Hollywood Studio Publicity Writer Years (1987-1995)

 

Being confronted by a multiplicity of fantasy scenarios in movies and marketing them as a Hollywood studio publicity department staff writer followed the previous phases of my 'over-the-top life' (the topic of recent reminiscing blog articles).  The phase would come to a sudden halt during the summer of 1995 following a research trip to rural Oklahoma to investigate what had been reported to be an ongoing 'talking poltergeist' haunting.  After working as a talent agent and then as a press agent for phases of more than seven years each, I happened to turn my attention to the paranormal mystery that some investigators theorized in each poltergeist case as centering upon some particular human 'agent.'  My experiences revealed anyone can become the focus for 'unexplained phenomena.'

 
I recall watching so many times those stars appear over the mountain at the beginning of Paramount movies.  Some of the well-known movies I helped publicize are "Braveheart," "Clear and Present Danger," "Coming To America," "Fatal Attraction," "Forrest Gump," "Ghost," "The Godfather Part III," "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," "The Naked Gun" trilogy, "Star Trek" movies, and the two "Wayne's World" movies.  In all, I wrote publicity materials for more than 100 Paramount releases, including quite a few that had storylines involving 'paranormal' subjects.  This article is a reminiscence about how I came to have this job with a description of some of my experiences as a publicist.  During the summer of 1995 upon witnessing paranormal phenomena of diverse attributes that showed no geographical limitation, I immediately realized the necessity of leaving this career behind to become a metaphysical author with the objective of helping others to expand their spiritual understanding of life.

Regarding metaphysical and spiritual subjects, the difficulty for a knowledgeable person is communicating these facts to others because there are so many different perspectives among those who don't know.  Not everyone who reads this article will understand the significance of some of the things simply and directly stated.  When discussing my experiences in the past, when "beliefs" became a topic I explained that my firsthand experiences have nothing to do with opinions based merely on book research.  Many aspects of my unexpected path of spiritual discovery weren't something comprehensible to me until the summer of 1995.  My case study Testament (1997) and follow-up original Internet book provide a documentary-style case study (available to be read in free Internet editions) of what happened.  This blog article is about my career circumstances during the period from 1987 through the life changing events of 1995. 

In March 1987 after deciding to change my career after working as a talent agent, I had no definite idea about what would be my next position.  While attempting to advance a screenwriting career, there had been some near deals and encouraging letters from producers, directors and studio executives yet no income had resulted.  In addition to the two potential projects for Mickey Rooney, in October 1980 I'd developed three works by Aldous Huxley into screenplays after initially taking a six month option with Laura Huxley to develop a project based on the short story "Young Archimedes."  I began losing interest after there was screened in L.A. an Italian telefilm based on the short story that apparently had been made without any authorization.  One of my main objectives with my fictional projects was that the storylines be unpredictable and not present cliches.  The adapted script of mine that I thought was the most 'commercial' was based on a Robert Silverberg science fiction novel that had a subtle aspect of social satire in addition to all the more typical genre elements.  I also submitted short stories to literary journals and compiled a collection of rejection notices for those as well.  I selected for the title of my short story anthology (unpublished) Holy Tango Anthology.

My personal speculative writing projects encompassed aspects of life manifesting spiritual and metaphysical concerns.  I still have a file from this period and in addition to 13 screenplays (8 original and 5 adaptations) that I'd written since my days as a USC student majoring in cinema, I'd written a first draft for a play (or potential musical) entitled "Nostalgia for Demons" about the case of Mary Catherine Cadière and Jean-Baptiste Girard during the Ancien Régime in France.  This is a case that is perhaps too complex to simply describe yet one book that provides a general profile of what happened is The Encyclopedia of Witchcraft and Demonology (1959) by Rossell Hope Robbins.  Among my collection of photocopies of English translations of court records and other accounts of this case, one fascinating narrative is a British ballad opera of 1731 that impressed me as being amazingly similar to modern entertainment. 

After a couple of months, I sought an opportunity to become an assistant at a Sunset Boulevard public relations firm with a general impression that there could be the possibility in the future of going into personal management.  I found the goals of the publicist not far different from a talent agent’s with media coverage rather than performing jobs being the objective.  The client paid a monthly fee instead of the agent’s ten percent commissions.  There was more writing required in the job of a publicist in comparison to that of a talent agent, considering client biographies, press releases, pitch letters, etc.  
 
Meanwhile, my brother Mike had recently left his job at Disney to become a director of publicity at Paramount.  When he told me that marketing executives were dissatisfied with the production information for the press kit of "The Untouchables" yet there was no more money budgeted to pay another publicity writer, I agreed to quickly write a new version with the understanding that if they liked my work there would be the usual freelance assignments.  Some manner of synchronicity was involved because the avoidance of exorbitant hype that I preferred for publicity materials was appreciated by the current slate of executives at Paramount.  An important aspect of the publicity writer's tasks is the 'positioning' of a movie (how the storyline is summarized).  Considering all the time I'd spent watching movies as a child, I usually found it a simple matter to define what plot elements would be compelling for journalists and audiences alike.  My freelance assignments included another engaging movie that would also become a big hit for the studio, "Fatal Attraction."

When offered the chance to join the Paramount publicity department as staff writer, I was delighted at the prospect of a Publicists Guild salary as well as the chance to make contacts for my prospective screenwriting career.  As a freelance publicity writer, I also wrote the initial version of the press kit production information for the Madonna movie "Who's That Girl" for Warner Bros. publicity executives yet my positioning wasn't used in the final version of the press kit that was released.  My writing approach with publicity materials was not to insult anyone's intelligence by indulging in commentary akin to obvious hype or reviewing the movie in advance.  However, when executives and filmmakers sometimes made changes in my work that went against my sensibilities, it was little concern of mine.  It wasn’t my movie, after all, and there are no by-lines for publicity materials.

When I joined the staff of the Paramount Pictures publicity department in December 1987, I was 31 years old.  One ironic note about this concerns the couple who answered Mickey Rooney's fan mail as the husband, Michael, was a publicist.  Talking with him at Ruth's annual Christmas party that year, I told him about my going to work at Paramount in the publicity department and he was dumbfounded as throughout his career he'd never worked at a studio while I was making this unusual transition in a matter of months.  I thought it was considerate when my previous employer had invited me to her party although I was startled to learn that she'd hoped to rehire me.

One synchronicity during the period when I worked at Paramount was there being seven people named Michael among the marketing staff.   Even the company director who'd handled my offer of employment had been named Michael (among many other Michaels throughout the studio; one whom I recall once having interviewed via phone was Lorne Michaels).  The "Ten Film Clips from Paramount Movies" preceding article includes a couple examples of the Bell synchronicity with the Belle taxi cab in "Scrooged" and Queen Isabella character in "Braveheart."  Shown below is a pamphlet made for the "Shirley Valentine" publicity campaign.  This movie has a House of Russell correlation because the comedy's writer is Willy Russell.  There were manifold moviegoers who could appreciate Shirley's predicament of needing to find a way of overcoming some of her growing daily frustrations.  The movie isn't about the character's spiritual knowledge because—and it seems she is like most people in the world—the character devised by any author is limited by the scope of one's own awareness through personal experience in correlation to considering data presented by others.

click on pamphlet for a larger image

When I joined the staff, the publicity department was located on the third floor of the Zukor Building at the Melrose studio complex.  In addition to writing news releases, tip sheets, press kit production information, photo captions, 'Coming Soon' seasonal collections of introductory articles about upcoming releases, special advance screening invitations, speeches, or 'special mailers' or special executive-requested assignments, my job duties entailed interviewing stars and filmmakers whenever needed and helping with appointed tasks at movie premieres and parties, hosting screenings, etc.  I still have around two dozen of these telephone interview recordings.  One tape that I discovered consisted of messages that had come with an answering machine that had been given me to use.  At the very beginning of the tape was a recording mentioning a fax to go to someone named John Bell.  During one lunch interview, a comedy director explained the methodology of humor in his movies.  I was going to prepare an article but then he changed his mind about publication because he estimated he'd given too many secrets away.

At the premiere for "U2: Rattle and Hum," my task was making sure the paparazzi remained in the area cordoned for them with red ropes at the Chinese Theatre.  For the "'Crocodile' Dundee II" premiere at the Hard Rock Cafe, I was the escort for a bus full of nationwide radio contest winners.  At one premiere party, I noticed an actress with whom I'd once played an arcade video game while on vacation in Florida when she was a child star; now she was continuing her career yet later that evening a friend had to help her leave due to some form of intoxication.  As an agent I'd had an extensive introduction to the complications of celebrity life and now I was seeing it all from a new perspective.  Participating in any major studio movie usually signifies a fortunate and creative interlude in someone's life.  I was encountering occasionally in person and more often over the telephone many people who were among the most esteemed people in the movie industry.

One annual speech writing assignment was commentary introducing stars attending the ShoWest movie exhibitors convention in Las Vegas to promote the new Paramount movies.  When I was looking through my file this week, I found an undated typed note from Motion Picture Group President Barry L. London stating "On behalf of Sherry Lansing and myself, we can't thank you enough for all your efforts in helping with ShoWest."  
  

a publicity department staff photo from the Paramount studio lot (including three named Michael) with me at far right (book caption) 

It was a very successful time for the studio and Paramount movies were often No. 1 at the box office.  Monday mornings were frequently a busy time because a news release would need to be written and promptly released to announce a Paramount movie being the No. 1 grossing movie during the weekend.  There were also announcement stories when a movie set a new box office record; when opening dates or world premieres for movies were scheduled; when stars of movies were announced or they had committed to or extended some development or production deal with the studio; when principal photography for a movie commenced or concluded; or for special events such as a press conference or a star on the Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame being unveiled for an actor or actress.  My sources for some of the press materials that I wrote were drafts of preliminary production information or press kit production information written by unit publicists.

During my years as a movie studio publicity writer, I was viewing more movies than ever before.  It was often obvious how favorable expectations were essential to a film’s box office success.  Advance reports of problems on the set or in the editing room for the comedies “Crazy People” and “Funny About Love” seemed to create an insurmountably pessimistic outlook among the press and thus nothing was written about the films in the media that aroused public interest.  Hit comedies included "The Brady Bunch Movie," "Clueless," "Major League" and "Planes, Trains and Automobiles."  Two movies that I thought deserved more attention from the public were "Fat Man and Little Boy" and "Stepping Out."  Two reasons for the latter film's lack of success was disinterest among studio executives after a management regime change along with an unappealing poster.  When the head of the publicity department asked me what I thought of the poster art, I remember saying about the sketch of Liza Minnelli: "She looks dead."
 

The sentence "Your dreams are just a step away" was okay.  I also thought the comedy "Soapdish" should've had a funnier advertising campaign, such as indicated in my design for a screening flyer.

Careful consideration by studio executives and filmmakers was always given to defining the appropriate, most commercial-sounding genre for each film; for example, “Clear and Present Danger” is an ‘action-thriller’ while “The Hunt for Red October” is a ‘thriller,’ “The Firm” is a ‘drama,’ and “Indecent Proposal” is a ‘romantic drama.’  "Sliver" is a "psychosexual mystery" based on the novel by Ira Levin (author of Rosemary's Baby).

★ Some Steps to Expanded Consciousness ★

The "Sliver" storyline on a literal basis is the usual suspense thriller mayhem with the added dimension of mysterious voyeurism at a New York apartment building yet I realize now that there were certain evocative cadences aroused by the memory of this movie—and also by recalling some aspects of other Paramount films—after my unusual spiritual awakening.  After watching the trailer presented above, only my most consistent blog readers may recognize an esoteric meaning beyond it all.  If a reader would like to discern the esoteric meaning, I suggest: (1) finish carefully reading this article; (2) watch this part of the movie's opening credit sequence; (3) read some other blog articles (such as "Paranormal Phenomena As Divine Revelation", "Some 'Evidence' of the Divine Mind" or "Significance of 'Unexplained Phenomena'"); (4) watch the trailer again; (5) further evidence is provided with the 15 documentary videos presented in the two articles mentioned in and linked to the preceding blog article (first paragraph).  The poster for the movie is shown below.

Previous blog articles concerning my years working as a publicist for Paramount include "Leaving The Mountain: Information Conflicting with Perceived Consensus Beliefs Engenders Expectation of Disapproval" and "Preceding Centrahoma".  I also interviewed two directors for articles in The Hollywood Reporter in 1990 and 1991: Bruno Nuytten and Etienne Chatiliez.

Social events for publicists include industry award luncheons sponsored by such organizations as the Publicists Guild and the Hollywood Women’s Press Association.  At one insignificant local awards luncheon I'd attended once before, I was asked by the current Paramount publicity department head to accept an award for “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” on behalf of George Lucas.  I was happy to do so.  At the event I ran into Mickey Rooney’s son Tim who was accepting an award for his father.  At Paramount, at times I interacted with some people I'd known during my talent agency days working for Ruth Webb.  For example, the movie "Ghost" was a Howard W. Koch production and Howard was a friend of Mickey's as well as producer of the Academy Awards telecast when Mickey won his honorary Oscar.  "1492: Conquest of Paradise" and "Black Rain" director Ridley Scott had been interested in Mickey for a role in an earlier film but this wasn't able to be scheduled due to his "Sugar Babies" commitment.  When I interviewed director John Carl Buechler concerning "Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood," I learned his previous movie was "Cellar Dweller" and I'd been the agent who booked actress Yvonne DeCarlo in the movie.

After joining the staff of the Paramount publicity department, I moved to an apartment overlooking the Silver Lake reservoir.  A year later, I purchased the condo in Echo Park.  One morning in Echo Park as I was leaving for the studio, a movie was being filmed right outside the building and it turned out to be what would eventually be titled "Brain Donors," a Paramount comedy inspired by the Marx Brothers movies.  At an earlier stage when I heard that they were looking for a Margaret Dumont-type actress for the film, I suggested Kathryn Grayson who for this exact reason I'd booked in a local production of "Noises Off"; however, another actress was eventually cast in the role.  When Alan Young (another agency client) was cast in "Beverly Hills Cop 3," I was delighted for him.  "Stepping Out" was produced by John Dark, who I'd hoped to produce my screenplay based on the classic Scottish dog novel as a vehicle for Mickey.  I once met director Alan Alda and producer Martin Bregman to go over the production information for "A New Life" after previously interacting with his father Robert and brother Antony at the talent agency.  It was only occasionally when filmmakers noticed that I was the twin brother of Mike or was confused about the two of us.  Once when I was interviewing "Big Top Pee-wee" director Randal Kleiser, the producer Debra Hill thought that I was Mike at first.  That's just 'one of those things' that can happen with administratively approved cases of 'Hollywood nepotism.'  It's often important concerning 'who you know' in any career field when one is seeking a job.

Occasionally, my background studying the cinema at USC resulted in some special assignments.  At one of the weekly publicity department meetings, the department head discussed "1900" and it turned out that I was the knowledgeable one about this movie and therefore the ideal publicist to host the screening of the newly restored original and unedited version of the movie (with subtitles) for local press.  I appreciated having the chance to see it too as the film is an example of a creative work of humanitarian vision and social concern when the boxoffice gross isn't the main consideration.  There was also a re-release campaign for "The Ten Commandments" after a new duplicate negative was made to replace the faded original.  Another time, I was selected as the publicist to host an interview of "Dead Again" actress Hanna Schygulla by Gary Indiana for Andy Warhol's Interview magazine (September 1991 issue).  The actress arrived early so with my background as a Fassbinder cinephile it was intriguing to casually talk with her before the formal interview began.
 
In October 1991 after being promoted to Senior Publicist, I never suspected that my job would be eradicated at the time of a corporate downsizing.  This happened when the merger with Viacom was close to completion yet still a closely guarded secret among executives at the top of the corporate hierarchy.  At the time I was a senior publicist and supervised a second staff writer so I thought that at least my job would be safe.  As each staff member was asked to turn in a job analysis designating how many hours in 1991 were spent on each film with precise capacities specified, I was surprised at how lengthy a list of assignments I was able to assemble.  In retrospect, I wasn’t a very astute corporate player because I pointed out in my job analysis that it had once been usual for the studio to work with freelancers.

When I found myself among those downsized, I was shocked because it was something I’d never even considered as being possible.  As a result of my job being eliminated, the stock option I’d been given the previous December would be nullified due to the term of employment required for the option to bond.  Suddenly I found out just how much appreciation was afforded my work within the corporation.  By becoming a freelancer to the department, the company would forego the considerable cost of employee benefits.  In fact, the way my situation as a downsized employee was presented by studio vice presidents, I could continue collecting my paycheck for several months and then become an independent contractor.  When I found out that downsizing regulations allowed me immediate severance payment equaling several months of salary and I was free to leave at any time, I felt better and at that moment didn’t care if I ever heard from anyone connected with the company ever again.

After being hired to write a speedy, last minute press kit production information for the Universal film "Reality Bites," I was reminded how unusual my experience at Paramount seemed to be when I discovered that what I turned in was completely rewritten.

As a freelance publicity writer/editor for Paramount, I soon found myself working in my home seemingly longer hours than I’d put in when working on the studio lot.  There was no contract involved.  I did find it awkward at times interacting with filmmakers and cast members in a more abbreviated way (also limiting my ideas and contributions) yet this allowed me more time for such projects as my nonfiction book about historical 'talking poltergeist' cases.  Actually, what is known categorically as 'poltergeist phenomena' are revealed aspects of nature (or spiritual dispensations) for human intellectual and spiritual advancement.  'May The Force be with you' is a practical expression in this respect. 

I was able to attend an advance rough cut screening of "Forrest Gump" and even then it seemed everyone involved with the project knew that this was a unique movie.  The film is one that is fascinating to consider in relation to what is known as 'suspension of disbelief' for moviegoers in relation to the footage of famous people who are seen.  When the Paramount publicity department was awarded the Publicists Guild Award for "Forrest Gump," I was thanked profusely by a department vice president during the acceptance speech yet it was mentioned that my name wasn't included among the identified staff for the award certificates.  It didn't seem like a big deal at the time yet it made me realize how unfair the corporate system can be.  I was still doing the basic job I'd been doing while on staff and realized—just like how I'd been treated at the talent agency—what I was doing and how I was doing it didn't fit the federal guidelines for what constitutes being an independent contractor in comparison to an employee, considering that I was still working fulltime for all those Paramount releases.  Being relegated to vendor status impacted my ability to help generate effective publicity campaigns.  For example: when a producer expressed that in her estimation the positioning rendered a main character unsympathetic, I said that this was an undeniable aspect of the film.  I explained that by emphasizing the stark aspects of the character in press materials, considerable media commentary and public discussion could be generated as had happened with such movies as "Fatal Attraction" and "Indecent Proposal."  After the brief conversation, the matter was dropped and the press kit production information attributed motivations to the character that weren't in the script.  The film came and went with little media interest.  Concerning the nullified stock option, I probably could've brought a successful lawsuit about my predicament.  This was a sizeable monetary loss when one looks at stock records yet I've never had the time or mindset for legal proceedings throughout my busy life (although like most people, it would probably be better if there was more money in my bank account in case of some unplanned emergency).  The following year, the "Braveheart" publicity campaign was also awarded by the Publicists Guild. 
 

I did receive a certificate with my name on it for "The Maxwell Weinberg Showmanship Award for Motion Pictures" for my work on "Braveheart" publicity materials.  When I went to the Central Library downtown and first reviewed various sources addressing the life of William Wallace, it became evident that this was a legendary and controversial hero of Scottish lore yet there seemed no way of denying that he was a brutal and vengeful figure, not at all what fit my expectations of heroism derived from reading the screenplay.  And yet where books and movies are concerned, it’s accepted as commonplace to present any historical protagonist in a magnanimous way.  In the press kit production information, I emphasized the historical aspects of the script as this would create a favorable impression.  The real William Wallace having been a barbarian that showed no compunction to the taking of lives was a fact that wouldn't be advantageous to the publicity campaign.  This is how the movie is positioned in the production information:
 

In the late 13th century, William Wallace (Mel Gibson) returns to Scotland after living away from his homeland for many years.  The king of Scotland has died without an heir and the king of England, a ruthless pagan known as Edward the Longshanks, has seized the throne.  Wallace becomes the leader of a ramshackle yet courageous army determined to vanquish the greater English forces.  Wallace's courage and passion unite his people in "Braveheart."


. . . he is reacquainted with Murron (newcomer Catherine McCormack).  Their ill-fated romance results in the Scottish rebellion gaining a selfless and single-minded leader.

 
I'd been glad to receive some acceptable historical notes about William Wallace that had been prepared by a researcher whose opinion was that the screenplay was generally faithful to period details.  Upon glancing at the press kit again this week, I was reminded that the production information mentions "few actual facts" and "great legends" so no real cover-up is involved yet the lack of realism in movies became something disturbing to me after my unusual spiritual awakening in 1995 as I suddenly became aware of most people's complete lack of knowledge concerning the documentation and records of transcendental aspects of life throughout the centuries.  Even the word 'transcendental' is not easily defined although derived from the word 'transcendent' and this is the reason I commonly use the expression 'transcendental communication' that usually seems clearer when considered in context.

Some of the unusual premises of Paramount movies I helped publicize include a professional thief becoming convinced that he has become an angel ("Almost An Angel"), a magical old wooden cupboard from whence emerge tiny people ("The Indian in the Cupboard"), an African jungle expedition that includes a communicating gorilla ("Congo"), a lucky day at the racetrack for a compulsive gambler ("Let It Ride"), a schoolteacher determined to match with his antique car the Apollo XI mileage from the earth to the moon ("Pontiac Moon"), and Albert Einstein playing cupid for his niece and an auto mechanic ("I.Q.").  
 
The title selected for a comedy about a university football team is "Necessary Roughness."  The violence in the game is one of the things I personally don't like about professional sports.  Throughout my life I've never made time for watching (literally) any team sports because there are just too many other fascinating and interesting things to learn about in the world (where everyone each day is creating his or her own reality through the choices they make regarding such matters). 
  

A producer of the eighth "Friday the 13th" movie explained to me how every apparent plot discrepancy I asked about were actually enigmatic paranormal facets carefully concocted while continuing the saga of the macabre entity 'Jason.'  Above is shown a postcard that I made for the movie press kit.  I even did the red lettering myself to meet the budgeting requirement.  The inclusion of Jason's 'mark' where he's posed is intentional for the postcard photo because horror movies were usually intended to be positioned in a fun way, after all, regarding the thrills, chills and other assorted ills of the genre.  During a trip to Vancouver, I had the chance to interview the cast and filmmakers while the film was shooting.  One anecdote I learned was that the actor who played Jason (Kane Hodder) once stopped by the luncheon of a women's group at the hotel and made a joke at the podium while dressed in his Jason regalia.  The women laughed as they all knew about the well-known character 'Jason.' 
 
This eighth "Friday the 13th" film would be the last of the original Paramount series.  Story elements could be reconceptualized by whomever acquired the rights to the franchise in the future.  One night I was traveling to the set with filmmakers when a Canadian member of the group began talking about having recently assaulted a man outside of a gay bar because of his sexual orientation.  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and wondered if this angry outburst concerned me as there had occasionally been times when absolute strangers would ask me if I was gay.  The obvious psychological motivation for committing such violence is that an individual is attempting to repress his own feelings, which are perceived as not conforming with one’s impression of consensus opinions in society concerning appropriate behavior or morality.
 
These days when I consider some of the grotesque occurrences seen in horror movies, I wonder how people generally can even consider letting into their minds some of the dreadful things seen in the most hideous horror movies.  The Paramount horror film releases certainly had frightful predicaments although I didn't actually view all of the movies.  These include "Body Parts," "Pet Sematary," "Tales from the Darkside: The Movie" and "Vampire in Brooklyn."

One of the facets of movie production that was often utilized for publicity purposes was costume design.  I wrote articles regarding this topic for special advance articles to publicize such films as "Coming To America," "The Godfather Part III" and "Harlem Nights."  When I interviewed filmmakers, I was sometimes amazed at the extent of the research and attention to details.  In my personal life at the time, I read nonfiction books about cases of paranormal phenomena and watched TV documentary shows such as "Sightings," "The Extraordinary," and some episodes of "Unsolved Mysteries" and "In Search Of."  While living in Echo Park across the street from Echo Park Lake and nearby Angelus Temple as longtime readers know, I was beginning to experience some transcendental incidents during this period without realizing that all the occurrences could be interconnected in some way. 
 
I must also make mention of one unpleasant experience that reminds how the 'Me Too' Movement of recent years didn't just begin overnight.  One morning back in the '90s, I was working on a news release and as a staff co-worker walked into my office at Paramount he nonchalantly called me an unrepeatable word for some strange and baffling reason as his demeanor had always been a polite one previously.  Just as nonchalantly, I went to the Human Resources Department and made an official complaint because I wanted to make certain that this didn't happen again.
 
While I was at Paramount, there were rumors of producer Don Simpson’s excesses of behavior involving drugs and prostitutes.  My brief personal interaction with him during production on "Days of Thunder" gave no indication that he was any less amiable than other high level studio executives or producers with studio contracts.  Although I found him polite and effusive in person, when I heard about a staff member having filed a sexual-harassment lawsuit it seemed possible that everything she said was true.  In such situations, I don't make any judgements because it's none of my business.  I noticed some studio employees regarding her with disdain as she continued working in the secretarial pool.  She was doing something considered unthinkable in a corporate hierarchy — blowing the whistle on one of those at the top of the pecking order.  The case was dismissed in 1992 and the producer made his transition in 1996 due to a drug overdose.

I remember that when I was researching the career of U2 while preparing the press kit production information for Paramount's "U2: Rattle and Hum," I read Unforgettable Fire: The Story of U2 (1987) by Eamon Dunphy.  The book's candor impressed me and the appendix included an article by John Waters from In Dublin magazine.  Faith has been an obvious inspirational factor to the rock group's creativity with one example being lyrics of the song "The Unforgettable Fire."  The call to "take me home, home again" is followed by the intimation that the human spirit will transcend even "if the mountains should crumble or disappear into the sea."  A comment from Bono in the London magazine Time Out—"The music is articulate in a way that I'm not"—encouraged Waters to reflect on the process of song writing.

  

This latter remark is an echo of something which occurs again and again in interviews with U2.  "I think the music is better than the musician," Bono told Melody Maker in 1984.  "I think if there’s a difference between the art and the artist there’s something up."

There was always this thing about U2 — that they were bigger than the sum of their constituent parts, that they were dealing in something they didn’t rightly understand nor fully want to.  There is the old, oft-told story about Bono plugging Edge’s guitar in exactly the way Edge does, setting up the amp in exactly the same way, using the same plectrum to play the same chords and ending up with what he himself described as "a pitiful noise."  U2's sound doesn’t seem to come from machinery or technique or from any source within the rock ‘n’ roll tradition.

On another occasion, talking about their methodology of writing songs, Edge described how the title track for Unforgettable Fire came about: the song had started with him messing about on the piano, and had been polished up finally in the studio with all the band and producer Eno present, but in between — the most important part — was where he and Bono had first got together to work on the song . . . "It was the first twenty minutes in Bono’s house that counted . . . it was the mood we were always in touch with, not necessarily the chords or the melody."

Waters also quoted John Lennon from a Newsweek magazine article:
 

"The real music comes to me, the music of the spheres, the music that surpasses understanding.  That has not to do with me, I’m just a channel . . . So for that to come through, which is the only joy for me out of the music, is for it to be given to me and I transcribe it like a medium.  I have nothing to do with it other than I’m sitting under this tree and this whole damn thing comes down and I’ve just put it down."

The lesson here is that beyond commercial cliches, the artist who seeks profound inspiration will find it (sometimes with media help such as this blog).  Little did I know during my entertainment industry career that my ambitions as a Hollywood screenwriter could never have equaled the excitement that unfolded in my own life with events I could never have even imagined.  
 
A strange occurrence for me took place at Paramount during the summer of 1995 when I was anticipating the visit to Centrahoma.  While I wanted to make sure I was adequately prepared, I found myself being inundated with Paramount assignments.  I hadn’t expected to work on "Clueless" yet again I was suddenly asked to attend an advance screening and turn in a draft of production information for the press kit.  
  

 
When I went to transfer the file from diskette to a computer in the Paramount publicity department now located in the studio lot’s new Marathon Building, I was startled to see a message on the monitor screen I’d never seen before alerting the user that the contents of the diskette couldn’t be read.  There'd never been any difficulties with diskettes before.  I decided the diskette was faulty and returned with the file on a new diskette only to again find the same message.  Confused as to what had happened to the file, I decided to go to Kinko’s and retype the production information into a new diskette there.  When this diskette was brought to the publicity department, I was astonished to again discover that the file couldn’t be transferred.  Not knowing what else to do, I decided to retype the press kit into the computer in the photography division of the department.  When completed, I used one of the studio diskettes with the intention of finally moving the file to the director of publicity’s computer.  Again, the message appeared that the contents of the diskette couldn’t be read.  I told the publicity director that the file had been left on the photo department computer and left it at that as I wearily went back to my condo.  I would never hear anything more about the movie. 
 
In August 1995, immediately after my Centrahoma visit I continued having phenomenal experiences.  My whole perspective of reality and the universe completely changed.  I realized the awesome necessity of sharing the details of what had happened throughout my 'over-the-top life' with others.  At first I tried to contemplate how to rearrange my life, considering my professional career and financial concerns.  And then even thinking about such a question made me wonder how I could be so selfish when confronted with the magnitude of potentialities that just couldn't be ignored or denied. 

Below are shown some Paramount press kit photos, showing the diversity of movie settings, characters and milieus, from Christopher Columbus and Queen Isabel to TV show hosts Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar.

"1492: Conquest of Paradise" (1992)

 "The Hunt for Red October" (1990)

 "The Godfather Part III" (1990)

"Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989)

 "Fat Man and Little Boy" (1989)

"Flight of the Intruder" (1991)

 

"Scrooged" (1988)

 

"Star Trek Generations" (1994)

 "Wayne's World" (1992)

 "Cool World" (1992)

Our innate human creative imagination shows that every person is connected to the all of existence from whence all possibilities come into being.  I mentioned last year one pivotal point to consider when contemplating the history of entertainment technology — whatever the medium that is the source for the recording of video and audio, something to consider is what is it that's affixing the image and sound to each source.

Regarding "Some Steps to Expanded Consciousness" previously mentioned — YOUR dreams are just a step away.  Whatever will be happening to YOU?  YOU like to watch — Don't YOU?  
 
Keep the "pivotal point" in mind as you complete the exercise above in the paragraph for
Some Steps to Expanded Consciousness.