A year ago, Beat the Devils author Josh Weiss introduced the world to Morris Baker, a Los Angeles A police detective lives in a parallel history 20 of Joseph McCarthy’s presidency. All sorts of things got worse under McCarthy, with hatred and bigotry at the forefront of America. Now the book has spawned a sequel that dives even more into imagined Hollywood.
Sunset Empire Arrived Tuesday and found mo Morris Baker lives as a private eye, trying to solve missing persons cases as the Korean War intensifies. missing person? Henry Kissinger.
Morris Baker is a personal character of Wes, who is loosely based on his late Holocaust survivor grandfather.
“While Morris Baker’s world takes place in an alternate timeline, the central point is how blind hatred persists through an endless loop that we as a species seem destined to repeat until the end of time. end,” Weiss said.
Weiss, an entertainment reporter by day, has written for The Hollywood Reporter, and spends evenings and weekends writing manuscripts1, 000 One word at a time. He submitted the first draft three months before Beat the Devils hit the market, and was able to incorporate reader feedback from the first adventure into the second.
“This ended up being very helpful because when I started digging into Book 2, Beat The Devils edit was on the market and I could gauge what readers liked and disliked about Maurice Baker’s first adventure (in some cases, really Dislike ),” says Weiss, who remains positive about any harsh feedback he receives — though he advises first-time authors not to Google themselves too much.
Exclusive excerpt from Sunset Empire*), Baker meets Darryl F. Zanuck at a porn set in the San Fernando Valley. In real life, Zanuck is the legendary co-founder of 20th Person Century Pictures. In this alternate timeline, he’s fired from that job because his last name sounds Jewish (he’s actually Protestant). He now runs an underground adult film studio…one of his production assistants was a young Steven Spielberg.
This is something Weiss sets up in the first book, when it’s revealed that Jewish filmmakers were run out of Hollywood during McCarthy’s presidency.
The outcast filmmakers don’t just give up on their dreams – they just move on to another form of cinema and continue to push the boundaries of cinema, even if it means making X “The idea of unregulated porn ‘flicks’ becoming more respected than mainstream releases is too good to ignore, and it’s nice to imagine undiscovered underground porn during Hollywood’s golden age.” Obscene details of studio operations. We compare this period to prestige dramas like 20 Angry Men and groundbreaking like this The TV show is linked to Borderlands . What if those venerable projects had been accomplished under very different circumstances? ”
Read on for Sunset Empire, from Grand Central Publishing.
“ mean ending? ” Rod yelled, and Herb rolled his eyes, as if to say, Here we go again.
“Rod,” he began, “I just wanted to—”
“We’re going to shoot both ways! This was the third gentleman who had just appeared beside Baker. He had stern, penetrating eyes and a very handsomely trimmed mustache, the ends of which did not quite meet among the men. The newcomer, though stern in tone, But with a kind smile on his face, it seems to imply that he has broken up like this many times before.
“ What? ” Herb stammered.
“As I said,” replied a third man, who could only be Darryl Zanuck. shoot. Your way then Rhodes’ way. We’ll see which works better in post. “
“Darryl,” said Herb, looking surprised. Rhodes, on the other hand, looked ecstatic. “You can’t be serious.” Do you know how much that costs—? “
“You’re worrying me,” Zanuck said, walking over and patting Herb on the shoulder. “Let’s get this show going.” We burn the sun here. “
“Fine,” said an angry Herb. “Okay, everyone!” ’ he yelled at the cameraman and microphone operator, who chatted and smoked casually during the brawl. Apparently, they too were used to Rod and Herb bickering. “We’ll be rolling in ten.” Someone please remove Midge’s make-up. Randy, please pay attention. We’ll discuss your monologue again.
Baker watches as a pudgy actor walks on set in a battered oversized suit and funny owl glasses. The crew with the fake mustache palette runs away Come here and start gluing a thin prosthetic onto Randy’s upper lip.
“Kids. I’m dealing with kids,” Darryl whispered back to him. “You must be Morris Baker. “
“Where’s Debbie?” “
“I left her in my office. Thought her heartache was enough for one day. Would you like a cup of coffee? “
“No, thanks, I’m—”
“Nonsense. Have a cup of coffee with me. Steven!
A boy of about thirteen came running up. “Yes, Mr. Zanuck?” He asked eagerly.
“Steven, can you get me and Mr. Baker two cups of coffee?” Give me four parts cream and three parts sugar. Morris, how do you drink your coffee? “
“With a little cream and no sugar.” “
“You heard the man, Steven. Now you are gone. “
The boy gave half a salute and ran into the house.
“Do you think it’s wise to have a baby on a set like this? ? Baker asked. Darryl smiled and said, “I don’t have much choice, do I?” That kid somehow got a grip on our shaky shooting schedule and sneaked onto the set one day. It took me over a week or so to notice that he didn’t belong! Steven is resourceful and holds his own like a grown man. Came all the way from Phoenix. ”
“Where are his parents?” Don’t they miss him? “
“It’s better not to miss his parents.” Divorce and estrangement. As Steven said, they were almost catatonic. Unable to handle the pressures of life under McCarthy, he collapsed. From what I’ve heard through the grapevine, this is happening more and more. It was impossible for a boy to grow up. Steven most wanted to be a filmmaker. Why should I reject him? ”
“Pornography writer, you mean. “
“Did you see a little photo of us recently? ”
Baker didn’t answer, Darryl thought it was a resounding “Yes! ”
“No need to be ashamed, Morris. No need to be ashamed at all. Yes, we make naughty movies, there’s no two ways. But I can assure you that we are more creative than ever. Not bound by the MPAA, not bound by the Hays Code, not bound by any bullshit guidelines that the UAP has been following for the past five years. Do we need some clear content to sell our product? certainly. Otherwise no theater would dare to show it. But that’s only a small part of what we do. this. . “
He pointed to the dreary backyard, like a carnival barker trying to attract paying customers on a slow night, “It’s the First Amendment at work . Freedom of expression in its purest form!
Baker laughs. Zanuck’s enthusiasm for the creative continuation of the industry reminds him of an unlucky screenwriter. “You don’t happen to know Dalton Trumbo, do you?” “
“know him? said Zanuck. “I respect him!” That man has the steel to stay in Hollywood after most of us have already quit. Sure, I could have stuck with it, but what’s the point? Ah, thank you, Steven. The boy came back with his coffee. “Why don’t you go and see if Rhodes needs anything.” He could fill an entire gallery with his pain. “
“Yes, Mr. Zanuck! Steven ran off again.
Darryl took a sip of his coffee and smacked his lips contentedly. “The kid gets my order right every time.” ”
“What do you mean, you could have stayed in this business?” Baker asked, taking a sip of hot coffee, accidentally burning his tongue. “Your name, Zanuck.” Isn’t it. . . well, jews? “
“You would think so, wouldn’t you?” Darryl blinked knowingly. “No, I’m a Protestant, but I can tell you that when I first started in this business, pretty much everyone in town thought I was Hebe.” Every country and social club I applied to was rejected. “
“Then why were you kicked out by McCarthy?” “
“HUAC made the same mistake as you. They saw my name and thought I was a member of the tribe. They really don’t care about details. Anyway, I don’t want to work for them. No, I always prefer to call my own shots. “
They stood silently for a moment. “Have you ever heard of a picture called Gentlemen’s Agreement? Say Zanuck. Baker shook his head. “Of course you didn’t,” he said. “McCarthy probably destroyed all the prints when he took over.” Ironically, it was directed by Elia Kazan, the head of the UAP. I won’t bore you with too many plot details, but it’s about a reporter who goes undercover as a Jew to expose anti-Semitism in America. “
“Did they actually make a movie like that?” “
“Why, of course. If you can believe it, several of your relatives – mind you, very influential people – tried to stop me from taking that damn picture. They thought it might cause trouble for the Hebers here. This is two years after we learned what the Krauts were doing in their camp. To show how fucked we are as a country. McCarthy didn’t invent the current system, but he did find a way to make it available to everyone. Anyway, after ol’ Joe took office, the experience of making agentlemen’s agreement came back to my mind. I realized that if Jews are not even willing to stand up for themselves, then there is no hope for the rest of us. ”
They stood quietly again, sipping coffee, watching Randy rehearse a scene that required him to be on the porch of a bombed-out sex shop Petting a pile of nude magazines.
“Poor Elizabeth,” Zanuck said. “I’m sorry, Morris, when you just wanted to deliver news about this horrific murder I’ve been bothering you. walk with me. The producer led him to the pool, which was inundated with leaves. “I was devastated to hear from Debbie. Elizabeth Short is like family to us, and from what Debbie told me, you have a history with her too. “
coffee in his styrofoam cup. He suddenly found his throat constricted by bereavement. Leeds was hard to tell, but Zanuck was reasonable The look on his face made him feel like he could admit to anything at the moment.
. . We’ve been dating for a while,” Baker added.
“I see. Hey, now—it’s okay, son. It’s okay.”
Baker finally broke down in tears, Grief cuts through the phenobarbital haze like an executioner’s axe.
“I should make sure she’s okay,” Baker said, still not looking at Zanuck. “I should check her out. It’s my responsibility, I know.”
“You can’t think in those terms,” Zanuck said. “You firmly blame yourself for every tragedy that crosses your path, and you dig a hole you can’t climb out of. Debbie told me you broke up with her about two years ago, right?” Baker nodded. “So what do you do? Elizabeth is a grown woman who can make her own decisions. You can’t hold her hand every step of the way.
“It’s a kind of way of looking at it.
“And then here’s another: I don’t believe Elizabeth would have joined our little troupe if she hadn’t been so sad and lonely after you called it quits.” I think you cutting the cord, so to speak, may have convinced her to give up her silly dream of working for UAP and start actually making money. “
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