I cannot begin to tell you how appalled I was to read Midge Grebbens’ comments in the “Society Page” of NoHo Magazine (May, 1994).

It is beyond my comprehension how anyone could ascribe racial overtones to such a positive community effort. Where did her twisted assessment “White folks fear fest” come from? How damaging, and how untrue.

Granted, people in our community do live with fear. However, it is not racial fear. Look around you in the NoHo district and the rest of the Valley. You see buildings crumbled by the January earthquake; you see businesses closed down because of economic adversity. People are afraid to go out at night because they fear for their safety. There is a pervasive sense of vulnerability.

Criminals and victims come in all colors; earthquakes affect all of us. Our “safety fair” was a small but heartfelt and constructive effort to help the community. Our only goal was to help people protect themselves and their families.

If you did not appreciate what we were doing, why not refuse to publish anything at all? That would have been a far better reflection of your editorial honesty than disseminating such a spurious statement.

Ilene Atkins Studio City Residents Association and LAPD Neighborhood Watch

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I am responding to your request that readers comment to your reviews. Since my production was one of your subjects, I am more than happy to do so.

What strikes me first in your review of Across From Cindy’s Corner (May, 1994) are the inaccuracies and the omissions. It’s inaccurate to say, “The fifties tunes ‘Golly Gee’ and ‘Red Button Blues). barely giveus a hint of the fourchord playfulness that made the music of that era famous.’ “Golly Gee” is a legitimate fifties hit. It was my hit, and “Red Bottom Blues” is not intended to be “a fifties song.” It’s a blues song about child abuse. Your reviewer, Daniel Holmes, couldn’t get past the costumes in his immature and unconscionably shallow critique of not only these numbers, but of the show as a whole.

Across From Cindy’s Corner is far more than a “glorification” of my life. It’s about “every man” and “every woman.” When I sing the finale, “Live Your Dream,” I’m singing not only for myself, but for all of us.

The extremely odd omission of my years as a Broadway performer, and my being discovered by Richard Rodgers, can only be deemed a convenient lapse on your part to justify this nasty and suspiciously personal review. Just for the record, I’ve had a lifetime of operatic training, as well as a pop recording career with such labels as Warner Brothers and Columbia. When I “chew a lyric” or “growl a phrase,” it’s by choice.

As I write this, we’re going into our eighteenth week of sold-out houses with many audience members returning again and again with friends and family. We hear each week that audience members of every age have been profoundly and positively affected. Mr. Holmes seems to suggest that with the price of admission, the ticket is stamped “fool.” In a community that in its highest sense hopes to support and nurture one another, Mr. Holmes and yourself might re-evaluate the idea that audiences (the general public) are just plain morons being ushered into my theatre the way P.T. Barnum “made huge profits selling tickets to view a rare bufthlo migration in New Jersey.” Thank you for the thought, though. If I am that powerful, I better give myself a raise!

After over twenty-five years as a performer, I’m used to reviews with a spectrum of opinions. As a producer, director, and composer of several plays, including Pepper Street, which ran for five years here in L.A. and was optioned for Broadway (another of Mr. Holmes’ convenient omissions), I’m used to raves as well as pans. What I’m not used to is the immature and mean spirited nature of a paper that professes non-violence and peace, yet radiates viciousness and harmful intent that attempts to be cutting edge, and is just cutting.

Gene Bua Acting For Life

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