I recently borrowed producer David L. Wolper’s autobiography, “Producer,” from our local library (a tremendous resource for micro-moguls stretching their research budgets). In it, the award-winning producer of “Roots” and “Willy Wonka,” among other cultural touchstones, details how his production company essentially invented the “dramatic re-enactment” in their television documentaries of the 1950s. It’s interesting […]
Though I had moved to Hollywood from the Bay Area in the early part of this century I remained a stringer for the San Francisco Chronicle (the ink in my veins apparently outshone the stars in my eyes). My contributions amounted to a handful of celebrity interviews (I specialized in what we called “Blisters,” a […]
I?m not one for omens, signs or symbols, particularly when they fall outside the realm of my creative work (the early, sad voyages of which were often across a veritable sea of Joseph Campbell soup). I?ve noticed in waking life that foreshadowing only works in retrospect, but occasionally, when I?m not paying attention, a little […]