I've been looking back on my adventure in Hollywood, culling pages from my journal...
6/24/91; the one-year anniversary of my Hollywood odyssey, Staten Island branch.
Kevin called. Kimberly liked the script. Thought it was better, funnier (huh?). Anyway, it was on the weekend read list for the studio folk with (we assumed) Kimberly’s recommendation. She'd be leaving at the end of the week (so how much would her recommendation even mean at this point?). Besides, the option would expire two weeks afterward.
Kevin called. Kimberly liked the script. Thought it was better, funnier (huh?). Anyway, it was on the weekend read list for the studio folk with (we assumed) Kimberly’s recommendation. She'd be leaving at the end of the week (so how much would her recommendation even mean at this point?). Besides, the option would expire two weeks afterward.
For the phone call Kevin was talking like it was still a Christmas ’91 movie, which seemed dicey this far into June. Kevin started riffing again about going to Paul Ruebens directly, or doing the William Morris packaging thing, or, now, a TV special. He can riff all he wants. It’s back to a waiting game before anything can be decided.
Kevin then segued into “Like Magic.” He was on a roll now, spurting out concepts, ideas and plot points. He’s loving this stuff; he’s hot for the two characters. Franchise. Sequels. Big bucks. Hollywood! Movie Stars! Black gold! They’re all nuts out there.
As we drifted into July, I called Kevin to see if they were okay after an earthquake hit California. There was no answer (spoiler alert: everyone was ok).
Kevin then segued into “Like Magic.” He was on a roll now, spurting out concepts, ideas and plot points. He’s loving this stuff; he’s hot for the two characters. Franchise. Sequels. Big bucks. Hollywood! Movie Stars! Black gold! They’re all nuts out there.
As we drifted into July, I called Kevin to see if they were okay after an earthquake hit California. There was no answer (spoiler alert: everyone was ok).
So here’s a new addition to my journal; My workshop friend, Bill Squire, is back in my life. I was awaiting word from him about a project to be called “Where’s the Party?” He wanted me to write for it! Things were vague at this point, but essentially it was going to be a pilot for an ABC Late Night show.
I was working on “Magic.” I wasn’t “in love with it” but I was trying to make it work. I was doing some work on “Space Rocks,” and sought out Bill to run it by him, him being a writer of stage plays and all.
I was working on “Magic.” I wasn’t “in love with it” but I was trying to make it work. I was doing some work on “Space Rocks,” and sought out Bill to run it by him, him being a writer of stage plays and all.
“Space Rocks” was a play idea, a musical, in fact. I had years earlier crossed paths with a wannabe producer whose claim to fame was he had been in a production of “Oliver!” His idea was to make it a TV series. I had answered an ad and this is what he was pitching. While working on that, he started pitching another idea; an update of “Bye Bye Birdie.” I’m sure he didn't have the rights for an official update, but something in that vein for “modern times.” Not surprisingly, Mr. Oliver dropped out of sight. But I liked the idea of a “Birdie”-type musical. I grafted the idea to NASA’s program to send “artists” up in the space shuttle so they could share the concept of space travel to others. The idea was to have a famous singer/songwriter get sent up and the antics to get that to happen (spoiler alert: the Challenger accident basically killed that idea…but let’s not get too ahead of ourselves…).
