Another thing; I finally got around to watching "Basket Case." I knew she had been in contact with the director, Frank Henenlotter, who was still a friend. I knew she got him to do a cameo in the film. And he might be at the premiere. I figured I would finally have to bite the bullet and see the movie. I told her I saw it. I told I was glad I didn't see it before we did the movie because I would have been too influenced by it. It's a weird little film and I get why it's a cult classic. And watching a younger Beverly was a revelation. She had chops.
The horror/comedy film, STEAMED!, co-written by Beverly Bonner and Dan Fiorella, is making the rounds on the film festival circuit. How did it come together? Beverly selected what she felt was the perfect night for the premiere of the horror/comedy short, "Steamed": October 31, 2019, Halloween night! Which, of course, would be. I was a little upset (as I usually am). I'm a Halloween geek. I decorate my house. I write sketches about it. I wrote a screenplay and book about it. So, if I wasn't going to be home Halloween, what was even the point of decorating? I mean, you put up decorations to lure children to your home to give candy, right? It was going to be a lackluster homefront for All Hallow's Eve. And, I kinda pulled my punches about inviting people. I wasn't sure how the movie turned out, so I didn't really put the word out amongst friends and families. However, I did invite my writer friends for the show and they came to support me! I did remind them about the whole Beverly Sketch Show thing years ago and they came anyway!
Another thing; I finally got around to watching "Basket Case." I knew she had been in contact with the director, Frank Henenlotter, who was still a friend. I knew she got him to do a cameo in the film. And he might be at the premiere. I figured I would finally have to bite the bullet and see the movie. I told her I saw it. I told I was glad I didn't see it before we did the movie because I would have been too influenced by it. It's a weird little film and I get why it's a cult classic. And watching a younger Beverly was a revelation. She had chops.
0 Comments
The horror/comedy film, STEAMED!, co-written by Beverly Bonner and Dan Fiorella, is making the rounds on the film festival circuit. How did it come together? Finally, filming began! Beverly assembled a crew, hired background actors, called in some favors and friends and was up and running. She filmed a lot in her neighborhood in New Jersey, using her own apartment for many of the scenes. The one day of filming that I actually attended was in the Broadway Comedy Club. It was the opening scene. She had decided early on that her character would be a struggling stand-up comic (like herself), and after a draft or two, the noir voice-over narration evolved into an opening with her preforming her set onstage, doing her act before a sparse and disinterested crowd. It made perfect sense, she had an arrangement with the club and was able to use their basement room, their secondary stage, as a set. I told her I'd be there. So, she asked me if I wanted to be in it. I could be the club manager! I agreed. I once was invited to be part of the on camera cast for "Where's the Party" and I turned that down because I had to "go home." I was a wimp even then. A chance to be on TV and I walked away because I wouldn't take a day off from work. Not again. The horror/comedy film, STEAMED!, co-written by Beverly Bonner and Dan Fiorella, is making the rounds on the film festival circuit. How did it come together? Okay, slight detour... back when she was readying for her birthday fundraiser in 2017, she decided to put together a sample of the movie by filming a scene. Frankly, this made me nervous. They took the cops scene in Beverly's apartment and turned it into an interrogation room scene. Technically, it worked fine. It's just that the actors were in street cloths and not the actors we would be using. They were friends doing Beverly a favor. But now it was something tangible, something that made the movie seem real and it did the job.
This scene contain one bit of business that I loved, but Beverly didn't. When the cops come in, they ask if Beverly knew the landlord: The horror/comedy film, STEAMED!, co-written by Beverly Bonner and Dan Fiorella, is making the rounds on the film festival circuit. How did it come together? So, Beverly Bonner gives me a call; "Do you want to write a movie?" (Now I keep hearing this to the tune of "Do you want to Build a Snowman?") I was wary of her, but I was also wary about passing up an opportunity, any opportunity...
The horror/comedy film, STEAMED!, co-written by Beverly Bonner and Dan Fiorella, is making the rounds on the film festival circuit. How did it come together? Ever on the look out for a new venue for my sketches, I responded to another Craig's List ad in December of 2013: COMEDY REPERTORY CO. SEEK SKETCH COMEDY WRITERS The next day I get a response:
This horror/comedy film, STEAMED!, co-written by Beverly Bonner and Dan Fiorella, is making the rounds on the film festival circuit. How did it come to be? Previously on "Getting Steamed:" I met Beverly Bonner as she prepared to use some of my comedy material for a stage show she was producing. I had invited friends and family to the show. My spider-sense was tingling, because I wasn't sure that the show was going to be good. In the end, it was what it was. I wrote a long email to one of my writer friends, one who hadn't been able to attend the show, to vent: This horror/comedy film, STEAMED!, co-written by Beverly Bonner and Dan Fiorella, is making the rounds on the film festival circuit. How did it come to be?
I responded as I always do; Okay, I've got a hard drive full of comedy sketches that can use a home. So, what's up? Actress and performer Beverly Bonner died. I learned this from a reply to an email I sent to her and some others. I don't have many details, except we knew that she wasn't in the best health for the last several years. I've only found a couple of posts about it on Facebook. She's best known as an actor in several cult-classic horror movies, "Basket Case" being the best known; a movie I didn't see until about a year ago. I met her online about 10 years ago, responding to a Craig's List where she was looking for comedy sketch writers. She had settled into a relationship with the Broadway Comedy Club, producing all types of shows in the club's early slots, where she used my material from time to time. She was boisterous and had a raspy voice that sounded like she had to explain things to lots of people over the years and had to make herself heard. And made a fuss over everyone she came into contact with. This is the woman who asked me to write up an idea she had for a short horror comedy, which became "Steamed." It just started making the festival circuit this year, and we couldn't fully enjoy it because COVID. She did go to one festival in Scranton, PA, just last month (October 2020), where she told us the film got great reactions and she looked like she had a good time. I didn't attend. I hope COVID wasn't involved. It's been a couple of days since I found out and I'm still processing it. Shock, sadness, anger. To be truthful, I guess we were more co-workers than friends and she was always had some hustle going on; most I sidestepped. She often made my introverted self retreat and that's on me. Just last week she emailed me about setting up a website for the movie and what would be a good time to call. It's not something I'm good at beyond Weebly, but I gave her a time. There was no call, which wasn't unusual for her, she always eventually did call. A while ago, I did set up a page on my site to promote the movie, Steamed, which is about the peak of my abilities. Before that, she called me a few weeks earlier, as I was building my backyard shed, and she was so pleased about the reaction to the short that she was making plans to produce more and wanted to know if I wanted to be part of it. I said "Sure." But, to be honest, my first reaction to the news of her passing was selfish and now I have that guilt on top of all the other feelings. I read the email from the member of the production team telling me about her. When it finally registered, I thought, "crap, there goes the movie." Awful, right? Then, naturally, her producing partner just found out the film got into another festival. They're still figuring things out. She was a tough cookie and was always working to make her next break. She saw an opportunity to use some of the chit she had from her horror fame and try to build off of that. And she thought that I might be able to make something of it. I'm sorry the timing didn't work out for her. I had been noodling with the idea of doing a couple of blog posts about how Steamed came about. I still made do that. Some year, right? |
Dan FiorellaFreelance writer, still hacking away. Archives
May 2024
Categories
All
Blog Roll |