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 the hell is this?
Are you high?
I’ll give you a nice, juicy topic to lay into, Dave. Later this week, Jeff Wells is jumping pompadour first into the not-as-easy-as-it-looks world of video blogging. Any helpful advice you’d like to pass on from your time spent doing this?
This learned gentleman is too cunning to be understood.
I love how Wells tries to preempt criticism of the inevitably shitty quality of his video by claiming it’s “influenced by Kubrick.” Yeah, Kubrick was real big into MiniDV on a ten dollar tripod.
Wells is such a douchebag.
Confucius say “Man who put rooster in freezer get stiff cock.”
I got nothing.
“So, fortune cookies aside… is there enough information out there that you trust and respect to build opinions as strong as you’d like to hold?”
This is very badly worded. I’m not sure what you mean. If you’re asking if there are opinions out there that I respect as much as my own… no. That’s pretty much the point of opinion.
Dave, your Yoda imitation sucks. Alternatively, your attempt to imitate my freshmen’s half-assed attempts at profundity is spot on.
Here’s a conversation starter: why is it that a simple and genuine attempt to engage readers with their thoughts results in insults?
Got nothing to add? Then say nothing.
Can I still complain about Jeffrey Wells?
I would prefer that Wells not be discussed in this space… I have stopped reading or caring about him in any way and I don’t like to have to not respond to readers for this reason, but I will not read him to indulge others either.
you really do have a thing for double negatives dave.
Seriously, Dave, can you write a blog once about what exactly happened between you and Jeff that you two hate each other so much? I’ve been reading you both forever and I have no clue where it started. I’ve seen various disagreements between the two of you, but I’d like to really know what the catalyst was. In the future, can you explain it all one day?
Actually, I was sort of kidding. Wells is such an insufferable gasbag that I don’t think I could stop complaining about him if I tried.
Noah… there isn’t much to explain.
Jeff has always tied to build himself on the web by trying to be my opposite number. He has always been abusive to those around him. My association with him has never done anything other than to damage my reputation and the reputation of the internet.
After years of being told that I should dissociate myself and with most of our contact reduced to him spewing and positioning himself, I spent almost a year with very little contact and still heard “David and Jeff,” and references to “Hedda and Louella” since he continued to write about me every week, no matter what I did. Anything I spoke to him about privately ended up being made public, spun self-righteously to his position.
Every once in a while, I would find myself responding to one of his idiocies… if I wrote about him once every 3 months, I was still participating in the sick relationship he sought. And I couldn’t argue the point with readers, journalists or execs.
And so, like any sane person who realizes that a certain relationship is nothing but destructive and has been left no reasonable alternatives, I withdrew completely.
I don’t hate, Jeff. Never did. If I actually wanted to damage him, I have a lot more ammunition than has ever even been hinted at.
If Jeffrey called tomorrow and needed to be helped out of some dangerous situation, I would, as I have before, help him, simply as a human being. But the bile he spews across the entire film biz landscape as a way of creating his own energy is unrelenting and, sadly, encouraged by not only people who like it and the people who hate it but indulge it simply to get him off their callsheets, but by people who are amused to watch the pain he is in like a carnival sideshow. As with so many things in Hollywood, many just deal with him because he is assumed to be a part of the game, so why bother avoiding him?
For me, to encourage or to be amused by his pain makes me a piece of shit. So with nothing else left, it is better that I simply stay away.
I have no joy in this. I consider my inability to reach a humane, balanced relationship with Jeffrey a failure on my part. But as Jeff will be the first to tell you, he considers happiness an illusion and expects everyone to want to hurt him. There is no sane answer to that for me.
There are others who have major issues with me, but even as crazy as some of those situations have gotten, those people do seek peace and make a sincere effort to be civil once calm… as do I. Not Jeff.
I have no control over what he feels or says about me, other than to not engage with it. Period.
After disengaging completely for the last few months – quite happily, frankly – I have decided to respond to this issue one last time. Sorry, but it is unlikely that I will respond to any further public questions on the matter. I think my answer is pretty complete.
If anyone feels a sincere need to engage on this issue further, my e-mail is around… feel free to write.
I know that even this explanation is a mistake for me to print. Any public acknowledgment of him damages me simply because it extends the association. But as I am asking people to leave him out of this blog, it is respectful to give you an answer. I hope you will respect my earnest answer in kind and let it rest.
Sounds like Wells’ is Feraud to your D’Hubert. But seriously, your well reasoned and mature decision to disengage speaks of highly of you.
Sounds like Wells’ is Feraud to your D’Hubert. But seriously, your well reasoned and mature decision to disengage speaks highly of you.
Thanks for responding, Dave. I really appreciate it. No more further questions on the topic for me. It’s fascinating to me, I think, because sometimes it’s difficult to realize that behind all these blog postings, there are people who share a similar professison and know each other without the barrier of the internet. But thanks again, Dave.