It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?
So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.
And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.
There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.
I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.
So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.
But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”
My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher
“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that I’m on the phone with you now, after all that’s been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didn’t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. There’s not a case of that. He wasn’t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had — if that were what the accusation involved — the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. I’m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, “You know, it’s not this, it’s that”? Because — let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. Times piece, that’s what it lacked. That’s what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.
~ David Simon
What? Does the place have a Cupcake Nazi or something?
Christopher Walken did it best. He would fool people into thinking it was his birthday just so he could get free cake.
… and, as usual for this sort of faddish thing, the product isn’t even supposed to be that good. I personally haven’t had the Sprinkles experience yet, but if you run a search on chowhound.com you’ll find quite a few reviews from nonplussed customers.
And if you go in carrying a little dog in your purse, you get 25% off. Fuck, Californians are stupid.
I’ve had them. They are pretty good but not worth going out of the way to get and definitely not worth the $$$.
Ha! L.A. is so behind the times…New York has had a number of popular cupcakeries (that’s the proper term) for *years*!
The Roosevelt is a really good time. It is all its cracked up to be. Too bad its going to be ruined by all the publicity.
As a transplanted New Yorker who loves L.A. for other things, this strikes me as so typical of the stupidity and desire to be “hip”. So just because the cupcakes are expensive and have rainbow colors and flavors it’s supposed to be great.
Sort of like Pink’s, the hot dog place on La Brea…huge line around the block every day and night, went there once, decent hot dog, didn’t need to go back. Herd mentality.
Me and my girlfriend were thinking of grabbing an eight ball. You just convinced us to try this place out — haven’t been made privvy to it yet.
Sweet!
Cupcakes? Pardon the following but, are you fucking kidding? They do call the place LaLaLand for a reason. This falls smack dab into sheer lunacy. Perfect for LA. Absolutely perfect.
Ha! L.A. is so behind the times… the midwest has had cupcakes going on *150 years* now.
lets be honest. no one in la eats sweets.
I thought Amy Sedaris was the cupcake queen? Are we going to have bi-coastal cupcake wars?
Pinks Hotdogs is very overrated. But I’ll be damned if the place isn’t Space Mountain every damn day. Never heard of this Cupcake business and proud of it.
As Kevin Smith once said: “LA is a great place to live… so long as you stay in your house all day.”
I had to look up who Amy Sedaris was even though I’ve heard the name before.
$36 for a dozen cupcakes at Sprinkles? I think not. I make my own Cointreau dark chocolate cupcakes in the Hostess Snack Oven (original Capital Outlay $19.95).
Interstate bakeries corporation bought my soul many years ago, and a profitable alliance it has been.
how pretentious…how stupid…how moronic…$36 for cupcakes? they better taste like edible gold for that price…things like cupcake stores are clear indicators of the coming apocalypse…this is almost as rich as “bakeries for dogs” that seem to have swept the nation a year or two back…welcome to Hell-A.
Did you say COINTREAU DARK CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES???!!!
I may have to relent now and buy my daughter that EZ-Bake Oven she’s been clamoring for. OK, the minimum age for that gizmo is 8 and my daughter is only 4, but…hmmm…maybe if I only allow her to use it under my personal supervision…hmmm…and store it in my closet…hmmm…and don’t let her eat any of the cupcakes…hmmm…
I’m not justifying the price, but I have to say that I find it odd that people here are beside themselves that anyone would pay $3.00 for a trendy “gourmet” cupcake. How about the $3.25 they charge for a friggin’ “tall” cappuccino at my local Starbucks – which also typically has a line out the door?
Well Cullen, think LA. That’s $3 per cupcake, which in LA terms, really isn’t that bad, is it?
I had dinner with someone in a Hwood area restaurant not too long ago and the bill was uh, I am too embarassed to say how much. And was happy I wasn’t paying. Shocking!
So in the greater scheme of LA things: hideous Fugly”designer” cowboy boots that are $1800, dinners plus wine which are hundreds, pashminas that are the price of a car, I’d say $3 per cupcake aint bad.
however, being a lifetime junkfood junkie, I always pick Hostess or use their cheap-ass cute snack oven to make my own poisons.
and why wait in line for cupcakes or hotdogs, yo, fax a delivery order.
If Dave is ever down on his luck he could start a competitor cupcakery and get a couple of the Hostess snack ovens smokin’ with some Colt-45 malt liquor cupcakes…”the flava for all true cinephiles”.
just saw your post now Chester–here goes my Get Rich Scheme becasue I am truly too kind and Bambi-like and must SHARE.
Get the DUncan Hines (no other–has the proper %age of Classy Ingredients) Moist deluxe devil’s food cake mix (corp=Aurora foods Inc; web duncanhines.com) it requires 4 eggs–use the organic expensive type, and instead of vegetable oil use Canola oil. It calls for water, but subsitute half the water with cointreau.
after you take the cakes out have melted (do not let boil) butter + cointreau (50:50) ready to baste all over the top of the cupcakes. You might as well be a Happy fat drunk bastard I say.
Also–EZ bake oven = no good. The cakes are too flat and dry out. Talk her into the Hostess snack oven. The cakes are deeper & hold moisture better.
twinkees.com have a fun website– what a great oven it is. They have neat TV shirts too! Ah, I love junk food.
Trust me…as a kid I was mortally disappointed with the EZ bake oven. Almost as bad as the snow cone makers that didn’t shave the ice fine enough.
Who eats cupcakes??