industryLIFE: The Casting Director Who Never...

I'd heard about her through friends and was especially excited to meet her. When the day came for us to meet, I arrived and introductions were made.

She invited me into her home where she shared with me the glory and the pain of working in "the business". She shared the good times first and then she shared the bad. She was a woman who had worked on films such as “Which Way Is Up” and “Greased Lighting” with the legendary comedian Richard Pryor. It was during a time where people of color had just started to get into show business so she didn't complain when a Caucasian woman was brought in to be her supervisor. Sure she had found countless extras, been in the trenches from day one but again those were the times so she worked with out complaining, she was happy to be involved! As we sat in her dining room of her East Atlanta home, she told me of how she had been hired to cast the films via a relationship with other crew members who knew of her skills. She showed me pictures from the set with the cast and crew and even had pictures of her children as actors in the films. 

As she talked I could sense that even though time had passed she was still scarred from the experience. As she switched directions and began to tell me how it all fell apart, she realized she still could not place an absolute reason as to why she was never given any credit (on-screen or otherwise) for working on those films. Could it be that the powers that be decided she was not the right fit or maybe she did something to piss them off but whatever the reason, when the movie came out, she was NOT credited for any involvement in the projects what so ever!

To say she was upset was an understatement. Even after all those years you could still tell that the experience had left her jaded about the whole industry. Now when I say she wasn’t credited I don’t mean she wasn’t paid…she had been paid for her services but as any hard working professional in media, music or entertainment will tell you, the credits are the end all!!! Because even when the money is gone, your credits remain.

After that major disappointment, heated debates with the staff and major frustration, she realized there was nothing left to be done so she left the business and quietly raised her children. Now fast forward to her children as adults and wouldn’t you know it the “bug” had bitten her daughter. Although mom tried to make her aware of all the trapping in the business, she moved to New York and went into the television field. What happened to her mother was years ago so she worked hard to make sure the same thing did not happen to her. She did fair better than her mother as she was able to work on some highly rated TV shows but after a few years she began to see what her mother had warned her of and she too left the business because of other shady dealings.

Seems some things never change.

industryLIFE Book Series: Who's In Vol. I?

Vol. I featured some well known faces, places & things.  Can you name them all? Get ready, Vol. II is coming!

industryLIFE: Do You Love Me or Do You Love What I do?

When it all began, he was so smitten. She was a cutie, who seemed like a cool around the way girl. He was an out of work DJ.  He didn't have much going on at the time, but he tried his best to get her to talk to him. She wasn't interested, but kept it friendly enough to make him think that someday maybe they could hook up.

As time went on... she was offered an internship at a company out of state, which she took.  That lasted for about a year.  While she was away, the DJ set out to become "World Famous". His skills on the turntables were carving out a nice name for the young man! Before you knew it, he was building his brand and getting where he wanted to be.
Now as luck would have it, the young woman was wrapping up her internship, and decided to return to Atlanta to complete her studies. When she settled back into the city, she could not help but hear about the DJ, who had tried so intensely to make her his woman, because now he was everywhere! From celebrity parties, to charity events, if a DJ was needed he was on the bill.

Eventually they bumped into each other, and thanks to his current status, this chick decided she was NOW interested. Not much had changed about him, except for the amount of money that he was making, and his status in the industry. However, the people around him began to wonder if her intentions were honorable.

Time went on, and this still very humble guy, had no idea what his public image was doing for his love life. Immediately the woman began to make it very easy for the dude. If he wanted to take her out, she NOW had time. If he wanted to come by for visit, he was NOW welcomed. Eventually, things got intimate, and before long, they were an item.

Time passed, and soon people forgot about how this union had began before her internship drew her away.  All except for a select few who could still see past, and all the fake "love" she was NOW showing.  After some time, news came that they were having a baby. AWWWWW!!!  Dude was excited. He was going to be a dad!

In an attempt to do the right thing, he began making plans to buy a house for his family. He also began to adjust his schedule to be there for them. Then, he finally made the decision that it was time to make the relationship official, and get married.  Now while he was planning all of this, the woman, was making other plans.

Since she never really liked him in the first place, and was only there for the perks.  She was having major reservations about being with this dude in a house, or a marriage!  As the arrival date for the baby drew closer, there was a huge shower planned to welcome the bundle of joy. When the people who didn't trust the relationship from the beginning arrived, they noticed just how foul this chick really was!

She was down right mean & disrespectful. She was nasty to his friends, and even nastier to him! Everyone just watched in shock while the elephant in the room whispered, "She does not want him, she wants the fame & money!" And the elephant was right!  Now sometime between the house being bought, the baby coming, and the shower, he popped the question... and she answered with a big fat NO!

He was devastated... He had so many plans to make this work, but that was the last thing on her mind. To her, he was just a paycheck. A easy way to generate income so that she wouldn't have to work. She didn't want to marry him, she wanted to marry his money!!!

Heartbroken, the DJ decided not to go backwards, he wouldn't give her the satisfaction. He pulled himself up by his boot straps, paid her the child support, became a good dad to his son and moved on with his life.

Eventually she tried the same move with another dude. But wouldn't you know it, he had a surprise for her. He was already married with a family, and wanted nothing to do with her, or the baby she was expecting! Thank God she did finish her education because she NOW had to get a JOB!!! 

#ILBS - How Not to Make the News.

When I first heard about this story a lot of thoughts rushed through my mind, as usual. I wasn't going to write about it but when I read this, I knew I didn't have to because someone else had summed it up. Click the link below and get inside an insiders view on a high profile news anchor's arrest.

http://liveapartmentfire.com/2012/11/19/no-stones-thrown/