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
(in a very whiny voice) “But David, this story is IMPOORTTTANNNT!” I think that about sums it up. It’s apparently IMPORTANT. Why? Because apparently, the other stuff happening in the world, does not even come close to being as important as the story of a BILLIONAIRE being hustled by a freelancer. Who knew that irony would not die, but it would be replaced with VAPIDNESS! The Paper of Record has been replaced by The Paper of Vapidness. Yippee.
I think this phrase in the Daily New piece sums it up:
“The letter set in motion a chain of events that would trigger an unprecedented scandal in journalism, devastate the Post and rock its franchise column.”
And yet.. the Post is still being published… with Page 6… business as usual. So this story is obviously, some Daily News writer with an axe to grind against the competition, although I’m not sure what that achieves. I know very few people who read both the News and the Post every day (I”m sure they’re out there) and those who read the article probably have already made their choice.
That said, there’s a 4-page cover story in today’s Sunday News with escerpts from the transcript between Stern and Burkle which seems pretty incriminating… ironically, it’s accompanied by a sidebar about Richard Johnson’s wedding, which is very much like something we’d see on Page 6.
News Corp. wouldn’t have gotten rich and powerful without Page 3 (nekkid women) in the UK tabloid The Sun.
The Murdoch empire has a history of rewarding friends and punishing enemies. Those friends are more often than not friends with a right-wing worldview — Ed Koch, Margaret Thatcher, Alfonse D’Amato, Rudolph Giuliani, George Pataki, Tony Blair, the Bush family.
As for the New York Times? Last week it got scooped on a major story — Cheney’s former chief of staff saying Bush OK’d leaking the name of a CIA agent. When the Times is not making up stuff (see Jayson Blair) it takes US government fantasies and prints them as news (see Judith Miller).
Fuck the New York Times. Fuck them up their stupid asses…..
Yeah, I said it. It’s not a real movie blog until some jerkwad poster uses that clever Kevin Smith catchphrase in a post. So, fine, I’ll take the hit.
The fact that I could work it into your favorite topic Dave, (NY Times news ethics) is my gift to you.
Dearest David,yeah, sure its overkill on this story, but what about the NYT’s POV? Maybe for them its payback time….’Get Murdock!!’
Its really quite funny….I would have bet good money that the folks that ‘produced’ Page 6 are utter sleazeballs, but I never figured the whole racket to be exposed to the glaring light of day…apparently neither did the NYT’s ….they are as giddy with the sheer griminess of it as I am. Let them enjoy the moment, won’t you?
Are you overreacting to their over reacting? Yep. If you’re going to tilt windmills, pick an ogre. ‘kay?
Now relax……..and breath!
Gossip is not important. Gossip is a vice, a bad thing, something our parents all teach us we shouldn’t do, whether it’s Page Six or Ted Casablanca on Eonline or Margie talking to Ethel at the beauty parlor. Gossip columnists rank somewhere between paparazzi and spammers.
Now the NYTimes has been scooped on a SECOND major story in less than a week — Bush threatening a nuclear war!
Take away their national edition and the Times would be hurtin’ just like the rest of the newspaper industry.