeing our brave law enforcement officers stand by without strong leadership or overarching strategy to protect themselves, our city, and its citizens, we have to do better. After seeing SMPD Chief Cynthia Renaud conduct a blundering press conference that was completely misaligned with the current realities, we must do better,” reads the petition, which as of Monday 1 p.m. had over 1,000 supporters. “We need and deserve strong, resounding leadership in Santa Monica’s police force, particularly during today’s volatile times. SMPD Chief Cynthia Renaud has proven incapable of responding to that call effectively. For the sake of our community and public safety, we need to remove Cynthia Renaud from her position immediately.”

As of 4:40 p.m. Tuesday, the petition has collected over 12,000 signatures.

Among reasons people cited for signing was observing SMPD officers fire tear gas and rubber bullets at peaceful protestors while looting occurred nearby.

“Watching massive numbers of cops standing around in military formations monitoring protesters who were behaving lawfully, while 1,700 feet away violent criminals were running rampant is beyond unacceptable,” wrote a supporter named Steve.

Others took issue with lack of preparation on behalf of the Department considering the

the start of a protest in downtown Santa Monica, all day we helplessly witnessed our life’s work vandalized, stolen, and burned. The looters were so thorough they stole everything including receipt paper, pennies, and lint in our drawers before setting it all ablaze. We are eternally grateful for the brave police and firefighters who managed to mitigate the damage and prevent the office from becoming a pile of ash.”

41 were made Monday and 438 were made on Sunday, according to the City, who has recorded 347 damage reports, including 84 reports of graffiti and 292 reports of damage to retail

Street where Johnson used to be the General Manager–condemned the post.

“We truly appreciate you bringing this to our attention. She has not been with the company for several months. We absolutely DO NOT condone her words or actions and horrified to see this. We are deeply saddened and disturbed by what we have seen by our FORMER employee. We at Burn Fitness support the movement for reform, equality and hope you join us in our support for change,” Burn Fitness wrote in a statement to the Santa Monica Mirror.

Johnson in the photo is shown with what appears to be her partner Alister Konrath. The two individuals have their own fitness service called “ottophyllisfitness”. The Santa Monica Mirror has reached out to Johnson, Konrath and “ottophyllisfitness” for comment, but none could immediately be reached.

Photo: City of Santa Monica

Santa Monica police chief Cynthia Renaud at a press conference Monday evening.

damage neighboring Los Angeles experienced on Friday and Saturday night.

“City officials saw what happened in other LA jurisdictions, knew of the protest and did not proactively plan, prepare, forewarn or protect the residents and businesses from the

terrorist assault we had to endure…alone,” wrote a supporter named Sheri.

The SMPD and the City of Santa Monica addressed the petition in an interview with the Santa Monica Mirror which will appear online in the coming days and in print next week.

businesses, of which 155 indicated significant damage.

Despite these arrests, a petition is circulating calling on Renaud to be recalled due to the Department’s handling of the looting.

“After seeing the widespread looting and vandalism of our city and local businesses, we can do better. After seeing our brave law enforcement officers stand by without strong leadership or overarching strategy to protect themselves, our city, and its citizens, we have to do better. After seeing SMPD Chief Cynthia Renaud conduct a blundering press conference

that was completely misaligned with the current realities, we must do better,” reads the petition, which as of Monday 1 p.m. had over 1,000 supporters. “We need and deserve strong, resounding leadership in Santa Monica’s police force, particularly during today’s volatile times. SMPD Chief Cynthia Renaud has proven incapable of responding to that call effectively.

For the sake of our community and public safety, we need to remove Cynthia Renaud from her position immediately.”

As of 11:30 a.m. Thursday, over 37,00 people have signed the petition.

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June 5 – June 11, 2020

Seniors Left out Protect Santa in Santa Monica Monica Seniors Budget Cuts?

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Dear Editor,

As a long-time resident of Santa Monica, I raised my daughters and worked as an educator for close to forty years, retiring as the principal of Olympic High School, the Adult Education Center, and the Off Campus Learning Center of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. I want to voice my concerns about the proposed cut to the City of Santa Monica Human Services Grants Program. While I am glad to see that some funding was returned at the May 5th City Council meeting for afterschool programs and mental health support for children, I am especially concerned that we are forgetting critical services to seniors, our city’s most vulnerable residents.

Many of our senior residents do not have family to advocate and support them, and are socially isolated without a voice to speak out on their own behalf. WISE & Healthy Aging has been in our community for fifty years, and is the only multi-service social services agency in the city serving seniors and their caregivers. A loss of $123,000 in funding to WISE & Healthy Aging for services to our Santa Monica seniors would be devastating.

We are in hard economic times, and with the public health crisis, this is not the time to decrease services that contribute so significantly to the health and well-being of a highly at-risk population like the elderly.

Specifically, for WISE & Healthy Aging alone, the funding cut would impact six programs: Adult Day Care, Care Management, Nutrition Services, Senior Enrichment/Recreation, Transportation, and Senior Peer Counseling.

At the May 5 City Council meeting, the Council reinstated the funding cut for Meals on Wheels and the Westside Food Bank.

Funding reinstatement is needed for seniors served by WISE & Healthy Aging’s lunch program, providing boxed meals to more than three hundred Santa Monica seniors.

This funding also assists hundreds of seniors to access public benefits through the work of the social workers at WISE & Healthy Aging, as well as the critical mental health support provided by senior peer counselors.

I know that seniors have been trying to contact the City Council to raise their personal concerns. However, many, who are very low-income and living alone, do not have computers. With our public libraries closed these seniors do not have email access and are unable to send messages. Their attempts to call City Hall on the afternoon of the Council meeting resulted in being put on hold for so long they eventually hung up. As Council Members shelter at home, it’s highly likely that many written letters have not reached them.

At a time when we should be stepping up, or at a minimum keeping valuable resources and services intact, let’s not decrease the ability to provide assistance to the elderly in our community. While they may be isolated and have difficulty being heard, let’s remember that our seniors do vote.

WISE & Healthy Aging say cuts to program too steep

By Toi Creel Due to the severe financial impact of COVID-19 the city of Santa Monica has had to make $86.2 million dollars worth of cuts for ongoing programs.

One of the programs included within the cuts: the peer counseling program at WISE & Healthy Aging, a nonprofit social services organization.

The Program provides thousands of seniors with weekly services including meals, socialization and mental health support.

Santa Monica City Council met last Tuesday, and while funds were restored to Westside Food Bank, Meals on Wheels, and recently the Legal Aid Foundation, six other programs including WISE had to take cuts.

The proposed cut to WISE & Healthy Aging

is $123,310, which WISE members say is too steep, given the fact the company has not received any increase in City funds for the past 8 years. The city’s healthy lunches program has also not been restored.

“Just in that program, their 12% ‘across the board’ cut will result in 6,000 less meals that we’ll be able to serve Santa Monica seniors,” said Grace Cheng Braun, President and CEO of WISE & Healthy Aging.

At the current budget, the Peer Counseling Program has no full time employees. Two clinicians share a role and lead the program, training and supervising 30+ peer counselors.

During the pandemic most of these services have had to turn virtual, but organizers say they still help. They say the cuts impacts societies most vulnerable.

“Unlike children and other adults who are starting to go out again, seniors who face the highest risk for death as a consequence of contracting COVID-19 will not have that option and have far less support systems in place,” said Ellen Satkin, a WISE supporter.

Sincerely, Janie Yuguchi Gates, Ed.D. Santa Monica Resident Former Principal, Olympic High School

Seniors rally against budget cuts on May 28.

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Photo: Grace Cheng Braun

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June 5 – June 11, 2020

Santa Monica Overwhelmed

OPINION

“Why did the SMPD only focus on the non-violent protestors on Ocean Avenue and Montana Avenue and ignore the massive criminal enterprise that was destroying the city that we love?” asks Phil Brock in the latest SMa.r.t. Column.

SMa.r.t.

Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow

“Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech...or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” 1st Amendment, Bill of Rights ~ Chaos, anguish, despair, and lawlessness gripped our city on Sunday. By Monday, anger, disbelief, and heartbreak were the words of choice. One Hundred Fifty-Five businesses had “significant” damage. Over Three Hundred Fifty

reported some loss. Nine fires set. Citations issued to Four Hundred Thirty-Eight people.

None spent a night in jail. A petition to remove the Chief of Police has garnered over 37,000 signatures in five days. ~ I marched in the peaceful protest in Palisades Park from Montana to Colorado and back at Noon, Sunday, May 31. Approximately 200 Santa Monicans walked to protest the slaying of Minneapolis resident George Floyd.

It included 8 minutes, forty-six seconds of silence to commemorate the amount of time that the policeman (now charged with 2nd-degree murder) kept his knee on George’s neck. The procession included a variety of residents, both young and old, furious at the unjust killing of

yet another black man in our nation. A squad of SMPD motor units and Culver City police officers met the peaceful protest at Montana at Ocean as we returned to the starting point.

The officers in riot gear appeared to be overkill for this small neighborhood march, and their appearance revved up the protestors. Eventually, the motor cops abruptly departed, and a segment of peaceful protestors walked east on Montana and through the NOMA neighborhood for several hours. I left the march and moved south on 4th Street. ~ I arrived downtown just after the looting began in earnest. There were police stationed on each block of the Promenade, but none to be seen elsewhere in our city’s core. SMPD arrived

Photo: Sam Catanzaro

in force to chase criminals from Santa Monica Place. Our police refused to venture a halfblock east to confront the hundreds of looters marauding along Fourth Street. I stood at 4th and Arizona, desperately calling 911 as I saw each store invaded. SMPD responded to one of my calls - throngs of looters using tire irons and hammers on Bank of America. The looters ran, and our officers turned and headed back towards the ocean. I watched as looters continued to ransack Wasteland, Road Runner, and Patagonia. ~ Each looter would fill their arms with merchandise, run through the B of A and Chase parking lots, and deposit their goods in cars

SMa.r.t, see page 9

June 5 – June 11, 2020

SMa.r.t, from page 8 idling on 5th and Arizona. Then they would reverse course and return for more. Young, high school, college-age, female, and male, with stylish getaway cars (some rented), became a mob scene. I spent two hours on the streets of downtown Santa Monica as total lawlessness gripped it. It was as if our Police Department had gone on strike just as a massive swath of gang bangers drove into our town. Cue an old Western B-Movie where the sheriff knows the gang outnumbers him on the way into town throws down his badge and leaves. It is hard to describe the feelings I had. The utter despair of knowing that the merchants were on their own, that there would be no help for those attacked.

The extreme frustration of calling 911 twice to say that looters were breaking into T-Mobile and seeing no response when the SMPD officers at Wilshire Blvd and the Promenade could see the break-in occurring. Watching the looters block Wilshire and 4th so their compatriots could load up the cars with hot merchandise was especially depressing. Five minutes later, I called 911 again as the windows at Kurt’s Jeweler’s shattered.

You guessed it, no response. It was an organized mob of looters from the LA area. Posts on social media had advertised the event all day. It was not a secret that the criminals were coming. The party was on, but SMPD chose not to attend. ~ After viewing the unrest and looting at Beverly Center, Rodeo Drive, Farmers Market, and the Grove Saturday afternoon, and downtown Los Angeles Friday night, it was apparent that wealthy Santa Monica was the next target. Why weren’t downtown business owners warned so they could ready themselves for the onslaught? They could have boarded up or stayed in their shops and prepared. Some of the establishments that had armed guards or owners who were armed went unharmed. If the Santa Monica Police could not defend Downtown Santa Monica (DTSM), they were obligated to let businesses know that they were on their own. ~ Why did the SMPD only focus on the non-violent protestors on Ocean Avenue and Montana Avenue and ignore the massive criminal enterprise that was destroying the city that we love? They received over 700 emergency calls that day. Overwhelming, yes, but why was looting overlooked? Officers watched as the Nike store was laid bare. Van’s lost everything. Officers abandoned the remainder of DTSM as well as Lincoln Blvd, and the list goes on. Why didn’t we box in the looters and seal our downtown streets? Again, we knew this was coming. Our city suffered no damage in the Rodney King riots of 1992. We sealed the borders, enforced curfews, and posted Police everywhere. This time, SMPD failed. Convincing threats to the Pier had been received, but looters and agitators didn’t access that landmark. We tear-gassed the mostly peaceful demonstrators, along with a few bad apples who wanted to confront any police officers they saw. During the entire time that SMPD was confronting the protestors, criminals ran rampant—almost four hours without police units in DTSM and throughout the city. Why weren’t we confronting looters the way we were confronting protestors? ~ I believe a police presence throughout our city would have prevented the disaster that occurred. I do not comprehend why we did not request the National Guard until 12:30 PM Sunday when we knew a hurricane of looters was

WWW.SMMIRROR.COM

coming Sunday afternoon. We had mutual aid officers present from other cities, the Sheriff’s Department standing by, and yet no officers to lock down DTSM. To most residents, there was a total abject failure to care for our public safety. ~ My mother lives next to a car dealership, and my significant other was with her as looters smashed the windows at the dealership. They called 911 to report that Santa Monica BMW was under siege. The 911 operator was apologetic, “No one to send.” Later, when the police began to push the protestors east on Broadway, my 92-year-old mother called to inform me that looters and protestors were accessing apartment houses on her block. The police had pushed demonstrators into the residential areas, and many of them roamed the Mid-City Neighborhoods until after 10 PM. Again, no response from SMPD. ~ Days later, this horrific experience is still raw, but healing comes quickly. The sun rose on Monday to a renewed sense of community spirit. Throngs of Santa Monicans fanned out throughout our city to remove broken glass from our streets, clean graffiti, and comfort merchants who had lost everything. Of particular note, the Samohi grads who own and operate the Santa Monica Music Center. Lana Fernandez Negrete and her family have been great friends of our schools and music community for years. Looters cleaned them out. Wonders of the World owner Henry Runch watched as marauders pillaged his unrivaled collection of crystals and ancient artifacts and beat him. After being closed for ten weeks due to COVID-19, it cost him $10,000 to board his store. Both of the above stores have launched Go Fund Me pages.

They need our help. ~ We love our Santa Monica Police Department. I have friends who spent their law enforcement careers here, and I’ve always felt I could rely on them in times of need. The vacuum of leadership in the SMPD and City Hall is extremely unsettling to me. We need to dig deep and examine the failures of May 31. A thorough, independent, no holds barred investigation is required. While we’re at it, the trust of the community in our police is compromised. There is a solution. Establish a Police Commission with teeth. Top-notch civilian oversight of all Police Departments is a must. It is time for action in Santa Monica. “What are we paying our police force for if they are not making arrests on the most violent crime-ridden day in the history of the city.” - Josh Levy, resident. ~ Overshadowed by the tragic events of the week, nationally and locally, there is still a pandemic—Santa Monica’s tally: 493 cases of COVID-19 and 47 deaths. As always, we wish a speedy recovery to those affected and grieve those we have lost. Have compassion, WEAR A MASK. His final words echo across the world. “I can’t breathe, please, sir, please, please, please, I can’t breathe.”

By Phil Brock for SMart (Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow) Thane Roberts, Architect, Robert H. Taylor AIA, Ron Goldman FAIA, Architect, Dan Jansenson, Architect, Building and FireLife Safety Commission, Samuel Tolkin Architect, Mario Fonda-Bonardi, AIA, Planning Commissioner, Phil Brock, Santa Monica Arts Commission.

For previous articles see www.santamonicaarch.wordpress.com/writing.

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June 5 – June 11, 2020

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FILM REVIEW: “Upload”

idyllic hotel that has a Hudson River Valley vibe. The stand-in is real hotel, the Mohonk Mountain House in New York State.

The script does its best to stay nondenominational and universal. The characters celebrate the “Winter Holidays,” not Christmas. The settings reflect both big city and small town. The show takes jabs at today’s corporate culture. Major companies have devoured each other and become huge conglomerates marketing crazy combinations of products – branding invades both life and afterlife.

This is a bold new series, bold in that it tackles questions that have existed in the human mind since time immemorial, and it does so in an imaginative, creative and often touching way. The current restrictions caused by the Pandemic give us an immediate sensitivity to the isolation of the afterworld.

This show could fail on so many levels, but it doesn’t. In fact it gets more intriguing with each episode. By the end of Season 1 you may be under its spell, so you’ll be happy it’s been picked up for Season 2.

Kathryn Whitney Boole has spent most of her life in the entertainment industry, which has been the backdrop for remarkable adventures with extraordinary people. She is a Talent Manager with Studio Talent Group in Santa Monica. kboole@gmail.com.

Mary FealkoFF 310.488.6502 fealkoff.com

Photos: Courtesy

Andy Allo performs with Prince.

BEHIND THE SCREEN

By Kathryn Whitney Boole Upload has the guise of a cute rom-com.

However it tackles ancient philosophical questions against a futuristic reality of 2033. Its premise is that people can upload their conscience, for a price, to an artificial Intelligence existence after death. The Living can interact with them via VR headsets. Reps of the company that provides the service control the afterlife experiences, channeling a futuristic Punch and Judy Show. The idea is a little scary, or hopeful, or at times hilarious.

It is certainly universal.

Greg Daniels created Upload. His latest projects, The Office and Parks and

Recreation, are two of the most successful series’ in recent history. Daniels creates simple relatable settings and populates them with relatively unknown actors who are fascinating people, who then go on to become household names. The Office (2005-2013) produced Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Mindy Kaling, Steve Carell, Ellie Kemper.

Parks and Recreation ran from 2009 to 2020 and catapulted the careers of Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Aziz Ansari, and Adam Scott.

I’ll be interested to see how the careers of the stars of Upload take off. Canadian actor Robbie Amell plays “Nathan.” He’s been acting since the age of 6 when he won the role of little “Daniel Murtaugh” in Cheaper by the Dozen. A major hockey fan, he once thought of going pro. Says Amell, “I was playing a relatively high level of hockey and I thought that’s what I wanted to do. But I had my first

movie audition, and I was hooked.”

Andy Allo, “Nora,” was born in Cameroon where her Dad is an ecologist. She grew up there and in California where her Mom was born. An accomplished musician, she started piano at the age of 7. While in college she formed her own band, Allo and the Traffic Jam, and released an album of original songs.

Prince asked her to tour with his band in 2011, and she spent years writing and performing with him. Her first acting job was on the series The Game in 2011. She was in Pitch Perfect 3 and had a recurring role on Chicago Fire. This is her first Series Regular role.

Kevin Bigley, Allegra Edwards, Zainab Johnson, Chris Williams, Matt Ward and Owen Daniels (yup, he’s Greg’s son) round out the regulars. Never heard of them? That may change soon.

Oh and another “character” is the Lake View VR hotel where the “uploads” live, an

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11

“The Fundamentals of Caring” An Uplifting Film Streaming on Netflix CENTER STAGE

With Beverly Cohn, Editor-At-Large

The storyline in “The Fundamentals of Caring” is not original. Written and directed

by Rob Burnett, it is based on the novel “The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving” by Jonathan Evison. We saw a similar treatment of the subject of a severely handicapped person, whose caretaker changes his life, as well as his own, in “The Intouchables,” a French film dealing with that theme, as did the subsequent “The Upside,” the American version of that film. One might ask why was this theme repeated successfully in three different films?

The reason is a similarity in the humanity of the characters. Based on actual events, we witness the angst of two deeply troubled people, each of whom experiences renewal and redemption through each other.

In “The Fundamentals of Caring,” released

by Netflix in 2016, Ben, stirringly played by Paul Rudd, is a lost man. He is a father who is no longer a father, a writer who no longer writes, with a wife who no longer wishes to be his wife.

Faced with his tattered life, Ben decides to train as a caregiver and after completing a six-week session, applies for his first job as caretaker to Trevor, a severely handicapped young man with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, brilliantly played by Craig Roberts. His nononsense English mom Elsa, skillfully played

by Jennifer Ehle, is both a registered caregiver and manager of a local bank. On interviewing Ben, she is uncertain as to whether or not she should hire him because her 18-year-old would be his first case. Confined to a wheelchair, potty mouth Trevor, is angry, frustrated sexually, and tries to intimidate the applicant by rattling off unpleasant requirements of the job. Ben stays centered even when Trevor taunts him, “You’ll have to wipe the shit from my ass,” replying, “I’ll do whatever is necessary.” Satisfied, he tells his mom to hire him. In the beginning, the relationship is not easy. Trevor is angry most of the time, barking orders, and sticks to a rigid daily schedule. He occasionally feigns choking which scares the hell out of Ben, who later does an one-upmanship. Realizing that his ward is living a life of not-so-quiet desperation, he proposes a road trip. At first Trevor’s mom says no because of the amount of meds he’s on as well as his sleep apnea machine. However, with assurances from Ben that he will take excellent care of him, she relents and off they go in the handicap van to visit The World’s Deepest Pit. Trevor remains rigid and the verbal fencing between them continues. He remains unwilling to try any new foods and definitely turns down a Slim Jim (beef jerky.) Ben tries to get him to eat French toast instead of his daily waffles, but to no avail. That is about to change as while stopping at a diner, they spot a sexy young girl named Dot, perfectly played

by Selena Gomez, a run-away who is trying to hitch a ride. Trevor is clearly attracted to her and Ben tells him to offer her a lift, which he chickens out of doing. Back in the car, a short time later, they encounter her again, and this time she climbs into the car with them.

She’s rather sardonic, smokes, and matches Trevor’s potty mouth with a preponderance of

Photos: Courtesy of Netflix

L-R: Jennifer Ehle as Trevor’s mom Elsa, Craig Roberts as Trevor & Paul Rudd as Ben in “The Fundamentals of Caring” currently streaming on Netflix.

Craig Roberts as Trevor and Paul Rudd as Ben, Trevor’s caretaker. .

Trevor (Craig Roberts,) his caretaker Ben (Paul Rudd,) the very pregnant Peaches (Megan Ferguson,) and Dot (Selena Gomez) are all together on this special road trip.

Trevor (Craig Roberts) on a road trip with his caretaker Ben (Paul Rudd,) refuses to taste the Slim Jim.

“F-bombs.” Behind the mutual rough exteriors, the seeds of young love are sprouting. Next up is a pregnant young woman named Peaches, beautifully characterized by Megan Ferguson, who is standing next to her stalled car. She is on the way to her mother’s home to have the baby and she shares that her husband is on his second tour in the military. Ben invites her to join them and now the four of them are off to their destination. On the way, Trevor shares that his father left when he was three-years-old when he found out about his disorder and that the only communication has been letters that he never opened. They all encourage a visit to the car dealership where his dad Bob (Frederick Weller) works. It is not a successful encounter as the dad says that he never wrote those letters and that Trevor’s mom did. He offers money, which disgusts his son who turns his wheelchair around and leaves angrily, demanding to go home. However, the girls persuade him that they have to see the big hole and off they go.

One evening, in a motel, Trevor works up the nerve to ask Dot to have dinner with him.

It’s a charming scene of two teenagers having dinner and chatting away. In another scene, Ben and Trevor arrive at the site of the biggest bovine in the world. Unfortunately, the beast is upstairs and there is no elevator. Ben becomes indignant and accuses the owner of violating the Americans With Disabilities Act and that he was going to report him. The owner figures out a solution, which involved carrying the

Trevor (Craig Roberts) works up the courage to ask Dot (Selena Gomez) for a date.

wheelchair up a narrow flight of stairs and thus Trevor saw this gargantuan cow.

Things are going smoothly when Peaches suddenly goes into labor with the outcome successfully in Ben’s hands. The new mom and her baby are whisked off by ambulance to the nearest hospital and Dot reunites with her father, played by Bobby Cannavale, who had been following Ben’s van throughout the trip, with him thinking it was a process server hired by his wife.

In an earlier conversation, Ben asked his

charge what he wants to do more than anything.

His answer was “I’d like to pee standing up.”

The resolution of that dream is one that will have you cheering. And, in my opinion, is why

we have seen a variation on this theme several

times. We all need something to cheer about, don’t you think?

12

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