April 30, 2024
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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
Has val officially put you on the payroll?
American Can? Back Door Films? I’m sensing a disturbing trend here.
Insightful, Anghus.
No. Haven’t seen Val in a few months. Miss her.
If you want to read press releases pretending to be stories, there are plenty of other people who pretend. Saw one on a blog today, with an ass-backwards explanation of the DVD situation, two years late. Or maybe you are interested in early box office numbers. Not my game. Never has been.
I received dozens of releases and pitches a day… every once in a while, I see something that perks my ears up. “John Keller, an ex-Marine who orchestrated the rescue of 244 of his New Orleans neighbors after their building, the American Can Company, was severely flooded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina,” struck me.
First I thought of that former Marine who went to Ground Zero and saved the cop, shown in World Trade Center.
Then I thought of the amazing backdrop that a flooded New Orleans would make for a drama around a guy who is trying to save people.
Now that we are done discussing me, Anghus… do you have something to say? Do you think it sounds interesting? Or are you just content being a smearing jackass?
Pointing out softball covreage isn’t smearing my friend. Implying bias isn’t really smearing either. You point those fingers of yours awfully quick at other sites. So wgy so agitated because I pointed out this obvious softball
Looks interesting….
Come on. If you’re going to shill at lesat put forth a little effort
No one respects a whore dave. But we respect the ones who dress it up a little more
Posting from blackberries….. Too many typos
And honestly I have no interest in this. If any filmmaker has the courage to make a down and dirty film about katrina I’m there. This doesn’t sound like it
Again, Anghus… just because you say it’s so, doesn’t make it so. I’m not exactly a closed book. My guess is that you only know Val exists because I have mentioned her.
Had you simply suggested a softball, that would have been fine. But that’s not what you did. You directly impugned my integrity once, then you did it again, after claiming you had some other interest.
I don’t like punks, con artists or and liars. You seem to be all three.
What am i lying about Dave?
I can deal with being called a punk.
Who am i trying to con? What am i lying about?
Feel free to elaborate. But at best, you’re 1 for 3. So let’s not go around throwing around words like liar and con artist, friend.
Sorry pointing out a personal relationship and implying that you lob softballs to the studio has ruffled your feathers. Because, i’m certain YOU have never ever ever done that. Never. Not once. No sir. You’re as pure as the driven snow. Nor have you ever spent words accusing other sites of similar behavior.
But watch your words, sir. You want to throw words like ‘liar’ and ‘con artist’ at me without provocation. I should slap the shit out of you on principle alone.
Uh, David… I’m not sure you want to get into a snit about someone impugning your integrity after… Well, let’s just say, such activity isn’t exactly alien to you.
Joe… when I do it, I offer a reason. A real reason. I don’t just sling shit randomly.
Anghus… You write a lot of shit for a guy who can’t get out of North Carolina. If you want to slap the shit out of me, you better have really long arms or have an airline ticket waiting.
Frankly, as much as I want to knock you for being a know-nothing no-one from nowhere, that would make a me an asshole. I believe that anyone anywhere may well be capable of being great and that being stuck in the show biz boonies is not what defines the talented or the untalented.
I can’t really tell what you have in the tank from watching your short on imdb, but that’s not really my issue. I hope to God that you are the next great filmmaker and make the film world better than ever.
But, you have the disorder of thinking you are an insider when you are not. This is a disease of youth and inexperience – though I have no idea how old or young you are – that most of us get over by either getting in or getting out.
“Has val officially put you on the payroll?” Do you know val? Or do you use her first name to try to appear to have some sort of insider knowledge?
Now… when you first spewed your nonsensical bull in comments, I actually explained myself. In depth. But you don’t want to have a real discussion. You want to piss on people and claim to know what you know shit all about.
Have you ever spoken to a major studio executive in your life? Have you ever worked as a journalist in a major market? There is nothing I know about you that suggests that I should consider you an industry peer in any way… and you have the temerity to drag an executive into it so that a friend of mine has to have her name dragged into some asshole’s blog comment? Fuck off, man.
I would explain to you how my relationship with the studio works, but it’s none of your f-ing business. I have already explained more than you deserve (not that you bothered paying attention to that). But the mere fact that you – you idiot – think that the Worldwide President of Marketing of a major studio would waste her time or her power manipulating me into promoting a press release for a deal for a small drama that will come out next year… I mean, grow up.
But you don’t know enough to read between the lines. But instead of shutting up, like a smart person does when they don’t have anything smart to say, you confront and attack, like a punk.
You will soon be the 19th person to have made 1000 comments on this blog. Many of your comments – probably the vast majority – are actually contributions of ideas. But shit like this does not fly with me. You can play your little, “oh david, look how sensitive you are… I must have hit a nerve” bullshit all you like, but the truth is you did hit a nerve… my not putting up with bullshit from people who want to treat me like shit on my own blog by pretending to know what they have no way of knowing… you hit my “you dragged my friend into your need for attention while pretending you know something” nerve… you hit my “I am wasting time with this asshole instead of doing real work” nerve.
Enough.
I am a long way from perfect. But I am not interested in you getting off on victimizing the host to make yourself feel like you have more power than you do. There are enough assholes in the world who actually have that power to deal with. I don’t need any amateurs up trying to prove they belong in the bigs by throwing at my head.
No wonder you never check in on my fights! You are having your own! Bloody hell. Two things though:
1) Could you post a list of all the posters here and their post counts?
2) Geek chat, Dave. He used to hang in Geek Chat. Geek Chat will make you feel like you are an INSIDER, when you are not an insider.
Wow.
as of 5/15, 5p
movieman – 1030
christian -1064
mutinyco – 1126
bicycle bob – 1206
Cadavra – 1425
EDouglas – 1471
Nicol D – 1472
leahnz – – 1532
Blackcloud – 1680
Wrecktum – 1702
Lota – 1731
Stella’s Boy – 2186
IOIOIOI – 2509
LexG – 2836
Joe Leydon – 3066
David Poland 4101
KamikazeCamelV2.0 – 4176
jeffmcm – 10765
Well I thought that would be a lot worse. Obviously it doesn’t include all the multiple aliases, like Bicycle Bob’s 20 other names.
If you’ve read any of those nearly 1000 posts, you’ll see that a lot of them deal with media and standards, bias etc.
You seem to be saying with this post that it’s perfectly alright to call someone out vaguely, but to outright imply it is some kind of sin. And based on your reaction, a grave one at that. And yes, i do want a discussion. But i never get it. Because people don’t talk about it, which is what interests me. Everyone points fingers about who is in bed with who, etc etc. But if you actually bring up the topic to writers they get eerily quiet.
My implication David wasn’t that Val is using her power to blah blah blah. The intent was to imply that you’re soft on Sony.
Number 2. I’m not “stuck” anywhere. What an L.A. thing to say. If i wanted to be in L.A., i’d be there. I love the implication that anyone who writes, creates, etc is in exile until they “arrive” in L.A.
News flash. I’m not the next great filmmaker. Or writer. I just enjoy it. I’m not sure how any of that got tied into the discussion. It’s not like i hide who i am. There’s no alias here.
What weirds me out is how quick you are to make it personal. I’m a liar, i’m a con man, i’m stuck somewhere. Does any of that have anything to do with the topic of entertainment journalism and bias?
To disagree with me is one thing. But to start calling me a con man or a liar… call me an asshole, call me a punk. Call me a small timer from the middle of nowhere. But to throw out “liar” and “con man”. Fuck off man.
Rather than address the topic, you’ve decided to address me. A very Karl Rove-ian approach to a topic. Why address the subject when you can throw barbs?
When you want to have an honest discussion about entertainment journalism and the nature of bias, i’ll be around.
I’ve written that many posts? Gee. That seems so… excessive.
I did address you implications, Anghus. And you just pushed harder.
People have all kinds of perceptions of me. They can’t all be right because most of them conflict. When I write something positive about a studio, I am in bed with them. When I write something negative, I am out to get them.
I have learned to eat most of that.
But what you did was not to write, “Poland… you’re being too soft on Sony and Will Smith, again!” You’d be wrong, aside from my disagreeing with my taste… but at least you would be on the track of speaking to what I posted and adding an opinion. Instead, you invoke the name of an exec you have no connection to except through me and called, “payroll.”
There are people in this world who are, effectively, on studio payrolls. There are others who get used by studios because the shared information benefits both sides in a clear way. This is not a case of either of those things. Not how I work. And, to speak to Joe, again, when I call people out on this, I am very detailed for that reason. I don’t consider it a light accusation. This is not Pete Hammond loving every movie, though he has a financial motivation, as he earns most of his living doing public Q&As and if he slapped a movie, he wouldn’t be making money doing Q&As for that movie. (I have been offered money for the ones I have done… and never billed any studio for doing them… probably a dozen every season.)
You may want to claim I have a personal vendetta against Paramount because I didn’t bend over and make sweet love to Star Trek. But you obviously don’t know that the marketing and publicity departments are run by people I absolutely adore.
Were you shouting out execs’ names when I was smacking Sony movies? There is a long list of them.
I have an honest discussion about e-journalism and the nature of bias in here all the time. If you think I am playing some sort of game, you had better have something other than a smart mouth to back it up. If you disagree on the issues, it is 100% your privilege.
If you want to say that you think I am soft on a studio, say it. Don’t turn it into something else to try to appear like an insider.
I am not interested in taking anything down into personal attacks here. But you shoot from the hip and if you don’t think “Has val officially put you on the payroll?” or “No one respects a whore dave. But we respect the ones who dress it up a little more” is personal than it’s because you don’t value or understand the words you use. And you don’t get to back away from it by claiming that I am made it personal.
Sorry to invite you in and then throw a drink in your face when you piss on the carpet, but I won’t have it. I have no interest in being the Sheriff of the blog or having anyone else be one either. It is a waste of my time… and yours. We should be capable of being civil to one another while having strong, conflicting opinions. It’s just a matter of choosing to do so.
I have strong opinions, and at times they can be delivered with the subtlety of a sack full of doorknobs. Like a few of your contemporaries, you don’t see them as conflicting, but dissenting.
That’s why you went into a thinly veiled “i’m not going to call you a no nothing loser from bum-fuckville when in fact that’s what i think, etc etc” I’m not lex, Dave. I don’t sit around getting drunk and crying into my beer about any level of success. There are those of us who write for the 189th market and make movies that play at a handful of small festivals and have no issue with it. And that isn’t to imply that what i do has any more merit than anyone making a movie in L.A. or Sherveport or Walla Walla Washington. I’ve contributed to making some mediocre films. But i still make them. Not because i’m waiting to be swept off to L.A. to do this that or the other. But because i hope they will get better.
People show a lot of themselves when they get riled. You, my friend, show that you’re the typical showbiz type who feels that an arguement can be won by flinging shit at the person making the argument.
I had a similar experience during the WGA strike when i was told that i could not voice an opinion on the subject because i wasn’t a member of the guild. What market i write for, or my level of success has nothing to do with my original argument.
Your ‘civility’ comes and goes as you please. When talking about someone you like or a peer you respect, it’s there. When talking about someone you don’t like, the gloves come off and you get nasty. When the finger is pointed back at you, you turn into a typical, dissafected prick. You have no interest in an honest discussion because no one is willing to have an honest discussion on the subject.
The fact that you cannot concede even for a moment that personal relationships affect coverage…
That would be the first step in an honest discussion.
I thought back to the Wolverine bootleg discussion. People were accused of having seen bootlegs and we hear things like ‘PROVE IT’. That’s not an argument or a discussion. It’s the same thing here. I’m sure there are Sony films you’ve been hard on. There is a difference between being a shill and ‘shilling’. The former meaning you have no integrity, the second meaning there are lapses in judgement and kid gloves being worn from time to time.
And here I was worried I was wasting my life on these blogs. I’m not even in the top 20!
(Well, I might be. But I’m not in the top 18.)
Which leaves unanswered the question: where exactly AM I wasting my life?
And I really, really thought IO would be 2 or 3.
Maybe he is. He’s only used that name since he came back from his self-imposed exile a couple of years ago, so this list isn’t counting his prior existence as…what was it? Life and Death Brigade? Weren’t there two or three others?
good grief, i’ve got a big mouth! plus, why do i get TWO dashes?! is the double-dash reserved for ‘extra-loopy’?
What’s funny is, if you add me and David — and, remember, this is David’s blog — well, the number would be smaller than…
Chinese Joe Leydon Torture: Death from a thousand passive-aggressive needles.
What a nasty racist anti-Asian thing to say. My Korean son and his Asian buddies would like a word with you, round-eyed white devil.