Money for Nothing...and Vice-Versa

If you're a writer (or an artist or even an actor), folks are always trying to get you to write, draw or act for no money.  Here are some cautionary notes...

• UNFINANCED ENTREPRENEURS - Part 1
• UNFINANCED ENTREPRENEURS - Part 2
• UNFINANCED ENTREPRENEURS - The Follow-Up

Where the Stars Went to Play

Today, it sits unoccupied, waiting to be bulldozed.  If and when that happens, a lot of memories will get plowed under to build another Nordstrom's.  Before that happens, let's hop into the Waybac Machine, go back and check into...

• THE AMBASSADOR HOTEL

An Integral Part of This Website

It's about time we got a little sex on this website and here's just a little: A discussion of the pros and cons of taking your clothes off in front of a camera.  Not that anyone's going to ask any of us to do this.  Anyway, just in case it's Sweeps Week on the Internet, let's discuss...

• NUDE SCENES

Silents Are Golden

On Fairfax Avenue, just south of Melrose, there sits an amazing movie theater with an amazing history.  It was built (literally) by a man named John Hampton who ran it with his wife, Dorothy.  Mr. Hampton was responsible for the preservation and exhibition of a large chunk of cinema history.  That's why it saddened many of us to see what happened to...

• THE SILENT MOVIE THEATER

Can the battles involved in creating a decent TV show be settled in a court of law?  I think they can, especially in the...

• SHOW BIZ COURT

Harold J. Stone (seen at left) worked as much as any actor in the history of Hollywood but even he had to submit to the capricious, maddening audition system, including once on a show I wrote.  Here are a batch of...

• CASTING STORIES

Here's a discussion of the '77 Academy Awards along with a lesson on why you should never wear a tuxedo...

• THE OSCARS (1997)

Screenplays can be based on books, plays or even comic strips.  Or they can be based on a really bad joke about...

• THE BAD COUNTERFEITER

What's it like to be part of a comedy writing team?  No matter what your sex, you immediately become...

• "THE BOYS"

When you work too hard on a TV show, you're entitled to a toy.  It can be a car or a starlet or it can even be...

• THE ELEPHANT

Nothing in Hollywood is as important as the ultimate sign of status.  We are speaking, of course, about...

• PARKING SPACES

It's not easy booking guest stars for TV shows.  Sooner or later, it always comes down to...

• THE CESAR ROMERO STORY

Is the news biased?  No, it's just not very well-reported...for a number of reasons, some of which are addressed in a piece we call...

• LETTERS TO A NEWSROOM

Uh, I can't think of anything to write here.  Not a damned thing.  I seem to have a very bad case of...

• WRITERS' BLOCK

Want to step up to Big Pay with a career in the fast-paced world of radio broadcasting?  Then for God's sake, don't emulate...

• MY RADIO CAREER

And if you have even the slightest interest in a career in show business, you owe it to yourself to hear/read...

• THE SPEECH