In short, I said FUCK YOU a lot and called them greedy bastards. It was one of my more eloquent rants.
At one point I said this:
This festival has been going for about ten year, but this new insulting submission fee is new. Gee, I wonder whether they would have done it while Neil Simon was still alive. I’m guessing no because I’m also guessing that Neil Simon’s response to this would be…
FUCK YOU.
Well, it turns out I was right.
The Neil Simon estate has pulled his name from the Festival and even forbid the theatre from doing any of his plays. And the reason is the unconscionable $150 fee.
You can read that article here.
At a time where we are being screwed left and right by greedy corporations and government officials who only are looking out for their own self-interests and could give a shit about ours, at least there's this one tiny almost microscopic bit of good news.
Oh, and if losing their affiliation with Neil Simon wasn't enough to send the Heritage Theatre reeling, I won't let them do any of my plays either. Let's see if they survive now.
I read the article. Loved the quote from the Festival Producer about "We've kind of rebranded ourselves." Tempted to have that line used in my obituary. The comments to the article are also interesting and for the most part civilized.
ReplyDeleteScore one for the little guy. Now Mr. Simon can stop rolling over in his grave. And on a personal note, it's one less reason to go to Utah. (Except for Zion National Park. I'd love to see that)
ReplyDeleteM.B.
WHAT? No Ken Levine plays either?
ReplyDeleteThis bit really stuck out for me:
ReplyDelete"I found [Sherman’s] argument rather narrow-minded," Bugg said. "He has kind of a socialist attitude, that free enterprise shouldn’t be part of the arts."
So apparently Neil Simon was a follower of Ayn Rand. Who knew?
Well done to the Neil Simon Estate for taking action.
ReplyDeleteAt least his legacy has been protected. Spare a thought for the filmmakers whose films are forever soiled from their ill judged decision to have a Donald Trump cameo. Home Alone 2, Zoolander, The Little Rascals, bizarrely TWO Whoopi Goldberg films, The Associate and Eddie, Woody Allen's Celebrity, and Two Weeks Notice.
Two Weeks Notice starred the eternally loathsome Hugh Grant. Trump's cameo was in a scene with Divine Brown's former customer. I'm amazed cinemas didn't implode from having two gigantic scumbags on screen at the same time.
....good.
ReplyDeleteNever mind, there are plenty of other names. How about the Ivanka Trump Pay-For-Play(wright) Festival?
ReplyDeleteI'm not usually one for wacky name jokes, but the idea that the head of the festival's name (nickname pending) could be "Dick Bugg" is pretty good....
ReplyDeleteHmmm.... So Peter likes Sylvester Stallone and hates Hugh Grant.
ReplyDeleteA possible Friday question: Is there a standard procedure when a performer or other big name on a TV show becomes radioactive? Say a supporting character or guest star on a show in syndication is arrested, or dies in a particularly unpleasant way, or otherwise becomes tabloid fodder. Does somebody yank episodes? Is there an interval when it's decreed safe to re-release them?
ReplyDeleteIt occurs to me that Simon's widow, and therefore probably the person in authority with the attorneys, is Elaine Joyce, the actress who was in TV, movies, and Broadway shows. I wonder if she had anything to do with this decision.
ReplyDeleteNobody seems to have caught these two gems:
ReplyDelete“It’s rather frustrating. I’ve put in a lot of work to promote the work of Mr. Simon, and it’s tossed away.”
-- Without Dick Bugg, the world is going to forget Neil Simon.
"I always had a cordial relationship with Mr. Simon,” Bugg said. “But with his passing, that ended.”
-- And now the ingrate doesn't even return calls.
Kudos to the Neil Simon estate!
ReplyDelete"Oh, and if losing their affiliation with Neil Simon wasn't enough to send the Heritage Theatre reeling, I won't let them do any of my plays either. Let's see if they survive now."
ReplyDelete"In wrath, remember mercy." - Habakkuk 3:2
Yeah, they can't do my plays either!
ReplyDelete>Hmmm.... So Peter likes Sylvester Stallone and hates Hugh Grant.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't everybody?
I'd rather watch Rhinestone than any Hugh Grant movie.
Does anybody know who controls the Neil Simon estate? Would it be his widow (Elaine Joyce), his daughters (he had two daughters with his first wife and an adopted daughter with his third), some combination of the two, or lawyers/agents as well?
ReplyDeleteSide note: Simon got some really, really bad advice and sold the film and TV rights for The Odd Couple to Paramount in 1967, so he didn't participate in the windfall the TV series became. I would think he was probably careful about that sort of thing from then on.
“I found [Sherman’s] argument rather narrow-minded,” Bugg said. “He has kind of a socialist attitude, that free enterprise shouldn’t be part of the arts.”
ReplyDeleteThis comment makes it art.