Tell me what you want ...

[ScriptNurse]

Hi Donnie,

Firstly, you can create a post and attach a PDF to it that any registered user can view.  It's available as "Additional Options..." in the lower left of the screen next to a plus-sign ... or were you looking for something with a little more control? You might find some stuff in the "Showcase" forum.  If you'd like something different, let me know.

I was trained as a 72B at Ft Gordon, GQ, but on arrival at the 41st Signal Battalion, 1st Signal Brigade in Quin Nhon in December 1969 the Adjutant asked me if I'd be interested in doing legal work as I had an exceptionally high English score. I took a look around at photos of muddy hilltops with antennas poking above them and decided that working at battalion HQ was a better gig.  It was.  In a few months, I was promoted to NCOIC of the HQ where I was mostly secretary to the CO and XO. That remained until my return to the states. I was interviewed on two different occasions for White House duty, but was not accepted and the CIA interviewed me in Quin Nhon and I turned them down.

During my training at Ft Gordon, we learned how to operate a KL-7 cipher machine (among others), which was retired from service except some NATO allies still used it, so we all had to be trained on it anyway. The hot machine at that time was the KW-26 system. But, the KL-7 machine was a vastly improved rotor system very much like the WW II German Enigma machine. This sparked my interest in WW II codebreaking at Bletchley Park in England.  I've read mountains of books of the work that went on during that period and it has always fascinated me. I can't do it, of course, but the truth of that era far tops that of the fiction.

[Donnie Ray Clark]

Hello Donnelly,

How about a specific thread where screenwriters who want constructive feedback swap screenplays? I learned a lot reviewing screenplays over at Celtx (mostly how not to write) You could call the thread “I’ll show you mine if you’ll show me yours.”

By the way- We may have crossed paths in Vietnam. I was in the Army Security Agency (72B20D-1) top-secret crypto during ‘69 & ‘70.  Served my time at MACV Annex and Davis Station.

Donnie Ray

[ScriptNurse]

Remember that as the time allotted to create a believable character gets shorter, the necessity to resort to stereotypes becomes ever greater.

[robogabs]

Dear Don,
You are so very dear to all of us who've benefited from your mentoring, kindness, and great advice.
I love your contests. I notice WildSound has started a one page screenplay contest. They query if you can't tell a story in one page, how in the world will you tell a two-hour story? Does this sound like something for our people? I mean, everyone has the time for, and can write one page, can't they?

[ScriptNurse]

Al,

As always, a pleasure to read your missives. A little food for thought ... keeps you from getting fat.

[uncle_al]

Happy New Year, alla youse!

After some interesting times (in the sense of the ancient Chinese curse) over the holdays/solstice/Yule {take your pick}, I return to scan the horizons and espy what new has transpired in mine absence.
Sorry.  Too much Shakespeare.  Or is there such a thing?
Whatever...

With what has occurred, the field of fictive film seems to be more thoroughly harrowed and fertilized for us.  So, then, Brethren and Sistren, let us sow our ideas into this field, so we may reap the rewards of the materials we may fashion into our pieces of dreams.

Hmmm... not enough coffee?  Or too much Christmas music?

Al Bouchard

"Let's put the X back in X-mas!"

[ScriptNurse]

Al, you're very kind. I've had this site since 1999 in a number of forms ... and we seem to have found ourselves after going down the road a few miles, so to speak.

[uncle_al]

Hey, Don, and everyone else...

"Do...  or do not.  There is no try."  Yes, them's words to live by... just like "Never get involved in a land war in Asia," or "Never bet against a Sicilian when death is on the line!"

I've been mulling over, every so often, the title of this thread... and my response would probably have to be, "I don't think there's anything more I could want!"

That's one reason why I keep coming back.

Sometime again,

Al Bouchard

[ScriptNurse]

I don't think it much matters. What's important is to do ... not try, as Yoda put it.

[uncle_al]

I don't really ever get tired of hearing inspirational stories like that...

I make movies because I enjoy telling stories.  I write because I don't know how not to write.  I suppose there's a difference, but it may be too subtle for me to discern.

And, in addition, I draw, build models (which I then use as film targets), sculpt with clay, try to stay active in science fiction fandom (it's a long, detailed explanation... another time, maybe), build things, and try to keep all my computers running and/or rebuilt.

Then, of course, there's all the folderol one has to do when one is a homeowner, married, and the proud property of one psychotic and two neurotic cats.

I could be a candidate for one of those new 96-hour days...

I keep coming back.  Either I've got the determination I need to make it... or I'm just too bullheaded to quit.

I can't quite figure out which one.

Al Bouchard

[ScriptNurse]

That's very kind of you, Al.

As the line often goes, "This time it's personal."  For me, it's always been personal. There are so many things I want to do and the only limiting factors are (1) time and (2) money. I can't tell you how exciting it is to see someone else's vision get realized and I anxiously await the day when someone who frequents this site gets their first agent or, better still, their first sale. THAT's what it's all about, ultimately.

I'm often asked why I do this. Let me tell you a story:

In 1963 at age 14, a series came on ABC called "Your Funny, Funny Films" hosted by George Fenneman that aired viewers 8mm movies. My cousin and I decided to make a film for the show. That was the event that sparked my interest in filmmaking. We never completed our film in time to submit it, but the flame was lit.

A couple of years later, I was determined to learn how movies and TV shows were really made in a real studio. I wrote the producers and stars of several TV shows I liked, asking if I could visit the set and see the process first-hand. Kindly, the producers of "The John Forsythe Show" at Universal wrote back and made arrangements for me and two friends to visit the studio. Hollywood, long known as a fortress designed to keep people out, opened up this one day to three kids who just wanted to learn to make movies. On that day, I met director Earl Bellamy, whom I remained in touch with until his death a few years ago. He explained what they were doing as they shot each scene. John Forsythe took time out to explain some points about lighting. Earl sent us over to another stage where they were shooting "McHale's Navy" to watch them in action. Lunch at the studio commissary and another five hours had us heading home at 6 PM. I can clearly remember that wonderful experience to this day.

Thanks to a nice reference from Earl, I got my first job in the industry at age 19 at Paramount Pictures, fresh out of high school. Got it by showing up on their doorstep 9 days in a row, at his suggestion. I think they gave me the job to get rid of me. It was a wonderful experience working there. The filing repository had every memo, treatment, coverage and script ever written in the history of the studio -- some 8 million documents. I'm very good at filing to this day. This gave me the opportunity to see movies and TV shows in production. I used to hang out on the set of the original "Star Trek" and "MIssion: Impossible" series. It was quite a time at Paramount then. Nearly a dozen features were in production simultaneously and an equal number of TV shows. I especially liked watching Lucille Ball rehearse.

I was drafted into the Army in 1969 and did cryptographic (classified) work during my stay in Vietnam and return to the States. Interestingly, the closest civilian job description they could come up with to classify me was "movie producer." I learned later that apparently word got around and everyone always assumed I was rich, being a movie producer and all.

Earl Bellamy never hesitated to put in a good word for me on a number of occasions. I once told him that I owed him much and he said I owed him nothing ... except ... one day, I should help some else who needs help or guidance. I have never forgotten what he said and Script Nurse is one of the places I try and help out because it's the right thing to do.

So, that's why I do it ... and I love it.

[uncle_al]

I still have more "goodies" in the works, but these will take some time to get ready.

I've been watching the site evolve over time, and I must say, I'm impressed.

The level of involvement is thrilling, and the amount of information being amassed is nothing short of amazing.

You've got the potential of becoming a "one-stop shopping" venue for screenwriters!

Al Bouchard

[ScriptNurse]

The new site is now pretty much set. I still have more "goodies" in the works, but these will take some time to get ready.

This site is for you ... so tell me what you want to see MORE of and what you want to see LESS of. In other words, tell me how we can help you to write better and improve your screenwriting skills. Do we have too much focus on an area you don't care about or is there an area where you wish we had morre information? Tell me about it!