Sam Westwood's Hollywood
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"The scariest supernatural horror film that never got released--"
Blog Post on Sam Westwood's website dated March 9th, 2017
Devil Child (Part One)
I started this blog around the time the documentary on my career, Sam Westwood's Hollywood, came out last Summer. One thing a lot of you have asked me about since is Devil Child, a movie I mentioned filming in 1975 that was left unfinished.
Aside from an early profile for People, Shaun K. Davis is extremely private and declined to be interviewed for Sam Westwood's Hollywood. However, he was kind enough to supply the filmmakers with rare script notes and his personal on-set photos from the Devil Child production. Unfortunately, actual footage has not been released to the general public and Shaun has made it clear that he doesn't want it seen. I will respect his wishes.
I figured it was time for me to tell more about my own on-set experiences regarding the scariest supernatural horror film that never got released. At the time, a few of us were lucky enough to see footage via dailies, and it was rather chilling.
By early 1975, my career was in full swing, but as mentioned numerous times, I had passed out on the set of Towering Inferno and it was the start of a run of films that didn't pan out. My agent at the time, Dick Clayton had arranged for me to star in an Exorcist-style horror movie titled Devil Child alongside two fairly big names. The first was Judy Garland, who after a flickering comeback a couple of years earlier, was now finding herself at the twilight of her career. The second, Patty Duke-Astin, had generated buzz the year before for the film America's Sweetheart and seemed poised to resume her big-screen career.
I had worked personally with Judy and Liza some years earlier on Erring On The Side Of Caution. My part was very small, but I did it just to work with them. Judy had been very disappointed that I was let go from the Towering Inferno production and wanted to work with me again. When Devil Child came up, we both jumped at the chance. I thought the film would be the highlight of my career. And in a way, it has been, but more as a bizarre curio of "What could have been". It has even been brought to my attention that there are online speculative fiction forums that wonder what would have happened if the film had been finished and released.
Primary shooting started in February 1975. Devil Child was the working title. Child of the Blood Moon and By the Grace of Satan were other titles that were being considered by director Robert Wise. Wise told me personally that the latter title was his personal favorite. The producers were also partial to it as well because it seemed reminiscent of The Exorcist.
Devil Child had a script written by Shaun K. Davis, who had also written and directed Erring. I was cast as the hapless Priest who is sacrificed to bring about the possession of a child played by John Gilchrist, aka Mikey from the Life cereal ads. Judy had a rare antagonistic role, playing the grandmother who sets the whole thing in motion. She couldn't wait to play "The Wicked Witch" as she called the role. Patty Duke-Astin was cast as the mother of the child. Working with both of them was an exciting prospect.
I finished my scenes about a month later, in mid-March at which time I flew back home to Tuscon, Arizona to film White Line Fever. Further filming on Devil Child continued until May 25th. To be honest with you, the original shoot was rather unremarkable. It was the latter two shoots in 1976 and 1979 where things truly became bizarre. Four days after I completed my scenes, Judy Garland, who was already not in the best of health by this time, fell down the stairs during a fight sequence before her double was due to step in for her.
On March 30th, Judy's doctor vetoed her return until she had completely recovered. Some shooting went on around Judy Garland. These were mostly scenes featuring Patty's character and the other child actors (Brooke Shields, and Adam Rich). Patty seemed a bit off. Judy first brought it to my attention when Patty had a difficult time with one of her scenes and walked off the set. Unbeknownst to all of us, Patty was suffering from undiagnosed bipolar disorder at the time. She started asking for help with lines, which I would feed to her on set. Her sons Sean and Mackenzie were on the set often and Judy and I would help her with the kids. We became close friends after this and when my career hit rock bottom, Patty was one of the people who urged me not to quit acting.
Patty became a mental health advocate and television movie queen. I always admired Patty for being able to turn her life around and was devastated to hear about her passing last year. Brooke of course later became a huge star, and Adam worked steadily in TV before sadly dying of a Valium overdose in 1989. John Gilchrist, however, is not dead as urban legends about him often state. There were so many rumors about that poor kid. The most common one is that his stomach exploded from Pop Rocks and soda. Another popular one mentions that he died shortly after the production of Devil Child shut down a second time from some sort of on-set curse. Look, he didn't die and the film was not cursed. It just simply had an extremely troubled production. And when filming did resume a third time, John was simply too old at age 11 to take back his role.
Hollywood is fickle. Trust me, I know.
******************************************************************************
Patty Duke Interview being interviewed by Bruce Vilanch at the Castro Theatre (7/20/2009)
BV: You worked with Judy again--
PD: In 1975, yes. Devil Child.
BV: That movie that was never released.
PD: I was in no shape to be doing that movie in the first place. Well, I didn't think anything was wrong with me. It was going to be a huge movie, it was going to revive my big screen film career and I was going to get to work with Judy again.
BV: And Sam Westwood--
Crowd starts cheering
PD: And Sam Westwood. I wish I'd get THAT kind of a reaction!
Patty and Bruce are laughing
BV: Sam Westwood, of course, has talked frequently about 'Devil Child'. What exactly went wrong?
PD: Everything!
BV: That bad, huh?
PD: Oh, just anything that could go wrong did. The crew was great, there were no issues there. It wasn't a cursed set or anything. You hear all these stories about that set being jinxed, which Sam himself has said was a bunch of crap--
BV: I like Sam because he doesn't mince his words.
PD: Judy and Sam and the director, Shaun K. Davis, had all just done a really big movie, 'Erring On The Side Of Caution'--
BV: Which Sam also had a small part in--
PD: He did. And Shaun got this deal to do a film. The studio was hoping for another social drama I think and he comes up with this absolutely terrifying horror script instead.
BV: How did you end up in this thing?
PD: Several people passed on it including Raquel Welch who thought it was too frightening but made 'Burnt Offerings' and wrote 'Winding Stairs' instead--
(Patty makes a WTF face)
Audience laughs
BV: I was gonna say--
Bruce laughs
BV: 'Burnt Offerings' was a scary, scary movie!
PD: Eventually I got a copy of the 'Devil Child' script and was going to decline until my agent mentioned Sam Westwood and Judy Garland and I was like "I'M IN!"
Everyone laughs
BV: Sam Westwood was a huge deal--
PD: Oh, he was a big star, but he was also going through issues of his own. He living with Harris by then and Harris...was a character in those days.
BV: Harris is a friend, he's told me stories. Sharing them would probably get me arrested on obscenity charges.
PD: I felt bad for Harris. Later on, when he did advocacy work for different charities I was proud of him. But he was such a stark contrast to Sam. Sam was so private. He had to be. If you got to know Sam and he trusted you, then it was different. If Sam likes you, you have a friend for life. And I needed a friend on that shoot.
BV: So, what happened with the second round of 'Devil Child'?
PD: Sam shot all his scenes, and then a few days later, Judy was filming this fight scene with me. They had a double come in for the long shots. The double was just about to step in and Judy fell. It wasn't a huge fall, but she was frail at that point. So we had to film around her. There were already whispers about the shoot being troubled. Sam had been having some bad luck, and I had a reputation, as did Judy, so people were whispering all sorts of garbage. Judy was determined she was going to make this movie even though she...in my opinion, neither of us should have been cast. But we made it through 'Valley Of The Dolls' together so I thought we'd make it through 'Devil Child'.
We picked up the shoot the next year. Sam initially wasn't supposed to be there, but Shaun expanded his role. And there were some reshoots.
BV: How was Judy?
PD: Oh, Judy was fine that time. She seemed to be doing much better. It was me. I was acting out and struggling with lines. And John, my husband at the time, was busy so I brought my boys to the set.
BV: Sean and Mackenzie Astin, if you are wondering--
PD: I had them on the set with me and was in no shape to be taking care of myself let alone my sons. And Sam must have sensed that because he'd bring them snacks and coloring books and talk to them. He'd ask first because I think he was worried I'd get upset for whatever reason. But I was worse without him or Judy around. He would feed me my lines and look after the kids when they visited the set.
I...unfortunately had an episode and was put under a 72-hour psych evaluation. John canceled everything he was doing to go get the kids and Sam and Judy and Shaun and the crew were all there looking after them. Judy had been in that situation herself, she knew what to do. And Shaun was more than understanding given his own personal history with his family. So I was very lucky to have that support because it's rare. I was diagnosed as bipolar. And then, Judy had another commitment which didn't pan out--
BV: Alan Carr, who of course, produced Grease, kept going on about doing a movie with her and Liza which never happened. He wanted input on a script.
PD: That must have been the film. Judy did an interview right before she died clarifying that my diagnosis is not what shut the set down and Sam also went on record about that--
BV: The film went back into production more than once--
PD: A few years later, yeah. They recast my role and Judy's role and brought Sam back, and again, the film wasn't finished--
******************************************************************************
Devil Child (Part One)
I started this blog around the time the documentary on my career, Sam Westwood's Hollywood, came out last Summer. One thing a lot of you have asked me about since is Devil Child, a movie I mentioned filming in 1975 that was left unfinished.
Aside from an early profile for People, Shaun K. Davis is extremely private and declined to be interviewed for Sam Westwood's Hollywood. However, he was kind enough to supply the filmmakers with rare script notes and his personal on-set photos from the Devil Child production. Unfortunately, actual footage has not been released to the general public and Shaun has made it clear that he doesn't want it seen. I will respect his wishes.
I figured it was time for me to tell more about my own on-set experiences regarding the scariest supernatural horror film that never got released. At the time, a few of us were lucky enough to see footage via dailies, and it was rather chilling.
By early 1975, my career was in full swing, but as mentioned numerous times, I had passed out on the set of Towering Inferno and it was the start of a run of films that didn't pan out. My agent at the time, Dick Clayton had arranged for me to star in an Exorcist-style horror movie titled Devil Child alongside two fairly big names. The first was Judy Garland, who after a flickering comeback a couple of years earlier, was now finding herself at the twilight of her career. The second, Patty Duke-Astin, had generated buzz the year before for the film America's Sweetheart and seemed poised to resume her big-screen career.
I had worked personally with Judy and Liza some years earlier on Erring On The Side Of Caution. My part was very small, but I did it just to work with them. Judy had been very disappointed that I was let go from the Towering Inferno production and wanted to work with me again. When Devil Child came up, we both jumped at the chance. I thought the film would be the highlight of my career. And in a way, it has been, but more as a bizarre curio of "What could have been". It has even been brought to my attention that there are online speculative fiction forums that wonder what would have happened if the film had been finished and released.
Primary shooting started in February 1975. Devil Child was the working title. Child of the Blood Moon and By the Grace of Satan were other titles that were being considered by director Robert Wise. Wise told me personally that the latter title was his personal favorite. The producers were also partial to it as well because it seemed reminiscent of The Exorcist.
Devil Child had a script written by Shaun K. Davis, who had also written and directed Erring. I was cast as the hapless Priest who is sacrificed to bring about the possession of a child played by John Gilchrist, aka Mikey from the Life cereal ads. Judy had a rare antagonistic role, playing the grandmother who sets the whole thing in motion. She couldn't wait to play "The Wicked Witch" as she called the role. Patty Duke-Astin was cast as the mother of the child. Working with both of them was an exciting prospect.
I finished my scenes about a month later, in mid-March at which time I flew back home to Tuscon, Arizona to film White Line Fever. Further filming on Devil Child continued until May 25th. To be honest with you, the original shoot was rather unremarkable. It was the latter two shoots in 1976 and 1979 where things truly became bizarre. Four days after I completed my scenes, Judy Garland, who was already not in the best of health by this time, fell down the stairs during a fight sequence before her double was due to step in for her.
On March 30th, Judy's doctor vetoed her return until she had completely recovered. Some shooting went on around Judy Garland. These were mostly scenes featuring Patty's character and the other child actors (Brooke Shields, and Adam Rich). Patty seemed a bit off. Judy first brought it to my attention when Patty had a difficult time with one of her scenes and walked off the set. Unbeknownst to all of us, Patty was suffering from undiagnosed bipolar disorder at the time. She started asking for help with lines, which I would feed to her on set. Her sons Sean and Mackenzie were on the set often and Judy and I would help her with the kids. We became close friends after this and when my career hit rock bottom, Patty was one of the people who urged me not to quit acting.
Patty became a mental health advocate and television movie queen. I always admired Patty for being able to turn her life around and was devastated to hear about her passing last year. Brooke of course later became a huge star, and Adam worked steadily in TV before sadly dying of a Valium overdose in 1989. John Gilchrist, however, is not dead as urban legends about him often state. There were so many rumors about that poor kid. The most common one is that his stomach exploded from Pop Rocks and soda. Another popular one mentions that he died shortly after the production of Devil Child shut down a second time from some sort of on-set curse. Look, he didn't die and the film was not cursed. It just simply had an extremely troubled production. And when filming did resume a third time, John was simply too old at age 11 to take back his role.
Hollywood is fickle. Trust me, I know.
******************************************************************************
Patty Duke Interview being interviewed by Bruce Vilanch at the Castro Theatre (7/20/2009)
BV: You worked with Judy again--
PD: In 1975, yes. Devil Child.
BV: That movie that was never released.
PD: I was in no shape to be doing that movie in the first place. Well, I didn't think anything was wrong with me. It was going to be a huge movie, it was going to revive my big screen film career and I was going to get to work with Judy again.
BV: And Sam Westwood--
Crowd starts cheering
PD: And Sam Westwood. I wish I'd get THAT kind of a reaction!
Patty and Bruce are laughing
BV: Sam Westwood, of course, has talked frequently about 'Devil Child'. What exactly went wrong?
PD: Everything!
BV: That bad, huh?
PD: Oh, just anything that could go wrong did. The crew was great, there were no issues there. It wasn't a cursed set or anything. You hear all these stories about that set being jinxed, which Sam himself has said was a bunch of crap--
BV: I like Sam because he doesn't mince his words.
PD: Judy and Sam and the director, Shaun K. Davis, had all just done a really big movie, 'Erring On The Side Of Caution'--
BV: Which Sam also had a small part in--
PD: He did. And Shaun got this deal to do a film. The studio was hoping for another social drama I think and he comes up with this absolutely terrifying horror script instead.
BV: How did you end up in this thing?
PD: Several people passed on it including Raquel Welch who thought it was too frightening but made 'Burnt Offerings' and wrote 'Winding Stairs' instead--
(Patty makes a WTF face)
Audience laughs
BV: I was gonna say--
Bruce laughs
BV: 'Burnt Offerings' was a scary, scary movie!
PD: Eventually I got a copy of the 'Devil Child' script and was going to decline until my agent mentioned Sam Westwood and Judy Garland and I was like "I'M IN!"
Everyone laughs
BV: Sam Westwood was a huge deal--
PD: Oh, he was a big star, but he was also going through issues of his own. He living with Harris by then and Harris...was a character in those days.
BV: Harris is a friend, he's told me stories. Sharing them would probably get me arrested on obscenity charges.
PD: I felt bad for Harris. Later on, when he did advocacy work for different charities I was proud of him. But he was such a stark contrast to Sam. Sam was so private. He had to be. If you got to know Sam and he trusted you, then it was different. If Sam likes you, you have a friend for life. And I needed a friend on that shoot.
BV: So, what happened with the second round of 'Devil Child'?
PD: Sam shot all his scenes, and then a few days later, Judy was filming this fight scene with me. They had a double come in for the long shots. The double was just about to step in and Judy fell. It wasn't a huge fall, but she was frail at that point. So we had to film around her. There were already whispers about the shoot being troubled. Sam had been having some bad luck, and I had a reputation, as did Judy, so people were whispering all sorts of garbage. Judy was determined she was going to make this movie even though she...in my opinion, neither of us should have been cast. But we made it through 'Valley Of The Dolls' together so I thought we'd make it through 'Devil Child'.
We picked up the shoot the next year. Sam initially wasn't supposed to be there, but Shaun expanded his role. And there were some reshoots.
BV: How was Judy?
PD: Oh, Judy was fine that time. She seemed to be doing much better. It was me. I was acting out and struggling with lines. And John, my husband at the time, was busy so I brought my boys to the set.
BV: Sean and Mackenzie Astin, if you are wondering--
PD: I had them on the set with me and was in no shape to be taking care of myself let alone my sons. And Sam must have sensed that because he'd bring them snacks and coloring books and talk to them. He'd ask first because I think he was worried I'd get upset for whatever reason. But I was worse without him or Judy around. He would feed me my lines and look after the kids when they visited the set.
I...unfortunately had an episode and was put under a 72-hour psych evaluation. John canceled everything he was doing to go get the kids and Sam and Judy and Shaun and the crew were all there looking after them. Judy had been in that situation herself, she knew what to do. And Shaun was more than understanding given his own personal history with his family. So I was very lucky to have that support because it's rare. I was diagnosed as bipolar. And then, Judy had another commitment which didn't pan out--
BV: Alan Carr, who of course, produced Grease, kept going on about doing a movie with her and Liza which never happened. He wanted input on a script.
PD: That must have been the film. Judy did an interview right before she died clarifying that my diagnosis is not what shut the set down and Sam also went on record about that--
BV: The film went back into production more than once--
PD: A few years later, yeah. They recast my role and Judy's role and brought Sam back, and again, the film wasn't finished--
******************************************************************************
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Forgot to add that the Patty Duke interview is supposed to occur at an ATL version of this event.
From a cassette tape belonging to the archive of Nolan Hendricks. This one is labeled 'Sam Westwood, 1991'
Harris: Helen Benson actually had a brief period where she landed some clients that seemed prestigious. Shelley Hack had just come off that campaign for Charlie perfume which was massive and Helen promptly managed to land her a role in 'Taxi Driver'. That was a major coup for Helen.Sam: I thought about signing with her, but wasn't sure I liked the idea of us both sharing an agent.
Nolan: I'm interested in some of the roles you didn't get. Is it true you were up for 'Chinatown' in case Jack Nicholson was unable to manage to direct and star?
Sam: Yes. I still think that movie was robbed at the Oscars--
Anyway, I was up for a Barbra Streisand movie too. 'For Pete's Sake'. And I didn't end up getting cast. I only had "what-if" moments about 'Devil Child', 'Dune', and 'Model Shop'.
Nolan: What's this about another stab at 'Devil Child'?
Sam: I've considered it as a follow-up to the film I just did. Shaun and I are in talks as long as I don't use any of the original elements. I'd be getting the chance to direct my own movie. Nothing is set in stone yet, though.
Nolan: Going back to roles you read for, I'm curious to know about 'Day Of The Locust'--
Sam: That was perfect for Bud Cort and Erin Gray. Bud hadn't really had a big role since 'Star-Spangled Girl' and Erin's career was finally starting to pick up steam again.
Harris: She was still modeling too--
Sam: Yeah. If she couldn't get decent roles, she'd switch back to modeling. You had photography. I'd be the first one to tell someone to find something to fall back on and yet I didn't have that--
Harris: You had your writing.
Sam: True. I mean in those days there were easier ways to get into writing--
Nolan: I've had to work really hard. Print is still a widely read medium but I think in a few decades it might all go digital--
Sam: I don't know. Does everyone really want to sit on the computer to read the news?
Harris: You can already post messages with other people about common interests--
Nolan: Message boards.
Harris: One of my fans told me about a 'Rocky Horror' one. I haven't checked any of that out myself yet--
Nolan: Going back to 1975, with everything going on and roles not panning out--
Sam: How did I still manage to have two movies out that year? Lucky, I guess. (chuckles)
Nolan: You also did TV--
Sam: Yeah, I did that episode of 'Thriller'. Funny, Harris and I were trying to remember when I shot that--
Harris: You went to England for that but I know it was after I got back--
Sam: I shot it during 1975, went there for a few weeks, did a quick shoot. It would have been right before 'Peter Proud'. It was one of those series that aired over here. Think they might have aired it here in November and the next spring in the UK.
Nolan: How did you land that anyway?
Sam: Dick Clayton knew some British TV producers and they had a role for an American on an anthology series called 'Thriller'. The name of the episode was 'Dial A Deadly Number'. This woman thinks she's calling a shrink but she's calling my character who is this down on his luck American actor and everything just goes downhill. For him. [1]
I enjoyed working on that and it was better than doing another game show over here.
Harris: Nolan wanted to know about 'White Line Fever'--
Nolan: Yeah, I almost forgot.
Sam: They wanted to start shooting that in February but I was still filming 'Devil Child'. The producers suggested another actor but Jonathan Kaplan and the studio wanted me so they waited a month to shoot. The only reason I did the movie was that the shoot was in Tuscon. And because things kept falling through, we thought a quickie movie might make people realize that there was nothing wrong. I'd had so many shoots fall through before and after that.
Of course, I didn't logically think that going home to film a movie, I'd be constantly having to do publicity. I had the key to the city, local news media on the set constantly. Locals who didn't like me growing up would be trying to suck up. I had to wear a disguise just to go for family dinner. It got a little ridiculous. My dad turned to me and said "You didn't know what you were getting into, did you?" (chuckles)
That movie came out really fast, like six months later. I remember flying out to shoot 'Peter Proud' right after the premiere.
Nolan: Wait, you always made it sound like the two days you shot for Roger Corman was after 'Devil Child'--
Sam: Well...let's see, 'Devil Child' was February to March-- (Sam mumbles)
'White Line Fever' was right after and then 'Overlords' was two days in June. Yeah, I guess I shot it in between those two.
The summer before I shot a comedy and that was released first, in July. And it got pummeled because of 'Jaws'. And 'White Line Fever' wasn't a flop. It was a smaller budgeted film so it made money back but it wasn't enormous. Because of 'Jaws', things shifted a little. Movies started to get bigger.
Harris: Jaws pummeled everything. Damn that Harrison Ford! (laughs)
Sam: Harrison and I were always up for similar roles even after 'Jaws'. It was when he did 'Raiders Of The Lost Ark' that I was left in the dust.
Honestly, I didn't want to primarily be in action movies. I did a lot of them, though.
Nolan: 'Sunburn' was later but that was a comedy--
Sam: Yeah. A lot of people mention that my 70's movies were all kind of similar but I switched things up often. 'Iowa' I was the romantic lead. I played a cop in 'Brother's Keeper'. But all of those movies were heavy, heavy films. I wanted to do a comedy.
Nolan: Did you feel conflicted playing a cop?
Sam: I actually had a conversation with Kent McCord when we shot 'Arms Of The Stars'. Kent was uncomfortable doing 'Adam-12' at first. Didn't bring this up to Kent because when we shot that I wasn't out to him. Before my acting career started, I'd been out to a gay bar, something I couldn't do when my film career blew up. This would be about 1964--
Nolan: I can't even imagine. I know how bad things are now from my sister--
Harris: And you are a straight person who got beat up in Kansas in the '80s just for associating with gays, imagine what it was like 25 years ago--
Nolan: Good point--
(Cat meows and makes clawing sounds in the background)
Harris: I'll go check on Mary Rose. She probably wants out.
Sam: There was always the chance of a police raid. My other option was to go cruising the park and that seemed depressing. All I wanted was to meet someone else like me, not necessarily do anything.
Anyway, I get there and felt out of my element. It was just my luck that there was a police raid that night. It left a bad taste in my mouth. This guy helped me get the Hell out through the back before the cops found us and he became my first boyfriend.
Nolan: Is this the man you were seeing when you were discovered?
Sam: Yeah. He tried to talk me out of doing the screen test and I...I can't "What if" about him because I can't imagine not being with Harris. My then-boyfriend wanted to make it work and he was hurt that I chose movies over him. I don't know why I did it. The excitement, maybe. And that wasn't the only thing I felt guilty over.
When I got drafted, I couldn't mention my sexual orientation because my film career would have ended. So that's how I was deferred and did the training films and went to veterans hospitals. I'd see these guys who were completely damaged, some of them were double amputees, some had shell shock, and I'd think "This should have been me".
(Harris is heard coming back into the room)
Harris: We both feel like that now with everything going on.
Sam: Yeah. There was a period where we'd constantly have to pencil in a funeral to attend or send flowers (to). Can we shut this off for a bit?
*Tape recorder clicks off*
[1] The OTL version of this episode can be found on YouTube
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When you have time , can you list all the films that Sam appeared in up to this point in the time line?
Hey everyone!
Just a touch base. I'm doing OK. There is a post coming, just figuring out how I want to execute it.
Just a touch base. I'm doing OK. There is a post coming, just figuring out how I want to execute it.
Sam talks comebacks, Bruce Lee. Harris chats with Roger Corman.
Home movie footage of Sam Westwood from late 1991. Sam is sitting at a table with Nolan. The voice behind the camera is distinctly that of Harris Walker. Sam is holding up issue #28 of Empire Magazine in which he is profiled alongside John Savage in a Where Are They Now? feature.
Sam: Ian sent this in the mail. Some British magazine did a Where Are They Now? feature on me.
Sam flips through the pages.
Sam: This is...the most positive mainstream press I've had in ages. They even mention 'The Dark Half'.
Harris: I still think we should have had a small party--
Sam: It's just a magazine story. We'll wait until the movie actually comes out.
Nolan: I borrowed a couple of Bruce Lee movies.
Sam places the magazine down, picks the videotapes up, and reads the boxes to what appear to be Game Of Death (1974) and The Man From Hong Kong (1975). [1]
Sam: 'Game Of Death' and 'The Man From Hong Kong'--
Nolan: The second one has Rod Taylor in it--
Sam: I saw 'Game Of Death' when it came out. I haven't seen 'The Man from Hong Kong'.
Harris: It had that song--
Harris tries humming Sky High by Jigsaw behind the camera
Sam: A lot of movies had songs in them!
Nolan: 'Sky High'--
Sam: Oh. I remember that one. Don't ask me to sing it, though. (laughs)
********************************************************************************
YouTube video from 2015 of Harris Walker and Roger Corman having a one-on-one live conversation/ Q&A at a screening of the 1975 Corman produced film Fisticuffs and Speed.
Roger Corman: I had done 'Death Race 2000' and was following that up with a whole series of car chase pictures and thought Harris would be perfect.
Harris: We shot in, uh, I believe it was three weeks or something. I went to England before and after to shoot a couple of films.
RC: We used repurposed sets for that. It was a quick shoot.
Harris: The 'Death Race' vehicles were used a lot.
RC: It saves money.
Harris: My acting career had been revived but I was doing old-fashioned horror films and occasional TV spots, commercials. So, your offer looked really good.
The script changed, though. You were the only producer who thought I could play a cop! (chuckles)
RC: Well, we decided to do a twist. 'Fisticuffs' would be about two motorcycle cops. It was before 'CHiPs', so we were ahead of the game there.
Harris: The original script I saw was about two stunt drivers on the run.
RC: It was a buddy picture. I wanted Sylvester Stallone to play Fisticuffs. He turned it down, so then I moved onto Martin Kove, who had also been in 'Death Race 2000' with Sylvester.
Harris: Martin Kove was also in 'White Line Fever' with Sam.
RC: That's right.
Harris: It was an easy shoot for the most part. Granted, there was day Paul Bartel and I argued about a car on set being green when it was orange. And I wanted to do my own stunts.
RC: I would not let you do stunts. I lost an actor directing a film a few years earlier. And you didn't seem like the most...steady guy back then.
Harris: You were constantly making sure the set was safe.
RC: Well, that was my job as a producer. You want to have a safe work environment--
********************************************************************************
[1] Bruce Lee's other movies from this period also include The Seven Sons of the Jade Dragon (1975), and Circle Of Iron (1976), Lee's first film that he wrote and directed himself.
So Rod Taylor instead of George Lazenby ?
Cool
Nice to see Lee take a film from David Carradine since Carradine took the TV show Kung Fu from Lee.
Dune (Paramount, June, 1975)
Dune (Paramount, June, 1975)
Directed by Douglas Trumbull
An Arthur P. Jacobs Production
Screenplay by Rospo Pallenberg (Based on the first Dune novel by Frank Herbert)
Cast
Michael Sarrazin as Paul Atreides, the Duke's son, and our protagonist.
Mike Lookinland as Young Paul Atreides
Rod Taylor as Duke Leto Atreides, head of House Atreides
Jean Simmons as Lady Jessica, Bene Gesserit and concubine of the Duke, mother of Paul and Alia
Omar Sharif as Thufir Hawat, Mentat and Master of Assassins to House Atreides
Anissa Jones as Alia Atreides, Paul's younger sister
Julian Glover as Gurney Halleck, staunchly loyal troubadour warrior of the Atreides
Patrick Wayne as Duncan Idaho, Swordmaster for House Atreides, graduate of the Ginaz School
Dean Stockwell as Wellington Yueh, Suk doctor for the Atreides, who is secretly working for House Harkonnen
Jane Seymour as Chani
And Gloria Swanson as Reverend Mother Mohiam
Trivia via IMDB
Sam Westwood had been cast as Paul but was let go by Jacobs against the wishes of director Douglas Trumbull at the last minute. Michael Sarrazin replaced him. For years, rumours ranged from then-closeted Westwood's sexuality to Jacobs feeling that Westwood had been miscast. Ironically, Sam Westwood would go on to star in The Reincarnation Of Peter Proud (1976), which was originally slated to be filmed for another studio with Sarrazin in the lead. That production falling through led to Sarrazin being available to play Paul.
Jacobs wanted Audrey Hepburn for Lady Jessica but was unable to get the semi reclusive actress interested in the project. He then moved on to Jean Simmons.
Anissa Jones was best known as Buffy on the sitcom A Family Affair (1966-1971). After the show was cancelled, Jones had unsuccessfully tried out to star in The Exorcist. She had also turned down a sitcom offer from actor Brian Keith. Jones was ready to give up on acting when in late 1973 she was encouraged to audition for Dune. Jacobs wanted Jodie Foster who was unavailable. Other actresses considered included an unknown Linda Blair and Paper Moon star Tatum O'Neal.
Keir Dullea turned down the role of Duncan Idaho. Patrick Wayne was ultimately cast.
Plans for a sequel fell through when Arthur P. Jacobs suffered a second heart attack and died several months after Dune was released.
Dune initially opened to mixed reviews but solid box office. However, during the film's second week in theatres, Steven Speilberg's Jaws was released. As a result, Dune's box office took a hit.
From a 2015 documentary on the making of Dune
Rare footage of Sam Westwood's screentest and wardrobe fittings are shown while Douglas Trumbull is talking.*
DT: I knew there were going to be problems when Sam Westwood was mysteriously let go. The work Sam did do was incredible. I couldn't get that out of Michael Sarrazin.
Arthur used various reasons like, he'd been miscast, which was absolutely not the case. I didn't know until years later what happened. Elizabeth Taylor went on Turner Classic Movies and one of her picks was 'Dune'. I had heard from Steven that she liked some of the performances, but uh, I didn't expect her to pick it. Anyway, she starts telling this story about Sam right on air. And I called Sam up, and he confirmed it-- [1]
February 1997 Interview of Elizabeth Taylor by Robert Osborne. Taylor was a guest presenter that night. (Between Giant & Liz’s selection – Dune) [2]
RO: You were up for 'Dune', weren’t you?
ET: There were talks, but it wasn’t what I wanted to do at the time. I hated Art Jacobs. You couldn’t tell him anything.
RO: Was it a personal or professional rift?
ET: (Thinks for a moment)
Both. Personally, I felt sorry for Natalie--
RO: Natalie Trundy, his wife?
ET: Yes, he was always seeing other men going after her and no matter what really happened – you could have video of it – he would still believe what he originally thought. That’s why poor Sam Westwood got fired, you know.
RO: He found out Westwood was gay, that’s the –
ET: BULLSHIT! (sighs and takes a drink of what appears to be tea)
There was a party, it was about the time I met Steven. Marlon Brando was there. It was when he was starting to look bad – and he was putting moves on Natalie and Sam very politely waltzed her off to dance. Art sees them do two or three dances, waiting for Marlon to find fresh prey and immediately thinks Sam is making a move on her. She tells him what happened, but he doesn’t believe it and fires Sam. So, Natalie quits the film in protest – another actress got her part – and we got this film without Sam Westwood.
RO: (Laughing) But you chose this!
ET: Well, It’s got some great acting, and for me, it was an acquired taste. I love Dean Stockwell. I should have married him! (cackles).
* Natalie Trundy later confirmed in an interview with British film magazine Empire that Liz told the truth about the reason her late husband fired Sam, but added that Taylor was never offered a part because Art thought her too demanding. Trundy also added that the party in question was to celebrate the start of filming but that a who's who of stars were also invited. She also specified that while Jacobs normally cast her in his films, she wasn't at any point a cast member on Dune.
From a 1987 People magazine article on Anissa Jones. Jones was promoting Grace Under Fire, a thriller that ironically featured Sam Westwood in a rare studio film during his career downturn.
"I feel like returning to acting saved my life" Jones would tell People Magazine in 1987 "I had tried living like a regular teenager and it was just not working out. Someone suggested I go in and audition for Dune and I strongly believe that if it had not worked out I would not be here talking to you right now".
Jones says that director Douglas Trumbull wanted her to play the role of Alia. Eventually, the film's producer, Arthur P. Jacobs relented after his first choice, Jodie Foster, turned it down.
As Jones would recall "My father passed away during the shooting, and I did not get along with my mother. Gloria Swanson befriended me on the set. She could tell I was upset and that I was also extremely troubled. I learned all sorts of great advice from her. And she knew John Lennon, which kind of made her like the cool grandmother I never had. She gave me advice on managing my finances and emancipating myself and my brother Paul from my mother. Although some of it was weird to me at the time, like how I should cut out sugar and go vegetarian. I did end up trying and liking it though. The Enquirer did bust me with a burger, I'm not perfect.".
*And later via voiceover:
'Dune' might have been thrown to the sharks after a promising first two weeks, but the film still made waves. Other studios showed interest in science fiction productions. 20th Century Fox was showing interest in a concept from George Lucas, and there were rumours circulating about a possible 'Star Trek' reunion. Trumbull's effects also generated some Oscar buzz. The director was also starting work on a few film techniques for future use--"
[1] Trumbull is involved with movies Sam acts in later and they stay friendly.
[2] This showed up in another post, but it's been a while.
Directed by Douglas Trumbull
An Arthur P. Jacobs Production
Screenplay by Rospo Pallenberg (Based on the first Dune novel by Frank Herbert)
Cast
Michael Sarrazin as Paul Atreides, the Duke's son, and our protagonist.
Mike Lookinland as Young Paul Atreides
Rod Taylor as Duke Leto Atreides, head of House Atreides
Jean Simmons as Lady Jessica, Bene Gesserit and concubine of the Duke, mother of Paul and Alia
Omar Sharif as Thufir Hawat, Mentat and Master of Assassins to House Atreides
Anissa Jones as Alia Atreides, Paul's younger sister
Julian Glover as Gurney Halleck, staunchly loyal troubadour warrior of the Atreides
Patrick Wayne as Duncan Idaho, Swordmaster for House Atreides, graduate of the Ginaz School
Dean Stockwell as Wellington Yueh, Suk doctor for the Atreides, who is secretly working for House Harkonnen
Jane Seymour as Chani
And Gloria Swanson as Reverend Mother Mohiam
Trivia via IMDB
Sam Westwood had been cast as Paul but was let go by Jacobs against the wishes of director Douglas Trumbull at the last minute. Michael Sarrazin replaced him. For years, rumours ranged from then-closeted Westwood's sexuality to Jacobs feeling that Westwood had been miscast. Ironically, Sam Westwood would go on to star in The Reincarnation Of Peter Proud (1976), which was originally slated to be filmed for another studio with Sarrazin in the lead. That production falling through led to Sarrazin being available to play Paul.
Jacobs wanted Audrey Hepburn for Lady Jessica but was unable to get the semi reclusive actress interested in the project. He then moved on to Jean Simmons.
Anissa Jones was best known as Buffy on the sitcom A Family Affair (1966-1971). After the show was cancelled, Jones had unsuccessfully tried out to star in The Exorcist. She had also turned down a sitcom offer from actor Brian Keith. Jones was ready to give up on acting when in late 1973 she was encouraged to audition for Dune. Jacobs wanted Jodie Foster who was unavailable. Other actresses considered included an unknown Linda Blair and Paper Moon star Tatum O'Neal.
Keir Dullea turned down the role of Duncan Idaho. Patrick Wayne was ultimately cast.
Plans for a sequel fell through when Arthur P. Jacobs suffered a second heart attack and died several months after Dune was released.
Dune initially opened to mixed reviews but solid box office. However, during the film's second week in theatres, Steven Speilberg's Jaws was released. As a result, Dune's box office took a hit.
From a 2015 documentary on the making of Dune
Rare footage of Sam Westwood's screentest and wardrobe fittings are shown while Douglas Trumbull is talking.*
DT: I knew there were going to be problems when Sam Westwood was mysteriously let go. The work Sam did do was incredible. I couldn't get that out of Michael Sarrazin.
Arthur used various reasons like, he'd been miscast, which was absolutely not the case. I didn't know until years later what happened. Elizabeth Taylor went on Turner Classic Movies and one of her picks was 'Dune'. I had heard from Steven that she liked some of the performances, but uh, I didn't expect her to pick it. Anyway, she starts telling this story about Sam right on air. And I called Sam up, and he confirmed it-- [1]
February 1997 Interview of Elizabeth Taylor by Robert Osborne. Taylor was a guest presenter that night. (Between Giant & Liz’s selection – Dune) [2]
RO: You were up for 'Dune', weren’t you?
ET: There were talks, but it wasn’t what I wanted to do at the time. I hated Art Jacobs. You couldn’t tell him anything.
RO: Was it a personal or professional rift?
ET: (Thinks for a moment)
Both. Personally, I felt sorry for Natalie--
RO: Natalie Trundy, his wife?
ET: Yes, he was always seeing other men going after her and no matter what really happened – you could have video of it – he would still believe what he originally thought. That’s why poor Sam Westwood got fired, you know.
RO: He found out Westwood was gay, that’s the –
ET: BULLSHIT! (sighs and takes a drink of what appears to be tea)
There was a party, it was about the time I met Steven. Marlon Brando was there. It was when he was starting to look bad – and he was putting moves on Natalie and Sam very politely waltzed her off to dance. Art sees them do two or three dances, waiting for Marlon to find fresh prey and immediately thinks Sam is making a move on her. She tells him what happened, but he doesn’t believe it and fires Sam. So, Natalie quits the film in protest – another actress got her part – and we got this film without Sam Westwood.
RO: (Laughing) But you chose this!
ET: Well, It’s got some great acting, and for me, it was an acquired taste. I love Dean Stockwell. I should have married him! (cackles).
* Natalie Trundy later confirmed in an interview with British film magazine Empire that Liz told the truth about the reason her late husband fired Sam, but added that Taylor was never offered a part because Art thought her too demanding. Trundy also added that the party in question was to celebrate the start of filming but that a who's who of stars were also invited. She also specified that while Jacobs normally cast her in his films, she wasn't at any point a cast member on Dune.
From a 1987 People magazine article on Anissa Jones. Jones was promoting Grace Under Fire, a thriller that ironically featured Sam Westwood in a rare studio film during his career downturn.
"I feel like returning to acting saved my life" Jones would tell People Magazine in 1987 "I had tried living like a regular teenager and it was just not working out. Someone suggested I go in and audition for Dune and I strongly believe that if it had not worked out I would not be here talking to you right now".
Jones says that director Douglas Trumbull wanted her to play the role of Alia. Eventually, the film's producer, Arthur P. Jacobs relented after his first choice, Jodie Foster, turned it down.
As Jones would recall "My father passed away during the shooting, and I did not get along with my mother. Gloria Swanson befriended me on the set. She could tell I was upset and that I was also extremely troubled. I learned all sorts of great advice from her. And she knew John Lennon, which kind of made her like the cool grandmother I never had. She gave me advice on managing my finances and emancipating myself and my brother Paul from my mother. Although some of it was weird to me at the time, like how I should cut out sugar and go vegetarian. I did end up trying and liking it though. The Enquirer did bust me with a burger, I'm not perfect.".
*And later via voiceover:
'Dune' might have been thrown to the sharks after a promising first two weeks, but the film still made waves. Other studios showed interest in science fiction productions. 20th Century Fox was showing interest in a concept from George Lucas, and there were rumours circulating about a possible 'Star Trek' reunion. Trumbull's effects also generated some Oscar buzz. The director was also starting work on a few film techniques for future use--"
[1] Trumbull is involved with movies Sam acts in later and they stay friendly.
[2] This showed up in another post, but it's been a while.
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (20th Century Fox, November 1975)
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (20th Century Fox, November 1975) [1]*
Written by Robert Getchell
'He Did Me Wrong, But He Did It Right' and 'Without Love' performed by Patti Dahlstrom, courtesy of 20th Century Records
Directed by Ida Lupino
A Catriona & Ian Nobel Production
Cast
Ellen Burstyn as Alice Hyatt
Alfred Lutter as Tommy
Tom Skerritt as David
Billy "Green" Bush as Donald
Diane Ladd as Florence Jean "Flo" Castleberry
Shelley Duvall as Vera
Lelia Goldoni as Bea
Lane Bradbury as Rita
Vic Tayback as Mel Sharples
Kristy McNichol as Audrey
Lance Henriksen as Ben
The script for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore had been floating around for some time. At one point, the film was in development at Warner Brothers with Anne Bancroft attached to star. That version would have been directed by Martin Scorsese. Production of Alice at Warner's had fallen through and the original producer, David Susskind had moved the film to 20th Century Fox. Burstyn, who had a one-picture deal agreed to star, thinking she'd get to work with Scorsese. Scorsese bowed out once production shifted due to pre-production on Taxi Driver. At one point, Burstyn wanted to direct herself but was vetoed by the studio.
As Ellen Burstyn would later recall in her autobiography:
"I wanted someone new and exciting to direct the movie. So Martin Scorsese falling through was a letdown. I felt he had been exactly what the film needed. The script was wonderful, but a bit slick. I wanted something more gritty.
I considered directing the film myself but that got shot down fast. Stanley Kramer took over, which was the exact opposite of what the picture needed. Marty (Scorsese) had to leave because of the change in filming schedule and the studio move. Then, the original producer quit and the Nobels came in. I find out they're rich kids - even though they weren't kids - and I thought oh, shit, this movie is doomed. I had signed a contract and couldn't just quit.
There was a fight between Stanley Kramer and Cat about casting. A lot of the cast were New Hollywood types and they didn't mesh with Stanley's style of directing. Stanley finally told the Nobels that if they plan on hovering over him like he's an amateur, they need a different director. The production shut down, and we were called to a round table where we meet Ida Lupino. I didn't know whether to be starstruck or concerned. Frankly, I thought they were crazy.
My initial concerns over Ida Lupino were: 1) that she was going to make the film feel even more outdated, like one of her old pictures, and 2) To my knowledge, Ida hadn't directed a film in years. I decided to talk to Cat, who at this point, still scared me. Cat and Ian sat me down with Ida Lupino in a private screening room, which I discovered later had been arranged in advance. Ian pulled me aside and informed me that Ida Lupino had recently directed a Sam Westwood movie that had some favourable reviews. I was shown 'Iowa 1927', the film she'd made with Westwood and Jessica Walter as well as one of Ida's old film noirs. Ian explicitly told me that he thought Alice ought to be less sunshine and more grit - what I wanted. Ida said the same thing and mentioned that filming 'Iowa' had made her excited to be working with the new crop of actors coming up. That put me at ease. and we clicked instantly.
With Ida coming in, however, it wasn't all smooth sailing, to begin with. Kris Kristofferson, the original male lead, had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts. Ida suggested Johnny Cash, who she had recently appeared on Columbo with. Cat wasn't convinced and Tom Skerritt was tested and brought in. After that, things went great.
Later on, I was upset to learn that there was interest in making a sitcom out of the movie. Ida called and said 'Cat made sure sequels and tv movies/shows were optioned to her and Ian' and that if I (like her) didn't want a sitcom, to call Cat and tell her that. So I do, and I'm halfway through this speech I'd worked up about how I could live with a drama, but a sitcom would require a complete change of attitude and tone of the movie and she cuts me off with - 'you agree with Ida, then' - I said yes and she tells me Ian agrees. And the sitcom died right then and there."
Notes from IMDB
Ida Lupino had just wrapped up the fall, 1975 filming of The Reincarnation Of Peter Proud when Alice was released. This was Lupino's first directorial effort in several years, and her first big-screen directorial effort since The Trouble With Angels (1966). Lupino had earlier appeared in the critical and commercial failure The Devil's Rain during 1975.
Alice wasn't a 'blockbuster' but built a steady box office and was a shoo-in for the upcoming awards season.
[1] IOTL, Burstyn had a deal with Warner Brothers for a picture after The Exorcist. ITTL, Alice is instead shot and released a year later than IOTL and distributed by a different studio.
*Edited to mention this. My bad.
Written by Robert Getchell
'He Did Me Wrong, But He Did It Right' and 'Without Love' performed by Patti Dahlstrom, courtesy of 20th Century Records
Directed by Ida Lupino
A Catriona & Ian Nobel Production
Cast
Ellen Burstyn as Alice Hyatt
Alfred Lutter as Tommy
Tom Skerritt as David
Billy "Green" Bush as Donald
Diane Ladd as Florence Jean "Flo" Castleberry
Shelley Duvall as Vera
Lelia Goldoni as Bea
Lane Bradbury as Rita
Vic Tayback as Mel Sharples
Kristy McNichol as Audrey
Lance Henriksen as Ben
The script for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore had been floating around for some time. At one point, the film was in development at Warner Brothers with Anne Bancroft attached to star. That version would have been directed by Martin Scorsese. Production of Alice at Warner's had fallen through and the original producer, David Susskind had moved the film to 20th Century Fox. Burstyn, who had a one-picture deal agreed to star, thinking she'd get to work with Scorsese. Scorsese bowed out once production shifted due to pre-production on Taxi Driver. At one point, Burstyn wanted to direct herself but was vetoed by the studio.
As Ellen Burstyn would later recall in her autobiography:
"I wanted someone new and exciting to direct the movie. So Martin Scorsese falling through was a letdown. I felt he had been exactly what the film needed. The script was wonderful, but a bit slick. I wanted something more gritty.
I considered directing the film myself but that got shot down fast. Stanley Kramer took over, which was the exact opposite of what the picture needed. Marty (Scorsese) had to leave because of the change in filming schedule and the studio move. Then, the original producer quit and the Nobels came in. I find out they're rich kids - even though they weren't kids - and I thought oh, shit, this movie is doomed. I had signed a contract and couldn't just quit.
There was a fight between Stanley Kramer and Cat about casting. A lot of the cast were New Hollywood types and they didn't mesh with Stanley's style of directing. Stanley finally told the Nobels that if they plan on hovering over him like he's an amateur, they need a different director. The production shut down, and we were called to a round table where we meet Ida Lupino. I didn't know whether to be starstruck or concerned. Frankly, I thought they were crazy.
My initial concerns over Ida Lupino were: 1) that she was going to make the film feel even more outdated, like one of her old pictures, and 2) To my knowledge, Ida hadn't directed a film in years. I decided to talk to Cat, who at this point, still scared me. Cat and Ian sat me down with Ida Lupino in a private screening room, which I discovered later had been arranged in advance. Ian pulled me aside and informed me that Ida Lupino had recently directed a Sam Westwood movie that had some favourable reviews. I was shown 'Iowa 1927', the film she'd made with Westwood and Jessica Walter as well as one of Ida's old film noirs. Ian explicitly told me that he thought Alice ought to be less sunshine and more grit - what I wanted. Ida said the same thing and mentioned that filming 'Iowa' had made her excited to be working with the new crop of actors coming up. That put me at ease. and we clicked instantly.
With Ida coming in, however, it wasn't all smooth sailing, to begin with. Kris Kristofferson, the original male lead, had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts. Ida suggested Johnny Cash, who she had recently appeared on Columbo with. Cat wasn't convinced and Tom Skerritt was tested and brought in. After that, things went great.
Later on, I was upset to learn that there was interest in making a sitcom out of the movie. Ida called and said 'Cat made sure sequels and tv movies/shows were optioned to her and Ian' and that if I (like her) didn't want a sitcom, to call Cat and tell her that. So I do, and I'm halfway through this speech I'd worked up about how I could live with a drama, but a sitcom would require a complete change of attitude and tone of the movie and she cuts me off with - 'you agree with Ida, then' - I said yes and she tells me Ian agrees. And the sitcom died right then and there."
Notes from IMDB
Ida Lupino had just wrapped up the fall, 1975 filming of The Reincarnation Of Peter Proud when Alice was released. This was Lupino's first directorial effort in several years, and her first big-screen directorial effort since The Trouble With Angels (1966). Lupino had earlier appeared in the critical and commercial failure The Devil's Rain during 1975.
Alice wasn't a 'blockbuster' but built a steady box office and was a shoo-in for the upcoming awards season.
[1] IOTL, Burstyn had a deal with Warner Brothers for a picture after The Exorcist. ITTL, Alice is instead shot and released a year later than IOTL and distributed by a different studio.
*Edited to mention this. My bad.
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Sidenote: The OTL film had a really, really great soundtrack. Obviously, the studio change would torpedo that. Fortunately for TTL, 20th Century Records had a pretty good roster of underrated singer-songwriters, one of which was Patti Dahlstrom. While I don't have any further plans for her, those two songs seemed to fit the movie so much better.
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Her 1953 film the Hitchhiker is a better thriller still to this day , then most of the current ones .
I always felt it was a shame that Ida was not allow to do more thrillers .
Sam talks Serpent And Spider (1975)
From a cassette tape belonging to the archive of Nolan Hendricks. This one is labeled 'Harris Walker-Sam Westwood, 1991'.
Nolan: I wanted to bring up the comedy you were in earlier that year.
Sam: 'Serpent and Spider?'
Nolan: Yeah.
Sam: That was a comedy heist movie. It's been said that Jaws pummeled it at the box office but I'm going to be completely honest. It wasn't very good.
Nolan: What's the Terence Hill connection with that one?
Sam: Some producer wanted to pair me with Terence Hill. You know, make us a Newman and Redford type pairing. That fell through. Terence did that movie with Valerie instead which of course, was a huge flop. [1]
Anyway, the script was rewritten for Spider to be played by a female. Jacqueline Bisset was the top choice and she turned it down. Britt Ekland turned it down, Catherine Schell. Susan George was finally cast. She turned down, uh...what was that really horrible movie with Perry King?
Nolan: The way Harris talks, all of them. But I feel like you're talking about 'Mandingo'.
Sam: Yeah. I just remember the movie she turned down was an even bigger disaster. Word got out while we were shooting 'Serpent And Spider'. Susan felt like a bullet had been dodged.
I just felt our movie could have been better with goofier leads.
Nolan: But you can do comedy--
Sam: I had done some light-hearted movies at the start of my career. I did SNL later on. 'Sunburn' was a comedy. The issue was the picture just didn't gel.
[1] 1977's Mr Billion. Same director as White Line Fever, interestingly. More here.
Next: Three Men and a Yacht Party.
Nolan: I wanted to bring up the comedy you were in earlier that year.
Sam: 'Serpent and Spider?'
Nolan: Yeah.
Sam: That was a comedy heist movie. It's been said that Jaws pummeled it at the box office but I'm going to be completely honest. It wasn't very good.
Nolan: What's the Terence Hill connection with that one?
Sam: Some producer wanted to pair me with Terence Hill. You know, make us a Newman and Redford type pairing. That fell through. Terence did that movie with Valerie instead which of course, was a huge flop. [1]
Anyway, the script was rewritten for Spider to be played by a female. Jacqueline Bisset was the top choice and she turned it down. Britt Ekland turned it down, Catherine Schell. Susan George was finally cast. She turned down, uh...what was that really horrible movie with Perry King?
Nolan: The way Harris talks, all of them. But I feel like you're talking about 'Mandingo'.
Sam: Yeah. I just remember the movie she turned down was an even bigger disaster. Word got out while we were shooting 'Serpent And Spider'. Susan felt like a bullet had been dodged.
I just felt our movie could have been better with goofier leads.
Nolan: But you can do comedy--
Sam: I had done some light-hearted movies at the start of my career. I did SNL later on. 'Sunburn' was a comedy. The issue was the picture just didn't gel.
[1] 1977's Mr Billion. Same director as White Line Fever, interestingly. More here.
Next: Three Men and a Yacht Party.
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The Party
"Some people fall off the wagon. I fell off the yacht--"
-Harris Walker to Nolan Hendricks, 1991
From Sam Westwood's Hollywood:
Sam Westwood and Harris Walker are seated at a table looking at old photo albums and chatting alongside another older gentleman identified as Ian Nobel.
Sam: The Nobels knew Liz--
Harris and Ian (in unison): She hated being called Liz!
Sam: It just slipped out!
Ian and Catriona knew Elizabeth from her marriage to Richard Burton.
Ian: My family took them on a tour of the Mediterranean one summer.
Harris: Elizabeth told me she was seeing a director. Someone very famous and much younger than her. They met when he approached her about some project that fell through.
Turned out to be Steven Spielberg.
Anyway, Ian and Cat threw a party on their yacht for Liz and her new boyfriend. God, that was a huge yacht. They took it marlin fishing in the Gulf, all over the world, I'd have rather we'd been fishing, to tell the truth. I'm still not comfortable with big parties, even though it was just about.....God, not even twenty people along with me and Sam.
Ian Nobel: I've always been out--
Harris: Ian wasn't a nightmare like Alan Carr, he just...You were just Ian.
Ian: Cat says you only go around once. You shouldn't pretend to please people. God, that sounds pompous. What I'm trying to say is I could afford to be out, a lot of people couldn't. Anyway, this was a smaller party where everyone knew each other, so Harris was able to bring Sam as his date.
Sam: I loved that party, despite everything that happened. It was great to be able to take Harris out and not pretend he was just a buddy.
Harris: Elizabeth got us invited to the party. It was our first official, out-in-public DATE! That's why I remember the party. I think everybody else remembers it for something else, but for me, it was my first official date with Sam. And, of course, it meant that Sam got to meet Steven and Ian and Cat. Granted, Cat scared the shit out of me back then. Hell, she still does. (laughs)
Ian: Cat hates parties. She didn't even want to go to her own wedding reception. She usually went up and took over for the captain and let him man the radar or something.
Anyway, Elizabeth has this "Harris" she wants us to meet, "He's so talented and underappreciated" - her usual spiel. I did some digging and found out he'd been in 'Rocky Horror Picture Show' but we hadn't seen it yet.
We were told Sam Westwood was to accompany Harris. Everyone knew who Sam was. We hadn't met him, though. And then Harris wanted so bad not to embarrass Sam. You could tell he loved the guy. But that party wasn't the kind of social scene he usually hit. We saw that right away.
Sam: Harris wasn't typically big on people who had a lot of flashy things like yachts, but since Liz made such a point of wanting him to come, we went. I tried to stay with him, but he found the bar and he and Liz were pretty glued to it. Getting you ready that night was memorable.
Harris: I usually begged the wardrobe department on sets for help, but I was between jobs and the gal who usually helped me had just moved to New York, so I dressed myself. Sam comes in and makes me change--
Sam: Because of Harris' colour blindness, I sometimes have to help him before we go out.
Harris: I had a bunch of clothes from various shoots. Usually, I stole 'em. If you were really famous, like say, Sharon, you were sent things from designers to wear. I wasn't that lucky.
Sam: Sal Mineo was there, too. Alone. We hadn't talked in a long time but he seemed to be more put together. He had just broken up with, uh, I think his name was Courtney--
Ian: Courtney, yeah. He'd complain about how awful we were to anyone who listened.
Sam: And after dinner, half the people go to shore in that mini-yacht they called a dinghy because they had sitters or weren't invited to stay or what. I remember Jeff and Natalie had a sitter. Ellen Burstyn left. Goldie Hawn and her boyfriend Bill were there and she kept on about hating to pay her ex-husband money even though they were separated and was probably going to have to pay him alimony. It stuck with me because in my mind I'm thinking "I can't even marry Harris"
I also remember Kurt Russell being in the room same time as Goldie and Bill, which was ironic. And Kurt telling me about this space epic he had auditioned for. I hadn't seen him since he was a kid on the Disney lot.
Ian: I was giving her a hard time about it. Anyway, we're all talking and Cat, Ida and Steve decide to talk shop. And Kurt was Cat's date but she sort of left him on his own.
Sam: Ian and Liz said 'No business tonight!' and so the other three go into Cat's office. Liz and Harris proceed to go over to the bar and dig in. Ian and his date - I think his name was Dave - end up being our hosts. Sal and I kept watching Liz and Harris drink, but we couldn't say anything without starting a scene - Liz was waiting for someone to say something, I think, she was pissed about Steve going to talk business when she said not to. And I'm thinking "If Sal looks worried, this is bad"
Harris: I should have probably quit when Sal Mineo started to become concerned.
Sam: Sal, at least when I first knew Sal, wasn't good at taking care of himself.
Ian: Sal was a wreck but I wanted to help him because he'd been making a pretty big effort to try and turn things around. Cat was sceptical but went along with it because she thought he had potential.
Ian: First, Elizabeth and Harris are at the bar, the next thing I know, they're AWOL. I look at Sam and he does the finger walk thing and we both shrug.
Harris: Elizabeth and I decided we'd had enough and went outside to walk around and clear our heads a bit. We're about halfway down one side of the boat when I realize I have to pee. I tell her I'm going back in and why and she says, "Hell, piss off the side, we're in the middle of the damn ocean, it's where all the water goes anyway!" I'm half-drunk and I'd snorted some lines before the party, so it makes sense. I step up to the railing and start doing my thing. All of a sudden, bam! I go over the top railing mid-stream and she runs over to grab me, but I'm not a featherweight.
Sam: (interrupts) He was pretty muscular then.
Harris: Yeah. And she's got a grip, but she was in a thin stage and (shows his left arm) left these scars as I slipped away from her. And I'm in the water--
Ian: Elizabeth comes running in while Bill Hudson is playing a new song on the piano. She wasn't making any sense. Her screaming brings Steve and Cat and -
Sam: Ida
Ian: Thanks. And Ida comes out of the office and Elizabeth still isn't making any sense and then Sam and Goldie ask at the same time: "Where's Harris?"
Sam: And she goes "Overboard!"
Ian: Everyone but Cat froze, we couldn't believe what she was saying and while Cat runs out, she was heading up to stop the yacht and call the Coast Guard. We got Elizabeth to tell us what happened.
Sam: The Coast Guard is dealing with a burning boat and doesn't show up for nearly three hours. Lucky for Harris, he can swim. I was terrified, though.
Harris: They found me and had just wrapped me in a million blankets and were trying to pour coffee down me when the Coast Guard showed up. And then Ida says something along the lines of "I bet if we put a line on him and threw him back in we can catch something bigger than we can actually eat."
Sam: And we all start laughing except Harris. You had to be there.
Ian: And the Coast Guard thinks we're crazy until they get the whole story. I'd almost fallen overboard the year before doing the exact same thing, only the seas weren't as choppy.
Harris: I felt like an embarrassment to Sam.
Sam: Months earlier, I'd told Harris to stop doing things like 'Playgirl'. Maybe it was out of line to give unsolicited career advice but you had so much potential and were picking projects that didn't show it.
Harris: Sam said I had a decision to make. Did I want to keep drinking and doing drugs or did I want to be with him? He gave me a month to make up my mind. (Looks over at Sam) I told him I didn't need a month, I wanted him.
Sam: I almost left that night. A drink, yes, some weed, yes, but not getting drunk and high, because that's when the stupid shit happened with him.
Ian: That choice saved your life, you know that?
Harris: Yeah, I know that. But it wasn't easy. It took nearly two years for me to figure out how to live without drinking myself blind or getting so high I couldn't remember anything. I tried AA, but in the end, that was just depressing. But the idea of no more Sam in my life - that was motivation. We still have drinks from time to time, but not the way I was doing it.
Ian: That was what I didn't get about you: you were either on track or off the rails completely. So I did like my sister and just ignored you until you got your act together.
Harris: (puzzled) You had me over all the time.
Sam: (laughing) You only went over there when you were with me.
Harris looks at Ian, who nods.
-Harris Walker to Nolan Hendricks, 1991
From Sam Westwood's Hollywood:
Sam Westwood and Harris Walker are seated at a table looking at old photo albums and chatting alongside another older gentleman identified as Ian Nobel.
Sam: The Nobels knew Liz--
Harris and Ian (in unison): She hated being called Liz!
Sam: It just slipped out!
Ian and Catriona knew Elizabeth from her marriage to Richard Burton.
Ian: My family took them on a tour of the Mediterranean one summer.
Harris: Elizabeth told me she was seeing a director. Someone very famous and much younger than her. They met when he approached her about some project that fell through.
Turned out to be Steven Spielberg.
Anyway, Ian and Cat threw a party on their yacht for Liz and her new boyfriend. God, that was a huge yacht. They took it marlin fishing in the Gulf, all over the world, I'd have rather we'd been fishing, to tell the truth. I'm still not comfortable with big parties, even though it was just about.....God, not even twenty people along with me and Sam.
Ian Nobel: I've always been out--
Harris: Ian wasn't a nightmare like Alan Carr, he just...You were just Ian.
Ian: Cat says you only go around once. You shouldn't pretend to please people. God, that sounds pompous. What I'm trying to say is I could afford to be out, a lot of people couldn't. Anyway, this was a smaller party where everyone knew each other, so Harris was able to bring Sam as his date.
Sam: I loved that party, despite everything that happened. It was great to be able to take Harris out and not pretend he was just a buddy.
Harris: Elizabeth got us invited to the party. It was our first official, out-in-public DATE! That's why I remember the party. I think everybody else remembers it for something else, but for me, it was my first official date with Sam. And, of course, it meant that Sam got to meet Steven and Ian and Cat. Granted, Cat scared the shit out of me back then. Hell, she still does. (laughs)
Ian: Cat hates parties. She didn't even want to go to her own wedding reception. She usually went up and took over for the captain and let him man the radar or something.
Anyway, Elizabeth has this "Harris" she wants us to meet, "He's so talented and underappreciated" - her usual spiel. I did some digging and found out he'd been in 'Rocky Horror Picture Show' but we hadn't seen it yet.
We were told Sam Westwood was to accompany Harris. Everyone knew who Sam was. We hadn't met him, though. And then Harris wanted so bad not to embarrass Sam. You could tell he loved the guy. But that party wasn't the kind of social scene he usually hit. We saw that right away.
Sam: Harris wasn't typically big on people who had a lot of flashy things like yachts, but since Liz made such a point of wanting him to come, we went. I tried to stay with him, but he found the bar and he and Liz were pretty glued to it. Getting you ready that night was memorable.
Harris: I usually begged the wardrobe department on sets for help, but I was between jobs and the gal who usually helped me had just moved to New York, so I dressed myself. Sam comes in and makes me change--
Sam: Because of Harris' colour blindness, I sometimes have to help him before we go out.
Harris: I had a bunch of clothes from various shoots. Usually, I stole 'em. If you were really famous, like say, Sharon, you were sent things from designers to wear. I wasn't that lucky.
Sam: Sal Mineo was there, too. Alone. We hadn't talked in a long time but he seemed to be more put together. He had just broken up with, uh, I think his name was Courtney--
Ian: Courtney, yeah. He'd complain about how awful we were to anyone who listened.
Sam: And after dinner, half the people go to shore in that mini-yacht they called a dinghy because they had sitters or weren't invited to stay or what. I remember Jeff and Natalie had a sitter. Ellen Burstyn left. Goldie Hawn and her boyfriend Bill were there and she kept on about hating to pay her ex-husband money even though they were separated and was probably going to have to pay him alimony. It stuck with me because in my mind I'm thinking "I can't even marry Harris"
I also remember Kurt Russell being in the room same time as Goldie and Bill, which was ironic. And Kurt telling me about this space epic he had auditioned for. I hadn't seen him since he was a kid on the Disney lot.
Ian: I was giving her a hard time about it. Anyway, we're all talking and Cat, Ida and Steve decide to talk shop. And Kurt was Cat's date but she sort of left him on his own.
Sam: Ian and Liz said 'No business tonight!' and so the other three go into Cat's office. Liz and Harris proceed to go over to the bar and dig in. Ian and his date - I think his name was Dave - end up being our hosts. Sal and I kept watching Liz and Harris drink, but we couldn't say anything without starting a scene - Liz was waiting for someone to say something, I think, she was pissed about Steve going to talk business when she said not to. And I'm thinking "If Sal looks worried, this is bad"
Harris: I should have probably quit when Sal Mineo started to become concerned.
Sam: Sal, at least when I first knew Sal, wasn't good at taking care of himself.
Ian: Sal was a wreck but I wanted to help him because he'd been making a pretty big effort to try and turn things around. Cat was sceptical but went along with it because she thought he had potential.
Ian: First, Elizabeth and Harris are at the bar, the next thing I know, they're AWOL. I look at Sam and he does the finger walk thing and we both shrug.
Harris: Elizabeth and I decided we'd had enough and went outside to walk around and clear our heads a bit. We're about halfway down one side of the boat when I realize I have to pee. I tell her I'm going back in and why and she says, "Hell, piss off the side, we're in the middle of the damn ocean, it's where all the water goes anyway!" I'm half-drunk and I'd snorted some lines before the party, so it makes sense. I step up to the railing and start doing my thing. All of a sudden, bam! I go over the top railing mid-stream and she runs over to grab me, but I'm not a featherweight.
Sam: (interrupts) He was pretty muscular then.
Harris: Yeah. And she's got a grip, but she was in a thin stage and (shows his left arm) left these scars as I slipped away from her. And I'm in the water--
Ian: Elizabeth comes running in while Bill Hudson is playing a new song on the piano. She wasn't making any sense. Her screaming brings Steve and Cat and -
Sam: Ida
Ian: Thanks. And Ida comes out of the office and Elizabeth still isn't making any sense and then Sam and Goldie ask at the same time: "Where's Harris?"
Sam: And she goes "Overboard!"
Ian: Everyone but Cat froze, we couldn't believe what she was saying and while Cat runs out, she was heading up to stop the yacht and call the Coast Guard. We got Elizabeth to tell us what happened.
Sam: The Coast Guard is dealing with a burning boat and doesn't show up for nearly three hours. Lucky for Harris, he can swim. I was terrified, though.
Harris: They found me and had just wrapped me in a million blankets and were trying to pour coffee down me when the Coast Guard showed up. And then Ida says something along the lines of "I bet if we put a line on him and threw him back in we can catch something bigger than we can actually eat."
Sam: And we all start laughing except Harris. You had to be there.
Ian: And the Coast Guard thinks we're crazy until they get the whole story. I'd almost fallen overboard the year before doing the exact same thing, only the seas weren't as choppy.
Harris: I felt like an embarrassment to Sam.
Sam: Months earlier, I'd told Harris to stop doing things like 'Playgirl'. Maybe it was out of line to give unsolicited career advice but you had so much potential and were picking projects that didn't show it.
Harris: Sam said I had a decision to make. Did I want to keep drinking and doing drugs or did I want to be with him? He gave me a month to make up my mind. (Looks over at Sam) I told him I didn't need a month, I wanted him.
Sam: I almost left that night. A drink, yes, some weed, yes, but not getting drunk and high, because that's when the stupid shit happened with him.
Ian: That choice saved your life, you know that?
Harris: Yeah, I know that. But it wasn't easy. It took nearly two years for me to figure out how to live without drinking myself blind or getting so high I couldn't remember anything. I tried AA, but in the end, that was just depressing. But the idea of no more Sam in my life - that was motivation. We still have drinks from time to time, but not the way I was doing it.
Ian: That was what I didn't get about you: you were either on track or off the rails completely. So I did like my sister and just ignored you until you got your act together.
Harris: (puzzled) You had me over all the time.
Sam: (laughing) You only went over there when you were with me.
Harris looks at Ian, who nods.
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1975: A wrap up (Or How Unlucky Can You Get)
1975: A wrap up* (Or How Unlucky Can You Get)
"The biggest mistake of my career was turning down 'Jaws' to do 'Funny Lady'--"
-Richard Dreyfuss, People, 1982, doing promotion for the film Author! Author!
From the Profile Magazine Review of The Happy Hooker:
"Rumor has it Barbra Streisand turned this one down before Lynn Redgrave signed on. God only knows what kind of movie that would have been--"
Variety May 1975:
"Monty Python and the Holy Grail surprise hit at the U.S. box office..."
John Travolta in People, 1978:
"I was almost in that movie 'The Devil's Rain' with William Shatner and Ida Lupino. But it went to some other actor--" [1]
***************************************************************************************************************************************
Some mid-1975 snippets involving Natalie Wood
"Michael Caine is currently filming Fat Chance for 20th Century Fox. The Peter Hyams directed film noir spoof will also feature Natalie Wood and Kitty Wynn. Fat Chance is due out at the beginning of next year".
-Variety
"Actor Jeffrey Hunter has married Natalie Wood in a private ceremony..."
-New York Times
"Wood, 37, reconnected with Hunter on the set of The Towering Inferno last year. Hunter was a friend of Wood's first husband, the late actor Robert Wagner..." [1]
-People
*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
[1] IOTL, this is where he was first introduced to Scientology. Travolta doesn't get the role and stays Catholic. Supposedly, his part was to have been bigger IOTL. ITTL, the reason is another actor named Jax Cooke taking over. Cooke never worked again and The Devil's Rain remains his only on-screen credit.
[1] Underrated little gem known as Peeper IOTL. Fat Chance was a working title.
[2] Natasha Gregson Wagner will be known as Natasha Gregson Hunter ITTL.
*A lot of things will be mentioned in a spin-off that don't fit here. So if you don't see *insert whatever movie here* mentioned, please do not panic.
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As I heard in documentary on casting Agents , if it had not been for getting Travolta the role in Devil Rain , he would have given up as a actor .
He was ready to give up being a actor . It was not a great part , but he decided to continue acting .
So if he does not do that movie, you will need to put him in another role or change a whole bunch in the future
Other than that , great work
Just a touch base before this hits the dreaded "Three months no post"
I have no choice but to work on the long-delayed spin-off in order for the 1976-1979 posts to make more sense. Will be going through this and fleshing a few things out in regards to a couple of films Sam made. Updates will be made with links when applicable.
Thank you for your patience!
I have no choice but to work on the long-delayed spin-off in order for the 1976-1979 posts to make more sense. Will be going through this and fleshing a few things out in regards to a couple of films Sam made. Updates will be made with links when applicable.
Thank you for your patience!
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: Speak for yourself, old man!
Ian: Who the Hell are you calling old, Harris?
Sam: Both of you can just shut up until you hit 70. I'm sitting here looking through photo albums talking about "the good old days".
Ian: Well, you could be 40 again getting hate mail.
Sam: True.
Ian: We were talking about Sal, right?
Sam: Via Harris almost drowning.
Harris sits back down
Sam: Sal dodged a bullet. He got an extra ten years after that. You know I was actually supposed to meet up with him the night he was stabbed. I went for coffee with a friend who was in town instead of meeting with Sal about 'Trial'.
Harris: I lived better in New York than Sal was living at that time.
Ian: Cat and I begged him to move. You couldn't reason with Sal. Until, uh...well you know...
Sam: I could never figure out how Cat put up with that.
Ian: Because Cat thought Sal had potential. She was starting to think she'd made an error in judgement. Just stuff she'd heard around town.
Sam: Sal had a lot of young people hanging around his house. I quit going over to his old place in the 60s because Dick Clayton didn’t like me going over there. Among other things.
Ian: Dennis Quaid was supposed to be with him that night too, right? I remember something about Sal wanting him for a role.
Sam: I have no idea. I just know Sal was hanging out with Don Johnson again. He would have just married Melanie Griffith-- [1]
Ian: Cat couldn’t stand Don Johnson.
Sam: Until he saved Sal, I guess.
Ian: Cat tolerated him after that.
Sam: What happened, anyway?
Ian: Oh, Don heard a ruckus and ran over and saved him.
Sam: Dick Clayton was still my agent at the time. He called me up and told me Sal got stabbed and that the set was shut down until further notice.
I go to the hospital and Sal looks at me and says "As soon as I'm out we're gonna start filming again". Like it was just some minor setback. But he almost, excuse my language, F***ING DIED!
Ian: Cat and I visited after you did. She literally stormed in there, you know what she's like--
Sam: All too well (chuckles)
Ian: She told Sal she found him a new place, that his things would be moved there or we'd remove ourselves from the picture. Sal was angry with her at first, but he wasn't good at looking after himself and needed that push.
[1] They were friends IOTL. Most sources about the two involve NSFW photos from a play called Fortune And Men's Eyes.
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: Speak for yourself, old man!
Ian: Who the Hell are you calling old, Harris?
Sam: Both of you can just shut up until you hit 70. I'm sitting here looking through photo albums talking about "the good old days".
Ian: Well, you could be 40 again getting hate mail.
Sam: True.
Ian: We were talking about Sal, right?
Sam: Via Harris almost drowning.
Harris sits back down
Sam: Sal dodged a bullet. He got an extra ten years after that. You know I was actually supposed to meet up with him the night he was stabbed. I went for coffee with a friend who was in town instead of meeting with Sal about 'Trial'.
Harris: I lived better in New York than Sal was living at that time.
Ian: Cat and I begged him to move. You couldn't reason with Sal. Until, uh...well you know...
Sam: I could never figure out how Cat put up with that.
Ian: Because Cat thought Sal had potential. She was starting to think she'd made an error in judgement. Just stuff she'd heard around town.
Sam: Sal had a lot of young people hanging around his house. I quit going over to his old place in the 60s because Dick Clayton didn’t like me going over there. Among other things.
Ian: Dennis Quaid was supposed to be with him that night too, right? I remember something about Sal wanting him for a role.
Sam: I have no idea. I just know Sal was hanging out with Don Johnson again. He would have just married Melanie Griffith-- [1]
Ian: Cat couldn’t stand Don Johnson.
Sam: Until he saved Sal, I guess.
Ian: Cat tolerated him after that.
Sam: What happened, anyway?
Ian: Oh, Don heard a ruckus and ran over and saved him.
Sam: Dick Clayton was still my agent at the time. He called me up and told me Sal got stabbed and that the set was shut down until further notice.
I go to the hospital and Sal looks at me and says "As soon as I'm out we're gonna start filming again". Like it was just some minor setback. But he almost, excuse my language, F***ING DIED!
Ian: Cat and I visited after you did. She literally stormed in there, you know what she's like--
Sam: All too well (chuckles)
Ian: She told Sal she found him a new place, that his things would be moved there or we'd remove ourselves from the picture. Sal was angry with her at first, but he wasn't good at looking after himself and needed that push.
[1] They were friends IOTL. Most sources about the two involve NSFW photos from a play called Fortune And Men's Eyes.
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