HAPPINESS IS NOT AN AQUISTION
– BE HAPPY NOW – YOU ARE IN CONTROL
Hi Guys,
Yeah, Yeah I know you haven’t seen a Capo update in a while…let me explain.
New Year is a time we look back and forward at the same time. Back on all the things we hopefully learned and accomplished in 2015 and forward to all the things from our self imposed “To Do’ list that we will accomplish in 2016! But remember along the way to live in the NOW…and enjoy each moment as it unfolds.
NOW with that being said, you know I love living life and have the attitude of a child looking at the world as one big toy store to explore…. so I was having fun doing that and didn’t do as many Capo updates as I wanted…so here is the summary of what I did in 2015. Hope it inspires you to go out there and live life NOW…not when you are retired, or 85 or 95…but NOW!
NOW…. besides my ongoing stuff you know I do: producing my monthly Fran Capo Productions Dinner- Comedy Shows at Roma’s; Doing comedy shows at Mohegan Sun, Comedy Cabaret, Four Seasons in New Jersey, Seven Angels and many other comedy rooms to great audiences; Writing adventure blogs for www.travelingmoms.com #TMOM; and doing movie reviews with John Basedow. Here is some other stuff I did during in 2015. …Enjoy!
You’ll need a cup of coffee for this…it may take a few minutes to read…
2015 TOP 50 CAPO HIGHLIGHTS:
(NOT EVERYTHING I DID BUT THE HIGHLIGHTS)
JANUARY 2015
1. Ran into the New Year in my neighborhood, with my son Spencer, Fiancée Steve, and Steve’s friend Butch. Well Butch didn’t run, he ‘decided to eat chocolate instead in our house. Steve felt he was having a heart attack…but I think it was just his way of trying to get some sympathy, and get back to eating chocolate with Butch.
Jan. 8, 2015-
2. Met this wonderful woman, Deborah Shimer who called me after reading, “Hopeville: The City of Light “and wanted to order a bunch of copies ASAP. Naturally I did the only logical thing, I found out where she lived and talked my darling Steve into hand delivering them to her. Hey it was on his way to get a haircut, why not!
Jan 23-25-
3. On last minute notice decided to fly to Maine to walk up an ice covered Cadillac Mountain – in the dark, with my friends Gail and Puzzle Artist Alli Berman. Why? Because Alli is a nut like me, it was her birthday and it’s the first place the sun comes up in the East. Talk about a slippery Slope!!! Nothing a cane and some crampons couldn’t handle…But Ill tell you one thing – No other nutty people were out there! Although we did hear some howling, (And yes we had a guide, and it wasn’t him.)
LIVE IT UP! With Donna Drake. –
4. I’m the monthly Adventure correspondent on the Live it Up! With Donna Drake TV Show.
Every month I talk about new adventure people can try to spice up life. Everything from Tornado Chasing, to crawling in the belly of a Cave (what did you think I’d say whale?) to Flyboarding.
Here’s a sample show I did:
LiveItUp Adventure Show
Where to watch live it up!
http://www.liveituptvshow.com/tv_listing.html
FEBRUARY
5. THE GREAT ESCAPE –
Grabbed a bunch of friends, 10 to be exact and had ourselves locked in a room (Yes we paid to do this) and had to think our way out in under an hour. We did it with 7 minutes to spare…Tell you one thing, shows you who you’d like to be stuck in a dessert island with if you had to survive! Here’s the whole story!
click to TravelingMom story
MARCH
6. March 18- FINALLY A RING!!!!
Out to Long Island to Brett Jeweler’s aka Uncle Marvin’s place and picked up my engagement ring! (Backstory – Steve had proposed to me in 2002 and had bought me a Sportster – (that’s a Harley Davidson motorcycle)…but since my feet never “reached the pedals”…we sold it. With that money I designed an engagement ring instead! Complete with all the colors I love!) Then I drove straight from there, while trying not to stare at my ring the whole way, to perform at the Parx Casino. (Great crowd but had to make sure I timed my jokes in between the slot machines J )
March 19-
7.“Light and Laughter talk” At Ossining Library.
Did the talk then had a great one-on-one with people in audience. Everyone there bought a book!
8. FRIARS CLUB- Joined the Friar’s softball team (even though I never played the game.) Had our first batting practice, hit 19 out of 20 balls. I just had to learn the rules. Got advice from friends…they said, “Ask to be put out in right field because there’s no action out there and whatever you do, stay away from being a catcher!” A week later we played our first game in Central park. I was all decked out in my Team shirt. Next thing I know, I’m the catcher! I’m trying to convince the coach this is not a good thing. So there I am first time on the field not really sure of how to catch this thing except what I see on TV. So I whisper to the Umpire, “Pssst, It’s my first game, what do I need to know?” He says, “Your most important job is protect me, the Umpire!” So there I am blocking the ball so he doesn’t get hit. I play the first inning, so I figure I’m done. I eat some cookies that fellow Friar Nancy Lombardo made…All of a sudden I hear, “Capo get out on the field.” “Why?” I ask as I’m chewing on the cookie. Coach yells, “Because, It’s the next inning!” And here I thought my job was done.
After the game, I tell that story on Facebook, and wouldn’t you know it, I get asked to be a part of a Celebrity Softball game for a game in July. Apparently people did not read what I wrote carefully! But what the hell, I accepted.
9. HAIR!!!!
Found out great news! The “Hair” Documentary I was in, in 2014, won BEST DOCUMENTARY at the IFS FILM FESTIVAL! Sasha Boudreaux Guy Boudreaux was the director on the project. We shot my part at my house, and it became the teaser of the movie!!!
Wrote some articles for an online magazine to help people in speaking world. (So if you speak…you should read this!) Here’s one of those articles. Speak Funny
APRIL:
April 15 –
WORD!
10. Okay I have plenty of Words…but there is this new hot trend happening called “The Word.” Basically, it’s storytelling at it’s finest and is being done down in Greenwich Village. So Nancy Lombardo tells me all the celebrity comics are doing it, and that I should do it too. So I talk to Terri Mintz the lady running it, and submit my online audition. Turns out the night I’m supposed to perform I have a really bad sore throat, but I decide to do it anyway. So, there I am downing hot water and lemon and trying not to drown in fluids as I squeak out the story of the Titanic. Luckily my voice holds out and I get a great response from the sold out crowd…couldn’t talk for the next few days but it was well worth it.
April 16-18 DISNEY’S WILD KINGDOM
11. With no voice I fly to Florida hoping to find one on the plane. I’m heading to the annual TMOM convention where we bloggers are invited to review rides, food and animals (Yeah tough job but someone has to do it.) The animals personally don’t seem to care much what you say about them, but Disney sure likes if you are happy. I fly home Saturday afternoon, just in time to use my itty bitty, now very sultry voice to host my comedy show at Rocco’s in CT.
April 19- JFK RUN.
12. What better way to re-cooperate from a non stop week, but to get up at 8 a.m. and consciously decided to run down a runway being chased by 747! Okay, the plane wasn’t chasing us…but we (Me, Alli, Gail (the trio from Cadillac Mountain remember?) all decided it was necessary to see what it would feel like to run on a runway. One thing for sure, the runway seems a lot shorter when you are sitting in a plane than running on it!
April 20- THE SUNSET SERIES
13. Shoot a commercial for the local festival in Putnam called the “Sunset Series.” What started out as me going into town to pay taxes, wound up as me giving advice on how publicize their annual event which turned into me writing, producing, acting in, casting local talent (which includes getting the local pizza man to play the accordion and dance) and teaching the local High School students about production. It was an awesome experience and it aired for months on the Local Channel…and believe it or not, more people in town saw me on that commercial than all of my national shows put together! Never underestimate the power of local TV in your hometown! I also wound up getting a very talented intern, Mike Ruta out of it.
MAY
Blast from the Past:
14. So I get contacted from a guy Barry Z that I had worked with back when I first started doing stand up …he now has a TV show at Chelsea Studios and out of the blue asks me if I’d like to be on it…of course I say yes! Then I get there and run into Rhonda Hansome a fantastic comic that I worked with years ago who opened for whole list big stars. I wind up booking her at Roma’s!
Do More Comedy shows and radio shows…
Sunset Series LIVE:
15. Why stop at doing a commercial for the Sunset Series, if I can also perform live at the event. So after a 5k Race and local parade, I host the “Woodstock like event.” It airs on the local channel and
And again the town people think of me as the local celebrity…who knew local TV had so much power! Move over Oprah!!!
JUNE EVENTS:
VISIT OUR LADY IN GREEN.
16. Tour the Statue of Liberty Crown with friend Rose. All I can say was as a kid those winding stairs seemed a lot bigger! And if you haven’t done it get CROWN tickets way in advance…they are sold out MONTHS before.
17. THE BIG DAY!!!
June 5th – Steve and I decide after 15 years to make it official and we become Domestic Partners…head on down to town hall, sign the papers, kiss, then get back to work…at some point we’ll get married…but hey why rush! (Oh and why June 5th? It was Steve’s birthday and he said he wanted that for his present…but I know the real reason…it was his way of never forgetting! (A slick but very smart man move!)
18. BIGVISION – A cool fundraiser with lots of comics performing for teenagers at the Actors Temple. Radio host, George Bettinger with the help of Nancy Lombardo, put the event together. A cool way to show teens, you don’t have to drink to have fun!
19. Comedy Cures- One of many comedy shows myself and many comics have done for their non-profit organization that helps cancer patients and their caretakers…but this time I did my humorous motivational talk instead.
Beer Motivation
20. Miller- Coors – Got flown to Milwaukee to do my “Dare to Do it” talk for their employees. Great time, great bunch (and they were sober of course) But afterwards at the office party, I was given a special tour of the factory. I almost shut down the plant by accidently sticking my arm out to point to something…. luckily with a few touches of a switch things were up and running again. WHEW! There would have been a lot of angry beer drinkers otherwise!
RADIO HOUEWIVES_
21. Sizzle Reel for TV Pilot Complete:
Finally got to finishing our Radio-Housewives Reel…. but the rest is hush, hush so I’ll let you know as that unfolds.
JULY- SUMMER ADVENTURES!
July 1 –
22. First Time Ever Performing at Legendary Friars Club! It was an all woman show. I was nervous because you are performing in front of all other performers. There were lots of rules about what to and not to say or do. But do I EVER listen to rules? Not on stage. I’m a rule breaker following my gut with the audience. It went over well…even when I told one guy he looked like he was a Mafia guy named, Fat Joe…turns out that was really his name! Luckily my last name is Capo…not sure but maybe our families have done business in past. Just sayin!
July 11-
23. Went Flyboarding with my son, Spencer. What is heck that you say? Basically the closest thing you can do to feeling like iron man, where you rise out of the water and shoot 40 feet into the air, then splash down into the water. There is a lot of smashing before you get it right.
Let’s go to the videotape:
Flyboarding Adventure
July 16 –
24. Taped another “secret” Sizzle reel for another TV show…more hush hush stuff.
July 17 & 18
25. First comic to ever perform at the “Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Festival”, honoring Mother Mary. Put together with Kacey from WHUD radio. A festival that has been running for 93 years! Show went great, and yes of course I prayed to Mother Mary to make sure all was okay with her that I was doing it! Even saints like to laugh.
July 25 – 37 AGAIN!!!
26. My 3rd annual wild Birthday party event, (with close friends)
This time I had sumo wrestling contests, a giant inflatable obstacle course, survival tactics games and llamas. The llamas are now a part of the family.
AUGUST ADVENTURES!
27. INSANE INFLATABLE 5 K RUN
Convinced my son and his girlfriend that it would be a great idea to run 3 miles hurling over giant rubber obstacles, and have giant rubber balls thrown at you. It was tiring but fun. Word to the wise, you need a good bra for this, lest you be bouncing more than the inflatables.
HOWE CAVERN – What’s behind that damn door tour!
28. Howe Caverns is so much more than caving now. They have obstacle courses, and a giant Zorbing Ball! It’s the only place on the East Coast that has it. They call it a 02 ball at Howe Caverns. It’s like a giant rubber Gerbil ball filled with water, they roll you down a giant hill and you tumble to the bottom…you don’t drown, it’s only filled enough to get you wet and get you rolling. It’s fun and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. Then we crawled around in Howe Cavern in the part of the cave that has been closed for 100 years! We came out totally muddy, but it was awesome to explore what has been hidden for over a century. More to come on this, as you should try it as an adventure in 2016.
Flotation tank –
29. So now it was time to take my Step-daughter Jamie on an adventure. So I took her to Rise Above Floatation tank located at 111 E. Main Street in Mt. Kisco. A beautiful peaceful, clean facility run by a husband-wife team. In case you haven’t heard of these tanks…they are called Flotation tanks aka deprivation tanks (Why because you are deprived of all your senses.) You float in various size tanks, filled with about a foot of salt water. You are alone, naked in the dark, in silence. With only you and your thoughts. You keep your eyes open and after a time, all space and time disappears and a world of creativity opens up.
When I first went years ago they only had one place to do it in Manhattan, in some guy’s bathroom. Now there are many places that do it…but I liked this one the best. I’ve done it 5 times since. (More on this as well for 2016) –
30.ROMA COMMERCIAL SHOOT
Then after the relaxing meditation I ran over (okay drove) to Roma’s to tape a local commercial for our Dinner-Comedy show… That commercial is running…you guessed it on the Local TV stations…and people once again are recognizing me…. Love it!
31. August 17th – Hopeville Radio Interview.
Click here to listen
SEPTEMBER BUSINESS
32. My club ROCCO’S in Brookfield, CT CLOSES!
(Boo, hiss, tears) IT had been running for over 15 years, and the comedy was running for 6 years. But the owners decided to close their doors, a sad goodbye to a wonderful place.
But my ROMA’s room in Westchester, NY lives on – 7 years Strong!
(NEXT SHOW – Friday, Jan. 16, 2016!!! Doors Open 7 PM – for reservations call – 914-528-0800
33.WHUD RADIO – Recorded 5 motivational segments based on lessons from my book “Hopeville” to run on WHUD radio for Kacey’s “Health and Happiness’ show that airs Sunday mornings at 6 AM on 100.7 WHUD in the Hudson Valley.
34.NEWTOWN LIBRARY SHOW –
So why would I perform at a Library? To do story telling of course…but this night was special. I got to perform with fellow Friar Barry Dohergty (The historian at the Friar’s Club!) and my comedy protégé Astrid. So proud of her…I was contacted by her teacher for a final project she was working on where she wanted to learn how to become a stand up comic. So I trained her…and she wound up doing this show with us and did a great job! You see you can teach funny!
35. EXILED OUT EAST- Played bitchy PR lady in new online Episodic web series…classy chic I was, chewing bagels and making deals on phone at the same time…Airing soon.
OCTOBER MADNESS
36.UNDERWORLD ADVENTURE- Oct 16-119
– Decide to drive out to Kentucky to crawl in some more caves. This time with my friend PO Barbara Noyes. We pack in two caves: Mega Cavern – where we zip lined in the dark (end’s anyone’s fear of heights since you can’t see where the hell you are going) and Mammoth cave where we do a grueling, (on our stomachs crawl) for 6 hours, yes I choose to do this…only problem was my helmet was too big so I kept having to adjust it, hard to crawl when you can’t see! I told those people I had a small head, but they didn’t believe me…and the knee pads and elbow pads were too big too, so I’m crawling on rock and getting all bruised…But I kept thinking if our soldiers can do this kind of stuff, so can I. (More on this story as well…stay tuned for link)
37. CAT WALK
After crawling in the belly of the earth for two days, we decided to see the light. So we drove to West Virginia to the longest single span steel arch bridge in the Western Hemisphere, and did the New River Gorge, CAT WALK. (You know the same bridge they bungee jump a GMC Truck off of.)
So there we are perched high above the gorgeous river, with tons of cars over us, and we find out we can zip line off this baby! So we decided we would come back in October to test our nerves. (Anyone want to come?)
Oct. 21st LIFE LOCK COMMERCIAL.
37. So my body was a tad bruised from crawling around caves for two days and I get a call to do background work on a commercial. I did that years ago and it was long hours but pretty easy so I say, “Sure, why not!” Little did I know the commercial was about a bank hold up and for the next 4 hours I would play a bank patron who had to drop to the floor every time the robbers yelled, “This is a stick up, everybody down!” It was more like stunt work without the helmet and pads. Bu the commercial is now running…watch closely or you’ll miss my great action!
Here’s the spot. Lifelock extra work: Lifelock Spot
Oct. 27-
38. Gagootz TV Show – on Madhouse TV
Did this show talking about all the crazy things I do, and that Hopeville: The City of Light was given to all the soldiers in e-book form who asked for it as my gift to them while I was in South Korea.
Got a email from producer the next day saying they received over 300 emails of people loving the show, and it was their highest rated show ever…I was very touched.
Oct 28th –
39. Halloween and Spiritual Stories at the Putnam Historical Society.
It was a dark and rainy night (Really, it was…) and there I am telling haunted stories from my books, “Myths and Mysteries of New York” and “Myths and Mysteries of New Jersey” …the room was a sold out crowd. Candles flickered as I told the stories. Children were huddled next to their parents, I sat in a big chair with a skeleton by my side…Just then as I was talking about the dead, the Skelton jumped out of the chair and started to dance! (Okay that didn’t happen)…but it was a awesome night and I ended by leaving everyone on a happy note with my story of Hopeville…and of course, thanks to everyone sold a lot of all my books.
NOVEMBER:
40. PFIZER GIG – Played an Imposter at a Pfizer seminar where I pretended I was a nervous sales rep who was asked to summarize the two day event for those who came late…of course I did it really fast then revealed I was the fastest talker. The theme was “World Record Mentality” so they had a lot of things based on breaking your boundaries…so naturally when they had a planking contest; I figured I give it a shot. I had never planked more than 1 minute before, but broke the woman’s planking record there at 4 minutes and 10 seconds. At one point while I was doing it, they checked to make sure my stomach wasn’t holding me up! Jeez I’m not that fat! Met a lot of great people who were really concerned with helping people with their health.
41. Nov. 12 – Pranking Dr. OZ during sweeps week.
Posing as a friend of a nurse Glen I shock doctor Oz with rapid-fire hiccup cure.
https://francapo.com/pranking-dr-oz/
Nov. 17- Tea with Liz Smith
42. My dear friend Tea expert extraordinaire, Ellen Easton, put together a private Tea thank you for contributors to the Literary Partners Foundation. I donated some books to the cause. Liz Smith was there as this foundation is close to her heart. Thank goodness I had taken tea etiquette lessons from Ellen on my TV show, “Fran’s World.”
Nov. 18 – CRAZY Day
43. FIRST GUEST ON NEW RADIO SHOW:
My dear friend, TV HOST Donna Drakes of “Live it Up!” has expanded her empire and started doing a Radio show. She asked me to be her first guest. But some crazy last minute stuff make me have to hop in the car to get to help a friend. So you hear me getting GPS directions from my car as I’m doing the interview, which was right after I calmed my stepdaughter down who had just hit a deer. This is real life to the minute type interview!! www.bbmglobalnetwork.com
Then onto a Shiva for my friend Mandy who’s mom passed away. The Shiva ended at 9 but she told me still to come anyway. One thing lead to another and Mandy says my bra doesn’t look like it fits right, so she had some bras of her mom’s she wanted me to try on. I was like, “Mandy, I’m Catholic, but still pretty sure it’s not normal to come to a Shiva and leave with bras from the deceased.” Then she offers me some of her clothes. I wound up sleeping over, and we talked till 4 a.m. To this day when I am held up by the bras I thank her mom.
DECEMBER
44.Dec. 3rd. – Screwing Sheldon
For those of you on Facebook, you may remember that I had a tooth pulled back in the summer. I found out in the dentist’s office that that the bone they would be putting in my mouth was from a human cadaver. Not wanting a dead stranger in my mouth, I decided to name the bone so I could feel closer to it. I named the bone Sheldon. I told this to the assistant. When the dentist came in and was working on my tooth at one point he said, “Nurse can I have the bone.” The nurse said, “She wants you to call it Sheldon.”
Dentist: She wants me to call what Sheldon?
Nurse: The bone.
At that point I open my eyes and give him the thumbs up.
He just smiles and says, “Sheldon is a very nice person.”
When I put that on Facebook, people commented that I got boned by Sheldon. Well it’s now months later, and I had to go back for phase two of the implant, turns out this time the Dentist had to screw Sheldon. Neither he nor I were happy. Sheldon and I are still bonding over this. J
45. Company Party. So my Domestic Partner is the CEO of his company and has his annual holiday party. I decide to go Glam and wear a fancy skintight dress complete with plunging back. Well low backs require special bras. I only had a bra with plastic in the back, not very good plastic apparently. Because halfway during the night the bra snapped and one side of me feel down. So I run into the bathroom and have his office girls help me out, tie it up and get me back in place. A few minutes later they decide to do the Secret Santa with names being pulled from a jar. Imagine my surprise when the President of the company pulled out a bra strap and said, “Who belongs to this?” I smiled and said, “Ah that would be me.” How the hell the bra strap shot across the room and landed in that jar I’ll never know, but I’m sure it makes for a great remember when story.
48. Dec. 11 – Saltana Cave – David Young
Decide it’s been a crazy year and I need to distress. So I go to see this 2- time Grammy nominated flute player named David Young, who has old over a million CD’s. His music is described as the “Most heavenly music on Earth.” We connect on a lot of things, and one things leads to another, and a few weeks later I wind up Emceeing an event he has at a church and doing an online streaming video with him. We are working on ways to promote his music and Hopeville together! Stay tuned. Here’s a recent interview with him on “Comedy Concepts” with Nancy Lombardo. Click here to listen!
49. Dec. 15 – Huffington Post – The FASTEST RECAP of all the Star War Movies on the Internet. (Not a spoiler)
Star Wars review: Click here to see for yourself!
50. New Years- Girlfriends, Meditation and Planking
At the last minute, I mean the day of New Years Eve; I decide to have an intimate girlfriend sleep over. Then I decide why not throw in a flute player, some fireworks, coloring and start the year with some activity. Since no one could run (They had all hurt their feet) We Planked in the New Year. I won, lasting 2 minutes and 15 seconds. Then I ate a cannoli Cake….
______________________________________________________
AND SO IT BEGINS…2016!
Jan 1– Charlie Harary Radio show- Staring the year off with a Positive Attitude interview. Great host!
Click here to listen!
LIFE IS WHAT YOU CREATE IT TO BE! MAKE IT A GREAT CREATION…. and remember…NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE!!!!