I've been looking back on my adventure in Hollywood, culling pages from my journal...
The agent Robbins sent me notes on my sideline Seinfeld script (which was my script "Dashing Dan and is now cleverly retitled "Dashing Kramer"). More visual elements! But Seinfeld's company will see it!
On the Writers BBS, I see a post by SNL writer Eliot Wald that SNL will look at material but only from agents so I get Agent Howle to submit them for me. Also from the WGA BBS, I meet Barry Stargatz, writer of "Married to the Mob," produced by Simon & Toddman. I emailed him privately and he confirmed that Simon & Toddman were "menschen." In fact, he mentions, he was working on a project with them at that moment.
And so endth July...
On the Writers BBS, I see a post by SNL writer Eliot Wald that SNL will look at material but only from agents so I get Agent Howle to submit them for me. Also from the WGA BBS, I meet Barry Stargatz, writer of "Married to the Mob," produced by Simon & Toddman. I emailed him privately and he confirmed that Simon & Toddman were "menschen." In fact, he mentions, he was working on a project with them at that moment.
And so endth July...
Into August I write I'm "busy, busy, busy." But I'm not seeing it now. Sent off the new outline for "Ghostwriter" to Howle. Then rewrote the script and faxed it to her. I start the search for Herb Sargent's work info, somewhere to officially submit samples to ("not so easy," I note-which must mean I was doing it wrong) and came upon other skit leads as well, which I passed off to agent Howle.
Howle returned "Peking Duck." She didn't like it. I was trying to finish "Closed Set" with no idea who to send it to.
I note here that I'll be gone for a week. When I get back a week later, nothing had happened. I was informed that my Seinfeld spec was sent to "Karen" at "Seinfeld."
Howle returned "Peking Duck." She didn't like it. I was trying to finish "Closed Set" with no idea who to send it to.
I note here that I'll be gone for a week. When I get back a week later, nothing had happened. I was informed that my Seinfeld spec was sent to "Karen" at "Seinfeld."
I talked to Sargent and he said to call back in September. Then I saw the Conan O'Brian test show...
OK, to back up a bit, the late night wars were heating up. Johnny Carson left the Tonight Show. They assigned Jay Leno to it over David Letterman. Letterman left NBC. NBC wanted to keep "Late Night" going, so they started looking for a new host. Conan O'Brian is picked out of left field to get it. Arsenio is bopping along. Dennis Miller had just folded his late night tent, and Chevy Chase was going to do something on FOX. As part of my search for info for sketch submissions, I discovered the addresses to request tickets for attending TV show tapings. I had been to one, years previous, a friend had tickets to Letterman. Now I sent in for tickets to SNL and to this new Late Night Show. I wound up with tickets for one of Conan's first test shows.
OK, to back up a bit, the late night wars were heating up. Johnny Carson left the Tonight Show. They assigned Jay Leno to it over David Letterman. Letterman left NBC. NBC wanted to keep "Late Night" going, so they started looking for a new host. Conan O'Brian is picked out of left field to get it. Arsenio is bopping along. Dennis Miller had just folded his late night tent, and Chevy Chase was going to do something on FOX. As part of my search for info for sketch submissions, I discovered the addresses to request tickets for attending TV show tapings. I had been to one, years previous, a friend had tickets to Letterman. Now I sent in for tickets to SNL and to this new Late Night Show. I wound up with tickets for one of Conan's first test shows.
The only thing I wrote in the journal was I left some samples of my work (sketches) in an inter-office envelope, addressed to Conan, which I left on my seat as we exited the taping, in the hopes that they would pick it up and put it in the inter-office mail. Clever, right? Needless to say, I never heard from Conan O'Brian.
I know I started writing reviews of the various new late shows on the WGA BBS, staring with O'Brian, but those are lost to the internet when the BBS was shut down.
The only other news in July was joining a Staten Island writers group which, indeed, was as lame as it sounds. I wrote, "The leader is sincere but by-the-book, the book being from "Writers Digest" (not a compliment).
I know I started writing reviews of the various new late shows on the WGA BBS, staring with O'Brian, but those are lost to the internet when the BBS was shut down.
The only other news in July was joining a Staten Island writers group which, indeed, was as lame as it sounds. I wrote, "The leader is sincere but by-the-book, the book being from "Writers Digest" (not a compliment).
