The Kid Stays in the Picture

Think you go through a  lot to get your dream projects to work?  Have a look at the story of Robert Evans, one of most successful (and flamboyant and notorious) movie producers ever.

Last night I watched the documentary version of his bio, titled The Kid Stays in the Picture. 

This guy whose credits, as producer or head of Paramount, include The Godfather, Rosemary's Baby, Love Story, True Grit, The Odd Couple, and Chinatown from the first chunk of his career.   Getting these movies made seemed always an epic career struggle, full of lots of near-death experiences.     Then he ran into some legal trouble, cocaine trouble, scandals, and bad press; got fired; spent about five years when the industry he'd been on top of largely avoided his phone calls.  

Hollywood.com nicely sums up his career to date: "A 1970s player, a 1980s flameout, and a 1990s survivor."  

After he got back into the game, his projects include The Out-of-Towners, Sliver, How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days. 

Toward the end of the movie, a TV camera comes in close on his tired, unsmiling aging eyes.  The interviewer asks if it has been worth it.  It has been worth it, he says:  "I love what I do." 

 

[youtube D1bQ6MTzWsM no llink]

 

Categories: enhancing creativity

Tags: career struggles, dream project, Robert Evans, The Kid Stays in the Picture