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

Those who act for a profession have to constantly submit themselves to the capricious, maddening audition system. Here, thinking back on a show I once worked on, 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