CHILD ACTOR



performed on:
A perfect continuation of the loud/gentle New York balladry aesthetic of MR. EVIL BREAKFAST. The song was written in late 1980 and was a regular feature on early shows, though it was abandoned on the Playtime Tour. The version on the album is a spontaneous live-in-studio runthrough. This turned out to be the third single from the album, and although it crept into the top 40 unlike its predecessor, "House in the Forest," it only reached #39, capping off a disappointing year for Plaastik's chart performance. Geffen blamed the band's refusal to tour and their ragged production values, but they stood their ground.

Geffen was also upset over this video, which they regarded as intentionally uncommercial. It features people in a theater reacting in various ways to what's on the screen, which we don't see. But Janet Kieran has said Geffen wouldn't give the money for anything better.


the ceiling tiles're crashin' down on me
my girl, she said "go climb a fuckin' tree"
said I was an asshole, she's prob'ly right
hey,I can live with bein' alone tonight

so now she's gone, back from where she came
said she missed the wet pavement in the rain
and now I'm sittin' here watchin' the Smurfs
it's been eight days and I'm still under your curse

'cause I just keep marchin' under the lonely clouds
you were so soft, so hard, so quiet, so loud
you always did have to be the center of attention, it seems
like some lost child actor up on the theater screen

y'know, not everybody's a shining star like yourself
couldn't pay my rent last week, barely put food on the shelf
but when I look around I see folks with cash building up
people just wastin' time 'till they finally shrivel up

god only knows you're still all I think about
and here I am in the dead center of your drought
you were always the center of attention, it would seem
like some lost child actor on my television screen

and all I do is eat and sleep and fall apart at the seams
just sit here wasting space, but hey, babe, at least I can still dream
you're in the house for ghosts
house of ghosts
the house of ghosts

I still got shit to live for, still got my bag of Doritos
still got my toy trains and my favorite TV shows
nobody cares about anybody else these days
guess it's just the changing tide, guess I'm stuck in my ways

everything in this world is fake, but you're so real
compared with the other bargains, our old flame was a steal
didn't cost me nothin' to kiss your soft lips
but now I guess I'll live with just my own fingertips

we were always in the center of the universe, front page
like some lost child actor steppin' out upon the stage

I remember... I remember...