April 16, 1992
I was flipping through my 3 x 5 file of people I've met out here, looking eagerly for people to invite to my show, and I came across the long-forgotten name of Lisa Marantos, the friend of Kim Lyrely who had offered to do me a favor, a favor equal in grandness to Kim's favor for her back in the war, or some other huge deal like that.
So I grabbed the card, grabbed the phone, and called. Surprise, surprise. She was in, and willing to speak with me. I said that I didn't really know exactly what I was calling for, but that I was new in town, doing student films, etc. etc., my whole dark sordid tale. She immediately jumped in and offered to take me right to the top. She told me to send in my picture/resume to her, and she would send it over to the head of feature casting, Valerie McCaffrey.
And I did. And within a few days, I was called and given my interview day and time. Golly. I was going to do a monologue for Valerie McCaffrey! Just me and her in her cozy little office as I win her over in person.
Not exactly.
As my 11:45 audition time came and went, an increased sense of urgency seemed to be settling over her office, a large complex of doors and people and nice clothes. And as Ms. McCaffrey called me in at about 5 to 12, she followed in the next breath with her apology: Due to the holiday, the staff meeting had been moved from 1 to 12, and she had to go. Sorry.
And so, I was left in the capable hands of Annie, who was the receptionist when I walked in, but who now became my audience, the sole witness of my folly, plus the personable cameraman, Sam. And so I did my thing, rambling through my handcrafted monologue, only feeling a touch lost once, but pulling it off with reasonable aplomb.
But how will it look on tape? How much of an advantage did I lose by the absence of Ms. McCaffrey - no personal connection, and disadvantage of being seen only on tape.
Well, two weeks ago, I didn't even know where features casting was at
Universal, and it didn't seem likely I would ever find out. So,
success or failure, I have had a new and interesting experience, and
was given a shot I hadn't expected. Now, just hope for the best.