Roll out the red carpet....

FLASH! Oh sorry, I...FLASH! FLASH! Darn paparazzi. Last fall I wrote here and here and here and here about my journey out of anonymity to superstardom. Alas, the road was hard with long hours, bad food and irritable art directors, set designers, focus puller, clapper loaders, key grips and best boys. At times my entourage was emotionally overwhelming.

Pardon me, I should not trouble you with the personal issues I face as a movie star. I shall not bloviate any longer and admit to you that yes - at long last I have seen my face in a movie. I saw the handsome, svelte young man that every girl swoons for and every guy is jealous of. Then, I saw myself next to him! Ha ha ha.



But seriously now - Into the Wild is out on DVD now, and you can see my mug on the big screen (or little screen if you're watching it on your iPod). I'm in the second scene (the college graduation). In the picture above which I snipped off of the web, you see the focus on William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden. Look over Marcia's shoulder and there is a big guy with his hands together in mid-clap. Next to him is a woman with glasses. Next to her is something that looks like a coconut. That's my head.

In the movie, the camera pans and then zooms on to William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden. You can see me clearly, I've got a white blazer on. Ooops, my cell phone is ringing....sorry, it's my agent - gotta run.

Autographs provided upon request.

Lights - Camera - ACTION! - Part Four

They're here, they're there, they're everywhere. It's difficult living this life. Just this morning as I was leaving for work in the pre-dawn I saw movement in the shadows, then like popcorn bursting out of it's microwave bag, the light of flashbulbs lit up the day.

Paparrazi. Those camera-wielding, arrogant, rude, prying, meddlesome miscreants - oh, the price my neighbors pay. Not me, it's all part of the daily ritual now. But it does make me feel bad for my neighbors, friends and co-workers. Like mosquitoes to blood, I cannot get away from them. Pushing, shoving, shushing and non-loving I elbowed my way through the crowd to my awaiting limo. Settling and sighing into the plush heated leather seats, my driver greeted me with a Starbucks venti no whip non fat extra hot raspberry mocha and off we went to a day in the life of a movie star.

Today's agenda included shopping for a new home befitting my status. We drove down to a posh suburb of Portland, Lake Oswego where many affluent people reside. As we looked, I became more and more discouraged looking at their piddly little houses. 20,000 square feet, 5 car garage, 9 bathrooms, separate living quarters for the cook, maid and gardner, olympic size pool and a full basketball court? Puuuuleaaaze, boring houses perched on the lake not worthy of my residence. My neighbor Ron who is the best broker in the Pacific Northwest assisted me in securing a 35,000 square foot starter home in Bend, Oregon which will do for now. I bought a commuter jet to wisk me to exotic destinations, such as my winter home in Aruba. Well, let me continue with my day of filming.

Quiet on the set

I expected to hear those words, but there was a different chain of commands that led to the actual filming. Decked out with my college graduation audience member duds, we headed out to the set. Rows of chairs were arranged to face a platform set up to be a commencement area. Probably 150 graduates were seated, and there were some extras that were faculty up on the platform. An A.D. (assistant director, of which there seemed to be about half a dozen) waded through the audience with a bucket, handing out old beat up cameras without film but with fresh batteries so we could take pictures of our 'loved ones'.

Once we were arranged, the filming began. There seems to be a hierarchy with directors. Sean Penn is THE director, then there was a guy who seemed to be the second in the chain, and then as mentioned above some underlings. I'll call the second guy "Number Two". The actual filming took place like this:

1. "Roll Sound" - this was my favorite command. Number Two would shout 'roll sound' and then on the perimeter of the set (which was quite large because of the size of the commencement) underlings would echo from different positions, each with their own inflections - "ROooooOLLING sound", "roll sound", ROLLING SOUND, etc. It was cool.
2. "Background Action" - self explanatory, this was the cue for not the main action, but anything happening in support of the main action. Let's say that there was a couple of people who were to be walking across the back of the set just before the main action would begin. Background action would trigger them so that anything in the background would be natural and not starting at the same time as the main action.
3. "Action" - this was it, when everything happened. My part was a non-speaking part (surprise!) in which I merely smiled, acted natural (this was difficult for me on several levels) and waved and took pictures of my "niece" who was graduating (Jessica, I thought of you and you only have about 15 - 17 more years before you'll be walking across the stage).

Practice Makes Perfect

So for my day of filming I got $90.00 (for 12 hours of work). That included two hours of overtime. They gave out envelopes with $75.00 cash, then two more envelopes with $7.50 in cash. I am going to frame the four quarters as the first dollar I ever made in show biz. For the 12 hours of work, probably 4 hours were 'wasted' time doing nothing. When we were on the set filming a scene, filming the scene again, filming the scene again, filming the scene again - we must have done one scene (graduates throwing their caps into the air) 12 times (I swear I'm not making that up). I'm guessing that for 8 hours of actually being on the set, approximately 15 - 17 minutes of that will actually be in the movie.

You CAN Have Your Cake and Eat it Too

My wonderful colleague Claudia who sits in the cube next to me also was involved in the movie! They shot some of it in a house down the street from her, and gave her $500.00 to rent her driveway for four days to park some equipment in. One day, as filming ended they brought a big sheet cake over and asked if she wanted it. It was a birthday cake prop in the movie, a real cake! Claudia brought it in the next morning and said OK, now I've got a prop from the movie. How do you like them apples? I responded and said "the bar is set - are you in the movie?"? "No, but I have a cake". I responded again, "are you in the movie?" "No, but I have a cake that was in the movie.". We bantered like this for about 3 hours (well, maybe 15 minutes) and acknowledged that we both had a part (although I'll be in the movie!) in the film.

I Talked To a Movie Star

At one point during the lunch break I was walking over to some friends I had made and hung out with. I realized Sean Penn was walking toward me, and at our trajectory and pace he would pass behind me. Suddenly, he changed direction and he and I would intersect. It was kind of surreal, but I just said "hey, how's it going". He responded in like, and that was the end of our conversation. But I talked to a movie star.

The Best Part

At lunch, looking for a place to sit I saw a middle age guy (uh, like me I suppose!) sitting on some steps. He invited me up and as we ate we started conversing. It turned out that his wife had died four months ago during an epileptic seizure. Being an epileptic myself, I was able to project true empathy. As we spoke I felt that I should offer to pray for him. I asked if he would be open to a quick prayer, and he replied sure. I asked God to bring him peace, and to heal the hurt that was evident. Both he and I were moved. Who knows, although fame was stalking me perhaps this was the purpose that I ended up there, to bring first hand experience and comfort to a guy who clearly needed it.

Star Status at Home

Well, as I conclude these updates and launch into my new found fame I have to acknowledge the huge role that Sherry plays. Again, her encouragement and unflagging support have been a huge help in my transition from everyday office worker with my soul being sucked out by the system to a superstar in a constellation of star status compatriots.

Yes, I may be the star in the household - but Sherry is the heavens.

Lights - Camera - ACTION! - Part Three

October 7, 2006. At 49 years of age I report to my first movie set. I try to appear nonchalant as I'm surrounded by a horde of hopefuls who secretly wish that they could be me. Little Davey Mundt, of humble beginnings, stepping on the first rung of the ladder to Hollywood.

The day started early as I was instructed to report at 7:00 AM. Not as early as some though, to stagger the check in process some people had been told to report at 4:00 AM. Yes, in the morning. One lady whom I fear had to many morning Mimosas that accelerated her star worship had brought a picture to give to Sean Penn. I was expecting maybe a picture of Portland or something like that, but it was of a guy with his head in his hands. Literally. His head had been severed from his body. I didn't get it then, I don't get it now.

Wardrobe

A bus transported us from Fred Meyer Corporate Headquarters to Reed College for our start time. In the instructions they had asked that both men and women not have facial piercings, non-natural hair colors and that women have clean, dry hair in rollers. No kidding. Although most of them didn't, there were enough rollers around that in the pre-dawn hour when I arrived it looked like Night of the Living Dead meets Cosmetology Schoolgirls Gone Wild. How bizarre.

We were taken to the campus and got in line for wardrobe. They gave me back the clothes that I had left with them for the wardrobe appointment, and guided us out to changing tents. The California production company must have assumed that morning chill would overcome us as they had portable heaters blowing into the tent and I think it was about 80 degrees. There were several men who were cast as faculty members, and it was hilarious to watch them struggle with the robes -"can you zip me up"? Heh heh heh.

The Zoo

After wardrobe we were herded like cattle into an auditorium. Because the scene was a college graduation there were about 600 people that showed up. A guy came to the front and gave us a few pointers about the day that went something like this:

1. "We'll go over to the set in approximately an hour and a half. Please be patient and try to have a good time."
2. "Please do not approach the main actors. They are generally friendly but let them, if they desire; approach you first."
3. "There will be a lot of waiting today. Be aware that long periods of time may go by as the set is being changed."
4. "Always follow the A.D.'s (assistant director) instructions.

Then we sat. And sat. And sat some more.

Makeup

I had decided to eschew makeup as my natural good looks have taken me far in life, but because I became bored I thought why not do the whole enchilada. I reported to makeup and the first question they asked was would I be willing to shave my beard (I had about 2 weeks scraggly growth). Sure, no problem - except the shaving station had some little styrofoam bowls, bottled water, cheap Barbasol shaving cream and even cheaper disposable razors. I thought I was going to rip the skin off of my face. It took four of those cheap razors to get me to a satisfactory stubble, baby soft smooth was out of the question.

I then entered a corridor with 10-12 makeup stations lining the walls. Just like you would expect, mirrors with the light bulbs all around them. A really nice makeup artist looked at me and sighed, how could she improve on perfection? Well, she got some of those little wedgie makeup sponges and dabbed stuff on my forehead and nose and then smoothed it out. I mentioned that the cheap razors had really irritated my face and did she have any lotion? Oh yeah, she put some awesome stuff on my cheeks and neck that really helped.

Now, I was ready for filming - whooops, my agent's on the line, I'll have to finish this post later...

Lights - Camera - ACTION! - Part Two

As actors are wont to do, comes a point in every film where we report to wardrobe. Heeding the call that was on our voicemail, I hearkened to the designated location. Because my scene is a college graduation, I was to bring 3 changes of clothes that would be suitable for a family member/friend in the audience.

I brought 3 sportcoats, 1 pair of slacks (I had set out 2 others but forgot them), and four dress shirts. I purposely neglected to bring a tie because I assumed they would have sufficient stock to fit the genre and era of the scene, and luckily I was correct. I was attended to by 2 very nice ladies. They poked around with my clothes, held up certain items to me and had me try on my selection of sportcoats. One of the ladies said "I think this is a Polo shirt guy". Certainly a reflection of my upscale demeanor, I replied that was fine with me. She pulled a purple Polo off of a rack jammed with clothes and pronounced it appropriate. I put on my slacks, the Polo, my sportcoat and presented myself.

Now I should admit that I am not immune to being checked out by the girls, but even I was a bit unnerved as there roving eyes scrutinized me from top to bottom. They asked where my shoes were (I had just worn shorts, running shoes and white ankle length socks) and I said that I had brown and black dress shoes at home. They doubted me, asked my shoe size and pulled from a big box of shoes an old beat up pair of men's dress shoes, grabbed a pair of black socks and instructed me to put them on. Having done so, we adjourned into the next room where the Boss was. She was probably in her mid-fifties, and I could tell from the nicotine stained fingers, anorexic figure and fashionable haircut that she was a pro. But then, so was I! I relaxed as I realized we had a lot in common - working with the stars, knowing how the inside works, making little jokes at things only we would understand. After more scrutiny, she pronounced me approved. They took a picture of me, then took my clothes and the loaner shoes and socks, tagged and bagged them and hung them on the rack.

Ah! The life of an actor. I see myself walking the red carpet at the Oscars, holding back tears as I give a nod to Nicholson and a slight wave to Clint Eastwood. Gentle reader, know that it's scary being an insider! I begin my speech:

"I'd like to thank the members of the Screen Actor's Guild for rescuing me from a life of mediocrity to to the mountain of masterpieces. And on that mountain I stand on the shoulders of giants - the men and women of the film trade that seduced me into stardom, who supported me through the mean years and the lean years. Your encouragement has transformed the man who now stands before you from obscurity to prosperity, from meaningless to meaningful, from boring to soaring - - - I am Dave Mundt"

As if they were one, the acamedy springs to their feet. Roaring out their approval, cheering and waving to see me acknowledge them, the people who put me here are now my puppets. I am a benign puppeteer though - my machinations are not malignant, but executed in such a way that stardom will never go to my head.

Humbly then, I bid you farewell as my next post I prepare.

Lights - Camera - ACTION! - Part One

It's difficult being in the position I find myself. You see, I'm standing on a precipice - my life is branching into a new direction that I did not anticipate, but is now accelerating with a dizzying pace. As I approach the brink, I'm reminded of great people of history and how their risk taking led to the unimagined heights that I too ascend to.

You see, I am a humble man, born into a middle class family and living what could be considered a mundane but pleasant life. Not that is stated in a pejorative way, only to illustrate that life has only been punctuated briefly by flashes of brilliance like midwest lightning preceding a downpour. Now I found that the downpour is beginning - not of rain, but of fame. In my humility, I am somewhat awed by this fame. Surely I did not ask for this fame. Fame found me. I fear that stardom has been stalking me, and as a rudder steers a mighty ship, as a bit in the mouth of the horse shapes the journey, as stealthily as a repo man in the dead of night - I am destined for greatness.

I'm going to be in a movie. Purely by chance (or was it fate?) I happened across an open casting call for an extra in a movie directed by Sean Penn. The movie, Into the Wild, is an adaptation of a real life story of a young privileged college graduate who walks away from his life, eventually leaving friends, eschewing culture and dying starving, alone, penniless and frozen in an abandoned school bus in Alaska. You can read more about it here.

I showed up with several hundred other people, aspiring actors and actresses all. I filled out an application, and was ushered in front of a polaroid camera where a snapshot would soon be stapled to the application. It was almost eerie - as the photographer got ready to take the picture, in her eyes and body language I could see the thoughts in her mind as easily as I type these words:

I'm looking at the Next Big Thing. Cruise is crazy, Eastwood is old, Nicholson moves to nothingness, Pitt is passe' - and standing before me is the Majestic Mister Mundt.

Well, I made the cut and was told I will be in the movie. Lest you begin to groan as my story starts, I assure you that this is no easy thing. Many decisions lie before me. A movie star is always before the camera. I must be ready, in season and out of season, to display my regal demeanor in a way that satiates my fan base. Oh, my fans! The hordes, the massing throngs of ordinary people seeking a nod, an autograph, a wave, a picture with me for the relatives - how I love them as they adore me!

More decisions are soon to be made - my agent, my lawyer, my entourage - the small circle that will accompany my greatness and hitch their wagons to my rising star. And central in this group - my wife Sherry. She never gave up believing me, as I studied my lines and practiced my parts her encouragement provide me with the inner fortitude I would need as popularity pursues me.

My scene is at a college where I'll play a family member witnessing the graduation. Supposedly set in Atlanta, Georgia the scene is being filmed at Reed College here in Portland. There is an interesting juxtaposition about Reed College - well known locally for the flagrant student body drug and acohol abuse that turns them into Karl Marx devotees. In a curious cold war juxtaposition, it's the only American college (to my knowledge) with a nuclear reactor on the campus. There's just something about stoned communist students skinny dipping in the cooling pond that's slightly unnerving.

Well, I digress. Welcome friends and join me on the journey as I continue to blog the miracle of my movie career.