Just to touch base here, the TV and music posts have either been edited or removed for a spinoff timeline/music and TV reboot. None of the film stuff is affected and all posts should be in the index now. 
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It Girls, Boys Next Door, Scream Queens, & Dorothy: An Alternate Pop Culture Timeline
- Thread starter markedward
- Start date
Sal Mineo
From Sam Westwood's Hollywood (2016)
The documentary continues where we last left off. Ian and Sam are still chatting while Harris gets up.
Harris: On that note, I'm gonna go open a window, it smells like old men in here (laughs)
Sam: (laughing) Speak for yourself, old man!
Ian: Who the Hell are you calling old, Harris? (Ian continues) He's older than I am by a few months, you know. May to October.
Sam: Both of you can just shut up until you hit 70. One day, you're twenty and getting discovered. The next, you're 70* and sitting at a table with photo albums talking about "the good old days".
*at the time of filming
Ian: Well, you could be 40 again getting hate mail. You're in pretty good shape, Sam. You should be greatful for that. Few of us made it. We already discussed how lucky Harris is. Sal's no longer with us.
Harris sits back down
Sam: Sal dodged a bullet in '76. He got an extra thirty years after that. You know I was actually supposed to meet up with him the night he was attacked and canceled. I had a friend who worked in the costume department at the MGM lot. I went for coffee with him that evening instead of meeting with Sal about Trial. I felt guilty after. Like maybe I should have been there. Sal lived in a bad part of town. nobody really liked going over there.
Harris: I lived better in New York than Sal was living at that time. I feel like Courtney could have helped him more with the place, but that's beside the point-
Sam: Anyway there was a guy in the area who happened to be an actor-
Ian: Dennis Quaid
Sam: Yes. Back then he was unknown, you know Randy's brother. Randy had some luck with films by this point. Anyway, Sal is getting mugged and this guy, who was Dennis Quaid, hears it and runs over and saves him. I told Dennis later when we worked together that I should have been there. At least swing by after and discuss filming or listen to whatever ideas he wanted to bounce off me. I rushed to the hospital the very next day and Courtney was there playing the grieving boyfriend. I thought it was more severe based on his reaction but was allowed to go in. Sal just looks at me and says "As soon as I'm out we're gonna start filming again". Like it was just some minor little setback. But he almost FUCKING DIED!
Ian: Cat and I visited after you did. She literally stormed in there, you know. Take charge attitude. Courtney didn't like her after that, thought she was bossy. She stormed in and said she had Sal and Courtney's things moved to an apartment she'd found in a safer area. Courtney was livid. But, you know Sal really wasn't good at looking after himself and he needed that push.
Sam: That's another person who had to almost die in order to get their shit straight...
The documentary continues where we last left off. Ian and Sam are still chatting while Harris gets up.
Harris: On that note, I'm gonna go open a window, it smells like old men in here (laughs)
Sam: (laughing) Speak for yourself, old man!
Ian: Who the Hell are you calling old, Harris? (Ian continues) He's older than I am by a few months, you know. May to October.
Sam: Both of you can just shut up until you hit 70. One day, you're twenty and getting discovered. The next, you're 70* and sitting at a table with photo albums talking about "the good old days".
*at the time of filming
Ian: Well, you could be 40 again getting hate mail. You're in pretty good shape, Sam. You should be greatful for that. Few of us made it. We already discussed how lucky Harris is. Sal's no longer with us.
Harris sits back down
Sam: Sal dodged a bullet in '76. He got an extra thirty years after that. You know I was actually supposed to meet up with him the night he was attacked and canceled. I had a friend who worked in the costume department at the MGM lot. I went for coffee with him that evening instead of meeting with Sal about Trial. I felt guilty after. Like maybe I should have been there. Sal lived in a bad part of town. nobody really liked going over there.
Harris: I lived better in New York than Sal was living at that time. I feel like Courtney could have helped him more with the place, but that's beside the point-
Sam: Anyway there was a guy in the area who happened to be an actor-
Ian: Dennis Quaid
Sam: Yes. Back then he was unknown, you know Randy's brother. Randy had some luck with films by this point. Anyway, Sal is getting mugged and this guy, who was Dennis Quaid, hears it and runs over and saves him. I told Dennis later when we worked together that I should have been there. At least swing by after and discuss filming or listen to whatever ideas he wanted to bounce off me. I rushed to the hospital the very next day and Courtney was there playing the grieving boyfriend. I thought it was more severe based on his reaction but was allowed to go in. Sal just looks at me and says "As soon as I'm out we're gonna start filming again". Like it was just some minor little setback. But he almost FUCKING DIED!
Ian: Cat and I visited after you did. She literally stormed in there, you know. Take charge attitude. Courtney didn't like her after that, thought she was bossy. She stormed in and said she had Sal and Courtney's things moved to an apartment she'd found in a safer area. Courtney was livid. But, you know Sal really wasn't good at looking after himself and he needed that push.
Sam: That's another person who had to almost die in order to get their shit straight...
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1976 Snippets
Harris Walker at a 40th anniversary screening of The Call Of Cthulhu:
"I had one offer after Cthulhu that I still kick myself for not accepting. It was from Ray Harryhausen, who really, really wanted me to play Sinbad. He was begging me to take it. I'd committed to working with Art (Ericson) in Vancouver. You know, I couldn't just walk out on that, he was also pushing for me to be in his film. So, I went to Vancouver in January for a two-month shoot. After that, it was another shoot for something else, and another shoot after that. I had to keep working to bring in money. Sam and I had an arrangement early on that we would both make our own money if we were going to live together. Working while you are desperately trying to stay sober is a nightmare, I fell off the wagon a few times the first two years. But working all the time did help to keep me occupied"...
From a late-March, 1976 issue of Variety:
"Filming has begun on George Lucas' long awaited follow-up project to American Graffiti. Star Wars, a science fiction epic will be a change of pace for the director. The film is set to star Perry King, teen idol Robby Benson, and relative unknown Linda Blair. In a bold move, Lucas has declined his directing fee of $500,000 in exchange for complete control of merchandising and sequel rights".
"I had one offer after Cthulhu that I still kick myself for not accepting. It was from Ray Harryhausen, who really, really wanted me to play Sinbad. He was begging me to take it. I'd committed to working with Art (Ericson) in Vancouver. You know, I couldn't just walk out on that, he was also pushing for me to be in his film. So, I went to Vancouver in January for a two-month shoot. After that, it was another shoot for something else, and another shoot after that. I had to keep working to bring in money. Sam and I had an arrangement early on that we would both make our own money if we were going to live together. Working while you are desperately trying to stay sober is a nightmare, I fell off the wagon a few times the first two years. But working all the time did help to keep me occupied"...
From a late-March, 1976 issue of Variety:
"Filming has begun on George Lucas' long awaited follow-up project to American Graffiti. Star Wars, a science fiction epic will be a change of pace for the director. The film is set to star Perry King, teen idol Robby Benson, and relative unknown Linda Blair. In a bold move, Lucas has declined his directing fee of $500,000 in exchange for complete control of merchandising and sequel rights".
1976 Films: Part One
Gable And Lombard (Universal, February 1976)
Starring Sharon Tate as Carole Lombard and Tom Selleck as Clark Gable
Future Magnum P.I. star Selleck had hoped for a career boost when he was cast alongside Tate as the iconic silver screen couple. While critics were kind to Tate, Selleck and the film itself were otherwise poorly received. Ultimately it was a box office failure.
Tate was less than worried about this setback as she would later tell People in 1980:
"Honestly, I could have cared less about having a flop film at that time. It didn't mean I was washed up, it meant I could take a break. I was about to give birth and didn't really want to work for a while. Of course, I wound up working on a film with George right after Annie was born" [1]
"Now that Audrey Hepburn has made her long awaited screen return in Robin And Marian alongside Sean Connery, directors and producers alike are lining up to cast the screen legend..."
Trade paperback edition of Walter Tevis' novel The Man Who Fell To Earth released as a tie-in to the 1976 film starring David Bowie, Candy Clark, Rip Torn, and Buck Henry.
"A lot of people are calling this my film debut. It's not true. I made a film quite a few years ago called The Dark. Charming little film. I was the killer in it, a cabaret singer who loses his mind. That's what attracted me to that particular project, I think"
-David Bowie on The Man Who Fell To Earth in Rolling Stone
[1] Tate's first child with her second husband George Peppard, a daughter, Georgiana (better known as Annie) born on May 18th, 1976. She cares for newborn Annie on the set of her next film Damnation Alley, which would start filming that July. Tate's sister Debra would be on hand to help with the newborn on days Tate was called to the set.
Gable And Lombard (Universal, February 1976)
Starring Sharon Tate as Carole Lombard and Tom Selleck as Clark Gable
Future Magnum P.I. star Selleck had hoped for a career boost when he was cast alongside Tate as the iconic silver screen couple. While critics were kind to Tate, Selleck and the film itself were otherwise poorly received. Ultimately it was a box office failure.
Tate was less than worried about this setback as she would later tell People in 1980:
"Honestly, I could have cared less about having a flop film at that time. It didn't mean I was washed up, it meant I could take a break. I was about to give birth and didn't really want to work for a while. Of course, I wound up working on a film with George right after Annie was born" [1]
"Now that Audrey Hepburn has made her long awaited screen return in Robin And Marian alongside Sean Connery, directors and producers alike are lining up to cast the screen legend..."
"A lot of people are calling this my film debut. It's not true. I made a film quite a few years ago called The Dark. Charming little film. I was the killer in it, a cabaret singer who loses his mind. That's what attracted me to that particular project, I think"
-David Bowie on The Man Who Fell To Earth in Rolling Stone
[1] Tate's first child with her second husband George Peppard, a daughter, Georgiana (better known as Annie) born on May 18th, 1976. She cares for newborn Annie on the set of her next film Damnation Alley, which would start filming that July. Tate's sister Debra would be on hand to help with the newborn on days Tate was called to the set.
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Poor Tom Selleck, starring in two Golden Turkey nominees ITTL (presuming Daughters of Satan wasn't butterflied).
Maybe he'll be Indiana Jones. (Assuming that's still made)
Tom Selleck still stars in that here too. I like Tom, he probably just won't have a breakthrough until the 80's as IOTL. I still want him to do Magnum. I'm sure he was a better Clark Gable than James Brolin though.
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I left it as IOTL so as to make it Candy Clark's first "big" movie. She had a smaller role in Grafitti. Kay Lenz has sort of been taking her place.
Reviews and box office are good. Bowie is pretty popular by now ITTL, so it makes money. I've always been under the impression it had a wider release than it did. In regards to Barry Diller at Paramount (a lot of those execs were jerks) refusing to pay for it: Corman picks it up as a New World Picture and it gets a wider release than Cinema V gave it. New World distributed art house fare alongside the usual stuff, so it's not ASB.
Personally, I found that movie really hard to get into but wanted to like it. Visually, it was very appealing. Need to see it again.
Thank goodness, hopefully Bowie will do more acting ITL, as well as better music after Let's Dance.....
After Dark, My Sweet (1976)
After Dark, My Sweet (Cinema 5 Distributing, February 1976)
Directed by Robert Downey Sr.
Screenplay by Jim Thompson (Based on Thompson's novel of the same name)
Music by Jack Nitzsche
Produced by Cyma Rubin
Cast
Brad Davis as William "Kid" Collins, an ex-boxer turned escaped mental patient.
Luana Anders as Fay Anderson, an alcoholic widow who picks Kid up in a bar and invites him to live with her. Faye refers to Kid as "Collie".
Roberts Blossom as Uncle Bud, a so-called ex-cop friend of Fay. Uncle Bud has been planning a scheme to kidnap a rich man's child. He enlists Collie to help carry it out
Antonio Fargas as Bert, owner of the roadhouse bar where Collie meets Fay.
Allan Arbus as Doc Goldman
Robert Downey Jr. as Jack, the severely diabetic kidnapped child.
Arnold Johnson as Truck Driver
After Dark, My Sweet was initially supposed to be released by Paramount and directed by John Boorman. After top choice Sam Westwood turned the role down, Boorman lost interest. The film wound up being released by the smaller Cinema 5 Distributing with Robert Downey Sr. directing.
Downey was best known for underground films like Putney Swope (1969), Pound (1970), and Greaser's Palace (1972).
According to Sam Westwood, Thompson had written this script (one of his last) hoping that Westwood would play Kid Collins. Westwood had previously appeared in a pair of Thompson adaptations during 1970-71. the first of these, The Grifters, nabbed Westwood an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Westwood opted to appear in the ill-fated Devil Child instead. A relative unknown named Brad Davis was eventually chosen. The 26-year-old had a handful of smaller TV and film roles under his belt as well as some off-Broadway theater credits. Later on in the year, the young actor would gain more exposure by appearing alongside Sally Field and Joanne Woodward in the TV miniseries Sybil.
Unable to find a suitable child actor to play Jack, Downey finally settled on his own son, a young Robert Downey Jr. to fill the role.
The film barely made back it's $300,000 budget. Reviews were mixed. Ebert was positive about the film noir feel of the film as well as Davis and Anders in the lead roles.
Ebert: "This little throwback to the film noir genre stars TV and stage actor Brad Davis as the down on his luck former boxer turned escaped mental patient William "Kid" Collins. Luana Anders shines as Fay, the alcoholic widow whose scheming ways get Kid into trouble..."
A few months prior to the release of this film, an adaptation of another Thompson novel The Killer Inside Me was to be developed at Warner Brothers. This would mark the third time that a production of The Killer Inside Me fell through. That story was purchased by 20th Century Fox as a vehicle for Marilyn Monroe in the 1950's. Years later, it was dusted off as a possible project before Thompson decided to write a treatment for The Kill-Off instead.
Directed by Robert Downey Sr.
Screenplay by Jim Thompson (Based on Thompson's novel of the same name)
Music by Jack Nitzsche
Produced by Cyma Rubin
Cast
Brad Davis as William "Kid" Collins, an ex-boxer turned escaped mental patient.
Luana Anders as Fay Anderson, an alcoholic widow who picks Kid up in a bar and invites him to live with her. Faye refers to Kid as "Collie".
Roberts Blossom as Uncle Bud, a so-called ex-cop friend of Fay. Uncle Bud has been planning a scheme to kidnap a rich man's child. He enlists Collie to help carry it out
Antonio Fargas as Bert, owner of the roadhouse bar where Collie meets Fay.
Allan Arbus as Doc Goldman
Robert Downey Jr. as Jack, the severely diabetic kidnapped child.
Arnold Johnson as Truck Driver
After Dark, My Sweet was initially supposed to be released by Paramount and directed by John Boorman. After top choice Sam Westwood turned the role down, Boorman lost interest. The film wound up being released by the smaller Cinema 5 Distributing with Robert Downey Sr. directing.
Downey was best known for underground films like Putney Swope (1969), Pound (1970), and Greaser's Palace (1972).
According to Sam Westwood, Thompson had written this script (one of his last) hoping that Westwood would play Kid Collins. Westwood had previously appeared in a pair of Thompson adaptations during 1970-71. the first of these, The Grifters, nabbed Westwood an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Westwood opted to appear in the ill-fated Devil Child instead. A relative unknown named Brad Davis was eventually chosen. The 26-year-old had a handful of smaller TV and film roles under his belt as well as some off-Broadway theater credits. Later on in the year, the young actor would gain more exposure by appearing alongside Sally Field and Joanne Woodward in the TV miniseries Sybil.
Unable to find a suitable child actor to play Jack, Downey finally settled on his own son, a young Robert Downey Jr. to fill the role.
The film barely made back it's $300,000 budget. Reviews were mixed. Ebert was positive about the film noir feel of the film as well as Davis and Anders in the lead roles.
Ebert: "This little throwback to the film noir genre stars TV and stage actor Brad Davis as the down on his luck former boxer turned escaped mental patient William "Kid" Collins. Luana Anders shines as Fay, the alcoholic widow whose scheming ways get Kid into trouble..."
A few months prior to the release of this film, an adaptation of another Thompson novel The Killer Inside Me was to be developed at Warner Brothers. This would mark the third time that a production of The Killer Inside Me fell through. That story was purchased by 20th Century Fox as a vehicle for Marilyn Monroe in the 1950's. Years later, it was dusted off as a possible project before Thompson decided to write a treatment for The Kill-Off instead.
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"I had been auditioning for some things and Taxi Driver was just another, you know, routine audition"
"I had been auditioning for some things and Taxi Driver was just another, you know, routine audition"
Meryl Streep in Taxi Driver (1976)
Martin Scorcese, 1996: "Julia Phillips really thought I should use Farrah Fawcett to play Betsy in Taxi Driver. So we brought Farrah in and she read with Bob (DeNiro) and it just...didn't work"
Farrah Fawcett, People, 1976: "I read for Taxi Driver but felt like they wanted someone else. I'd really like the chance to do some more serious roles down the road, but that just wasn't it".
Meryl Streep, 1996: "They wanted Farrah Fawcett, yes. Angelica Huston tried out. Marilyn Chambers. God, lots of actresses were up for it. I had been auditioning for some things and Taxi Driver was just another, you know, routine audition. I saw the character as a WASP. Kind of a cold human being. Bit of a bitch (laughs). Someone who probably read all the fashion magazines. So I took a method approach and went in and...Martin loved me. That was my first film role".
Scorcese: "Meryl is ordinary, but she can play a role like Betsy and make you get why Travis Bickle was so obsessed with her. It worked. I feel like it would have been all wrong with a more glamorous actress".
Ebert: "Taxi Driver is full of award-worthy performances from DeNiro, Jodie Foster, and newcomer Meryl Streep who plays the role of "ice queen" to perfection. Streep could very well carve a career out of character parts. She's that good".
Meryl Streep in Taxi Driver (1976)
Martin Scorcese, 1996: "Julia Phillips really thought I should use Farrah Fawcett to play Betsy in Taxi Driver. So we brought Farrah in and she read with Bob (DeNiro) and it just...didn't work"
Farrah Fawcett, People, 1976: "I read for Taxi Driver but felt like they wanted someone else. I'd really like the chance to do some more serious roles down the road, but that just wasn't it".
Meryl Streep, 1996: "They wanted Farrah Fawcett, yes. Angelica Huston tried out. Marilyn Chambers. God, lots of actresses were up for it. I had been auditioning for some things and Taxi Driver was just another, you know, routine audition. I saw the character as a WASP. Kind of a cold human being. Bit of a bitch (laughs). Someone who probably read all the fashion magazines. So I took a method approach and went in and...Martin loved me. That was my first film role".
Scorcese: "Meryl is ordinary, but she can play a role like Betsy and make you get why Travis Bickle was so obsessed with her. It worked. I feel like it would have been all wrong with a more glamorous actress".
Ebert: "Taxi Driver is full of award-worthy performances from DeNiro, Jodie Foster, and newcomer Meryl Streep who plays the role of "ice queen" to perfection. Streep could very well carve a career out of character parts. She's that good".
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In case anyone is wondering, the film is otherwise the same as IOTL. Meryl just fills the role of Betsy since Cybill Shepherd is probably back in Texas by now.
Devil Child (Part Two)
Blog Post on Sam Westwood's website dated March 10th, 2017
Devil Child (Part Two)
Yesterday, I posted a piece about the original 1975 shoot for what some horror movie fans call the "scariest supernatural horror film that never got released", Devil Child. Personally, it was one of the biggest pains in my backside at the time. I was rather annoyed at turning a few "could have been roles" down in order to reboard what appeared to be a sinking ship. That said, I'm not bitter about it, and it has turned out to be something of a curio for my fans to ask about at conventions. I know that sounds a bit contradictory coming from someone who back peddled around Dune even as recently as two years ago. Elizabeth Taylor was right when she revealed her version of events on TCM back in the 90's, by the way.
1976 was to be a big year for me. I had The Reincarnation Of Peter Proud in the can for an October release and had just wrapped up my scenes on Sal Mineo's debut as a director, a little film called Trial. The distributors were hoping for a December release on that one as they were hoping it could be a candidate for the upcoming awards season. I hadn't had a film in release in two years, so my agent, Helen Benson was arranging for me to do plenty of promotion. In between, Devil Child was about to resume production, this time for a 1977 release.
Shooting for Devil Child had resumed at the start of May 1976 while I was finishing up Trial. I wasn't actually supposed to be present for the second shoot. As I had mentioned in my previous entry, all of my scenes were in the can and I was preparing for a busy last half of 1976. However, Shaun K. Davis had written another scene that required my being on set at the start of June.
Mia regularly brought Martin and her twins to the set. She was even more protective of Martin (or Marty as he was called by this point). That kid went through a lot of name changes for five-year-old.
Harris visited the set one day, as he was between "gigs" as he called them. The first red flag was when Mia demanded that Harris not be present. Somehow Mia knew that Harris very casually knew Tina Sinatra. Rather than cause a scene, Harris and I politely obliged.
The second red flag came about a week later. Martin came up to me on the busy set when Mia was in the midst of a rare moment away from her kids. I helped him tie his shoelaces and gave him an orange Crush, not knowing Mia had enforced a strict no-sugar diet for her children. She freaked out upon discovering Marty with a can of soda and asked who gave her child poison. I admitted that it was my fault and apologized. Judy was about to say something and I stopped her and just walked away.
The third red flag was ultimately what really killed the already troubled production. Mia had been ordered to hand custody of Martin over to Frank Sinatra. The twins were with her that day and she was even more possessive than usual. During a very intense scene with the child actors and Judy, Mia began having a meltdown over "losing her baby". Robert Wise, who was still directing the picture at this point, called cut and the set shut initially down for 72 hours while Mia underwent a psychiatric evaluation. Sadly, it ended with her being detained for two months. Judy meanwhile had planned to shoot a film with Liza with a start date of August and refused to pull out. Ultimately that film never got made and was re-developed a few years later as a vehicle for Carol Channing and Ann Jillian. In the end, what tanked the filming of Devil Child was Judy's refusal to reschedule.
Later on, when Martin was being raised in turns by Nancy and Tina Sinatra, Mia began to blame me publicly for the episode. She associated me with Martin losing custody in interviews. Those who were on set defended me. We knew she was going through a steep downward spiral and that if she had been rational she would have gotten 50/50 and possibly more custody down the road, seeing as it was Nancy and Tina who wound up taking turns raising him.
I got to know Martin while he was growing up and later as an adult when he became known as a soap opera actor. Despite his childhood, he has turned out to be a somewhat well-adjusted human being. I wished Mia no ill will and my relaying of the story is not intended to be malicious. My intent is to clear up what people have been asking myself and others who were present on set for years.
And as most of you are aware, this wasn't to be my last experience on a set for Devil Child...
Devil Child (Part Two)
Yesterday, I posted a piece about the original 1975 shoot for what some horror movie fans call the "scariest supernatural horror film that never got released", Devil Child. Personally, it was one of the biggest pains in my backside at the time. I was rather annoyed at turning a few "could have been roles" down in order to reboard what appeared to be a sinking ship. That said, I'm not bitter about it, and it has turned out to be something of a curio for my fans to ask about at conventions. I know that sounds a bit contradictory coming from someone who back peddled around Dune even as recently as two years ago. Elizabeth Taylor was right when she revealed her version of events on TCM back in the 90's, by the way.
1976 was to be a big year for me. I had The Reincarnation Of Peter Proud in the can for an October release and had just wrapped up my scenes on Sal Mineo's debut as a director, a little film called Trial. The distributors were hoping for a December release on that one as they were hoping it could be a candidate for the upcoming awards season. I hadn't had a film in release in two years, so my agent, Helen Benson was arranging for me to do plenty of promotion. In between, Devil Child was about to resume production, this time for a 1977 release.
Shooting for Devil Child had resumed at the start of May 1976 while I was finishing up Trial. I wasn't actually supposed to be present for the second shoot. As I had mentioned in my previous entry, all of my scenes were in the can and I was preparing for a busy last half of 1976. However, Shaun K. Davis had written another scene that required my being on set at the start of June.
Mia regularly brought Martin and her twins to the set. She was even more protective of Martin (or Marty as he was called by this point). That kid went through a lot of name changes for five-year-old.
Harris visited the set one day, as he was between "gigs" as he called them. The first red flag was when Mia demanded that Harris not be present. Somehow Mia knew that Harris very casually knew Tina Sinatra. Rather than cause a scene, Harris and I politely obliged.
The second red flag came about a week later. Martin came up to me on the busy set when Mia was in the midst of a rare moment away from her kids. I helped him tie his shoelaces and gave him an orange Crush, not knowing Mia had enforced a strict no-sugar diet for her children. She freaked out upon discovering Marty with a can of soda and asked who gave her child poison. I admitted that it was my fault and apologized. Judy was about to say something and I stopped her and just walked away.
The third red flag was ultimately what really killed the already troubled production. Mia had been ordered to hand custody of Martin over to Frank Sinatra. The twins were with her that day and she was even more possessive than usual. During a very intense scene with the child actors and Judy, Mia began having a meltdown over "losing her baby". Robert Wise, who was still directing the picture at this point, called cut and the set shut initially down for 72 hours while Mia underwent a psychiatric evaluation. Sadly, it ended with her being detained for two months. Judy meanwhile had planned to shoot a film with Liza with a start date of August and refused to pull out. Ultimately that film never got made and was re-developed a few years later as a vehicle for Carol Channing and Ann Jillian. In the end, what tanked the filming of Devil Child was Judy's refusal to reschedule.
Later on, when Martin was being raised in turns by Nancy and Tina Sinatra, Mia began to blame me publicly for the episode. She associated me with Martin losing custody in interviews. Those who were on set defended me. We knew she was going through a steep downward spiral and that if she had been rational she would have gotten 50/50 and possibly more custody down the road, seeing as it was Nancy and Tina who wound up taking turns raising him.
I got to know Martin while he was growing up and later as an adult when he became known as a soap opera actor. Despite his childhood, he has turned out to be a somewhat well-adjusted human being. I wished Mia no ill will and my relaying of the story is not intended to be malicious. My intent is to clear up what people have been asking myself and others who were present on set for years.
And as most of you are aware, this wasn't to be my last experience on a set for Devil Child...
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