Turn Your Acting Talent Into a Successful Career by Jacklyn Zeman

Jacklyn Zeman. Turn Your Acting Talent Into a Successful Career. 2011.

Zeman was on “The Edge of Night”, “One Life to Live”, and was then on “General Hospital” for 30 years. She writes how important it is to work as an actor by bringing a fresh perspective every day. Actors should observe that things constantly change, especially when in a recurring role.

An actor has to be aware of what a character thinks, how these thoughts affects the character’s emotions and reactions, and then act accordingly.

An actor should observe human behavior, studying how people react, and learn from these observations. Actors should explore why people behave a they do and what causes their reactions. Some people act differently because of regional differences, exterior constraints, life situations, etc. An actor uses this knowledge when acting. the actor needs to keep within the thoughts and behavior of the character being portrayed.

Directors will offer their input. Actors need to recognize that decisions makers will have their impression of what they expect a character should be. Actors should respect this and learn fro their advice. Actors should work in collaboration with directors, producers, and writers.

Actors should arrive to work on time with their lines memorized. Everyone is expected to be ready for their work, and everyone works as a team that includes actors, directors, and crew. Zeman recommends arriving with three different ways to perform each scene Actors should be flexible in their work, Directors will likely appreciate that.

Rather Unspoken by Dan Rather

Dan Rather with Digby Diehl. Rather Outspoken: My Life in the News. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2012.

CBS News had a traditional history of discovering and reporting the news no matter how  controversial the topic. Edward R. Murrow reported on many controversial subjects, CBS explored civil rights issues even as TV stations in Southern states balked and labeled CBS the “Colored Broadcasting News.”

Dan Rather found CBS less wiling to broadcast controversy when his research team uncovered military command ordering the torture of Iraqi detainees, even after obtaining photographic proof. CBS, which had previously challenged the White House on the Viet Nam War, feared upsetting the Bush White House on the Iraq War as CBS’s parent company had a matter before the politicized Federal Communications Commission. In sum, Rather learned that big business including television works with Big Government to their mutual benefit. CBS executive sought to delay the story until Seymour Hersh and the New York Times, who also has the story, were about to break the story. CBS then allowed the story to be broadcast.

Rather believes network executives feared Federal government reprisals if they broke the story. They made the unprecedented decision that there be no follow-up stories. Rather notes that the fears that his sources regarding the story had that the military would have subordinates take the blame proved correct.

CBS had been purchased by Viacom. Viacom’s owner Sumner Redstone is politically connected and used political connections for government actions that increased Viacom’s profits.

Rather argues the truth must be the basis for news. He notes there are organizations that set to distort the news for political purposes. The Internet can be used to distort news. He notes this has arisen over rumors that Vince Foster was murdered, questioning John Kerry’s military service, and arguing Obama is not an American citizen. He believes similar groups discredited the true story that CBS reported taht George W. Bush was AWOL for a year from the Texas Air National Guard. Rather states the story was correct. Bush, without having the minimal credential for pilot tests, used the influence of his Congressman father to become a Second Lieutenant pilot in six weeks. He took a year leave to work on an Alabama Senate campaign and left an obligation to serve in the Texas Air National Guard. The Guard records confirmed his absence. Bush was honorably discharged eight months before his obligation ended. Documents confirming this were uncovered. the WHite House claimed no knowledge of the documents but did not deny them. Internet bloggers attacked the documents and claimed they were forget without the bloggers ever having seen them. Fox News reported the allegations that the documents were forged. Other news media picked up the Fox News story. The question of the legitimacy of the documents received more press attention than did the story that Bush had gone AWOL and possibly even deserted.

CBS attorneys worked to distance executives from the story rather than defending the story. Rather defended the story and the documents. He noted the forgery allegations were false. Despite the story being true, CBS executives ordered Rather to shut down further research into the story. Rather refused. CB then ordered Rather to apologize. Rather noted that when William Paley was in charge of CBS, they defended their stories, even if flawed, so long as they were true. Redstone had a different agenda. He endorsed the Bush Republican ticket because they favored deregulations which would financially help Viacom. When Bush was reelected, CBS executives pushed Rather out from CBS News.

Rather wanted to be a journalist as a boy. While in college, he first worked on a local radio station, where he developed the art of ad libbing. He later wrote obituaries for the Houston Chronicle. He then became a news writer for the Chronicle’s radio station for $45 a week. He worked there for six years, rising to a $9,200 annual salary. Rather was then offered a TV job and was hired as news director where he was the only full time employee working with two part time cameramen. He would deliver the news and press a button for  person in the control room to show film footage during a 15 minute news program at 6 pm and at 10 pm. He got the station to buy a used Army processor for $1,500 for film footage. His news program went from third to first in local Houston ratings. Rather’s broadcasting of Hurricane Carla in 1961 pioneered hurricane coverage as the first tie a news team broadcast from a live hurricane and for showing the first map of a hurricane’s path.

In 1962, Rather was hired as a national CBS correspondent. He was assigned as the  Dallas Bureau Chief covering 23 states. Among the stories covered were the desegregation movement and civil rights, and rioting at the University of Mississippi (where journalist Paul Guilhard was shot to death minutes after Rather spoke to him). Some local CBS affiliates in the South declined to assist Rather on their stories. Some Southern Senators threatened CBS over broadcast licenses. CBS President Frank Stanton had helped Vice President Lyndon Johnson enter radio and TV. Stanton got Johnson to defend CBS from the Senators’ threats.

The Atlanta CBS affiliate sought to censor the CBS national news. Stanton threatened to sign another local station as Atlanta’s CBS affiliate. The Atlanta station and others no longer attempted to cross the national CBS News.

TV coverage of police brutality against civil rights demonstrators in Birmingham led to at outrage that desegregated the city’s facilities.

Rather coordinated CBS coverage of President Kennedy’s trip to Dallas. Along the motorcade, CBS cameramen threw film footage to people identified by holding grapefruit bag holders. The then rushed the film for processing. Rather caught the last film as the motorcade sped by not knowing that Kennedy had been shot. Learning he had been shot, he called a hospital doctor was stated Kennedy was dead. Rather than spoke to a priest who confirmed that Kennedy was dead. Rather called CBS Radio in New York where announcer Allan Jackson reported the death before any official statement had been made. Rather remained associated with coverage for the next four days. Afterwards, Rather was named CBS White House Correspondent.

Rather was in the Oval Office as much as six times daily. President Lyndon Johnson was crass, leaving interviews for bathroom breaks and keeping the bathroom door half open.

The Nixon White House distrusted the press. Rather learned to develop other sources to obtain a broader view of news accounts other than scripted White House Press Secretary’s reports. During Watergate coverage, the White House threatened the Washingotn Post, who owned TV stations, with retaliation from the Federal Communications Commission. CBS covered the story while ABC and NBC were hesitant to report the story. Charles Colson of the White House did persuade Dick Salant of CBS to remove part of the broadcast.

Rather was moved to “CBS Reports”, the non-regular news documentary show. He believed the Ford Administration persuaded CBS to remove Rather from the White House press corps. Rather than added being a “60 Minutes” correspondent.

Rather became anchor of “CBS Evening News” in 1981. He once had a problem with a CBS Sports tennis match which went overtime into the CBS News time slot. CBS Sports abruptly went off the air without CBS News being ready, causing six minutes of dead air time. President George H.W. Bush effectively used this mistake to deflect Rather’s questioning of Bush’s involvement in the Iran Contra affair.

Prior, Rather covered the Vietnam War. His coverage presented the war dire tly to viewers. He interviewed troops directly. He dressed in fatigues, learned to be self-sufficient and not a burden to others, and traveled with troops. He learned that captains and sergeants usually best knew what was happening.

Rather traveled to Afghanistan in 1980. His broadcast how the Russians were gassing civilians upset them such that they put a bounty on killing or capturing Rather.

During the Iraq and Afghanistan wars under President George W. Bush, military personnel were no longer allowed to take correspondents with them wherever they wished to go. The Pentagon controlled what the press could see.

Rather began “Dan Rather Reports” on HDNet. He left his CBS contract worth millions of dollars. He sued for breach of contract for mishandling his story on Bush’s Guard service.

A Federal Communications Commission rule once stated that no one could own so many TV stations as to reach 35% of households. Republicans on the FCC increased this to 45%. Congressional Democrats tried to reduce this back to 35%. Viacom lobbyists helped fight for a compromise at 39%, which is what Viacom owned It was later disclosed that Congressional Republicans were upset over CBS News reports that were hurting Bush’s reelection chances Les Moonves, who rarely makes political contributions, make several contributions to Rep. Ray Blunt who had written a memo against CBS broadcasts. Blunt was also ranking Republican on the Congressional committee overseeing the FCC.

Rather went to HDNet because owner Mark Cuban supports investigative journalism, telling Rather “to go piss people off”. For the first time, Rather had a start from nothing, including renting an office and installing phones The show won an Emmy for Outstanding Business and Economic Reporting two years in a row.

Rather notes that pauses during interviews can be useful. Sometimes people being interviewed let the guard down and say something unprepared to fill the silence, which sometimes may reveal the truth of the matter Pauses can be edited.

Rather fears a free press is in danger from control of media ownership by giant multinational companies CBS, which owned 4 TV stations in the 1960s now owns 40 stations and seeks owning more.

Breaking news hurts profits as commercials aren’t run. When CBS declined to run breaking news on Senate hearings on the Vietnam War in 1969 and show Lucy reruns instead, Fred Fielding resigned in protest.

The Hollywood Economist by Edward Jay Epstein

Edward Jay Epstein. The Hollywood Economist: The Hidden Financial Reality Behind the Movie. (Release 2.0) Brooklyn, N.Y.: Melville House, 2012.

The author notes that ticket sales are just a part of movies’ incomes to studios. There are also sales from DVDs, foreign distribution, digital purchases, video game affiliations licensing rights, etc.

In 2007, the average costs of advertising and prints was $40 million per major studio film An average of $3.7 million per movie was spent on newspaper ads, Newspapers in return hype movies and ticket sales news.

Film distributors generally receive from 15% to 33% of all theater receipts.

In 1929, an average of 95 million Americans (about 80% of the population able to go to movies) went weekly to one of 23,000 movie theaters. Actors, directors, and screenwriters then worked under contracts with specific movie studios. Studios owned movie theaters until the U.S. Supreme Court ordered studios to divest their theaters,

Movie theaters with stadium seating, which is where everyone is about 14 inches above the row in front of them, increases attendance between 30% to 52%. People are found to drive up to 20 miles in favor of theaters offering stadium seating, due to the better views of screens, over theaters that don’t offer such seats..

Movies seek promotional tie-ins with retail companies. 

Of almost 1,4 billion movie theater tickets sold in 1977, about 500 million are sold during summer. 230 million are sold from Thanksgiving to New Year’s.

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires theaters with 300 or more seat to have wheelchair access to all rows.  Most movie theaters have less than 300 seats.

An R rating for nudity makes a movie unattractive to toy manufactureres and fast food tie-ins.

$17.9 billion in DVD sales were registered in 2007. Walmart and Sam’s Club sell about a quarter of all DVD sales. Walmart has a “decency policy that puts movies with nuridy into its adult section which lowers sales.

Analog films costs about $1,500 to print per film. Some films may have prints for 9,000 U.S. theaters and 12,000 foreign theaters. The costs are assessed to a film production company, created separate from the studio. After a few weeks, all print except for a few hundred sent to military bases, are destroyed to capture the silver in the film. Movies are moving towards digital projection.

For “Terminator2”, Arnold Schwarzenegger created Oaks Productions Inc. for tax advantages in being paid a guaranteed $29.25 million plus 20% of worldwide gross receipts including videos, games, DVDs, etc.

Movie stars who get $20 million per picture often agree to work on independent moves at or near the $788 per day scale. This often allows actors to work in more artistic projects they enjoy, especially if they have no other work at that time. The existence of a star attached to an independent movie allows the independent movie company to pre-sell it to foreign distributors. Since these pre-sales are promised payments, the independent film production company may get a bank loan against the promised sales to pay for making the movie. The company obtains a completion bond that guarantees the bank will be repaid should the film fail to be made on time or at all.

Film Finance, Inc. and the International FIlm Guarantors provide most of the completion bonds These two companies are owned by Lloyds of London and Fireman’s Fund. The bonds generally require the movie to have full insurance on the star actor and must provide the bond company with complete budgetary control The bond company usually is paid 2% of the budget.

One per cent of 2,000 independent films the Sundance Film Festival receives find a distributor.

If someone is pad a “contingent compensation” above “cash breakeven”, it is important how “cash breakeven” is defined. Even actors, directors, and others on the same film may have contracts with different definitions of “cash breakeven”. the definition depends on what costs are considers, including the contingency payments paid ot others, advertising, printing, etc.

Few who have “net points” even receive anything for net points. The points are often based on profits to the separate production company that often absorbs the overhead and distribution costs. These companies rarely show a book profit.

Nicole Kidman injured her knee while acting in “Moulin Rouge”. This created a $3 million insurance loss. She withdrew from “Panic Room” which had a $7 million insurance loss to obtain Jodie Foster as her replacement. Fireman’s Fund refused to insure Nicole Kidman for “Cold Mountain” Kidman put $ million of her salary in escrow towards insurance while Lakeshore Entertainment added $500,000 to this escrow in order for International Film Guarantors to issue a completion bond for “Cold Mountain”.

A movie’s actual budge is usually known to people within the studio.

Merrill Lynch started hedge fund investing, eventually through Melrose Investors, that provided 18% funding of all 26 Paramount movies made in 2003 and 2004. Paramount charged a 10% distribution fee that lowered payments to the hedge fund. Similarly, Warner Brothers used Legendary Pictures as hedge fund investors who funds about $500 million into some of their films.

MGM no longer has the physical capacity to make films, such as a sound stage or a backlot. It has a library of 4,000 movies and 10,600 television episodes. This library includes the James Bond movies, which is the most valuable film franchise there is. Sony paid $300 million to put MGM titles in Blu-ray, thus creating Blu-ray as the industry standard. Comcast paid $300 million to show MGM titles on Pay Per View cable. A group of investors borrowed $3.7 billion from 200 banks to invest in MGM only to discover MGM’s DVD sales fell from $140 million in Fiscal Year 207-2008 to $30.4 million in Fiscal Year 2009-2010. MGM could not pay mandatory interest payments. Creditors gave MGM a forbearance to raise cash since insolvency would contractually revert the rights of the James Bond franchise to Danjaq, LLC. MGM obtained funds with a deal for Sony to distribute a new James Bond film with Sony providing half the financing. MGM had $4 billion of debt removed y a bankruptcy court and received $500 million in credit for JP Morgan Chase.

If a director, screenwriter, or one of the two highest paid actors in a film in Canadian, Canada offers a tax credit which in 2008 was 16% of the labor costs and a 20% tax break on any digital efforts produced in Canada. British Columbia provides an additional 18% rebate on labor costs. Over 1,500 movies and TV productions are done in Canada.

Movie studios usually obtain about 15% of foreign movie gross after paying for foreign advertising, translations, foreign prints, taxes, insurance, etc.

40 states compete with each other by offering incentives from filming movies within their states. New Mexico offers a 25% production cost rebate. 

The leader of Louisiana’s film program pled guilty to receiving $67,500 in bribes to overstate production costs so film companies could receive larger tax credits.

Each of the six major movie studios owns their own distribution company. Movie theaters bank with these distributors as they know the studios advertise nationwide for their films. The distribution companies create zones so movie theaters do not lose to each other in competition. The distribution companies will create favorable terms for poorly performing movies.

The distribution costs of distributing a movie is usually around 8% of costs.

Even though Paramount had six of the ten best grossing movies in film history from 1994 to 2004, a series of six financial disappointments led to Paramount Chairman Sumner Redstone to bring in new management and to fire over 100 executives. Existing film projects were canceled and Paramount found they did not have enough movies that they needed for distribution to maintain income. Redstone bought Dreamworks SKG for $1.6 billion and financed the deal by selling the Dreamworks library for $900 million. Redstone also discarded Tom Cruise’s deal with Paramount where Cruise received 22% of theatrical release gross and 12% of DVD receipts.. Thus Paramount ended its relationship with Cruise’s Cruise-Wagner Productions. Stephen Speilberg left the new Paramount-Dreamworks and created a new studio for $500 million that was borrowed from investors from India.

Tom Cruise starred in and produced the movie “Mission Impossible: 2” for no salary in return for 22% theatrical gross and 12% DVD sales. Ordinarily a star could be entitled to 10% of video gross. Yet some studios keep 80% for costs of manufacturing, distribution, and warehousing so that 10% in gross in reality becomes 2% of gross. Cruise received $70 million for “Mission Impossible”.

For “Mission Impossible 2”, Cruise agreed with Paramount for 30% gross share and a DVD share of 40%. In addition, Cruise paid director John Woo from his share. This earned Cruise $92 million. Cruise earned more money that did Paramount on “Mission Impossible: 2”. MGM the signed Cruise to a United Artists contract.

The National Research Group (NRG) began as a part of Nielsen Entertainment. NRG created a “Competitive Positioning” document for the six largest studios. NRG conducts telephone polling of likely movie attendees to see which movies they have heard of, which they may see, and their age and gender. Reports are made for males under age 25, males over age 25, females under age 25, and females over age 25. Studios often arrange to release films that are not in competition with other studios for the same demographic, Sometimes NRG data can warn a studio of a conflict and if a studio releases a move it may lose the competition. This my delay a movie’s opening to a different date.

In 2008, more studios received over $8 billion. Studios get distribution fees ranging from 10% to 33%. Studios obtain funds for movies projects through pre-sale agreements to foreign market rights, hedge fund investments, product placement deals, leasebacks on title copyrights, and tax relief deals. This often amounts to 20% to 60% of the film’s budget. Studios use funds from other movies or “revolvers”, which are bank credits.

Studios look for movies that are remakes, sequels, TV spin-offs, or from video games.

Movie stars no longer guarantee box office sales. Julia Roberts in “Everyone Says I Love You”, released by Miramax, had an opening weekend of $132,000 while her next film, in the same romantic comedy genre, “My Best Friend’s Wedding”, distributed by Sony, had an opening weekend of $11.7 million, or 150 times more. Similarly, Mel Gilson in “What Women Want” released by Paramount had an opening weekend receipts of $13.6 million while his next film “Million Dollar Hotel”, released by Lion’s Gate, had $20,483 opening receipts, or 1,000 times less. The difference was mostly the pre-release advertising committed by the studio.

The author states the “Midas Formula” for movie success is a movie 1.) based on something familiar to children, 2.) has a child or adolescent protagonist, 3.) has a flawed youth turn into a hero, 4.) has only platonic relationships between the sexes, 5.) has characters available for game and toy licensing, 6.) has no bloodshed, 7.) ends happily, 8.) uses animation, and 9.) does not use major stars that demand shares of the gross. Such a film can earn a studio $400 million to $600 million.

Disney used to release “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” every seve years to a new group of young audiences. It became the first movie to reach $100 million in gross.

Movies need to find villains that will not enrage ethnic groups. Corporate executives are often acceptable villains.

Many action films had over 70% of their earnings from foreign viewings. The formula is to be high on action and low on dialogue.

Studios have a limited number of theater availabilities to release their films. Small budget films may have a large profit margin, yet some studios will not consider even very profitable ventures if they are not expected to hit $150 million in box office receipts. Several independent and mini-major distributors had closed by 2010. The American value of an American independent movie today is almost nothing An independent film will require a foreign pre-sale agreement in order to be made. A bank loan or subsidy will be necessary. A completion bond will be required. Even then, there is usually a gap in financing.

Move theater receipts were 55% of studio revenues in 1980 and 20% in 2007.

The Creative Screenwriter by Zara Waldeback and Craig Batty

Zara Waldeback and Craig Batty. The Creative Screenwriter: Exercises to Expand Your Craft. London: Meuthuen Drama, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 2012.

This book encourages screenwriters to be dutiful in upgrading their abilities. Increased expertise provides insights on overcoming difficulties. Creative forces should be sharpened to improve writings. Stories should be analyzed and weaknesses should be improved upon.

The authors observe that creativity involves a freedom of ideas within limits.  They recommend writing down all kinds of ideas and then sharpening the best ideas.  A writer should consider experiences that were particularly engaging as subject ideas. Writers should tell stories and consider what they hear.

Writers block can be overcome by deliberately writing badly. In fact, the goal then is to write as badly as possible Writing things we shouldn’t often leads to something creative.

Screenwriters should guard against choosing stories that are so common that they wont excite an audience. They should stay attuned to new ideas that may occur or  become known in one’s surroundings. Consider how introducing other characters may change a story and the relations between characters. Switch roles of characters and consider those possible consequences. Discover what works best.

A story requires development. Find a “Creative Dramatic Question” that creates desires for characters and develop a dramatic story. Analyze the story for problems. Resolve the problems. See that the story will hold an audience’s interest. Most screenplays have 30 or more beat points. There must be conflict. The story must progress logically an enthusiastically. Reconsider the story for new ways that make them more dramatic. The audience should appreciate the story, its characters, and how the story progresses.

Characters should fit well into the story. There should be a clear protagonist.  The characters require emotions and should grow emotionally during the story. The protagonist needs some reason to react to a story.

Characters must react to other characters. There must be conflict with an appropriate antagonist.  The antagonist must create obstacles to a protagonist’s goals. A catalyst creates a new situation that changes the principal character. This alters characters and their relations. Screenplays often show situations as viewed differently by different characters. This affects how they interact with others as situations alter. Sometimes the presence of an unseen character offers insights.

The protagonist requires a character arc derived from a serious fo events that creates an emotional realization. This realization results from the inciting incident. All characters are changes by these events. Those changes result from growing problems, increasing drama, and severe challenges that bring about rewarding resolutions of all problems.

Screenwriters should examine alternatives in the structures of screenplays. There can be more than one protagonist or several stories.  Reexamine the beginning and consider if it starts at the best time or place. Examine if the Central Dramatic Question works. See if audiences get the best initial impressions of characters.  Make characters more sympathetic by placing the in greater trials. Be certain important information is provided.

Opening with a voiceover often results in an audience immediately bonding with the narrator. This can be a tricky but useful device if the narration either bonds the audience to a central there or if the narration contains information that rewards the audience later.  The story must end in a manner with which the audience considers apparent and with which the audience identifies. Twists to endings can work but twists that do not seem to follow the previous actions can fail.

Some scripts take familiar themes of stores and reset them in new locations with different characters.

Dialogue has to be appropriate for a character at that time.. They should be reveal inner thoughts. The screenplay should be appropriate for its genre. Genres can be mixed but may face confusion that loses the audience. Genre can create a mood.

Rewritings should refine the screenplay. Check that each scene fills a need. Conflict and action should build with increasing complications.

Movies, being visual, require visual depictions. Screenplays show characters doing things. Audiences prefer seeing things shown to them rather than having dialogue describing it.

Rewrite to sharpen dialogue. Create dialogue that reveals emotions and information without directly stating it. Often a silent reaciotn of some sort can be very informative.

Consider how to best present subtext in dialogue.

A screenwriter should recognize and develop one’s own voice. This voice can change over time, yet it, or its distinguishing difference, can find new appeal.

My Happy Days in Hollywood by Garry Marshall

Garry Marshall with Lori Marshall. My Happy Days in Hollywood: A Memoir. Crown Publishing Group, 2012.

Actor Hector Elizondo notes how Garry Marshall, as a director, gives simple directions with simple corrections while remaining in sync with actors  Elizondo notes that Marshall is “a master of comedy” with natural abilities i guiding actors.  Marshall makes the filming experience fell relaxed through creating an upbeat atmosphere.

Marsha, as a child, played drums at his mother’s dance school.  He observed when humorous skits worked and when they didn’t, He noted the key was to get the whole audience laughing and not just a few.  He rewrote sketches to make them funnier.

Mashall did some TV camerawork in college.  After graduating college with a Journalism degree, he became a cameraman in the Army in a unit led by producer Darryl Zanuck’s son Richard.  He then wrote for the Armed Forces Korean Network.  He wrote humor such as “Now say the password”, “Matzo”,”You may now Passover.”  

After being in the Army, Marshall turned to writing comedy for comics.  He passed out business cards given to stand up comics promising “100 percent virgin material”.  He wrote for Phil Foster and Joey Bishop.  He was among the writers for Bishop when Bishop subbed for Jack Parr hosting the “Tonight Show”. Marshall notes Parr did not respect his writers.

In 1960, Marshall was added to the “Tonight Show” writing staff. Writers had to come up with five pages of jokes each day for four days a week.  Of the four writers doing this, maybe one or two jokes were selected daily.  The writers also stood near during shows, especially when there were guest hosts, and gave hem joked based on what was happening on the show.  Marshall also worked at the same time as a New York Daily News copyboy.

The “Tonight Show” writing opened contacts leading to more writing jobs.  Marshall learned comedians had their own styles.  Arthur Treacher liked obscure referential humor such as “I got up this morning and my mouth tasked like Harrisburg, Pa. after a heavy rain.”

Marshall wrote for Shari Lewis and her puppet Lamb Chop. Marshall observed that Shari Lewis was always outwardly kind towards writers yet she would speak her criticisms through using her puppet.  Marshall and other writers were quite unhappy with this treatment.

Marshall was added to the writing staff of the floundering “Joey Bishop Show”.  Marshall moved to Los Angeles for this job, as did fellow writer Fred Freedman. They were given a contract of $200 monthly for six months, which they split  The pay increased to $300 monthly and Marshall got to keep it all after Freedman left.

Marshall wrote some episodes of the “Lucy Show”. Star Lucille Ball wrote “This is shit” on the first script he gave her. Marshall discovered that Lucille Ball’s humor was to begin with a humorous scenario and base the rest of the script on that scenario, 

Marshall wrote scripts for other show such as the “Dick Van Dyke Show”. His agent warned him against being listed as writing too many shows and to save his nae for the most viewed shows. He wrote shows using the fake name Samun Mitsubi. He and writing partner Jerry Belson wrote 32 script in 1963 using their own names.

In 1966, Marshall and Belson developed this own TV series “Hey Landlord” on NBC. The show lasted one year, finishing 99th out of 100 series in ratings.  The experiences of creating and running a series was very educational Marshall and Belson wrote movies, the first being “How Sweet It Is!” They were then commanding $75,000 for a movie script and $3,500 for a TV episode script.

In 1969, Marshall and Belson were asked to produce the ABC TV series “The Odd Couple”. The show was a hit. Actor Tony Randall thought the show would be stronger if performed in front of a live audience. Randall despised canned laughter.  Randall asked viewers to demand removing the canner laugher in favor of live audience reactions. This was done.

Actor Gavin MacLeod had appendicitis the night before an episode was to be taped. Marshall filled on on the role.

Head writers on “The Odd Couple” ate with meals on their desks. Apprentice writers ate while balancing trays on the laps.

Writers Lowell Ganz and Mark Rothman were hired to punch up the material.  They were fired but couldn’t afford to move back home. They remained on the set, telling Marshall they wanted to learn how to improve their writing. This impressed Marshall. He gave them a chance at writing a script. Marshall liked it and he rehired them.

Tony Randall inspired writers by telling them he wanted top notch shows so he would be proud of them when watching them in the future in a retirement home, That imagery motivated the writers.

Marshall believed in nepotism.  He cast his sister Penny on the show, as well as giving some work to another sister Ronny, his mother, and Penny’s husband Rob Reiner. Tony Randall helped mentor Penny Marshall/ His father was hired as an Associate Producer. His father taught him each episode didn’t have to cost the same. He could spend more on one episode by spending less on another.

The TV executive worried that the two male lead “Odd Couple” characters were gay.  The show staff would deliberately irritate the network executives by sending them unused scenes where they kissed. The executives insisted the characters date women. They were worried hat gay characters would not be accepted by 1970s TV audiences.

The network asked Marshall for more shows. He created “The Lost People” TV series. After “The Odd Couple” finished after five seasons, he created “Happy Days”.

In creating “Happy Days”, he wanted a comedy about youth that did not concern the issues facing youth then, such as the Vietnam War and drugs. He set the show in the 1950s. Executives were pushing for  show from the 1930s. Marshall noted he was more familiar with the 1950s. The pilot was filmed, appeared on “Love American Style, which aired rejected pilots, and the show was presumed dead. Yet, the producers of the film “American Graffiti” saw Ron Howard in the pilot and cast him in their movie. The movie was a success. ABC then decided to use “Happy Days” as a midseason replacement.

Marshall’s agent advised him to offer to take less per episode in money in return for a larger ownership share. They believed the show would have a long run. It did, running for 11 seasons.

Marshall saw potential in actor Henry Winkler. He was cast even though he was not physically what they originally sought. Marshall notes that comedy needs to be flexible when you find the right talent.

ABC asked for “Happy Days” spin off ideas. Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams appeared on some “Happy Days” episodes and they had chemistry. A TV series “Laverne and Shirley” resulted. A ten minute pilot was shot after a “Happy Days” was done filming by paying the crew overtime, The pilot was shot with Penny Marshall and Liberty Williams. The network stated they preferred Cindy Williams. Cindy Williams did not want to do the series. Marshall believes she finally agreed by believing it would not last long. It debuted with the number one show rating. The series lasted eight years.

The “Happy Days” cast and crew were pleasant to each other. By contrast, the “Laverne and Shirley” cast and crew bickered. One worker demanded to leave “Laverne and Shirley” and return to “Happy Days” when he confessed to considering running his car over the cast. Even Garry Marshall’s father, who handled payroll, once refuse to give Penny her paycheck when they had a disagreement. Cindy Williams left the show and did not appear in its final season.

Marshall’s son Scott was a big “Star Wars” fan. Scott suggested a space alien could come to Fonzie in a dream. Marshall then hired a talented street performer Robin

Williams to play the alien. The live audience gave Williams a standing ovation. ABC asked Marshall to quickly develop a TV pilot for Williams, even thought it was already past pilot producing season. Marshall remembered an actress he had seen whom he felt would be right, so he hired Pam Dawber without seeing her or auditioning her A montage from a failed Pam Dawber pilot and “Happy Days” footage substituted as a pilot. ABC then bought the show as “Mork and Mindy”.

Marshall also created a TV show “Angie”. He admits it was not as funny as the other shows. It lasted a year.

Marshall directed a movie “Young Directors in Love”. He was not familiar with film directing terms He would take walks to think and resolve problems. During one walk, he resolved shooting a scene differently by having an added actor doing physical comedy in the background.

Marshall next directed the movie “The Flamingo Kid”. He observed, as director Blake Edwards confirmed that performers’ reactions to dialogue are more important than the dialogue. He decided the ending was wrong, The studio wouldn’t pay to return the cast to a beach set the studio so he filmed it at a real beach.

Marshall remembered names of good employees. He developed a reliable team he could raise for future projects.

Marshall next was asked, and agreed, to direct the movie “Nothing in Common” with Tom Hanks. TriStar Pictures was forcing Hanks to do the movie and Hanks was not happy. In addition, Hanks was getting a divorce. Marshall met with Hanks and told him not to take his private issues out on cast and crew. Marshall promised to making the filming fun. Marhsall then asked Hanks how he liked to be directed. Jackie Gleason was signed to do the movie even though he wasn’t physically well. It would pointed out to Gleason that his last film was “Smokey and the Bandit II” and if he wanted that movie to be his last credit. Gleason immediately agreed to do “Nothing in Common”. Marshall had difficulty getting along with the cinematographer, John Alonzo, as they had different ideas on directing.

Marshall next directed “Overboard”. It was not a movie he intended to direct yet he needed the money it paid him. The costars Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell were dating and happy which made the set happy. One of four boys in the movie hurt his ankle ad couldn’t run in a scene where he four boys ran, Marshall had them put on Halloween masks so they when they needed to run, a substitute boy could run.  Marshall used John Alonzo as his cinematographer and they got along better.

Marshall directed the movie “Beaches”. Due to his record of getting movies done on budget and on time, Marshall got the unusual reward of having his $500,000 paid upfront in order to get him out of personal debt. He was hired to bring humor to a dark story about dying. When actor Mayim Balik, who were brown contact lens covering her blue eyes, lost a contact lens, it was discovered the doctor in town with contact lenses was on vacation. Rather than correct the different eye colors in postproduction, Marshall called and receive permission from the doctor to break down his office door and tke the correct lens.  This was a less expensive alternative.

“Pretty Woman” was Marshall’s next movie directing. It was a low budget movie without any huge strs that become a big success. Marshall made 20 year old Julia Roberts comfortable on a set by making her laugh, Marshall notes he wanted people to enjoy working with him  He doesn’t want a reputation of being difficult to work with. 

Marshall directed “Frankie and Johnny”. Michelle Pfeiffer wanted the role of a plain woman even though most considered her too beautiful to carry off portraying a more average person. She went in person, without an agent or handlers, to Marshall and spent an hour explaining how she would handle the role. Marshall was convinced and she was cast opposite Al Pacino,

Marshall will take good advice from others. While having problems filming a scene where a floral display was desired, it was suggested that a delivery truck open up showing a truck full of flowers. Marshall loved the idea and used it, noting some directors will not accept ideas from others.

Marshall directed “Dear God”. He observes that the low budget did not allow for obtaining the music he wanted. He believes better music would have much improve the film.  He later successfully fought to have a U2 song he thought was perfect to open his directed movie “Runway Bride”.

Diane Keaton and Julie Andrews are both noted for staying on set even when not in a scene to be helpful. They provide advice to less experienced actors, help feel lines, and assist others.

Marshall, as a director, finds something for characters to do with their hands or bodies. Ths makes the scenes more vibrant and interesting.

Marshall recommends actors get schooling, do plays, meet people socially, work at small roles or as extras, use experience to teach others especially children, be willing to work in student films and small films, stay healthy, and don’t waste time being jealous.

Found by Tatum O'Neal

Tatum O’Neal with Hilary Lifton. Found: A Daughter’s Journey Home. New York, N.Y.: William Moore, 2011.

Tatum O’Neal was being raised by her mother and her mother’s 16 year old boyfriend.  Her mother had difficulties with staying sober.  Her father, actor Ryan O’Neal, put her in a movie “Paper Moon” where she won the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award.  Her life became filled with problems from drug use.  She became free of drugs and wrote an autobiography “A Paper Life” about overcoming drugs and setting her life straight. Many presumed she has been fine from the on.  This book tells how things weren’t all fine.

Her divorce to John McEnroe and being separated from her children during his joint custody time devastated her.  She discusses how heroin relieved the pain.

O’Neal revived her acting career. She won a role on the TV series “Rescue Me”. She writes how she had been clean of drugs for a year and hadn’t done heroin for six years when she was arrest for buying drugs.

RyanO’Neal and Tatum O’Neal did not speak to each other for eight years.  Ryam made uncomplimentary statements about his offspring and was arrested for shooting a gun at his son Griffin.

Tatum O’Neal had been attending Alcoholics Anonymous and had a sponsor who helped her through the group’s steps.  She found she still thought about using drugs despite achieving sobriety.

Tatum O’Neal had painful nerve damage from a 1976 automobile accident as well as having chronic degenerative disc disease that required three surgeries.  She needed prescription drugs for the pain. Her observation about dependency is that the desire to return to drug use “gets you when you least expect it.”

The cast and crew of “Rescue Me” was supportive after her arrest. Fellow Denis Leary told the press how she never missed work and that he would continue working with her.  Ironically, her character portrayed a drunk.

Tatum O’Neal entered heroin rehabilitation in 1994.  She wanted to end her dependency on heroin.  She used heroin because “heroin was the only things that made me feel like I was meant to be alive.”  She called her father from rehab yet Ryan replied “don’t blame me for the fact that you’re smoking the dragon” and then hung up.  They had not spoken to each other since Tatum’s autobiography said things that hurt her father. She realized her heroin use was her own responsibility.

Tatum’s son Sean studied acting at Occidental College in hopes of becoming a third generation actor.  He asked to learn about his acting heritage.  Tatum let Sean call Ryan even though Tatum and Ryan had not spoken in years. Ryan and Sean met and things went well between them.

Ryan started dating Farrah Fawcett when Tatum was 15 years old.  Ryan put more attention on Farrah while leaving Tatum and Griffin to themselves, which included their smoking marijuana.

Tatum attended Farrah Fawcett’s funeral. When she hugged her father, Ryan asked her out for a drink. Ryan did not recognize Tatum and was unaware he was hitting on his own daughter.

Filming “Paper Moon” had brought Ryan and Tatum more together and then it separate them. Tatum was paid $16,000 to appear in the movie.

Tatum was then offered a role in the movie “Bad News Bears”. She was offered $150,000. Ryan turned down offers until the producers offered her $350,000 and a percent of gross profits.  She was the highest paid child actor to date.

When Ryan and Tatum reconnected years later, her book and his past parenting were never discussed. Tatum didn’t want to upset their fragile truce.  Ryan and Tatum formed a film documentary company together.

The O’Neal family discussed starring in a reality show.  They agreed to it. Ryan and Sean argued. Ryan kicked Sean out of his car. Ryan asked Tatum to get him. Tatum proceeded with the show believing the cameras could serve as mediators in family relationships.  She learned from Griffin that Ryan had no remorse for what happened in the past.  They worked on reconciliation.  Tatum notes she’s a survivor and she will continue working at life.

Basil Rathbone by Michael B. Druxman

Michael B. Druxman. Basil Rathbone: His Life and His Films. Duncan, Ok.: Bear Manor Media, 2011 (originally published in 1975).

Basil Rathbone, an actor, was liked by all he knew.  Interviews find no one stating they disliked him.  Rathborn was itially typecast as a “heavy” after his role of a sadistic character in “David Copperfield”.  Rathbone could portray a wider range of characters, yet was often cast as a dark character.  He was then typecast as Sherlock Holmes, his most famous role.

Rathbone portrayed Sherlock Holmes in 14 movies, a radio series, in TV, and on stage.  Fans called him “Mr. Holmes”.  Rathbone never received another major role after his role as Holmes.

Rathbone was noted for his kindness to others.  There are many remembered instances of his quietly doing favors for people without being asked.  Despite Rathbone’s series of portraying serious characters, he was personally had a strong sense of humor.

Rathbone started in the entertainment field on the British stage.  He served in World War I where he received a medal for crossing to the German lines to gather intelligence.  He claimed he pretended to be a tree and “I have not since been called upon to play a tree.”

Rathbone had numerous movie roles. His first role was in “The Fruitful Vine” in 1921.  He then appeared on Broadway while continuing staring in more movies.  His first American movie was “Trouping with Ellen” in 1924.

Rathbone appeared in the play “La Prisonniere” that concerned lesbianism.  It ran for 17 weeks until a few weeks before city elections.  New York officials arrested Rathbone for offending public morals for starring in a play about lesbians.  The charges were dropped but the play was closed.

Rathbone received the lead role in several talking movies.  He was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for “Romeo and Juliet”.  He was nominated again for a Best Supporting Actor Award for “If I Were a King”.  He lost both times to Walter Brennan.

Rathbone starred in a movie version of William Gillette’s play “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” with co-star Nigel Bruce.  Rathbone went on to do other movies.  NBC decided to have a “Sherlock Holmes” radio series.  Rathborn and Nigel Bruce voiced their movie roles.  The radio series moved to the Mutual network with Rathbone and Bruce staying with the series.  They did 275 episodes over seven years.  Rathbone once misspoke the line “horde of bees” as “board of whores”.

In 1929, as war broke out in Europe, Rathbone become President of the British War Relief’s Los Angeles chapter.  He regularly entertained troops in the Los Angeles area.

In 1942, Universal paid $300,000 to Conan Doyle’s estate for the movie rights to 22 of Doyle’s writings on his Sherlock Holmes character.  Universal initially was going to produce a number of low budget Sherlock Holmes movies.  MGM agreed to loan Rathbone to reprise his Holmes role.  Nigel Bruce and Mary Gordon who was on the Sherlock Holmes radio series, were also signed.  Dennis Hoey was added as a semi-regular character beginning with the second Universal Holmes movie  The series was updated with Holms facing Nazis.  Each movie was filmed in 12 to 13 days for $300,000.  12 movies were produced in five years.

Rathbone was counter-cast as a Gestapo villain in “Above Suspicious”, which was released in 1943.

Universal increased in quality in three Holmes pictures released in 1944.  Yet Rathbone was tiring of portraying Holmes.  Rathbone also considered Holmes an egotist who was wrong to be so critical of Watson.  Rathbone refused to renew his 1946 contracts with Mutual and Universal/MGM.  He went back to theater work.

Rathbone was active in Actors Equity.  He served as its Third Vice President and then as Recording Secretary.

Rathbone did theater work and several TV plays for American and Canadian television.  Rathbone did a Sherlock Holmes play on Broadway that closed after three performances.  Rathbone returned to film work.  His last notable role was in “The Last Hurrah”.  He made recordings where he read classical stories. He also did readings on NBC’s “Monitor” radio show. 

In 1967, Rathbone was in the movie “Hillbillys in a Haunted House”,  It was his last film as he died a month afterwards.  His estate was valued at between $10,000 and $20,000.