FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Detroit, MI
March 4, 2005

A GALAXIE FAR, FAR AWAY begins production in May 2005. Award winning filmmaker John Prusak follows musician, Tom Foster as Foster brings the 1964 Ford Galaxie he inherited from his grandfather from Ferndale, Washington back to Ferndale, Michigan. Once Foster and the production team get the car running, they will follow the length of Highway 12 from the Pacific coast to Michigan Avenue and Woodward Avenue… where Highway 12 ends.

Along the way, all aspects of a road trip across America, including the breathtaking scenery, the unique sites, the people with stories to tell and music from Foster, a talented performer, will be filmed for this documentary project.

Preservation of this Galaxie transcends the nuts and bolts of typical car maintenance and driving. This journey is a metaphor for all generations who find hope and family ties embodied in the memories shared while driving such a special vehicle like the Ford Galaxie.

The project has received fiduciary support from Detroit Area Film and Television (DAFT), a non-profit organization dedicated to media literacy, with a 501(c)(3) status. That designation allows donations to be earmarked for the project and gives donors a federal tax write-off.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
John Prusak
Prusak@sbcglobal.net

This is a printable pledge form for our film project. Please feel free to download, print, donate, share with friends and family, anything you can think of. We appreciate it greatly, and thank you for your support.

 

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February 6th 08

Pause ( pawz ) noun, verb

1. A temporary stop or rest, esp. in speech or action
2. a cessation of activity because of doubt or uncertainty; a momentary hesitation.
3. any comparatively brief stop, delay, wait, etc
4. a break or rest in speaking or reading to emphasize meaning, grammatical relation, metrical division, etc. or in writing or printing by the use of punctuation.
5. Prosody. a break or suspension, as a caesura, in a line of verse.
6. Music. a fermata
-verb-
7. to make a brief stop or delay; wait; hesitate.
8. to dwell or linger

Reflect ( ri-flekt )
verb
1. to cast back ( light, heat, sound, etc. ) from a surface
2. to give back or show an image of; mirror
3. (of an act or its result ) to serve to cast or bring ( credit, discredit, etc. ) on its performer
4. to reproduce; show
5. to be reflected or mirrored
6. to give back or show an image.
10. to think, ponder, or meditate: to reflect on one's virtues and faults.
11. to serve to give a particular aspect or impression.

March 20th 07

Yeah Spring !!!!!


Pause and Reflect.

March 13th 07

6 1/2 hours in the emergency room yesterday. Abnormal EKG, bad chest pain, difficulty breathing.

I'll not be at the Exchange this week, and I won't be able to play at Pints and Quarts in Muskegon.

Bed rest and medication......

Doc says I'll be okay so I'll see ya next week!

January 1st 07

Happy New Year.

May this year be seven thousand times
as good as last year.

Seriously.

I'm not joking.

Cheers!

December 25th 06

Merry Christmas.

Happy New Year.

Happy Festivus.

We're off this week at the Exchange, back
in January.

Bob and I will be at the Red Rooster in
N. Muskegon/Whitehall for New Year's weekend.

Hope to see you there or somewhere, may your
year be blessed with growth, insight, grilled cheese sandwiches, chicken noodle soup, chicken noodle soup, chicken noodle soup, and a soda on the side.

Hasta la Winnebago,

Tommy

December 20th 06

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year.

That's not how I roll, it's how I bounce.

Do something nice for someone.

Be nice to yourself.

Take pictures.

Call somebody.

Go for a walk.

Keep your eyes open when you're driving.

Pet the dog.

Breathe. Again. Repeat...............

November 11th 06

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down....

What a song. Love it or hate it, it captures the mystery and emotion of a Michigan shipwreck with a haunting melody that was burned into my memory as a young Michi-gander. I'll never get tired of it as long as I live. Here's to the memory of the Edmund Fitzgerald, the captain, crew, their families, and the ability of a song to make you feel something. Thank you Gordon....for making something hauntingly beautiful out of a tragic incident.

October 13th 06

Helloooooooooooo.
Happy Halloween.
Boo.

Blah
Blah
Blah
Bleh
Bleh
bleeeeeeehhh
bah bah bah
rama lama fa fa fa
boo bop be lee bob.

Profundity. Pure.

September 7th 06

Alas, friends, our Four Green Fields gig is no more. We so love the staff and patrons, but the powers that be have been unable to bridge a good communicative synergy with the ownership. Not for a lack of trying, but we sadly leave the ol' place with good memories of good music, good food, and good friends made. Keep an eye out as we will be intending to plant ourselves somewhere else after a trip to Seattle for me and a motorcycle excursion for Bob until October.
I'd like to express our sincere appreciation to those of you who made regular visits to our Thursday night performances, and hope that we will see you again in the future. We'll keep plugging away at making bar music fun and interesting as time marches on.
Peace to you,

Tommy

July 31st 06

Hokey Smoke it's a heatwave!

100 degrees plus today and I love it. I sweat when I blink my eyes. This month has been a whirlwind with several great nights of playing live to fabulous people such as yourselves, traveling in the Galaxie, playing gigs with Buddy, and visiting the west coast of Michigan to enjoy a cold one or three. Bob and I will be playing in Caseville on the 18th and 19th of August at the annual Cheeseburger in Caseville festival. Look it up online and you can see what huge fun it's going to be. Don't forget your sunscreen, and try and stay cool-----------

June 8th 06

The Ol' Galaxie got it's color back yesterday, spent all day watching the guys paint, sand, tape, check, block, spray, adjust, stop, wait, repaint, etc...... Check out the restoration pics if you'd like. The chrome will be going back on soon, and I can't wait to take it for a spin!

Gigs are fun, Bob and I played at Current's in downtown Detroit last week, keep an eye on the calendar for return dates, we hope to be back soon.

I love the first few weeks of June, you can smell the roses and honeysuckle everywhere. If you can, go out and find some and stick your nose in it. You won't be sorry.


Hope to see you soon-

May 1st 06

Mayday !! Mayday !!

I may be spending a lot of my month working may-inly on the may-king of the Galaxie project.
Sending may-il, may-king may-ny phone calls, ordering products from May-belline. Maybe not.
Either way, I'll be enjoying the daily increase in nearness to the sun, and may-king may-use-ical mayhem in my may-instays with my may-in mayn Bobby May-tycka. You should may-ke plans to come out this month and say hey, ya. May-ke it snappy!

Peace of pizza,

Tom-may

April 10th 06

Yow! Another month has flown by as time remains a mysterious concept with so much meaning, but none whatsoever. Whoops, too philosophical. I'm
showering a lot this month, as it is April, and I May see flowers soon. There has been quite a bit of progress on the Galaxie, see pictures at the bottom of the page if you'd like. There are many more to come. Shinier, crisper, sleeker. We can rebuild it. We have the technology. The six million dollar car.

Gigs are great, Mark Jagmin still playing in place of the recovering Mike Daniels. My brother Mitch will sit in with us this week on keys at The Exchange. ( Wed, April 12th ). Come on out when you can, it's always nicer when you're around..........

March 11th 06

March. March, March March. Marvelous month, Many maniacal fans of March madness watching Michigan State or Michigan Basketball, marveling at the majestic magnitude with which the magnificent men maneuver the court. Alliterative introductions aside, let me say I'm enjoying the changes of weather, the music is, as always, fun and entertaining, sometimes sad and/or blue, other times happy and joyous. Our Chairmen of the Bored drummer, Mr. Mike Daniels, will not be with us for a bit, as he is recovering from significant knee/leg surgery. We hope to have him back as soon as his body heals. Keep him in your thoughts and wish him well. Mark Jagmin is filling Mike's spot until his return, which means that every Wednesday at the Exchange is going to be Jagmin-esque.That means you should definitely stop out and say hello.
The Galaxie is stripped of paint and awaiting primer- check out a few of the pics if you're interested. I'm excited to see the process. The bumpers are getting rechromed and will be super shiny just in time for summer.
Hope you are having a spectacular pre-spring, and hope to see you soon!

Cheers!

Tomas

February 3rd 06

Yee haw !!!!! February. Football. Frenzied fans falling flat on their faces as flags fly at Ford Field for Super Bowl Forty. Sounds like fun. I'll be at home polishing my Hummel figurines and trying to learn any one of the million requests I've brought home on soggy bar napkins. For those that have requested, I thank you, and hope that you are patient.

Stripped all the chrome of the Galaxie, and am getting ready for paint and body work. I'll upload some pics soon, for those who are interested. For those that aren't interested, I'll forward some of the great email I've gotten recently, of which there are virtual " tons " of medical opportunities, stock tips, enhancement prescriptions, and lovely Rolex watches. Just leave me your email and let me know how much spam you can handle. I've had enough. ; )

Zukey Lake Tavern was a blast ! I'm looking forward to playing there again, especially summertime. Lots of boats, beer, and belly laughs.
Keep an eye out for future dates.

Til March comes in like a lion and goes out like a chimpanzee, I bid you adieu.

Tommy

January 14th 06

Happy New Year everyone ! I hope you're recovering nicely from holiday parties, long hours on the road, the sharing of small spaces with lots of friends and relatives, and the joyous repercussions of renegade shopping. It's a jungle out there. This month will be busy with playing for me, along with house construction, film editing, dog watching, and training for the 2042 summer olympics. I'm beginning my diet and exercise regimen which includes walking out to the garage in my t-shirt, and eating a full bowl of cheerios at least twice a day. By 2042 I'll either be in great shape or will have forgotten my quest to take the gold in the Summer Curling championship. Either way, I'm happy. Hope you are too. Come out and see me sometime.

Cheers-

Tommy

By the way, I'm playing at a new spot the last weekend in January. It's the Zukey Lake Tavern in Pinckney, and I hear the food is really good. I'd love to see you there my first time in, and maybe it'll become a regular gig for me...........

November 30th 05

I love the cold. It makes me wear warm fuzzy things and be close to people. It makes me think before I leave the house. Cold makes you very happy when you get warm, so yay cold!

Gigs have been super-fun. Wednesdays at the Exchange are a blast. Guests sitting in like Freddie Cunningham from Root Doctor, Marcus Darden and Jeff Osburn from Global Village, and State Rep. Joel Shellthorn has sat in w/ saxophone in the last couple months. Mark Jagmin on drums filling for Mike Daniels, loads of good-natured musical fun.
Thursday nights at Four Green Fields, Bob and I have been getting great responses for our efforts. The crowds have been superb and it makes us love playing even more.

I hope this winter brings all who read this many warm fuzzy nights, and good holiday fun, without trying to sound cheesy, although cheese and crackers this time of year is nothing to w_ine about.

Hi-Ho

Tommy

October 24th 05

No news is good news, right?
We're just starting to look at footage from the film, and boy is there a lot of it! The thousand mile journey has been said to begin with one step, or a series of tiny incremental "baby" steps. So we're on the way..............

Spent the last two weekends up in Northern Michigan, the colors, as always, are breathtaking. I had to drive back quickly so's to catch my breath. It reminds of that Rex Smith song: " You Take My Breath Away". If you haven't heard it, don't waste your breath. Ha ha ha.

Still at the Exchange, rocking out every Tuesday and Wednesday, then sliding to Royal Oak on Thursdays to play at Four Green Fields. The band is sounding good, and we're all having fun while working. Just the way it should be.

Hope all is well with you and yours,

Tommy

September 15th 05

Just had a week off, spent some time at the Ol' Red Rooster in North Muskegon/Whitehall and threw a few cold ones back listening to Dutch Henry. They were grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreat!!! If you see they're playing somewhere, check 'em out. You won't be disappointed. Dutch, you guys um, er....rock and stuff. I had a great time. The Red Rooster is a magical place to be at the right times, and Labor Day weekend was one of them.

The Galaxie Project is facing the editing challenge now, and I'm looking forward to tucking myself away during the fall/winter to get the story put together. We'll be adding content to the website, so check in when you can.

Cheers!

Tommy

August 9th 05

Ahhhhhhhhhh August, the warmest month of the year, the time when we drink the most beer, the time when you can barely see the road from all the heat coming off, or from the beer that gets in your eyes. The time when the lawn turns brown, and your energy bills double, or something like that. This month we're doing some more filming at the Galaxie Nationals, interviewing Galaxie owners, checking out the cars, having fun in the sun. The car show is Saturday, August 13th at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn from 8:30 am til 4:30 pm. You're invited to attend! From there we go to painting the Galaxie, and editing footage for the documentary. Every journey begins with the first step, gets hung up somewhere in the middle, and ends with a mad dash toward the finish line or a trip to the emergency room, or something like that.

Hope you're having an awesome summer!!!!

July 7th 05

Happy post 4th of July to you! I've been sharpening the blades on my snow shovel in preparation for the arctic blast coming in a few weeks. It should be right after the 27th hurricane and 15th well-publicized shark attack off the coast of somewhere. I'm looking forward to the time when complaints about the heat turn into complaints about the cold, and how nice it would be were summer to be here again. Days fly past, with not much time spent indoors, the Galaxie's running well, the dogs are happy, the music's always good, and friends are everywhere. Hope your summer is going well..........

June 13th 05

Back home now, after a beautiful trip with great weather. There's nothing like returning to Detroit traffic after braving San Francisco, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Chicago. Little fishies in a great big pond.....
The grass needs mowing, the garbage is piling up, the bills need paying, I need a shower, and I want to sleep for about a week. No time for sleep. Too hot to sleep. Our air conditioner is not working, so I've been filling the bathtub with ice cubes and catching short naps there.
The return gig at the U.S. 12 was fantastic. Lots of people, fun, food, and music. Thanks to the Gocaj family for letting us perform at their place. Look for another gig there sometime this year. Hope you all are well, and we'll see you soon........

June 8th 05

Lost an internet connection in the middle of my last update on the road, left me with everything I'd written wiped out at 4 am, too tired to redo. Anyway, no problem, Bob and I are back. We're at the Exchange tonight with the Chairmen Of The Bored, then at Four Green Fields on Thursday. Saturday brings us to Cleary's in Chelsea with the Galaxie, and Sunday at the U.S. 12 American Bar in Wayne from 6-8pm. We've had a great trip so far, and wish it could go on forever. We're hoping to meet up with some other Galaxie owners at the U.S. 12, along with Ron Bachman and his cool custom trike. Maybe we can get a race going somewhere. Hope all's well with you! Come and see us!

May 27th 05

Sitting in the pool room of the Best Western Hotel in Livingston, Montana, because it's the only place in the hotel you can get a wireless connection. Bob and I played to a receptive crowd at The Murray Bar last night, and met up with the house player Scotty Nelson. He had a great sound and we enjoyed listening to him play. We've got a day or two to loll around now, and we're going to look for more spectacular spots to shoot Galaxie footage. We'll be in the Badlands soon, and over to Carhenge in Alliance, Nebraska. Be sure and check out the blog page at www.galaxiefarfaraway.com

Greetings from the Great Northwest!

May 24th 05

Monday, May 24th. We're getting ready to leave Ferndale today. We'll be having a send-off party on this side of the nation around 4:00-6:00 pm. If anyone back home can make it, you're more than invited...
The galaxiefarfaraway.com is up now and has a bit of blog rolling on it, feel free to check it out and comment, the video should be up by late tomorrow. I'm reeeeeeaaaaaallly excited to see how it works. First gig is the Murray Bar and Hotel in Livingston, Montana. It's on Thursday, May 27th, around 9pm. We're opening for Scotty Nelson, who has a house gig there. Should be a freekin' hoot, eh? Yah.

April 27th 05

Chicago? Great time, good food, and awesome friends. A lot of taxis too. Thanks to everyone who came out to O'Malley's West to see Buddy and me. What a great time I had. We'll do it again on May 7th. We'd love to see you all again.....................

Wednesday, May 11th is our last date at the Exchange before we leave for WA. Three Men and a Tenor have volunteered to show up and sing a few farewell #'s, along with a few other local cats who'll be sitting in. Like that one guy that plays that one song, and the other guy that does that other song. And so on....................

March 23rd 05

We've got another passenger for our trip. Chris Weagel (http://www.human-dog.com), has signed on to broadcast video segments of the trip via the web. You'll be able to get a new clip every day from the galaxie website (http://www.galaxiefarfaraway.com/galaxie-webimage.pdf) once we're on the road. We may even do a live webcast. I'm very excited and glad to have Chris coming along.

March 8th 05

Here's a promo poster for the Galaxie Project. We've booked dates in Chicago and Detroit, and are still working on Seattle, Montana, and Minneapolis. I'll post the dates and times as soon as I know. Feel free to email me if you'd like to know more.

Cheers!!!!

March 2nd 05

The film is cruising along quite well. The Detroit Area Film and Television board voted to approve the project, and has agreed to act as a fiduciary agent. I've contacted a few Ford Galaxie Clubs and am getting in touch with other owners that are willing to be part of the film. The National Galaxie Club gathering is in Dearborn this year. Talk about timing. I'm looking forward to cruising the Galaxie at their event on August 12-14, the week before the Woodward Dream Cruise. It's being sponsored by the Motor City Galaxie Club. You can get more info from them at http://www.motorcitygalaxieclub.com.

We're going to leave for Seattle in Mid-May, and I'm still trying to hook up some gigs along the way. If you'd like to get a postcard from Bob and I while we're gone, email your address from this site and we'll drop you a line.

January 26th 05

I've had an exciting last couple weeks. I've been doing pre-production for an independent film. We're planning to do the shoot in May/June and it's going to involve a cross-country trip from Seattle to Detroit via U.S. Highway 12. The trip will take us ( Bob Motycka and me, If I can convince him to go ) from Aberdeen, WA, to Detroit, MI. Stops along the way will include Missoula, Montana, Minneapolis, Chicago, along with several small town jaunts and side trips. I'll be driving my grandmother's 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 and trying to pick up a few gigs along the way. If you know anyone along that route that would like to help, i.e. places to stay, gigs to play, etc. feel free to email me and let me know. I'll be happy also to send you a postcard along the way if you'd email me your mailing address.

Another fun thing we've been doing is playing a three-piece band with Dave Mace, one of the original FosterKids drummers. He uses an electronic drum kit and has a huge range of sounds he can dial in to make all types of crazy beats. It's been a ton of fun for Bob and me to work in this arrangement. Plan on hearing more about it soon. We don't have an official name for the trio, so send us a suggestion. If we choose your suggestion you will win a tin-foil helmet and a water-cooled oven mitt. Submissions that aren't selected will receive a complementary breath of air and an occasional ringing in the ears.

Hope to see you at a show!