Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/565574
GregStevens,Publisher Chip Thompson, Editor EDITORIALBOARD How to have your say: Letters must be signed and provide the writer's home street address and home phone number. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and no more than two double-spaced pages or 500words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section will be published. Email: editor@ redbluffdailynews.com Fax: 530-527-9251 Mail to: P.O. Box 220, 545 Diamond Ave., Red Bluff, CA 96080 Facebook: Leave comments at FACEBOOK.COM/ RBDAILYNEWS Twitter: Follow and send tweets to @REDBLUFFNEWS Oneofthereallycoolthings about participating in the State Theatre project is that I have made some wonderful new friends during the process. Take Tom Hanks, for instance. Tom Hanks is unquestionably the most beloved actor in the en- tire United States of America. Tom Hanks in real life is exactly the same person we see in mov- ies, and Tom Hanks is exactly the same person we see in in- terviews on talk shows, awards shows and the like. When you are as close to Hanx—he insists that I call him Hanx—as I am, you re- alize there is absolutely noth- ing pretentious about the man. He is a humble and gentle soul; and I honestly believe he val- ues our friendship just as much as, if not more than, he does his friendships with Ron Howard, Steven Spielberg or even Su- zanne Somers. Now that I have made it very clear that Hanx and I are ri- diculously tight, let me share with you how our relationship evolved to the point that we are now Bosom Buddies, so to speak. Tom Hanks and I both come from the proverbial broken home. Tom spent much of his youth re- siding with his father in the Bay Area. During most summers, Tom came to live with his mother who has resided in this commu- nity for several decades. Because I am a few—okay, more than a few— years older than Tom, our paths never crossed while he summered in downtown Red Bluff. I think that's a shame, be- cause I am pretty sure he would have liked me just as much then as he obviously does now. Tom's mom enjoyed a distin- guished career as a local health care administrator and, like me, became a very accomplished golfer in retirement. Now let me tell you how Tom Hanks and I have become best friends. Having resided in this com- munity for decades and de- cades, Tom's mother naturally formed many close friendships within the Tehama County community. One such friend- ship was with long-time owner of the historic State Theatre, Dr. Ron Clark. As an extension of his friendship with Tom's mom, Dr. Clark came to know Tom as a friend, as well. Tom Hanks is a collector of really old typewriters. A decade or so ago, then State Theatre board President Venita Phil- brick and her good friend Erin Brainerd sent Tom a very old typewriter. A few weeks later the theater received a hand- some financial contribution from Tom Hanks and his beau- tiful wife, Rita Wilson. Part of this generous contribution was used to rehabilitate the beau- tiful etched-glass entry doors coming into the lobby. In January of 2011, the State Theatre hosted a concert and fundraising auction featuring country music icon Merle Hag- gard. Ron Clark, in addition to acquiring autographed movie memorabilia for the auction, prevailed on the legendary Mr. Hanks to produce and provide a promotional video in which he talks fondly of time spent watch- ing movies at the State Theatre. Afewmonthslater,myfriend- shipwithHanxreallybeganto blossomwhenIreceivedatele- phonecallfromoneofhisrepre- sentatives.Tomhadjustproduced andstarredwithJuliaRobertsin afilmtitledLarryCrowne. Over the years Tom has made it a practice to fly his mother to the premiere of his movies, but on this particular occasion she was unable to fly. Tom, be- ing the mamma's boy that he is, decided to hold a special north state Larry Crowne premiere at the historic State Theatre. Because he is very busy and I am even busier, Tom had his people contact my people with the intention of holding the screening at the State. Unfor- tunately, the major studio hold- ing screening rights for the film could not release the film to the State Theatre without sending more security guards to protect the film than are normally as- signed to a presidential detail. Because Tom and I clearly think as one, we, through our respec- tive people, quickly developed an alternative plan. On July 1, 2011, 200 ar- dent supporters arrived at the State Theatre where they were treated to a hosted wine and cheese reception. An hour or so into the festivities Tom Hank's mother was delivered to the theater by limousine, with gi- ant spotlights searching the sky. A short time later all 200 of those Tom Hanks fans, followed by the limousine transport- ing Tom's mother, travelled one mile down Main Street to the Prime Cinema movie complex where each and every one of us enjoyed the Northern Califor- nia premiere of Larry Crowne, courtesy of Mr. Tom Hanks. He had purchased every seat in the house for the occasion; it was a special evening indeed. Shortly thereafter I sent Tom a note thanking him for a spe- cial evening. A few days later I re- ceived a typewritten response, re- plete with a couple of typos, from the man himself. While much of what he wrote is deeply personal, I will share one sentence, "I am so glad you, my mom, and the folks of Red Bluff were able to see Larry Crowne in such a fine man- ner, with help going to the State Theatre as well — Tom Hanks." How cool is that. A few months later Tom and Rita again made a very generous financial contribu- tion to the State Theatre proj- ect. When I inquired of Tom how he would like a recognition plaque to read, he returned a well thought-out and heart-felt hand-written note stating, "Any plaque should read Tom Hanks & Rita Wilson, Thanks Tom." The Tom Hanks-Rita Wilson plaque hangs in the alcove as you enter the State Theatre, Okay, okay—maybe I have overstated the level of my friendship with Tom Hanks. Maybe I like him more than he likes me, but how many of you are friends with his momma? How many of you have had your people work with his people? How many of you have received typewritten and handwritten notes from the world's great- est actor? And besides that, I think he would really like me if he only gave me half a chance. Thanks Hanx, you are the best. •••• Coming to the State The- atre Sept. 13, E.T. the Extra-Ter- restrial; Sept. 17 Soheil Nessari, World Famous Pianist BillCorneliusisalifelong resident of Red Bluff, a retired Chief Probation Officer, a champion of the State Theatre and an exceptional athlete. He can be reached at bill. cornelius@sbcglobal.net. William Tells My enduring friendship with Tom Hanks Cartoonist's take After the wild stock mar- ket downs and ups last week, I crawled out from under my desk and began Googling plans for a backyard survival bunker. You see, not being an econ- omist or expert about government debt and spend- ing, I have trou- ble grasping what is going on in the world and when the next economic collapse will occur. All I know is that our Con- gressional Budget Office, a non- partisan federal agency within the legislative branch of our government, keeps warning the country, as it did again last week, that we are on an unsus- tainable financial path. Simply put, the CBO says our debt is growing too fast. Whereas the historical average level of publicly held debt over the last 50 years was 38 per- cent of America's gross domes- tic product, our debt-to-GDP ra- tio is now 74 percent and will hit 103 percent in 2040. To get back to historical debt levels, the CBO says, we'll have to increase revenue by 14 per- cent or cut spending by 13 per- cent. If we don't, we will even- tually face a real crisis. Once creditors doubt our ability to repay our debt, inter- est rates on the debt will have to increase to entice them to buy it, and it will be "game on." Some doomsayers predict this will ignite the next eco- nomic collapse, which will make the 2008 collapse look like a day at a government- funded amusement park. So I'm wondering about a bunker in the countryside on the edge of the suburbs, where my home is located. Unlike big, sophisticated, wired cities where people couldn't survive a day if their Internet service went down, the people who live in the country can function just dandy with- out modern conveniences. My neighbors know how to grow, trap and shoot their own food. They make their own bul- lets and are proficient with ri- fles. They can boil water from the creek and grow their own food. They can hand-fell trees and build houses that they make cozy with an abundance of fire- wood — and keep their bunkers warm as they protect them- selves from all the suburban- ites flooding to the countryside, looking for some grub. Most importantly, they know how to make moonshine, one of America's most valuable prod- ucts. For years, moonshine helped settlers convert their corn harvests into a valuable commodity that was as good as gold — and might be again if the doomsayers' predictions come true. If all heck breaks loose, my country village would be fine. I'd still be able to amble down to the local watering hole and sing Willie Nelson tunes on ka- raoke night. We'll never run out of food. Wild turkey and deer pass through my yard daily. All of my neighbors have deer meat stashed somewhere within their houses and ingenious methods for powering electri- cal generators to keep their freezers cold. Some analysts say worry about a big economic collapse is overblown. They say the gov- ernment can inflate its way out of the situation, which could significantly reduce the value of the amount our govern- ment owes — and punish peo- ple whose savings would also be significantly reduced. But that one sounds fishy to me. In any event, I hope the big one never happens — I hope the experts who keep meddling with our economy through zero interest-rate policies and ex- pansion of the money supply don't unwittingly thrust us into the mother of all breakdowns. Still, when the stock market soars up and down as it did last week, I find comfort in smok- ing and storing large batches of beef jerky, just in case. Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Comical Sense: A Lone Humorist Takes on a World Gone Nutty!" is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send comments to Tom at Tom@ TomPurcell.com. Tom Purcell Preparing for the worst When I inquired of Tom how he would like a recognition plaque to read, he returned a well thought-out and heart-felt hand- written note stating, "Any plaque should read Tom Hanks & Rita Wilson, Thanks Tom." Bill Cornelius Tom Purcell President Barack Obama: The White House 1600Pennsylvania Ave. Washington, D.C. 20500 Comments: 202-456-1111 Switchboard: 202-456-1414 Fax: 202-456-2461 president@whitehouse.gov U.S. Senate Dianne Feinstein: Hart Senate Office Building Room 331 Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3841 Fax: 202-228-3954 One Post St., Suite 2450 San Francisco, CA 94104 415-393-0707 Fax: 415-393-0710 Website: feinstein.senate.gov Barbara Boxer: Hart Senate Office Building Room 112 Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3553 Fax: 202-228-3865 501I St., Suite 7-600 Sacramento, CA 95814 916-448-2787 Website: boxer.senate.gov U.S. Representative Jared Huffman: 1630Longworth House Office Building Washington D.C. 20515 Phone: 202-225-5161 Fax: 202-225-5163 3173rd St., Suite 1 Eureka, CA 95501 Eureka phone: 707-407-3585 Fax: 707-407-3559 Website: huffman.house.gov Governor Jerry Brown: State Capitol Building, Suite 1173 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: 916-445-2841 Fax: 916-558-3160 State Senate Mike McGuire: 130310th Street Sacramento, CA 95814Phone: 916-651-4002 Fax: 916-651-4902 710E Street Suite #150 Eureka, CA 95501 Eureka phone: 707-445-6508 Eureka fax: 707-445-6511 To email, visit http://sd02.senate. ca.gov/contact/email State Assembly Jim Wood: P.O. Box 942849 Sacramento, CA 94249-0002 Phone: 916-319-2002 Fax: 916-319-2102 Eureka phone: 707-445-7014 Fax: 707-445-6607 To email, visit http://asmdc.org/ members/a02/ Local Tehama County Supervisors, 527-4655 District 1, Steve Chamblin, Ext. 3015 District 2, Candy Carlson, Ext. 3014 District 3, Dennis Garton, Ext. 3017 District 4, Bob Williams, Ext. 3018 District 5, Burt Bundy, Ext. 3016 Red Bluff City Manager, Richard Crabtree, 527-2605, Ext. 3061 Corning City Manager, John Brewer, 824-7033 Let them know How to contact public officials from Washington, D.C., local communities. OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, September 2, 2015 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A6