LOOKS LIKE ANOTHER STAY AT HOME DAY FOR ME!

A year ago, when we had a spell of bitter cold and windy weather - like we are experiencing here in NYC right now - I caught a cold that had me literally in bed for over three weeks. A constant cough continued for another two or three weeks. Now, everyone tells me that you don't catch a cold from cold weather - you get a cold from someone who has a cold. But the cold weather weakens your immune system because your body works so hard to keep you warm.

Anyway - those five or six weeks stick in my memory as the most miserable time in my live - all almost 70 years worth - so I simply refuse to take chances this year. And so far it has worked!

I have taken my "one-a-day" pill to "two-a-day" and tried to get more sleep (my insomnia still gets me up at 4:30 am so I now get to bed by 11:00 pm when I can). A nap at 10:00 am for just 15 minutes, and another 1/2 hour nap every afternoon around 2:00 pm seems to make up for any early-morning sleep loss.

So no shows again for me tonight - I am saving my energy for Monday night's 2009 NY Nightlife Awards at the TOWN HALL on Monday night at 7:00 pm - many of my good cabaret friends will perform and will be in the audience. It is the top Live Entertainment Award show in town.

NYC: KAREN AKERS NAMED NIGHTLIFE LEGEND HONOREE

Award-winning comedian Judy Gold has been chosen to host the 2009 NIGHTLIFE AWARDS SHOW, which takes place on Monday, January 26th at 7:00 pm at THE TOWN HALL (123 West 43rd Street, NYC - 212-997-1929 - http://www.the-townhall-nyc.org/ ). Also announced was Nightlife Legend Honoree Karen Akers who will, as with all the Nightlife Awards winners, make no acceptance speech but, instead, perform. And yet another winner has been found and agreed to come to Town Hall to perform: Steven Bernstein's Millennial Territory Orchestra (Outstanding Jazz Combo). Also announced today were guest stars Keith Carradine and Jim Caruso.

So far, eleven of the thirteen award categories will be represented with a performance by their winners. Among those previously announced winners slated to perform are Christine Ebersole & Billy Stritch, Marilyn Maye, Mike Birbiglia, Freddy Cole, Helen Baldassare, Allan Harris, Baby Jane Dexter, Brandon Cutrell, The Improvised Shakespeare Company, Daryl Glenn and Jo Lynn Burks. Among the previously announced guest stars that will be performing are Stephanie J. Block, Larry Gatlin, Euan Morton, Noah Racey and The New York Tap Ensemble. And more soon to be announced!

Tickets are $25, $50 & $75 and they are available at The Town Hall Box Office (noon to 6:00 pm except Sunday) or by calling TicketMaster at 212-307-4100 or going to TicketMaster.com.

NYC: 2009 NIGHTLIFE AWARDS: GATLIN, BLOCK, MORTON & MORE!

On Monday, January 26th at 7:00 pm, the 7th Annual Nightlife Awards Concert returns once again to THE TOWN HALL (123 West 43rd Street, NYC - 212-997-1929 ) with the most - and the best - entertainment of any awards show in the world. The reason is simple: there are no acceptance speeches at The Nightlife Awards. The winners perform to show why they were chosen. And the reason they're the best is because they've been chosen by a broad-based panel of more than two dozen members of the press of New York City that covers cabaret, comedy, and jazz. And the best of New York City nightlife is, by defintion, the best in the world. Among the winners who have performed at The Nightlife Awards in the past have included such luminaries as Brian Stokes Mitchell, Elaine Stritch, Alan King, Betty Buckley, Ute Lemper, Robert Klein, Karen Akers, Judy Gold, Liz Callaway, Ann Hampton Callaway, Lea DeLaria, John Pizzarelli, Jessica Molaskey, Marilyn Maye, Barb Jungr, Paula West, Maureen McGovern, Kristin Chenoweth, Donna Murphy, Bruce Vilanch, Andrea Marcovicci, Christine Ebersole, Freddy Cole, Keely Smith, Bill Charlap, Sandi Stewart, Eartha Kitt, etc., etc.

The 2009 edition of The Nightlife Awards will be just as star-studded, if not more so, than in the past. Though the winners will not be announced until January, here are just a few of the guest performers who will be on stage on January 26th to add their talent to the glitter of the evening. Country superstar Larry Gatlin will perform. So, too, will Broadway and Nightlife stars, Stephanie J. Block and Euan Morton. Stephanie will be starring in 9 - 5 on Broadway in the Spring, and Euan Morton is the Tony-nominated star of Taboo. More guest performers and celebrity presenters will be announced soon, as will the actual Nightlife Award winners.

Tickets to the Nightlife Awards have only recently gone on sale to the public. The price is a recession proof $25, $50, or $75 for a non-stop evening of great performances. Tickets are availabe via TicketMaster at 212-307-4100 or at TicketMaster.com. Tickets will be available at the Town Hall Box Office starting Monday, January 5th.