Saturday, July 13, 2013

Blind Items Revealed

March 4, 2008

I just think it has been awhile since I told one of my of stories. The blog was supposed to be about my life and the people I met, but it is easy to get away from that. At least for today, it is back.




After my first year of law school, I didn’t have a paying job for that summer, but decided I would head out to Los Angeles because a friend’s father was a managing partner of a law firm and was happy to have all the free help he could find. So began a miserable summer.

During college and the first year of law school I had supported myself by promoting concerts and doing a little booking of bands as well. It worked out well and gave me a nice cash income that was not necessarily all reported as accurately as it could have been.

My hope for the summer in LA was to see a bunch of new bands and basically just get drunk on Sunset every night of the week. Instead I found myself working in a firm that did and does tax law. Other than construction defect law, I can think of no other aspect of law which would make me want to kill myself more quickly. Even though I was unpaid, I was working 50 hours a week and living way out in the Valley which wasn’t very conducive to getting drunk on Sunset every night.

After about a month of this, I was done. I really wanted no more. One of the partners took pity on me and said that his wife owned a public relations firm and that they needed someone for an assignment that upcoming weekend. Basically it was a film festival of some type in Palm Springs. Yeah, I know, Palm Springs in the summer. Hot, but it was better than sitting around a backyard with my friend’s parents as they argued about the proper way to play bridge.

All I thought I was going to be doing was directing the press here and there and everywhere. Instead I spent almost 72 hours getting an education like I never though I would experience.

I was replacing someone who had an audition of all things and so could not be at the festival. Because it was last minute, and lots of persuasion, I got the job. I still keep in touch with that partner and his wife who was talked into the job by her husband.

Anyway, it turns out my job was to make sure that this multiple Academy Award nominee made it to where he needed to go. Although this A list film actor was well known, and had been nominated when I met him, he was in a kind of quiet period in his career.

From the whispers and hints and innuendo the reason for his career gap was a lot of drug use and also some serious anger management problems. I never saw the drug problem firsthand, but there was definitely something going on with my charge because he would get this glassy eyed stare and would mumble for an hour or two straight. He was speaking English, but it was so low and he mumbled so much that it was impossible to understand unless you concentrated completely and were standing 2 inches from him. Of course when you did that, you were subject to him suddenly going ballistic and screaming at you for being in his space.

For much of the previous five years I had been around more musicians than almost anyone. I had interacted with some really small guys in a van to guys on a world tour with 200 employees. But honestly, nothing prepares you for spending the weekend being a gofer for a guy who was this f**king big, in an acting sense. Not a tall guy in real life. For most of the first day I just walked around in a sense of look who I am with and being a kiss ass and feeling a little self important.

I’m not ashamed of it and if I put you in the same situation you would be the same. Now, I don’t get that way about anyone really. But, I can still recall that feeling when I met our actor if I try hard enough. I can still feel the stomach jumping and me telling myself to not screw anything up.

Most of the time my job was to shuffle our actor around to interviews. Instead of having the reporters all come to one place, the way it worked was actors and actresses had times they needed to be at a certain hotel or event and they would spend 5 or 10 minutes with a writer or photographer.

This was kind of the year before our actor hit it big again. You could sense it though. He had not done much, but the film he was there talking about paled in comparison to the questions of what he was about to start filming. One right after the other for about a year.

There were limos some of the time, but most of the time it was a hotel courtesy van and one of the biggest cell phones you ever saw glued to our actor’s ear. Apparently he could mumble into the phone and people could understand him.

If you ever have wondered where I got into the tipping thing, it was that weekend. Our actor would fill me with his life’s statements. At the time he had no children, but he was feeling paternal I guess and so in one of his life lessons he told me that you should tip everyone who does you a service including hookers. Those were his exact words. He always tipped the van drivers a $20 bill. Always. Even if it was the same guy there and back, the driver would get a $20 for each of the trips. $20 was his favorite bill. He had a stack of them and he always seemed to have more. When I went to his hotel suite to get him one morning, he had me grab a stack from the top of the television. There were about 100 of them in a stack, and he had four or five of them on the television. He just left them there all day and night. When I asked him if he was afraid they might be stolen, he asked me if I had seen his films. I said I had seen some of them. He said people had a hard time discerning real life from film and that he had no fear at all that someone would steal from him.

He was invariably polite to women but didn’t seem interested in flirting. Women would fawn over him and he would smile and be nice, but as soon as they were gone, he turned the switch off and he would go back to mumbling.

As far as his anger management issues, they were numerous. His favorite way of showing displeasure in food which he did twice over the weekend was to drop it on the floor, plates and all and ask if anyone had a dog, because he sure as hell wasn’t going to eat it. But, his dissatisfaction with the food never carried over to the server even if they got his order wrong. He always left a huge tip.

He told me that people only remember certain events in their life and that if he left a large tip, invariably that would be what people remembered about him ten years after meeting him. They would think he was generous even if he wasn’t, and the sliding the plates off the table would be recounted as humorous rather than obnoxious.

Judging by the results of future relationships he had with women, I’m not sure they ever saw the humor in his anger issues. Although he never yelled at anyone we met during the weekend, he would yell and curse constantly in about half his phone calls, and then mumble into the other half.

I remember the same morning he had me grab the stack of money he had about ten pairs of shoes lined up and to me they were all the same color and all had lifts in them. I could not tell them apart, but he literally spent twenty minutes looking at them closely before he decided on a pair. If he had a good day he explained he would keep wearing the same shoes. If he had a bad day, he would change shoes, but would try and find the next pair that would bring him good luck. I say good luck, but I get the feeling that what he wanted was a good day not filled with drama.

As the weekend went on, he became more comfortable with me and so he began to yell at me. Apparently he enjoyed being yelled at back which I did when I felt he was mistaken about something. He didn’t like people to shrink from him, and seemed to revel in the confrontation. I would never have thought of myself capable of yelling at him when I first met him, but it kind of came naturally.

One of my favorite things I took from him that weekend was that no matter what you are doing in life as long as you are excited about waking up every morning and not looking for an excuse not to get up, or do what you have to do, then you have succeeded in life. You should never feel miserable about something you can change. Great advice, which I still follow to this day. With that advice and the $2000 tip he gave me for the weekend, I found myself a place to share with about four other people for the rest of the summer and did what I wanted to do. Listened to some great bands at night and had an incredible summer.

I ran into our actor about ten years after that, and I really didn’t think he would remember me, but he did, and actually saw me before I saw him. He came up to me, and gave me a hug and then started mumbling something about his shoes. Seriously.

Al Pacino

109 comments:

auntliddy said...

Awesome story!! I wld live more of these, as opposed to who blew who.

DewieTheBear said...

Yes, a vast improvement over Teen Mom/Kardashian-esque material. Then again, this is from 2008, so hope for more like this may be misplaced.

rareavis said...

I love this story!

Ann Nah Nah Mess said...

This is so good, I'm not even going to troll it.

B626 said...

ATTICA ATTICA

Oopsy_Daisy said...

I would love to yell at Pacino.

Jessica said...

Love this!

Colleen said...

I love this story. I remember the first time Enty posted it, about a month after I started coming here. Ah, memories. Good times.

I'd prefer one great story like this a week than the 10 different little dinky blinds we get each day.

Snoopy said...

That was an awesome story!!!!
:)

Chief2224 said...

Great story. I loved reading every word of it. Thanks for sharing, Enty.

SusieLongBottom said...

Anyone able to figure out the timing on this? I'm thinking right before Scarface, maybe?

Carol said...

I read recently where someone suggested Al is in the early stages of dementia. From this story, he might have been in the early stages for quite some time. He's a good actor but I suspect not easy to be around.

HannahBanana said...

Great story Enty! Yelling at Al Pacino= Epic

Unknown said...

More of this, please

Pip said...

Enty is gone. This reveal is from an intern.

Pip said...

This would've been in 1981 or 1982, if the old Enty is the guy I think it is. I thought Scarface was in the 70's.

gee-gee said...

Perfection.

Stephe96 said...

I'm guessing right before Godfather 3.

MissInfo said...

Thank you for sharing, Enty! It was a great story! I wonder if he has dementia or schizophrenia - with dementia he would have a much tougher time remembering his lines, although I heard he does quite often. Sad because he is such a gifted actor.

detown359 said...

I was thinking just before A Scent of Woman or whatever it is called.

detown359 said...

Great story. Thanks for going through the archives and pulling this out!

JoElla said...

WOW!

lollydarling said...

Yes, I have a director friend who tried to work with Al Pacino on his Richard III for a while and this sounds very much what he described.

Pink Cashmere said...

Awesome story Enty!

SueRH said...

Awesome!

annabella said...

now that was an awesome reveal. it seems that the real enty is now here only on the weekends. but reading that reveal made me realize why I started to come here in the first place.

I saw al pacino on broadway a few years ago in merchant of venice. it was a great production w/great actors, but he blew all of the other actors away, he was so brilliant. no one could touch him. one of the best performances I've ever seen.

the guy is a genius. love the tipping and the advice about getting up in the morning. this was great. thanks (weekend) enty!

Jason Blue Eyes said...

Yes - nominated in early '91 for Godfather III and Dick Tracy - his comeback after taking a 4 year acting break - 2 years later, wins the Oscar. Huge star again.

sandybrook said...

I liked that story. Whoever Enty was back then did well learning stuff from Al. (This site must have been really good then too if there was a lot of stuff there like this.)

hunter said...

so so great

Unknown said...

Halfway through the story I began thinking Pacino. Sounded just like him.

Fairmaiden327 said...

Loved this.

Fairmaiden327 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bunnyears! said...

What a great story.

Sis said...

Love it!!

Ja'mie King said...

I think it's circa Scent of A Woman/Glengarry Glen Ross as well. Early 90s? I've been fascinated by Al Pacino for awhile, he seems like he has an interesting character, thanks for the added insight!

Definitely would trade one of these for 50 TeenMom/Real Housewives blinds.

selenakyle said...

I began reading CDAN in 2006 and the very first BIG blind I read was about Enty babysitting the aging actor who ordered Enty to go find him booze and Viagra late one night, took too may pills and got a nightmarish boner.

That was how I got hooked on CDAN! Ah, those were the golden ages of gossip for me!

I always believed that blind was about Sean Connery. Maybe one day we'll get a reveal for it.

it took forever said...

Never be miserable about something you can change is gonna stick with me for life, luv this story, luv al pacino

Hazeldazel said...

Yeah after the first several sentences I knew this was about Pacino, and I was sad because I think I know why it's being revealed after so many years.

Joanna said...

That was a terrific story! I enjoyed every bit of it. I would love to read more backstage stories of this type than any number of blinds about dumb housewives of whereverthehell. Thanks for taking time to post this. xox

Anonymous said...

:^)

sandybrook said...

@Hazel do you think Pacino is the actor from the other day who is in declining health because of smoking for 30+ years?

L-rod said...

+ 1

Count Jerkula said...

Great reveal. OG Enty could spin a tale.

G said...

Wow. I actually guessed this correctly half way through the blind!
Good job me.

VeeBee said...

I agree with everyone else- this is great! Enty, please do a reveal like this one more often!

Dena said...

Now that's a reveal! Thanks, E!

Evil Kumquat said...

I had Marlon Brando in my head while reading this until getting to the reveal.

So close...

kj said...

Enty: thanks so much for this reveal. I am a moth to the flame anytime godfather one or two is on tv. serpico was so amazing. what a career he has had. and how lucky for you to have had that little tidbit for the resume. and as far as the law, i think i would take tax and construction defects over divorce law any day. Keep looking entry for more stories. you missed your calling. you should be writing screen plays. or are you really jackie collins??? LOL

msgirl said...

LOVED this!

I say it's right before The Godfather.

In-N-Out!! said...

<3!

lambkin said...

That piece was worth getting up for. Now back to bed.

Meanie Rhysie said...

Now *that* is a reveal! I freakin' adore Pacino!! ♥

Robin the Mad Photographer said...

Wonderful story! Please, can we have more like it? Like so many others have said, this kind of story was what drew me here in the first place, not endless Kardashian/Teen Mom BS...please, sir, may we have another? And another one? And maybe even more after that? There might be baked goods, or even cookie dough truffles, in it for you... *bats eyelashes*

Kimstyle said...

This was awesome!!! Thanks Enty!!

CashmereLibrarian said...

That's a really good one!

Furiously Curious said...

He was pretty quick and sharp and funny on David Letterman or Conan a few weeks ago for someone who has dementia. I don't think that this is him. I think he has always been this way and it is just how he rolls.

Del Riser said...

Big thanks Enty!!!

Karen said...

@selenakyle, I believe that one WAS revealed and it was Jack Nicholson. Not positive, though.

paula said...

I enjoyed this story :)

MissMoPR said...

Great story! I wish I hadn't felt the need to scroll all the way down for the reveal to see if it was worth the long account.

Sandy said...

AAAALLL PACINO. My favorite line from Saturday Night Fever. Al freaking Pacino indeed.

He is an epic scenery-chewer, sometimes to good effect (Angels in America), more often to bad effect (everything except for AiA and the first two Godfather movies, in which Coppola miraculously managed to keep him in check). I guess it had to come from someplace.

Great story.

Brenda L said...

Now THIS is the old Enty....enjoy it kiddies because I think this Enty has hit the streets and run far far away....

George Glass said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

@selena yep me too (since the beginning reader). Totally remember that blind and in fact as I was reading this reveal today I was starting to think maybe it was AP that was the '06 viagra guy but then he said he didn't see him for ten years and I was like "damn couldn't have been him". I always pictured (aside from Connery as well) Nick Nolte in that '06 BI. And I think there was more than one actor in that story if memory serves.

Anonymous said...

LOVE LOVE LOOOOOVE, PLEEEEEESE write more of these stories, I loved this, and want to hear MOAR.

George Glass said...

I was thinking Pacino while reading it...Nicholson crossed into my thoughts for a second...back to Pacino with the lifts in the shoes.

Dunk-A-Ccino! What a horrible movie.

Great blind Enty! I love ones like this and the Tarantino "trying to get him on a plane" ones.

The Flower Girl said...

love it! great story! i saw you a few times walking with him down william one blvd.

DavidsFan said...

Total vintage Enty. I love this story. What a great tale!!!! Pls tell us more about your life and people you met, Enty. I love to hear you voice like this. Thank you Enty. You made my day again. :-)

NaughtyNurse said...

This is a great reveal indeed. I saw Pacino on Broadway fairly recently, and just looking at him, you can see he's probably a crazy bastard. However, he only had to open his mouth for his first line, and I was thinking, "Now THIS is why he is Al f-ing Pacino!" The man is crazy, but has more acting talent in his little finger than anyone I have ever seen.

Susan said...

Great reveal - I feel like this was circa-Scent of a Woman. That movie was HUGE.

SJBWow said...

awesome story

Honey Bunny said...

YEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS!

cosina said...

Awesome and thank you !




Momster said...

THIS is the Enty we know and love, the kind of blind that got us hooked.
Not like the tired, 3 sentence blinds that start out, "this reality star. .."

Loved Scent of A Woman. Al was brilliant in that--hope he's okay :(

Not A Ninny said...

Sooooo...ur-Enty is someone who worked as a show promoter/booker before he became a lawyer. Maybe he even worked for a major record label?

He's sure got a hard-on against COS, so probably he locked horns with the Scienos at some point. And we know he works in the reality show biz these days.

Which prominent entertainment lawyer working in L.A. would fit that very specific career CV?

Charlotte. said...

I hope this is a sign of positive changes and not just a bone being tossed our way. The 'huge reveal from the past' that was promised. The storytelling was awesome. Very engrossing.

Fluffy White Clouds said...

Awesome! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Nice to read a great story and be reminded of old Enty.

Jessie said...

Look at those paragraphs and actual grammar! What a pleasure to read.

MAC said...

All the long blind items from back then are great. I recommend new readers go and read the archives and see why we all bitch about the blinds now.

Carol said...

Pacino doing Shakespeare is magnificent - the man is so talented, maybe a little nuts, but still talented. If he does that football coach from Penn State, I'm going to be sick. I don't want to see that happen.

csproat said...

What a lovely story...
Thanks Enty!!!!

SCat07 said...

Awesome reveal! We need more like these!

Kelly said...

Thanks for that Ent! Wonderful blind!

85134943 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Rowan said...

Thank you Enty for this wonderful share! 5 stars

Persiaa said...

Thank you for the story. I love hearing what people are really like way more than the latest tween sensation's peccadilloes.

AKM said...

Pacino is my favorite actor, bar none. Good to read the Old Enty's writing again, too. I think I'm with 85134943, though; this just wasn't THAT earth-shattering to me. A fun read, though, sure.

redronnie said...

I miss the "real" Enty. This is the reason why I became addicted to this blog. The endless running joke of bacon, booze and living in his parents basement is a long way from a young lawyer living in a loft somewhere in downtown L.A. - the thoughtful commentary, the real Hollywood insight no reality crap. It's been a long time.

__-__=__ said...

Enjoyed the story, thanks! Especially liked the part about being excited about waking up every morning. Too many people live in the past! Thanks!!

Maggie said...

Thanks enty please reveal more like it.

lutefisk said...

Thanks for such a nice story Enty. My niece is the same age as Al's twins. My brother in law met him in Central Park when the kids were little. Al would show up a few times a week so the kids could play together. They ended up becoming friendly and my brother in law said he was a totally nice, normal guy.

Kelsey said...

Love the old Enty blinds =)

Goodnight said...

I sure miss this enty.

Angela said...

The film Pacino was promoting was either Sea of Love (released in Fall 1989) or Dick Tracy (released in June 1990). It was the first two ones he did after he stayed away from movie sets for years, after the failure of Revolution.

My bet is "Dick Tracy" But at the time, everybody was curious about The Godfather part III, which was released in December 1990 and may have still been shooting when Pacino had to do this weekend of promotion for Dick Tracy.

Seven of Eleven said...

Whether true or not, I actually found this comment quite uninteresting, but I guess I'm the only one. Perhaps I'll read it again later, maybe then I'll see the appeal. I appreciate the effort 8513494. put into writing the comment, though.

Seven of Eleven said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Seven of Eleven said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Tyger Lilly said...

Awesome reveal! I was a good girl & didn't scroll down to see the name at the bottom and I was floored! As I am a fairly new follower, I really didn't expect A-list to truly mean A-LIST. I fully expected some half-assed celeb who would be a C-D in everyone else's book now like Lorenzo Lamas or Arte Johnson. Al-friggin-Pacino. And the BI was a pleasure to read. If this is the kind of filet mignon that made your blog so popular, why are we being served sh*t sandwiches now?

figgy said...

Sadly, I saw this somewhere (Facebook? Email?) With the title "Pacino" which, uh, kinda gave away the punch line.

orpheus12 said...

I learned something from this reveal: No matter what you are doing in life as long as you are excited about waking up every morning and not looking for an excuse not to get up, or do what you have to do, then you have succeeded in life. You should never feel miserable about something you can change.

mooshki said...

Thanks for the great reveal, Enty! ♥

85134943 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
shopgirl said...

+1 Goodnight

Unknown said...

MissInfo: definitely not schizophrenia, as that has an early onset (late teens, early twenties) and progressively gets worse over the course of one's life. His issues seem more recent from what I am able to gather. The medications for Schizophrenia can take a toll on a person as well.

Just my .02. Great blind; the original Enty was a great storyteller.

AKM said...

figgy, I think you're right! I feel like maybe I read it somewhere before, too; maybe that's why I felt a little underwhelmed as well. Written charmingly, though, and anything on Pacino is good for me, so...it's still good, I guess. :-)

(I kinda feel like the Tatum O'Neal reveal was a big bombshell. I still wanna know if it's Farrah/Redmond or Joanna/Griffin.)

AKM said...

Also, lutefleck? Very cute and cool story. :-)

lutefisk said...

AKM, Daryl Hammond moved into the apartment next door to my sister. They used to go back and forth to the kid's parties. SNL cast members were always up there My sister and her husband are like Waldo. You never know where they will show up and who will be there. My brother in law has a store and James Gandolfini use to come in and shop. I get some great stories from them.

Amartel said...

More stories like this. Less cheating/greedy/gay blinds. They're all starting to run together. This is narrative and context and character. Way more interesting. Plus, AL!!

Cornbread said...

@George, I think the Tarantino reveal has been my all-time fave on this site. Agree with the other long time readers, these are the blinds that hooked us in the first place.

Pacino has a house on Captiva; my co-worker's son works at Costco in Fort Myers, and saw Pacino shopping there a couple years ago. It was after his knee surgery, so he wasn't filming anything at the time. His hair was almost totally white, and he shuffled around with a cane with a tennis ball on the end (very fitting for SW Florida - not sure if he really needed the cane, or if the entire look was to avoid being recognized). No staff, no bodyguard, just Pacino in Costco. I always loved that story.

Advertisements

Popular Posts from the last 30 days