CELEBRATED TRAVELER
MARKDAVIS/GETTY IMAGES
MUSICMAN:
JeffDanielsperformsonstageat the2014AFI Life
AchievementAwards at theDolbyTheatre.
.
F
OREMMY-WINNING
actor JeffDaniels, returning to
Chelsea,Michigan— thepicturesquehamletwherehe
grewupandnow liveswithhiswife, Kathleen— ishis
favorite journey. Though frequent travel ispart andparcel
ofDaniels’ storiedcareer,which includes indelible turns in films
like
TermsofEndearment
,
Speed
,
SomethingWild
,
Looper
and
the recently released
DumbandDumber To
, there’snothing like
goinghome. “That’swhy they inventedairports,”he says, “so
guys likemecando their funny little jobsand thencomeback
to theplace theybelong.”
This fall,Danielswill signoff as the leadingmanonHBO’s
criticallyacclaimed
TheNewsroom
,whereheportrays “tragi-
cally flawed”newsanchorWillMcAvoy,who is simultaneously
utopian, boorish, gallant andcruel. “Everyhumanbeinghas
good thingsabout themandbad things too,” saysDaniels,who
isalsoaproducedplaywright andabeloved singer/songwriter.
“I like toplaycharacterswhoarea littlebitofboth.”
Here,Daniels shares someof his favorite travel adventures:
LONDON:
“ThiswasShakespeare’sold stompingground… .
Also,my first leading role inhigh schoolwasasFagin in
Oliver
,
so I [always] findmyselfwalking theLondon streetsatnight,
hoping tobump intoCharlesDickens.Avery romancedviewof
thecity, I know, but it alwayshitsmewhenever I’m there.”
HAWAII:
“Itwas 1979. Iwasa24-year-oldactor, newlymar-
ried, and theyofferedmywifeandmea free trip toHawaii—and
theopportunity toworkwithJackLordon
HawaiiFive-O
.… I had
toplayacriminal, ofcourse, butwegot to lieon thebeachand
getogledbyHawaiian surfers.”
CLARKSDALE,MISSISSIPPI:
“If youwant toplay the
blues, orunderstandAmericanmusicat all, youhave tomake
thepilgrimage.One timewhen Iwent there, I stoodover
Robert Johnson’sgraveandplayed this little song I’dwritten
forhim.While Iwasplaying, someguypulledup inhiscar and
walkedup tomeandwaited forme to finish the song. ‘You
play?’ I askedhim. ‘Nope. I just love theblues,’ he said. Then
hegotback inhiscar anddroveaway. That’swhat theCross-
roads is like.”
NEWYORK:
“If youwant theauthenticNewYorkexperience,
takeTheStarvingActorCulinaryTour. It’s simple: Startout
drinkingcoffee for sixhours inanyoneof theall-nightdiners
TomWaits sangabout, goout tooneof thehole-in-the-wall
pizza jointsandget ‘a slice’ at 3a.m. forno reasonother than
youcan. Follow thatupwithbreakfast at adoughnut shopwith
a signon thedoor that says, ‘PassedHealth Inspection!Now
Open!’ That’sa true story, by theway.At 23rdand7th, 1977,
rightoutsidemy first apartment. ItwascalledHave-A-Donut. I
think it’sa jeans storenow.”
JEFFDANIELS
TRAVELESSENTIALS:
“My
Shureearphones
; they
shut out everything. My
Kindle
is amust too. I’ve
recently flownwithCormac
McCarthy’s
BloodMeridian
,
JohnWaters’
Carsick
and
now I’m readingNaomi
Klein’s
ThisChangesEvery-
thing
. I know; I’mall over the
place! Also, I never goany-
wherewithout a
guitar
. If I
can’t takemyMartin, I’ll take
alongmyTravelerGuitar.”
WINTER
AA.COM CELEBRATEDLIVING
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