Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1525020
Fall 2024 – LOCAL695.COM 39 Polar Express – Contact - Monster House – Beowulf - A Christmas Carol – Flight - The Walk. I went for an interview for a film called Romancing the Stone. The interview was with the main lead, Michael Douglas. During the interview, he asked me what should he do to interview me? He asked how quickly I might repair a broken Nagra? I told him I had never heard of such a thing but what a brilliant idea. I was hired. I went to Mexico early to a hardware store and made several rain hood baskets for the booms. I don't think they were marketed yet. They worked. There was a scene with a rear half of a DC-3 airplane fuselage. In the story, it crashed years ago, carrying bales of marijuana. We had local firetrucks pounding water on the plane, all during low dialog. Again, we wrapped the plane in Hogs Hair and that was that. I'm good with backhoes, and second nature with sailboats, aerobatic aircraft, and eighteen-wheelers. Not so at all, in the computer/digital world. After learning so much about motion capture from The Polar Express, Bob Zemeckis took on an existing production facility in Playa Vista and transformed it into a motion capture studio. Tom Giordano and I helped convert the facility for sound, wiring the building to record, playback and with a full mix/control room. The building's air conditioning rumbled the building. When it rained, the noise pounded the stage. I had all the roof air handling units remounted on shock absorbers, so the building didn't vibrate. We soundproofed the entire roof. When we were finished, Bob asked for a noise test. We had water trucks surround the building to create a powerful rain downpour. We stood in the middle of a very quiet stage, when Bob told us to turn on the rain. I announced, "It's been on for five minutes!" Sir Tony Scott Top Gun - Beverly Hills Cop II - True Romance - Crimson Tide - The Fan - Enemy of the State - Unstoppable. I heard that Tony Scott was going to do a movie called Top Gun. I had a pilot's license, and my passion was flying. I really wanted to get on that film. I put my pilot license number in bold at the top of my resume. At that time, I was trying to get either Pretty in Pink or Top Gun! Somehow, I got an interview with Tony Scott. During the interview, he told me that he wanted the aircraft carrier parts recorded on ½" four track tape! I had done some of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas that way. It required a huge, studio, timecode, Ampex, rolling console. I explained that it would be impossible, going up and down ladders and tight crawl spaces with a studio recorder. As I was talking, I see the director's dreams drain out of his face. I knew I was blowing it. Right in front of him, I slid out of the chair, hit my knees, bowing up and down with my arms rising back-and-forth to the carpet, yelling out like a mad man, "I want to do this movie so bad, please, please just let me make your movie, I will do a great job, I promise, I will do anything to do this film!" Tony stood up, leaned forward over his desk looking at me on the carpet, shook his head and said, "You're hired." Tony supported me in whatever I needed. On Crimson Tide, Gene Hackman had a long walk and talk, while holding a little dog and an umbrella. He was addressing hundreds of soldiers, and walking under metal- roofed structures. We were to create a very heavy downpour, all through the dialog. Tony agreed to my request … do the wide shot first, break for dinner. I'll have a large crew Hogs Hair all the metal building rooftops for the close-up, after the meal. We had a transmitter inside Gene's hat and a lav under the hat's bill. In the close-up, we didn't hear the rain. He trusted me to do things like that. I'm told I can be strong-willed on the set. I feel it's my job to go to any lengths to protect the quality of the sound. The Top Gun aircraft carrier had a powerful radar antenna that buzzed the Nagra with every revolution. I had brought sheets of new metal for the heads, placing it under the cover of the recorder, but to no avail. We were in the middle of NATO exercises with many countries and ships involved. I insisted that we can't record with this radar problem, and I asked that it be turned off. That got a laugh from the boat's captain. They referred me to the admiral of the fleet. I questioned Bill on the set of The Blues Brothers Tony Scott & Bill My kids with Forrest Gump John Landis and Bill Kaplan The entire film crew half year in India.