Sometimes summer afternoons aren’t meant for lounging outdoors – they’re occasionally better spent finding artful surprises in bookstores.

Such was the case on this day, an unremarkable one until my wandering eye locked onto something of promising note. A book. By the way, most people would agree that they venture into bookstores seeking books. After my experience today, I must say that I disagree. People shop in bookstores because they crave surprises. Yes, in all likelihood, the thing you’ve been looking for will indeed be a book, but is it the book or the thrill of surprise that has you hooked? Hmm. Mystery and philosophy. Do questions never cease?

Anyway, as my gaze ventured down the frittering possibilities among the art book shelf, suddenly a love connection. I saw the book “Actors As Artists. “Hmm, I thought. “Let’s take a look. What a nice surprise.

First of all, “Actors As Artists” authored by actors Jim McMullan and Dick Gautier (Charles E. Tuttle Company, Inc.) was first published back in 1992. That’s not so long ago, but they could certainly give it an update. It’s truly a remarkable book about actors, some more famous than others, who paint in their private time. I’ve just finished flipping through and reading some of it.

It’s really everything an art book should be. With every turn of the page, a surprise. I knew that Anthony Quinn and Jane Seymour painted, but did you know that Zero Mostel and Claudette Colbert were artists? I knew that Billy Dee Williams and Phyllis Diller dabbled, but what about Henry Fonda and Lionel Barrymore? I’m sure Drew knew, but who else had a clue? Mystery revealed. The book is wonderfully unpretentious and it’s so clear that the actors true love may not be acting at all. They paint because they love art.

As I’m sitting here writing and flipping through the book again, a reminder comes to mind. There’s no law of the universe that says we MUST do one and only one thing for our entire lives. In fact, it’s probably just the opposite. If you listen to your creative voice, you can do many things in a single lifetime. That’s how it should be. After all, we’re only here once. While actors get comebacks, no one gets to come back. THIS IS IT. Of course, being an actor doesn’t mean you can pick up a paintbrush and become Paul Gauguin in one stroke. It just means that you went for it. You heard your calling, gathered up the courage and got busy. When you follow your creative leanings, life is full of surprises.

Oh, another thing. Your career is what you do for a living, but what you do in your free time is who you really are. It may not be the WHOLE you, but it’s certainly the REAL you. It’s who you are down in your soul. If you’re an artist down in your soul, you’ve got it goin’ on. In a way, we’re all actors, but how long can you go on ignoring the role of your soul? Ahh, philosophy. What better time than on a summer afternoon?

One of my favorite passages in the book comes from actor Michael Moriarity who says, “Art is not an avocation for me. It is more like a periodic urge to pray in a different way. My pieces exist because there was no other way to reveal what was going on within in me.

In short, I think Michael is saying, “Who needs a Tony, Emmy and Oscar sandwich when you’ve got art feeding you? And let me say, “That’s quite a sandwich!

But seriously, I’m not an art critic, but as a collector, I must say that I’d be thrilled to own anything that I’ve seen in this book. Actor As Artists. I’m so glad that I found this book. You never know what surprise may be lurking around the shelf. Little surprises are the spice of life. One minute, you’re depressed and the next moment, you find something unexpected and you’re laughing at the foolishness of past thoughts.

John Forsythe, an artist? Eve Plumb, who played Jan on “The Brady Bunch, an artist? Who knew? One thing I know for sure Eve probably never yells, “Marcia! Marcia! Marcia! in HER free time.

MICHAEL CORBIN IS AN AVID ART COLLECTOR AND AUTHOR OF THE NEW BOOK, “THE ART OF EVERYDAY JOE: A COLLECTOR’S JOURNAL.” CHECK HIM OUT AT WWW.ARTMAESTROGALLERY.COM

Created by Michael Corbin On 07/21/08 At 10:06 AM