S3E30: Exorcist Meets Crypt Keeper – The “Billy Friedkin Experience”

[00:00:00] Speaker A: This podcast is a collaboration between Costard and Touchstone Productions and the dads from the Crypt podcast, Jude Scarlett. That's right, Nikki. I killed him twice, man. Fucking bitch won't get under my skin anymore. [00:00:20] Speaker B: No way, man. [00:00:22] Speaker C: Fucking way. [00:00:26] Speaker D: No way. Mandev. [00:00:34] Speaker A: Hello and welcome to another episode of the how not to make a movie podcast. I'm Alan Katz. Gil and the rest of our panel, there's going to be a panel, will join us shortly. You know, the idea seemed so natural. Get William Friedkin, director of the Exorcist, to direct an episode of our little tv show, tales from the Crypt. It just so happened that Richard Donner, director of another great contemporary horror classic, the Omen, was one of our executive producers. It made hiring Billy even more of an imperative to us. But then another of our eps, the mercurial Joel Silver, told us, or rather screamed at us, that we were crazy. [00:01:15] Speaker B: He'll kill you. [00:01:16] Speaker A: He'll fucking kill you. How Joel put it. But Gil and I, we persisted. We figured, we worked for Joel. How much crazier could Billy Friedkin be than Joel Silver? Billy was more than just the Exorcist, of course. He made a lot of great movies. French connection, sorcerer to live and die in LA. It bears repeating. One of the great thrills of making tales from the crypt was that we got to work with the best movie makers in Hollywood. Joining us to talk about the Billy Friedkin experience are, of course, Gil Adler, actor Sherry Rose, who appears in Billy's episode. Todd Masters, Crip's master of special effects. Randall Thropp, crypts wardrobe supervisor Ed Tapia. At the time, we made Crip the best production assistant ever, and now a successful tv producer in his own right. And Jason Stein, one of the dads from the crypt. So without any further ado, let's do Billy Friedkin. [00:02:28] Speaker B: Those pictures, Sherry, were fantastic. That you sent just brought back memories. [00:02:32] Speaker A: Of, like, actress Sherry Rose. [00:02:34] Speaker E: You know, I woke up and I remembered I had this photo of William and I hugging, and I was like, where is that picture? So I did a deep dive into the closet. Move away the bicycle. Move away this. And I'm like, I'm gonna find it. I couldn't find the original, but I found it where they had printed it in that article. That. That moment, too. He's just so warm. [00:02:57] Speaker A: When we got to work with him, his reputation had taken a hit. And I know when. When Gil and I approached, Joel Gill really actually did the approaching about hiring Billy Friedkin. What was Joel's reaction? [00:03:18] Speaker B: Are you out of your mind, he's crazy. He can't do anything in five days. And I said, but Billy Friedkin? Come on. Billy freakin doing Towson the crypt? Come on. It doesn't get any better than that. And we got into this huge argument, and it ended where he just said, do what you want to do. It's your show. Do what you want to do. But if he goes over, you're paying for it. And I remember saying to him, what does that mean? What do you mean, I'm going to pay for it. I pay for it. I pay for it in blood every day. And so I left there really upset with him and immediately called Billy's agent and said, I'd like to have a meeting with Billy and see if we can make this work. And I just want to meet him and talk to him about how we do our show and let him know the rules of the game and see if it works. And so this classic meeting we had, I invited him to breakfast at Hugo's on Santa Monica Boulevard and Kings road. And those days, that was the place. I mean, you would go in there for breakfast, and, you know, if you spent 3 hours there, you could walk away with four deals. Everybody was in there having breakfast. And so I met Billy. Never met him before. And we sit down, and I done a little research on him, and people said to me, you just better be careful with Billy, you know, because he's a hothead. He could punch you in the nose. I went, what? He's. Why would he punch me in the nose? He goes, well, if you say something he doesn't like, he could punch you in the nose. I went, get out of here. So I sit down with him, and we're right across from each other. Table for two. And we order breakfast, and we're chatting, and I start telling him about the show and how we do the show, and everybody does them in five days. And, you know, and I guess I get a little worked up about it, and I'm leaning over the table closer to him, and I'm telling him, you know, everybody does them in five days, and if you think you're going to do it in six days, I'll fire you. And Bob zemeckis'll finish it, or I'll finish it, somebody else will finish it. And I'm getting all worked up, and he leans over across closer to me, where now? Nose to nose, and he goes, do you have any idea who you're talking to? And I figured, oh, my God, here comes the punch in the nose. [00:05:28] Speaker C: Is coming. [00:05:29] Speaker B: And I go, oh, Billy, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you in any way, but. But you got to know, this is. This is the only way we can do this show. We don't have any money to go. And I'm on and on, and he goes, stop. Just stop. And I immediately stop. And he goes, let me just tell you one thing. I don't think I've ever met anybody as passionate about a show as you. So this is what we're going to do. We're going to do the show. I'm going to do it in five days, but I'm not going to accept a script that can't be made in five days. And I said, great, because I'm not going to give you a script that we don't believe can't be made in five days, everyone. And with that began the relationship. And I remember coming back, on my way back, calling Alan and saying, we got Billy. We got Billy. This is going to be great. Well, when we got into prep with Billy, there was one issue that he desperately wanted more than anything else, which was to record the music live. [00:06:29] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. He insisted upon it. [00:06:33] Speaker B: And I said, billy, this is the one area we can really moan ourselves. We can really hurt ourselves, because, you know, if we don't know and it's not pre recorded and we're recording it, I mean, we could get lost. We could get lost, and it could take time. And all of a sudden, we're not making the day. [00:06:48] Speaker A: But part of his whole concept for the episode was that he wanted. It went into the why he hired the actors that he hired. He didn't want actors who were pretending to be a band. He wanted actors who could play, who were about to form a band, and whatever they put out together within that time that they were starting to play together, that's what he wanted, as raw as it was. And he didn't want to pre record it because he wanted it to be raw. [00:07:16] Speaker B: Exactly. Exactly. [00:07:18] Speaker A: It was determined. And we said, but, billy. But, no, but, no, but, no. Ten minutes. 15 minutes of him pushing, pushing. And finally we get in. Okay, okay, okay, for another ten minutes. [00:07:32] Speaker B: But we said, but, Billy, we still only have five days. So you understand that, right? It's not like five days plus whatever it takes to record the music. No, everything is still five days, because I know, I know. Didn't I commit to you? I said, you did. I just want to make sure that commitment is still good. And so we started, and I wrote, called. I called Joel and I went, Billy Freakin is doing an episode. And he goes, what? What? Did you hire him? I said, I hired him. He's doing an episode. He's going to kill you. You're paying for it. You're paying for it. I said, fine, joel, I'm going to pay for it. No problem. I'll pay for it. And I remember hanging up on him and, like, you know, just leave me alone. And we made the episode, and we had such a blast with Billy. Oh, gosh, he was just so creative. And so, you know, it was so exciting to be working with him and making our days. That's just from the writer producer point of view. It's not even from Sherry's point of view as the actor or, you know, or anybody else's. That was just from our point of view as the showrunners, producers, and responsible for the money. And we made the show, and we made it in five days. And we had a great experience with him. And Joel never let me forget that. He always would say, yeah, yeah, you're the only person who got Billy to do it in five days. Anybody else, he wouldn't have done it in five days. And I said, joel, he would have done it in five days. He did. He committed to do it in five days. And, you know, the coda to the story is that we finished the episode, and about two or three weeks later, I get a call from Paramount, and Paramount says, we're making a movie with Billy Friedkin and we need to meet with you. And I went, why do you need to meet with me? And he goes, because you are going to produce it. He's saying, he has to have you to produce it. So can you come in for a meeting? And I didn't hear from Billy. He didn't tell me anything. So I went in for the meeting, and I sat down with these guys at Paramount, and they said, so tell us, exactly what do you have on Billy? And I said, what do I have on Billy? What does that mean? I don't even know what that means. Well, he came in here and he says, we're making this thing called blue chips, and he's saying, the only guy to produce it is you. So clearly you must have something on him. And I said, well, I guess I do. Yeah, actually. Actually, I do. And they said, we thought, so what is it? I said, well, I just very honest with him. I just tell him the truth. And we both have to deal with the truth in our own ways as writer, producer, director, whatever, and we get along great because of that. And they said, no, no, no. But really, what do you have on him? And I said, that's all I have on him. And they said, well, he's saying he needs you to make this movie. And I said, well, when are you going to make it? He said, I think we're going to start prepping soon. And I said, well, I can't because I'm finishing up the season of Tales and I've got a movie right after that with Warner Brothers, so it's not going to work out. I'm really sorry. I appreciate it. And I remember leaving the office and on the way back, calling or maybe waiting until I got back, and I called Billy and I said, listen, billy, thank you so much, but it's not going to work out. But I really appreciate the confidence, and that was so sweet of you to do it. I mean, that's the kind of guy Billy was. And we were friends for, you know, until, until he passed. I mean, you know, we didn't talk very often, but that's, that's how it was. [00:11:03] Speaker A: Did you ever get around to sending him that email to invite him to do the podcast? [00:11:07] Speaker B: No, I never did. But, you know, we didn't talk. We spoke for a number of times. I wanted to do a, a tv series of the movie about the cops in LA. [00:11:19] Speaker A: Oh, to live and die in LA. [00:11:20] Speaker B: Live and die in LA. And I approached about it and I'd spoken to Showtime already about it and they were interested in it. And I went to Billy and said, look, all you have to do is say you'll do it. And he said, gil, we can't do it because we can't depict cops as vigilantes. And I said, but Alan and I will figure out a way in the writing to explain that they're not vigilantes. And he said, no, that's not going to work. You're not going to be able to do it. And so he never would do it. But we talked about a few different projects along the way he did. And then I lost contact with him for years and years. And about maybe four years ago, probably longer, because of COVID I went into a restaurant in La on little Santa Monica. Right before you get to Century City, I can't remember the name of it. And we were sitting having dinner, and Jeannie, my wife, said, oh, isn't that Billy freakin over there? And I went where? And I looked over and I recognized Sherry first and said, oh, my God, that's Billy. And she said, you should go over and say hello. And I said, he's not going to remember me. I mean, I haven't spoken to him in years. No, you should go over and say hello. I said, all right, well, maybe after dinner I'll go over to him. Well, we were having dinner, and all of a sudden I hear a tap. I feel a tap on my shoulder, and it's Billy. And he comes over and he goes, I bet you thought I wouldn't recognize you. And I said, no, I actually was thinking of coming over to see you and Jerry because I hadn't spoken to you guys in a long time, but, yeah. And he said, yeah, well, I just wanted to come over and say hi and see how you're doing. And we chatted for, like, five minutes, and then he, you know, and then he was off. You know, a lot of times in this business, I find you don't speak to somebody for years. You work with somebody, you don't speak to them, you don't see them, you don't hear from them. And then you get a phone call and it's like, yeah, or you run into them someplace at a screening at the DGA or the writers Guild, and it's like you haven't spoken to them in ten minutes. And that's what Billy was like. [00:13:16] Speaker A: Well, we do forge unusual bonds because of what we do in the nature of the business. Ultimately, there's a trust factor that's essential. And it's when we don't trust each other that productions kind of fall apart and die. And it's really. It's that experience of. Of leaning back and falling into everyone else's arms. That's the creative experience. And so, yeah, we all put our asses on the line with each other. [00:13:46] Speaker B: But, you know, tails, I think, for us, Alan was really an advanced class in psychology of how to deal with all these different directors. I mean, first class Billy freakin John Frankenheimer. I mean, you know, John Frankenheimer was a piece of work in and of itself, of himself. But, you know, it really, when I look back on it, you know, each of these directors taught me something about, how do you deal with people to try to figure out how to get them to do what you want them to do, and yet respecting the integrity of what they're bringing to it, because that's why we hired them. Billy taught me a lot. He really taught me a lot. While we were shooting each day, we would talk through what was happening and what he was doing and what he didn't want to do and how he wanted to do it. And, you know, we just. We just came away learning a lot from these directors, and especially Billy. [00:14:34] Speaker A: You know, one of the things that he said early on was that it was. It was the guerrilla style nature of the filmmaking, just as a requirement that really appealed to him because it took him back to his roots. [00:14:45] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:14:45] Speaker A: You know, he began as a documentary filmmaker. You know, he. Right out of high school, he got a job in a newsroom, and he was incredibly precocious. He never went to film school. He seems to have really made every opportunity that he ever got when he came to work for us. What was his approach with the costumes? Because really, he had a very specific world in mind. What was he looking for in terms of the look of? Because it was. It wasn't grunge. It was garage. It was garage. [00:15:24] Speaker D: Garage band meets s and m. In a way. [00:15:27] Speaker A: That's our wardrobe supervisor, Randall. [00:15:29] Speaker D: The one thing I remember working with him that first time was he didn't use a monitor. All the other directors stood in front of a monitor, and he had it all in his head. And I remember just watching him going, oh, my gosh, this is a filmmaker. Because it was all. Everything was in his head, and he was verbalizing how he wanted the shot done. But of course, there is the famous story. I've already told it once before. I mean, I don't know if. Should I tell it again about. [00:15:56] Speaker A: Oh, of course, of course, of course. Yeah, yeah. It's a wonderful story, and this is the perfect time to tell that story. [00:16:02] Speaker D: All right, if you remember, we were shooting in Venice, all right? And we were at a private home, and we needed to be out of there by, what, 930 or 10:00 was the cutoff. And I remember who would have been the ad on that. The first ad, was that Lee, or was it Gary Brown? [00:16:21] Speaker A: Gary Brown, I think. [00:16:22] Speaker D: Anyway, was whoever it was, they were really adamant about, we got to get out of here. We have to be out here at 10:00 we have to shut everything down. So we were scooping everything up, got the clothes together, everything. I was down in the trailer, and we're like, okay, we're going to get out of here. Well, I get this call on the radio from, I think, whoever the first ad was saying, hey, Randall, Randall, you got to come up to the bedroom right now. We got to get out of here. I'm like, what? Like, you got to come up to the bedroom right now. I'm like, okay. And so, hey, guys, shut everything down. Let's get this trailer battened down. Because we've got to be out of here by 10:00 right? So I go upstairs, I go into the bedroom, and there's Jule Vasquez laying on the bed. And I said, what is. What's going on? Meanwhile, the crew is around trying to wrap up. They've got cable. They're rolling cable. They're trying. And he's like, man. Oh, Randall, I can't get these pants off. What do you mean you can't get these pants off? I can't get these pants off. What had happened? Backing up a little bit. Billy had been shooting that scene where he's murdering Tia carrer in the bathtub, you know, in the water. [00:17:26] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:17:26] Speaker D: And I think it was Tia or Ewell said, can you make the water hotter? So they had hotter water. Meanwhile, he's doing that and getting that all in position. Then there's the blood. And so you've got all of that blood. Now, that blood is like a sugar base. You know that whatever Todd was using at the time, but it was down. [00:17:47] Speaker A: Sure. [00:17:48] Speaker D: It was like a sugar base. So the water is red, the blood's everywhere. He's shooting at different angles, blah, blah, blah. In this small bathroom, blah, blah, blah. And so, cutting out of the chase, there's yule spread eagle on the bed. And he said, I can't get the pants off. I'm like, okay, so, fine. I said, what happened? They shrank to him. They were leather pants with a lining. Now, the lining got saturated with the blood. So, I mean, it was red, but I'm like, oh, my God. So I said, okay, hold on to the back of the bed, and I'm going to try to peel these off of you, okay? And so I get them undone, and I'm, like, yanking. And he was like, wait a minute. Wait a minute. I got to tell you something. I'm like, what? Like, I'm not wearing any underwear. It's like, oh, my God. It's like, I haven't seen one. I mean, come on. So meanwhile, what I love is here I am, I'm literally straddling the guy, trying to peel these pants off, and the guy's a rolling cable. I mean, they're looking. They never. Nobody batted an eye, saying, what is going on in there? [00:18:51] Speaker A: And you're assaulting him. [00:18:54] Speaker D: I know there's the pants down, and there is. He's naked to the wind. And I'm like, oh, God, I. Anyway, that was just what we finally got him off. But those. His legs were like, if I remember right, were like, pink from the dye. From the dye in the blood in the water. So that was the famous story. But like I said, I always respected the fact that Billy Friedkin, he had it all in his head. He had it. And he was able to get that, you know, on film, you know, exactly what he wanted. [00:19:22] Speaker A: What kind of look was he now, what kind of look was he going for with Sherry's character that, you know. [00:19:28] Speaker D: Sherry, I don't quite remember. I mean, no, I still have pictures of you from another episode where you're in a. You're in a waitress uniform and a plaid shirt and you're turning into a zombie. And. [00:19:39] Speaker A: Oh, that was Demon Knight, I think. [00:19:44] Speaker D: Was that demon knight? Oh, okay. That was. That's a whole other project. But no, I can't remember. I really don't remember because, Sherry, were you. You weren't in that scene with Yule and with Tia, right? [00:19:57] Speaker E: Well, Yule and I had a. Yule and I in that Venice house, we had a love scene in that bedroom. [00:20:07] Speaker D: Okay. [00:20:08] Speaker E: And the character, Miss Vendetta. So we. When you talk about s and M, so you did like, kind of like a bodice. [00:20:16] Speaker D: Yeah. [00:20:17] Speaker E: Corset. Corset. [00:20:18] Speaker D: It was like a black corset. Yeah. [00:20:20] Speaker E: That zipped down because then the. We had to expose the tattoo that came to life. Right. So that was kind of the reveal on the snake that comes to life. And then a lot of short, short leather skirts and. [00:20:35] Speaker D: Yeah, I do remember that. Yes. Now I was like, oh, yeah, I remember. It was that bustier. It's like a leather bustier. Warden was really into leather. Leather on people. [00:20:46] Speaker A: Show girls. Show girls. [00:20:52] Speaker B: Jerry, do you remember if Yule was having difficult walking? [00:20:58] Speaker E: I would hope so. [00:21:00] Speaker A: Well, you know, there was a moment we didn't get a whole lot of notes from HBO. They were great to work with. But we got a note about that sex scene. Oh, yeah. Because when they got the dailies, Billy really pushed you guys hard to really be as real as you possibly could in that scene. [00:21:23] Speaker E: Yes. [00:21:24] Speaker A: And in our dailies, there's a shot where Yule gets up from whatever you guys were doing, and as he turns, his erect penis bobs along in the shot. And HBO was terrified that Billy Freakin was going to shoot, that he was going to want this in the cut. And we were going to have a huge argument because, hey, tits, pubic hair was okay, but an erect penis bobbing through the shot they weren't down with. [00:21:53] Speaker E: Well, I remember, and I think I might have talked about this in the last podcast. So forgive me if it's redundant, however. [00:21:59] Speaker A: No such thing as redundant. [00:22:00] Speaker E: There was that hanger that was just on the, you know, hanging in the back. And I don't know if it was from me taking something off costumes or was just there. And the prop person kept trying to come and take the hanger off right when Billy was, like, pushing us in our acting, just like, get more into it, you know, get into each other's face and all this. And the prop guy was trying to take the hanger, and he's like, nobody's looking at the hanger. I got two naked actors. If anyone's looking at the hanger, they're looking at the wrong thing. Was just like, oh, my God, dude, fuck the hanger. Leave the hanger. [00:22:40] Speaker A: You didn't tell that before you were holding back on us. Love scenes are hard to begin with. [00:22:46] Speaker E: I think, as, you know, as every actor goes into it. Everyone just most, I want to say every. Cause I've worked with one or two that didn't, but they have a sensitivity about what the situation is. And everyone's trying to be cordial and kind and whether it be putting in a mint or trying not to get too excited or I. Whatever it is. But, you know, you're human beings. You're natural. I mean, some things you can't. You can't help. It's just your body does what your body does. But I think on the most part, everyone goes into it trying to make a great scene and create, you know, there's so many directions. Move your head left. You know, I can't see this part of your body. Move your arm down. You know, that it becomes not that sexy in the moment. [00:23:33] Speaker A: We'll digress for a moment. You've had this conversation in other episodes, but you are in one of the. What I think is one of the best episodes that we did. Only skin deep. And you were so willing to get so, for want of a better word, naked, and yet you never were because you had that mask on and you conveyed so much that we never saw your face. [00:24:03] Speaker E: Yeah, the mask helped, I think. You know, I mean, it's hard, but you got to go for it. I mean, if you commit to it, you got to go for it. You know, you're there to do a job. You got to commit to it. You know, what are you going to do? I've been on sets, even just, you know, I just want to say, like, as a. As a producer, because I've now gone on to produce things. And just hearing the backstory with you guys hiring a billy, it's, you know, as an actor, I never felt anything that you guys were going through. It's a testament to what a good producers you guys are and what a good team we had as far as whether it be costuming, sound, whoever, it's that I never felt anything. I was there to, you know, do a job, and Billie really did push us as actors. And, you know, it's because he comes with such a cachet, and he'd done. He had done so much amazing work. I was nervous to even audition for him. I've auditioned for two people I was nervous for. One was Ron Howard. When I was, like, in my teens, after I did Miami Vice, I auditioned for Ron Howard, and I auditioned for William Freakin. And I was nervous those two times. But you go in prepared, you know, I'm not going to walk in front of Billy freakin and not be prepared, you know? And again, in the last podcast, we talked about it like, you know, he was grateful that I showed up, you know, that I was off book so that I could play with him in the room, you know? And I also know when you have your shooting five days, like, I'm gonna bring it. I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna be the problem, you know? And you guys made it so that it was safe, that we could explore, and there's not many people that you can trust your art and your heart with. I was thinking that about that today. Like, what? What did that mean to work with Billy Friedkin? And I really trusted him to give him my heart. When he was pushing me to cry harder, he's like, I know you can go deeper. I know there's pain in you. Bring it out. I'm like, I'm trying. [00:25:57] Speaker B: And he's just like, come on. [00:25:58] Speaker E: And I'm like, he's like, in my face. Like, I'm like, oh, my God. When that scene that I had with Steve Jones, you know, he's just like, come on, bring it more. And I was like, okay. And even the scene with Yul Vasquez, with the lovemaking scene, where he's just like, I want you to agitate him. I want you to get him really annoyed. And I was just like, okay. You know? And he. But I trusted him to take me wherever he wanted to take me. And then I trusted you guys to create an environment that he could then, you know, put us in so it, like, all. It all works together. And that's that family that happens in that five days for you guys, longer for pre pro and post. But in that five days, we're like that tight family. You get really close very quick. [00:26:42] Speaker D: Yeah, well, that's what I've always said about tales from the Randall throck, one of the most cohesive groups of people I ever worked with. And, boy, if you didn't fit in, fa Miller made sure you were gone. And so we all liked each other. We got along with each other. We talked to each other. We communicated. I mean, it was just a perfect group of people to produce this kind of stuff, to get it on film and making it look as good as possible. So, yeah, I got to thank both of you guys and, of course, fa up there somewhere, you know, for making sure that happened. And you don't, you don't find that on a lot of sets. You don't find that with a lot of tv shows. You know, there's always, you know, some edge, some, you know, animosity somewhere or some, you know, the makeup and hair don't like the wardrobe or the make. The wardrobe doesn't like the props. I mean, you know, there's always bickering on something, but tails was just like, okay, guys, what are we doing? Okay, great. You do this, I'll do that, blah, blah, blah. [00:27:34] Speaker A: Done. [00:27:34] Speaker D: I'm prepping the next episode. [00:27:36] Speaker A: As Gil and I have said, gil and I have said many times, it was lightning in a bottle. The experience. [00:27:42] Speaker F: Sorry, Alan. [00:27:44] Speaker A: Then Gil's assistant, now a producer in his own right, Ed Tapia. [00:27:48] Speaker F: One of my frustrations now currently producing is that it's really hard to get rid of toxic people on sets. I mean, it is almost impossible to get rid of people. I had a situation on my series last season where I had somebody with eight hr complaints. I could not get rid of him. I could not get rid of them. Sherry, you sound like you know what it sounds like. You know what I'm talking about. It's insane. [00:28:11] Speaker E: I mean, just, just being even a business owner in California. I mean, I own a couple businesses. It's just, you know, I'm so. I'm so afraid to hire anybody new, you know? And when I was producing the film that I made, me and Will, a. [00:28:24] Speaker A: Lovely film, a terrific film. [00:28:26] Speaker E: Thank you. But I, you know, I. One little thing I did is a little divergent from Billy, but I really wanted to hire, like, really good looking girls in the departments that I could and then guys that would then be excited to come to work because there'd be really good looking girls. I kind of did it like, you know, a nightclub. It's like, well, there's going to be good looking people. Kind of worked. And then there was this one kind of, like, begrudging kind of guy that worked in one of the heads of the departments, and I was like, you know, your attitude's not gonna fly. I'm making, like, a party every day. Like, we're gonna pound it out. We're gonna do some great work, but it's. We're gonna have fun. And you're like the bad apple, and you gotta either get along to, you know, get on to get along or you're gone, you know? And I had to tell them right away, I don't know, in this environment in California now, if I could still say those words. But I look at it still because I still produce content for companies and I produce little movies and stuff and to gear up for another one. And I'm very aware of who I'm bringing to the table that's coming to the party, that's coming to the Thanksgiving dinner, right? That's what are they going to bring to the table and how are they going to be and how are they going to get along with others? Because we don't have a lot of time to deal with that. [00:29:43] Speaker B: Fa Miller deserves a lot of credit. I mean, I learned so much from Fa over the course of the years we spent together. We worked together for many, many years on tails and some other stuff. And I always think of him now almost daily, about things that I learned from him along the way. And it was even, even then I remember thinking, I'm learning something from this guy. And he's so modest and he's so quiet, and he does it in such a meaningful, nice way, and yet he makes his point really, really well. And I learned an awful lot from Fa Miller. He was one of a kind. It really was. [00:30:20] Speaker D: Yeah. [00:30:20] Speaker E: See, I'll probably get in trouble saying I'm hiring good looking people. I'll probably get in trouble saying that. [00:30:25] Speaker B: Well, I'm a little upset because, you know, I wish Alan and I would have thought of that when we hired the crew for tails. We could have, you know, done. I mean, not that, Randall, not that you're not a handsome guy, and Fa was a good looking guy. And Ed, you know, you're pretty good looking yourself, but, you know, that would have been a whole different situation. [00:30:45] Speaker F: Gil, I've always known that I have a face for radio. It's okay. [00:30:50] Speaker E: You know, I just want to say, like, on set, too, with Billy, you know, he really allowed that time. I never felt rushed, though. I knew we had to keep things moving, and he allowed us time to play and to bring part of ourselves out into the character where he's like, I want to see more of you. Like, how would you get up? Where I'm like, you know, kind of walk with this presence and the costumes helped and all that, you know, it's just like walking in the way that I could bring something more of my personality to that. And he allowed that time for the actors to play, you know, such a short time that was, that's like, that was amazing, and I'm grateful for that. [00:31:31] Speaker A: It's funny. He was notorious, Billy was, for using some of the extreme methods to get a, to get actors to respond. You know, there were stories from, from the sets of, especially the exorcist, where the ways that he got reactions out of Linda Blair and Ellen Burstyn, but by the same token, Ellen Burst and got an Oscar nomination. [00:31:56] Speaker G: Yeah, I was watching a documentary about the Exorcist the other day. [00:32:00] Speaker A: That's Jason Stein, one of the dads. [00:32:02] Speaker G: From the crypt, where father Karras is listening to recordings, trying to listen forwards and backwards. And it's all quiet, it's kind of dark, and all of a sudden the phone rings and he, like, jumps up. What actually happened? Phone didn't ring. He shot a gun on set to startle him. [00:32:19] Speaker A: Yeah. But, hey, it looks great. Well, he didn't need to fire a gun around you, Sherry. You were there without it. Well done. Bravo. The episode in general, Jason, how does it fit into the, into the tales from the crypt canon? [00:32:37] Speaker G: Yeah, it's not one that gets talked about like, it isn't like one of. [00:32:42] Speaker A: The. [00:32:44] Speaker G: Most well known episodes, but it's definitely a fan favorite, I think, again, as a really, really good cast, and it's well directed. It's got some cool gore for the Youngins. It's got some boobs. You know, it's got everything you'd want out of a tales in the crypt episode. That's what the fans want. And you get. And they got it in that episode. It's got, you know, some great practical effects, which, you know, to this day, I was just watching the episode earlier today, and they hold up so well. [00:33:14] Speaker A: And they were all practical. The tattoo coming to life was entirely a puppethe. [00:33:22] Speaker G: Mm hmm, exactly. And, yeah, it still holds up. Still looks great. [00:33:27] Speaker A: Boy, these days, it'd be so much easier to be all CGI. [00:33:31] Speaker G: Yeah, it loses some soul. That's my, it's easier probably, on the production and money wise, but there's just no tangibility into a soul where, like, again, that's an effect that really grabs you because you can literally see him struggling with it. [00:33:45] Speaker A: Yeah, it's funny. I wish Todd. I know Todd's traveling, so he was going to try to. To jump in, and then lo and behold, Todd jumped in. [00:33:52] Speaker C: Sorry I was a little late. I've been. [00:33:54] Speaker A: No worries. [00:33:55] Speaker C: Slime and blood and shit, so some things never change. Yeah. I literally have the stained hands like we did in the crypt. I got the bloody cuticles, you know. Pretty classic. [00:34:08] Speaker A: I'm so. We're so glad you made it into the conversation, Todd. [00:34:12] Speaker C: Well, I'm really sorry I was late. I was a couple hours behind here. It's crazy. It's a weird show. [00:34:19] Speaker A: What part of the world are you in right this second? [00:34:21] Speaker C: Um, I think we're in hell, yeah. New Orleans. Yes. [00:34:25] Speaker A: So, like, near Newark, New Orleans. [00:34:29] Speaker C: New Orleans, not New Orleans, you know. [00:34:33] Speaker B: Where it's nice and comfortable and the humidity is. [00:34:37] Speaker G: Made. [00:34:37] Speaker A: A movie there once. [00:34:39] Speaker C: Yeah, I seem to remember we did something here. Anyway, so how's it going? Did I miss all the good stories? [00:34:49] Speaker A: No, we were waiting for you. [00:34:52] Speaker C: Oh, shit. Okay, can we rewind then? Just start. Hey, everybody. Welcome to whatever we're doing. [00:34:59] Speaker A: That episode was. It's funny, we were talking about how you pulled off some of the effects, how you pulled off the little tongue effect that pops out of Sherry's chest, but also the fact that the main effect is completely practical. It was a puppet. [00:35:18] Speaker C: Well, yeah, we didn't have a choice. That was what we had at the time. We could have done cartoon animation from Disney, but. [00:35:27] Speaker A: Were any other ways of accomplishing this effect contemplated? [00:35:35] Speaker C: This was 1992, I think. So CG didn't really happen until the end of the nineties, really, with Jurassic and t two and all that. I mean, abyss. But no, there really wasn't any other. It had to be shot, designed, which Friedkin was amazing at. He knew what he wanted. He told me exactly what he wanted. And so that helped, you know, me figure out, okay, we got to make a rod puppet, and we're going to have to hide shit here. And we have to do the Sherry rose piece where the little tongue pops out of the breast. That actually, I had an assistant at the time who turned out to be one of the most amazing makeup artists, David Schneider. But it was his first day on the job, and Sherry comes in and, you know, we're just talking like, you know, casual, you know, well, let's do it. And she just takes the top off and Dave like, you know, he just drove in from Kentucky. He had no idea that this is just normal business in home. [00:36:38] Speaker A: People don't do that in Kentucky. [00:36:40] Speaker C: Yeah, well, you know, Kentucky's where Ky Jelly's invented, so maybe I never knew that Ky is the Kentucky. Anyway. Yeah. That's a little air. Air gag. It's almost like a party favor. That tongue that comes out. It's a little powered by. [00:36:56] Speaker E: Yeah, Todd, I was telling them before you got on that, how it was, you had the bust. It was my height of my. And so I put my head over my own. [00:37:06] Speaker C: That's right. Yes, you did. [00:37:08] Speaker E: I had to put my arms back. [00:37:10] Speaker D: Right. [00:37:10] Speaker E: And just like. And try to create myself like this. Right? [00:37:16] Speaker C: Yeah. That's awesome. [00:37:18] Speaker E: And then I was wondering, like, where is my body? [00:37:20] Speaker C: Did I wears it now? Yeah, it's probably long gone, I'm sure. Um, yeah, I don't know what we, I think, I don't even think we made that at a silicone. I think that was like a foam latex at that time. So that would have rotted. [00:37:32] Speaker E: It was pretty hefty. I mean, it was. [00:37:34] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, it was, you know, we had quite a few gags in that episode, and still it was like, you know, shooting like tails in the crypt speed. It was, it was pretty intense. I think that might have been the first time I met you, too, because I don't, I know we did demon night. We might have done something before that. And of course, we did that other tales later on because everybody wanted to. [00:37:52] Speaker A: Keep working with you. [00:37:53] Speaker C: And so that was, that was always, I always enjoyed those flashbacks. So it was, it was interesting to see you put this together, Alan, to talk about Billy and all those days, because he was, he was a pretty amazing person. To walk on the stages of our little show on Balboa Avenue. I had a couple other funny things. There was a time where we had the stop set and put on the big chess piece on Yule, and they didn't have anything else to shoot, and they shut it down for an hour. So I could vastly do this, which probably should have taken 3 hours. And I remember being in the makeup effects trailer. It worked. And as fast as I can, I hear on the radio, William Friedkin is going to the makeup effects trailer. And his power was so intense. His legend was so intense. I literally thought he was going to come and strangle me or something. But he came in and he just sat down really cool and collected. I was a nervous wreck trying to move as fast as possible. He just started telling me exorcist stories and Dick Smith stories and how we did this. And it was like, it made the time actually go by really well. And the fact that he wasn't freaking out. I'm sure Gil and Alan were freaking out. Probably Fa was freaking out. And, you know, it was just kind of this weird thing that, you know, what director would come in and hang out with you while you shut down his set. So it was really, as I recall. [00:39:09] Speaker A: Bill and I were trying to. To prevent Fa from killing you. [00:39:12] Speaker C: Yeah, you're right. Fa was gonna tell Billy to kill me, I think was the way it was. There was. There was another case. [00:39:18] Speaker B: It might have been our idea for Billy to go in there, too. [00:39:21] Speaker C: I'm sure that definitely sounds like a maneuver. Absolutely. [00:39:25] Speaker E: Keep it moving. [00:39:26] Speaker C: Yeah, right. Go kick that kid's ass. But, yeah, there was another time we did the heavy d prosthetic, and that was just, like, out of the kit and kind of really fast, and I didn't think it was the greatest. And I heard Friedkin from across the stage who did this makeup, and I'm like, holy fuck, he's gonna shoot me or something. And I went over there and I'm, like, trembling. And he looks at me, goes, who did this makeup, sir? I did. He goes, it's brilliant. I'm like, it is not really, but okay, I'll accept it. But, yeah. And he was, like, really excited about it. And I'm like, and it looks fine in the show, but it wasn't really that great. [00:40:03] Speaker E: I love someone that can bark a compliment. [00:40:05] Speaker C: Oh, my God. Yeah, I'm lucky he didn't shoot a gun in the air or something. He was. He just had a lot of momentum and a lot of just power that he didn't even have to turn on. [00:40:16] Speaker E: You missed earlier that Gil was afraid that he was going to get punched in the nose. They get strangled. Punched in the nose? [00:40:24] Speaker C: Yeah. Well, I mean, this is, you know, the stories are legendary, you know? [00:40:29] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:40:29] Speaker C: So that's kind of true. Did we already talk about how he would mind fuck his actors? Did we do that one? [00:40:35] Speaker A: We did, but if you know any. If you know some additional. [00:40:38] Speaker E: Yeah, I'd like to know if I was mind fucked and I might not even know. [00:40:41] Speaker C: Well, I don't think that. Yeah, you're not supposed to know. He just would go up there and he would just start talking to you. And he actually had a hand signal he had with the first AC. He would just, I don't know, do his ear or something like that. And that meant turn on the camera. And he would always turn on the camera while he was just up there mind fucking the person. He would just easily step away. And that whole ending sequence where Jules chopped up, you know, the face of Tia and all that stuff, he's holding the skin and all that, and he's just bawling and shit. That's all real, you know, he didn't cut his chest open, but he was really crying and really feeling a lot of emotion. And what had happened is Billy had walked up, you know, camera was set. He just, like, just walked up, like a little last second note kind of thing. And since I was really close to working on the makeup, I could hear what he was saying. He's going, your fucking mother fucking, fucking hit. He, like, started, like, really doing this mind fucking thing. Like, really. Ewell was a young actor, and he. He, you know, this is Mister Friedkin, right? And he started, like, psychologically messing with him and stepped away. And camera roll. It was the weirdest thing I've ever seen. And we would then tail slate. And he was always a tail slater. [00:41:51] Speaker E: So, you know, that's funny, because that time when I was talking earlier about when I was laying on Steve Jones's lap and I was like, know he killed her. Like, you know, he's like, he came whispering my ear and he goes, yes, you know, I know you got more pain than you. Is that all you gotten you? Is that all you gotten you? And I was like, you know, it's hard to then take the leap of just, like, going deep when someone says that to you because you're still kind of processing. Like, someone just said that to me. Like, is that all I have in me? I'm like. Because you can't just turn it like that. But I was just like, yeah. Like, I knew that he wanted more from me, and he. So I just kind of went another way to get there. [00:42:29] Speaker C: But, you know, so, yeah, it's a certain amount of mindfuckery there, you know. I mean, that's. That's kind of the. The interesting play, I think, is he would find, you know, shit under your fingernail to pick on or whatever it was that, you know, struck the pain or the chord that he wanted to play. And he was really good at that. I mean, he freaked me out, and I wasn't even on camera, you know, he was just like. He just had that. And it was certainly nothing negative thing. It was just. It was just his way of painting. [00:43:00] Speaker E: Yeah, it was his way. His way to. [00:43:02] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:43:03] Speaker C: Wasn't there, like, a whole thing about he was kind of pushing the envelope with the nudity and all that. Wasn't HBO a little surprised by. [00:43:10] Speaker A: Well, we told this. We told this. [00:43:13] Speaker C: Did we already do that one? [00:43:14] Speaker A: Yeah. How Yule's erect penis popped up in the middle of the shot. [00:43:18] Speaker C: Oh yeah, that part I follow, the bouncing ball. [00:43:21] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:43:23] Speaker C: That was a little animatronic, right? [00:43:26] Speaker A: And yet not. [00:43:28] Speaker C: That's what we tried to tell HBO. [00:43:29] Speaker A: Apparently little Yule was ready for his close up. [00:43:33] Speaker D: Well, I got the close up later on. [00:43:36] Speaker A: Indeed you did. [00:43:38] Speaker D: Yeah. About a month ago I rewatched the exorcist Randall. I saw it in the theater when it came out and of course it was, it was disturbing. Uh, but I watched it again and I wasn't nearly as frightened. I mean, not frightened, but it didn't bother me so much. But I just took note of what a tight film it is and how the story, the way the story is told and is laid out is so brilliant. But just the way it's shot and the way the whole character arc happens, it's just, I looked at it from that point of view and not from, oh, it's a scary movie. I think it was maybe on the Criterion channel or something. They ran it. I know, I. But it was like, wow, this is interesting to watch it now after all these years because what year did that come out? Like 7374-7373 but it's like, wow, this is, this is really a good piece of filmmaking. William Peter retake on the Exorcist. [00:44:38] Speaker A: William Peter Blatty, who wrote the novel and was involved in the writing the script, he wanted Billy Friedkin after he saw a french connection because he wanted that kinetic energy. [00:44:49] Speaker D: Yeah, yeah. And french connection is also quite brilliant. I mean, come on, that car chase is a piece of art. [00:44:55] Speaker F: Well, it's funny, I recently rewatched both the French Connection and to live and die in LA. And it's funny after all these years rewatching those two films, I noticed a couple of little things that he did that I noticed other directors stole later on down the road, especially when it came to staging action sequences. I mean, some of the stuff, I mean, it's funny because to live and die in LA, he basically perfects some of the stuff he did in the French Connection. I mean, it's funny, it's, he's improving upon himself because you think the car chase in the french connection was something you should see the one in to live and die in LA. [00:45:32] Speaker A: Do you remember that Michael Mann sued Billy Friedkin for ripping them off. Yeah. Because he said that to live and die in LA was Miami Vice. Yeah. He lost, by the way. Michael Mann lost, of course. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:45:47] Speaker D: It was just. [00:45:48] Speaker F: It was funny, though. If you rewatch the movie, though, you'll see, you know, how many directors in the nineties still little bits and pieces of Billy Friedkin. [00:45:56] Speaker A: Well, you know, when, when he. Another rather famous story about the making a french connection was when they shot the. That car chase. Didn't have any permits. They didn't close any streets. They put a stunt driver in a car, and then they ran, and then he went and he drove. And it was. Yeah. With, with mother's crossing, and it kind of got hairy in a couple places. Yeah. [00:46:20] Speaker G: I just want to do a shout out. There's a really good documentary that came out only, like, two years ago. Jason stump freaking talking about the Exorcist. It's called Leap of faith. And we actually just did our own tribute on my podcast, and we had the editor from that on there to talk about working with him. [00:46:37] Speaker A: Oh, cool. Cool. [00:46:38] Speaker G: It's a fantastic. Yep. [00:46:40] Speaker C: Perfect. Right there. [00:46:42] Speaker G: Gil, have you watched it yet? Yeah, yeah. It's really well done. It really brings out the character William freakin and shows a lot of different sides, the softer side, the hard side, and it's just a really good watch. And I watched it yesterday, and it's just, there's something very, to me, very grandfatherly about him. I feel like him and my grandfather must have grown up in the same neighborhood. They had that really gruff, like, what is this? What's going on here? Kind of attitude. But there was still a sweetness underneath that layer and a passion, especially for art, really, because in that documentary, he talks about his favorite music, his favorite paintings, and how those influenced his shots and his moods and the law of his work. [00:47:28] Speaker A: You know, what his favorite movie was of everything that he made? [00:47:34] Speaker G: Um, it kind of changed a couple times. I know at one point he said it was Jade. [00:47:38] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I saw that. According to the. His IMDb page, it's. It's Jade. [00:47:43] Speaker G: Oh, I feel like that's the kind of. I think, I feel like I've heard them say a couple different ones, but, um, entirely possible. But, yeah. [00:47:51] Speaker A: When we were being forced to hire Angie Everhart for Bordello of Blood and we were desperate to dissuade Joel, we called Billy, because Angie has a small part in Jade. [00:48:08] Speaker E: She's good in it. [00:48:09] Speaker A: And we said, billy, Angie says, well, she's good in my movie. Yeah. But she's going to play our villainous. She's good in my movie. You know what? He's got a great sense of humor. You know, like, oh, fuck. So, you know, Billy tried to be as gentle as he could, but he was very clear. She should, in no way, shape or form should she be the villain of your horror movie. That would have been like casting in the Exorcist. Okay? Who would have been the devil? Pee wee Hermande? [00:48:47] Speaker G: It wasn't one for sugar coating. Help. [00:48:49] Speaker A: No, no, no. [00:48:51] Speaker F: I wasn't on tails when, when Mister Preakin directed. [00:48:54] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:48:55] Speaker F: The closest I ever came to meeting him was actually went to a meeting at Paramount, I guess when he was married to Sherry Lansing. [00:49:01] Speaker D: Yeah. [00:49:02] Speaker F: And I had somebody elbow me and say, that's Billy Prekin over there. But my connection to him more than anything is that French Connection was one of those movies that made me want to get in the business that whole period from like 71 to 74 with, you know, three days of the Condor, you know, the Godfather, the French Connection. That's what made me want to actually pursue this as a business. And so I've always been a huge William Friedkin fan because of that. I mean, french connection was one of those like american graffiti. Like the conversation that just changed me, you know, just changed the way I looked at movies as a kid. [00:49:39] Speaker A: I watched the oscars in my house in Baltimore and I remember, I think I kind of remember when French Connection won. [00:49:48] Speaker F: Yeah, well, I certainly did. That's one of those movies I sneaked into that I wasn't supposed to. [00:49:53] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It was exhilarating from start to finish. It was a whole. But that whole period was. They stopped making those studio looking movies and everything raw and, and that was the point. It, it, yeah, yeah. [00:50:08] Speaker F: I mean, it was, it was Sidley Lumet. It was Francis Ford Coppola. When they were really young, they were doing these movies that, you know, showed me a world that I didn't know existed, you know? [00:50:18] Speaker D: And don't forget Bogdanovich. I mean, come on, last picture. Show paper. [00:50:22] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. [00:50:23] Speaker D: I mean, my God, just the look of those films, it just so, they're so great and shot on location for the most part. [00:50:30] Speaker A: Even studio, even an unsuccessful movie like sorcerer is really. [00:50:36] Speaker F: Oh God, I love that movie. [00:50:38] Speaker A: Interesting. [00:50:40] Speaker F: Tangerine dream. [00:50:44] Speaker A: And knowing Billy, you kind of think, what must it have been like to make that movie with him in the middle of fucking nowhere. [00:50:52] Speaker F: Holy shit. [00:50:54] Speaker A: Because he's as driven as those guys trying to, trying to drive that, that bus across that bridge. [00:51:03] Speaker G: Have you heard that people often call them Hurricane Billy. [00:51:07] Speaker A: Yes. [00:51:07] Speaker G: And that came from sorcerer because they tried to recreate hurricane winds for the river crossing scene. So they got big engines, jet engines, to try to create as much wind as possible. So the staff, the crew start calling him Hurricane Billy. [00:51:24] Speaker F: Definitely a difference between the Walter Hills and the Bob Zemeckis as opposed to the other directors. That's not to meant any disrespect the way they approach the work. I mean, they knew so well in their heads what they wanted before they ever showed up. [00:51:40] Speaker D: Well, that's what I was saying earlier about. [00:51:43] Speaker F: And they were able to communicate it, you know, across to the crew and to a point where everybody would go to war for these people because it was so clear what they wanted. And you really wanted to make sure that you could help them get their vision. [00:51:57] Speaker E: Yeah, I think. I think that's, as an actor, too, it was like you wanted to. He inspired you to please him, right? You wanted to please him. You're there going, okay, let me make him happy. You know, the trust is there so that I know where he's taking me. But now I want to make him happy. I want to please him so he inspires that. And it sounds like he inspired it in other departments, not just. Not just on camera, right? [00:52:24] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. [00:52:25] Speaker F: No, I think. I think when a director comes in with that clear of vision, like you said, shree, everybody wants to do what they can to make it work because you feel as though you're an important part of the machine, no matter how small your role might be. [00:52:40] Speaker E: And I just, I think there's a, you know, the exorcist was such an amazing, impactful movie. I mean, it still is. And to see him continue to grow and want to always bring something great and make something great, there, there are people that I've worked with that have had, like, these great moments in their life and made things, but they're not bringing it anymore. They're not trying to do something great still. Like, you could tell that everything he was putting his hands on, he wasn't just, you know, phoning it in. He cared about bringing and get elevating it to the best of his ability. And I appreciate that. You know, you always got to just show up because people sometimes just grab the paycheck or grab the job. [00:53:27] Speaker D: Absolutely. [00:53:29] Speaker E: And he doesn't do that, you know, and I've worked with a lot of actors that do that, and I, you know, I don't. I want to just always bring it, you know, I'm gonna. If I'm gonna show up. I want to show up. And I appreciated being able to try to meet his expectations of what he was asking for. [00:53:46] Speaker D: Can I get a shameless plug in? [00:53:49] Speaker A: Yes, yes, yes, please. [00:53:50] Speaker D: Since we were talking about the seventies and we mentioned the Godfather, I hope people will go to the academy museum to see the Godfather exhibit that I helped put together. And also on both the cooperation of Mister Coppola. And it's really been well received. And it's already been extended into next year. So we're very excited about it. So. Yeah, so I hope you guys can. Now, Gil, I know, you know, you're not in town. [00:54:19] Speaker B: Well, I will be. I will be talking about plugs. [00:54:22] Speaker D: Yeah, just check it out. I mean, it's really. We're very proud of it. And I love the museum. [00:54:26] Speaker A: It's a great museum. [00:54:28] Speaker B: You had said, I mean, the last time we spoke, you had said, I think you were just putting it together and you were really excited about it. [00:54:34] Speaker D: Yeah. And I had to. I pulled, of course, we have a few original things, but we also pulled things from the miniseries the offer. So, like, the Don Corleone office is a recreation that the set designers for the offer did, but the desk and the chair came from Coppola, and that is the original desk and the original office chair, by the way. [00:54:55] Speaker F: I saw the offer and I thought it was great. [00:54:57] Speaker D: Well, we have, you know, we also have blueprints and we have. I mean, we have. We have a lot of just ephemera that's from the original, from the Godfather. [00:55:06] Speaker E: I'll just say that I'm just grateful that you guys were all able to put this together. It was grateful that you were able to put the episode together also. And just to be able to, like, know in my life, in our lives, that we were able to work with. With Billy Freekin and have that experience. And, yes, you know, it's. I'm forever grateful for that. [00:55:28] Speaker C: Totally, totally. Sorry, Gil. Go ahead. [00:55:34] Speaker B: Oh, no, I just said. Well put. [00:55:35] Speaker C: Oh, I just walked over you. Sorry. So I'm glad you got later. Yeah, it beat me, but yeah, I mean, what a. What a memorable experience. We did so many episodes, and that one really sticks out to me. [00:55:48] Speaker D: Yeah, absolutely. Yep. [00:55:52] Speaker C: Well, good sailing there, Billy. [00:55:53] Speaker G: Yeah. [00:55:53] Speaker D: It's always great to see you guys. [00:55:55] Speaker C: Indeed better situations. [00:56:00] Speaker A: We know what Randall's working on. You're working on the Godfather at the museum of. [00:56:06] Speaker D: Yeah, it's already open. I mean, it opened back in September, but yes, it's an extended run, and we're very proud of it, so. [00:56:14] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:56:14] Speaker A: And it's a great museum. It's a fantastic museum. It is such a. It's such a treat. It really captures our business just so. [00:56:24] Speaker D: Yep. [00:56:25] Speaker C: Needs better food, though. [00:56:27] Speaker A: Bitch, bitch, bitch. Hey, I'm sure the craft services. [00:56:34] Speaker C: This isn't going out on broadcast or anything, right? What? [00:56:39] Speaker B: Some things just don't change. He used to complain about the food and the. [00:56:45] Speaker C: Street sets had the better food, but, yeah. [00:56:47] Speaker A: Anyway, sherry, what? Are you working on strike, though? There is. Is there other. Other things keeping you going? [00:56:56] Speaker C: Who, me? [00:56:57] Speaker A: No, sherry. [00:56:58] Speaker C: Oh, sherry. [00:56:59] Speaker E: Me? Uh, yeah. I mean, you know, the nice thing is I I can't help myself but write all the time. If somebody said, like, of all the things that I do, what, you know, what could no one stop me from doing? And that's just writing. I love telling stories, and, you know, so I have a project that's, you know, put on hold, but moving forward in the back end. It's a movie called field. It's a little kids baseball movie that I wrote and produced, and I may direct, because no female has directed a little kids little League movie. I may direct it, but I'm still exploring other directors, and I raised the money for it already, so I'm excited about, you know, us getting back to work, but I support everything that's happening. [00:57:46] Speaker A: Indeed. Ed, has the strike put you on hiatus? [00:57:51] Speaker F: Oh, yeah. We finished in February, February 5, and I've been doing nothing but working on my golf game. I went to Scotland and had an amazing trip. Played the old course, played cardio. [00:58:05] Speaker A: Really? Working on your golf? [00:58:07] Speaker F: Played kings, Barn. It's funny. I went for eight days with my cousins, and then Michelle joined me for a week. So the first half was golf, and the second half was the art, history and culture part of the trip. [00:58:18] Speaker A: Wow. [00:58:19] Speaker F: The castles drove all the way, did the 500 miles drive, went all the way up through the highlands, a lot of whiskey tastings, a lot of castles, a lot of museums. It was amazing. Absolutely amazing. [00:58:31] Speaker C: Those castles are fake, right? [00:58:34] Speaker F: I mean, it's going to end when it ends. And. [00:58:40] Speaker A: So far, the strike is working for you. [00:58:42] Speaker B: Yeah, so far. [00:58:43] Speaker F: I mean, I wasn't planning on going back to my show, so I would have been off anyway, just, you know, I was planning on taking a couple months off, but the couple months have become six, nine, maybe a year. Who knows? [00:58:52] Speaker A: Indeed. [00:58:53] Speaker F: It's all good. [00:58:55] Speaker A: But you're working, Todd. [00:58:58] Speaker C: I guess you can call it that. Yeah. I'm making a monster move its mouth. So I've. I instruct people to put more drool in and more blood on the claws, so it's kind of worse. [00:59:08] Speaker F: You say Malik? [00:59:09] Speaker C: Huh? [00:59:10] Speaker F: You say Malik? [00:59:11] Speaker C: No, no. I probably just slurred because I've been working too long this week. [00:59:15] Speaker A: You're doing Terrence Malick's movie? [00:59:17] Speaker C: Yeah, you know, it's just a little private thing. You know, I'm not talking about it. No, it's. [00:59:21] Speaker F: I thought he said Malik Akkad. That's. [00:59:23] Speaker C: That's why I mumble a lot when I'm really tired. So it probably was that. Yeah, it's a little movie here, and we got a couple other things going on, commercials and stuff like that, but it's pretty well. And of course, our monster museum. We're working on our monster museum. [00:59:39] Speaker A: Where is your monster museum going to be? [00:59:41] Speaker C: It's in Vancouver. Opens in October, Friday the 13th. [00:59:46] Speaker A: Oh, exciting. Thank you for joining us today, you guys. And in our tribute to William Friedkin, one of our directors, part of the family, legendary shuffling off the mortal coil. Damn. [01:00:02] Speaker F: Thanks, everybody. [01:00:04] Speaker A: Thank you, guys. [01:00:05] Speaker C: Thanks, Alan. Good seeing everybody. [01:00:08] Speaker A: Bye. The how not to make a movie podcast is executive produced by me, Alan Cass, by Gil Adler, and by Jason Stine. Our artwork was done by the amazing Jody Webster and Jason. Jody, along with Mando, are all the hosts of the fun and informative of dads from the Crypt podcast. Follow them for what my old pal the crypt keeper would have called terrorific crypt content.