Blue Devil: Hollywood Nights part 2 (of 3)
Dan Cassidy began to stir from a sound sleep. He rubbed his eyes and forehead as he tried to recall what happened last night. There was drinking, celebrating, and…he couldn't remember what all happened.
"Oh my God!" Dan whispered as he looked over and saw the woman lying next to him in bed, asleep. It was one of his roommates, Janelle. That was not a good sign.
She began to stir, so Dan quickly and quietly slid out of the bed. He tiptoed to the bathroom and shut the door. What was he thinking? He life was finally going in the right direction. Principle filming on the Blue Devil movie was just a few weeks away and he didn't need any complications. Alcohol or no alcohol, sleeping with Janelle was a complication.
Dan shared a four-bedroom house with three other people including Janelle. Janie, as everyone called her moved in about four months ago. Last year she appeared on a reality television program and was instantly a fan favorite. In the end, she didn't win the competition and when a new season of the show began, Janie was on her way to being forgotten as a new crop of instant stars quickly were consumed by the viewing public.
Janie was bound and determined to survive past her fifteen minutes of fame. She moved out to Hollywood to pursue an acting career. She quickly found that Hollywood wasn't waiting for her with open arms. She continued to struggle but was determined to break in. She was a sweet kid just past the age of twenty-two. Dan liked her a lot but he knew better then to let last night happen. He couldn't afford to move out if things were to get ugly between them. He had sunk every last cent he had into the creation of the Blue Devil suit. The producer on the film, Marla Bloom, promised him a check to cover some living expenses but that was weeks away and she didn't have a good track record of keeping promises as of late.
Dan quickly jumped in the shower in hopes that Janelle would slip out while he was in there, avoiding any awkward morning after confrontation. When he was finished, he slowly opened the door and found that she was indeed gone. With a smile of relief on his face he dressed and headed down stairs.
"Morning Dan." Colby said as Dan walked into the kitchen, "Coffee's on in case you need it."
Colby was a script doctor or, as he liked to refer to himself, a hatchet man. Colby was hired by movie and television studios to take scripts they'd purchased and beef them up. Sometimes he just cleaned up dialogue, trimmed the fluff, or rewrote entire scenes. He never got onscreen credit but he claimed to have worked on hundreds of scripts that had been made into movies over the past eight years. His favorite pick-up line, 'Did you see that one scene in that one movie? I wrote that.' The ironic thing about Colby's profession is that he's yet to get one of his own scripts sold to the studio's there for eluding the big payday he's been dreaming of since moving out here from New York.
"Rough night last night." Colby said as more of a statement then a question.
"Don't start on me this morning." Dan said as he sat down at the breakfast nook with a cup of coffee.
"Hey how long have we been roommates, three, four years? All I am saying was I told you it was a bad idea having her move in here. One of us was bound to sleep with her." Colby laughed as he typed away at his laptop.
"Yeah, well I always thought it would have been you using one of your cheesy lines like, 'Hey have you seen Titanic or the elevator scene in Jerry Maguire?'"
"Well it's a good thing that Karisa wasn't here last night as well. Who knows, you might have ended up sleeping with her because you certainly had as much to drink as I did." Dan replied.
"True but I have the one thing you lack my friend, and that's control. Plus Karisa pays one forth of the rent on this place and we can't afford it on our own until you hit it big with your movie."
"Your telling me the only reason you haven't slept with Karisa yet is because you're afraid to lose the extra rent money? I see how you look at her. You're just afraid she will shoot you down."
"Shoot me down? Listen, the only thing worse then sleeping with a soap star in Hollywood…is sleeping with a reality TV chick who can't even get on a soap!"
"Your funny but it defiantly was a mistake." Dan said, sipping his coffee unaware that Janelle was standing in the doorway behind them.
"You're both pigs and have no room to talk, either of you!" She announced as she came into the room.
"Opps." Colby muttered under his breath.
"Especially you, Dan. How dare you judge me just because you finally have work thanks to that desperate wench from that B-movie studio!"
Taken aback, Dan stood up to face her. "What was the last gig you had, Janie, other then an appearance on that god awful reality series on MTV about a bunch of superhero wannabes, the Power Company?"
"It was Powers Inc. and it paid quiet well thank you very much!"
"How well did it pay when you didn't do anything more then do cut intros to the actual people on the show?"
"It was a sweet job! I got an all expense paid trip to tropical paradise."
"Kooeykooeykooey? Didn't that island come alive and try to eat everyone?" Colby stated like it was nothing.
"I worked on a killer tan there and made plenty of contacts in the industry."
"And how many of those contacts have called you back? That's right, none! Unless to count the skin mag that wants you to show off your tan lines in a five page pictorial! Well trust me I seen 'em and they would be disappointed!"
"Why you no talent son-of-a…"
"That's enough out of both of you!" Colby stood up and quickly moved in between them.
Janelle grunted and then stepped away. "You know what's funny about the whole thing Dan? Blue Devil may turn out to be the biggest movie of the summer next year but it won't do squat for your career! You know why, because no one even knows or cares who played Yoda or Chewbacca. They were just freaks in a suit, just like you will be!" Janelle turned to Colby who was trying not to laugh. "What's so funny?" She snapped.
He thought about it for a moment and then decided to tell her anyways, "Yoda was a puppet."
"Isn't everyone in Hollywood?" She said before storming off.
Two weeks later...
Dan Cassidy sat in lot number five in one of the newest motion picture studios, twenty miles south of Hollywood.
"Marla this is simply amazing." He said as he extended is arms outward. "Did you know that there are over twenty-two acres of land here to play with?"
"Yes I do." She said standing across from him with her arms folded, "But I can't tell whether you're impressed or surprised."
"Honestly? A little of both! When you said you got a new deal I never pictured it would be with Verner Brother studios! My God Marla this is the big time here!"
"Well don't get your pretty new blue costume in a bunch. I never said that the deal was with both brothers." She said as Dan stopped what he was doing and stood up, "The brothers split up so we only got the backing of one of them."
"Please tell me it isn't Jock."
"It's Jock."
"Damn it Marla! None of us are getting paid now. That tightwad blow hard isn't interested in making movies, only money! It was his brother Harvey that made their company the name it is in the industry today."
"Well he broke away from his brother to make movies so and we got a deal alright? Besides that isn't the worst news your going to hear today."
"Sharon Scott backed out?" Dan said nervously.
"No your little girlfriend didn't back out. But Jock decided that he couldn't back the movie with a no name in the lead role."
"So I am out?" Dan screamed.
"No you're not exactly out but you will be stuck in that suit of yours for quiet awhile. You see, you still get to play the part of Blue Devil but only from inside the suit. Jock made the call and brought in Wayne Tarrant as the lead."
"Are you freaking kidding me? This is ridiculous!" Dan said as he began to walk away. It's like my worst day in High school all over again!"
Dan looked up and a beautiful blonde woman in a stunning white sundress, stood directly in front of him. "Hello Dan."
"Hello Sharon." He said as is demeanor completely changed. "I…I didn't expect you for another couple of hours. The principle photographer isn't here yet to do our test shots and…"
"I wanted to talk to you first before we got started and there wasn't time." She said softly as she came right up to him and kissed him on the lips, "I am sorry about everything between us before. Things just got crazy you know?"
"I know that you became a Hollywood starlet and kinda lost my number." Dan said unable to pull away from her.
"Well, it's been a long five months and I was hoping since we're going to work together that maybe we could…start over?" She pouted her lips and pressed herself up against him again.
"You know I can't resist you when you do that." He said cracking a smile, "But I will be in the suit longer then I expected. Besides with Tarrant here I…"
"Forget about Tarrant. And as for the suit…" She said as she teased the top button of his shirt, "I will wait till you're out of it and then pounce you! GGRRR!"
Dan stood there and smiled. This was one complication he could certainly live with!
Two hours later…Norm Paxton, the director of photography looked through his camera as Dan stood there against a backdrop in the Blue Devil Suit.
"Now turn and face the camera and point the trident up in the air. After that I wanna get a couple of shots with you and Sharon together." Norm yelled and pointed as he looked through the camera lens.
Dan had spent day and night working on this suit for months. This was going to be his biggest break not only as an actor but he also planned on revolutionizing the special effects and stunt person industry with this suit. A unique blend of latex and kevlar, the suit was designed to imitate nearly all the special effects needed with little to no GCI touchup work needed in postproduction.
Now here he stood trapped inside the suit that would become nothing more then a prop once the star of the movie arrived on the set in a few days. He continued to sulk and barely noticed Marla frantically running toward him.
"Dan! Dan! It's all gone wrong!" She yelled as she ran up to him.
"Marla you're messing up the test shot!" He yelled motioning her away.
"Forget about that! You have to understand! I was a little drunk and a lot desperate! I never expected it was real! It was Wayne's idea and I thought he was joking! Said we could ask a favor and when it was granted we would finally be rich and famous!" Marla continued franticly.
"Wait! When were you and Wayne? What favor from whom? Marla I really don't…"
"There's no more time we have to leave now! It's Nebiros! He's real and he's going to kill us all!"
"What the hell is a Neb…" Dan began to say before Marla screamed at the dark shadow that suddenly appeared from above them. Dan looked up just in time to be driven to the ground by the large monster that landed on him. The monster looked around the set and smiled.
"Did one of you little pastries ring the dinner bell cause it's… FEEDIN' TIME!"
To be concluded…
