​Happy day after Black Friday. It is my hope that none of you had to experience lining up in front of a Walmart before the super sale began. A brain concussion and severe blood loss is not worth a 50-inch flat-screen television. I don’t even know what the latest hot Christmas commodity worth killing yourselves is.  Oh, yeah, now I remember!  SON OF RAVAGE the first edition. The good news is that you don’t have line-up early on Black Friday at Walmart. You can just as easily get up early and order it online…from Walmart! I’m not sure why there is no picture of the book, but here is the proof. If you need something to brawl about, why not that?

​And now, return with me to the thrilling writing adventures of yesteryear.  Here is this week’s blog, The Mystery of the Cape Cod Treatment, Part 1.
 
Okay, the year was 1986 and I was hot off the success of my first option, “The Touristers.” The world was my oyster. I was a movie writer, had representation with the prestigious east coast literary agency, Manhattan Artists. My agent, a gentleman by the name of Russ Kiester, (nice name change, eh?) was on the case. My star was most definitely on the rise.
 
Apparently, my script had been making the rounds in New York where it stumbled into the hands of a producer who owned the rights to the Asey Mayo murder Mysteries. She had secured the rights to the first book, “The Mystery at the Cape Cod Tavern” as a starring vehicle for her friend, star, and mother to Mia Farrow, Maureen O’ Sullivan. The producer, after reading my original screenplay, “The Touristers,” had decided that I was just the writer to bring these sophisticated and distinct New England characters to the big screen. Who was I to disagree?

Now, it is very important to keep in mind, I doubt I had even read a 30’s Agatha Christie type mystery, let alone seen a film treatment of one. Oh, I had read Sherlock Holmes and, as far as 30’s fiction, had immersed myself thoroughly in the hijinks of the Nazi sympathizer P.G Wodehouse. But, in all honesty, I had never heard of Asey Mayo. I was, however, familiar with this old Hollywood actor adage, if you’re auditioning for a cowboy and a producer asks you if ride a horse, you say you ride a horse. I thought it was the same for writing. I never knew how wrong I could be. 
 
To whet your appetite and to prove this literary property really does exist, here is the Wikipedia entry for Phoebe Atwood Taylor’s, “The Mystery of the Cape Cod Tavern.” 
 
Eve Prence is the glamorous and publicity-seeking owner of the famous Cape Cod Tavern, and uses her publicity to keep the Tavern filled with famous and/or wealthy guests. She has a house-full the night she's found at the bottom of the grand staircase, claiming somebody had tried to kill her. The following day, she is found with a knife in her ribs. Asey Mayo, the Codfish Sherlock, must work out the meaning of clues like a pair of antique pistols that contain a pair of antique daggers, and what exactly the blind boy on the scene of the crime heard, and a pair of dirty indentations on a windowsill before bringing home the crime to a surprising figure.
 
Well, we’ve now established that the stakes are high, the movie star is real, and this writer clearly does not know what he is doing. Sounds like great story elements for the next blog.

​The holiday season is officially here and what better way to celebrate than gathering the entire family around the hearth and reading from J.P. Linde’s epic adventure, SON OF RAVAGE. Available at Amazon and Independent Book Stores everywhere, ring out the same lame old adventure stories and celebrate the new with Barry and his friends, Doc, Brain, Face and Beast. There are only 32 days until Christmas, so consider yourself warned.
 
How is that for selfless promotion? Just remember, purchasing your copy ensures that jplinde.com remains opens for business. 
 
After struggling to find a suitable subject for this week before Thanksgiving, I thought I would settle on catching up on some odds and ends. 
 
Books: Just finished James Baldwins excellent 1956 novel “Giovanni’s Room” and am now moving on to “Station 11” by Emily St. John Mandel. I will keep you posted on the latter. But,if you love traveling bands of Shakespearean actors in an apocalyptic world, you will love this! There is so much good television out there, I don’t know where to start. I have to say that I came to “Fleabag” late in the game but think it is two seasons of the best series on television. We got final season of “The Good Place,” along with “Riverdale,” “Jack Ryan,” Season 2, “The Deuce” Season Three, “The Kominski Method,” “The Crown,” and list goes on and on, and on…  We may never get caught up. Favorite movies so far this year, is “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” “Captain Marvel” and “Booksmart.” I know. I know.  I have not seen “The Joker” yet but will shortly. I promise. Least favorite eh, uh, it is all such a blur, but going with “Late Night” just because.

Oh, along with “WTF with Mark Maron,” I have a few new favorite podcasts that I listen to. “My Favorite Murder” hosted by hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. How can you not love a podcast where their catchphrase is “Stay sexy and don’t get murdered.” True crime has never been so much fun.  The other podcast is “You Must Remember This, hosted by Karina Longworth. Karina’s bag is true stories from the golden days of Hollywood and her podcasts are truly addictive. Finally, the mighty podcast that could, “Stop Me if You’ve Heard This,” with Pacific Northwest comedy legends Susan Rice and Art Krug. Join them for their tales from their years on the road and their fantastic interviews with comedian guests such as Brad Upton, Geoff Young, Tom McTigue, Cathy Ladman, Dwight Slade, and on and on and on. Oh, and don’t forget me. Great stuff! 
 
Along with the sequel to Barry and his friends, have several writing projects in the pipe. I should be able to share one or two of them with you very shortly. Due to severe winds, PG&E is cutting the power again for all of us lucky enough to live in Sonoma County. By the time this is up, the threat of fire will be over. Just hoping that everyone gets through it. Who said there is no climate change? Oh, yeah, right, the oil, coat industries and most of the new Republican Party.
 
Don’t be afraid to leave a comment or thought or question on the site. We welcome all. Even climate deniers. The only unwelcome guests are the mysterious Russian bots that only seem to be interested in erectile dysfunction.

​Have a great week!  

​Welcome back!
 
Trust you are all having a lovely Fall. To tell the truth, reliving the whole Wiley Bowman escapade on jplinde.com nearly took it all out of me. Luckily, a nice writing check came in and I feel a little bit better about this whole writing thing.
 
With that in mind, I think it’s high time we celebrate and clear our little blog pallet of Willy Bowman with one of my signature top five lists. What do you say? You up for it? Great. Then let’s get started.
 
Top Five Hair Products for Thinning and Receding Hair. And, here we go…
 
Eh, maybe I should pick something a little closer to our theme here at jplinde.com. Did you know that we had a theme? I am just not entirely sure of what it is but… Okay, here we go.

Top Five Hairstyles for the late Peter Lawford. 

Okay, it's not that great a list. Besides, I think there were only two hairstyles for the part time actor and crime scene spoiler (with or without cigarette).

Okay, here we go, I think I got it. TOP JAMES BOND MOVIE GUN BARRELS.
 
5. Believe it or not, the worst gun barrel sequences were by one of my favorite Bonds, Sean Connery. Connery took control of the sequence starting in “Thunderball” and finished up with “Diamonds are Forever.” It may even be the same sequence used for all three films. In my mind, the wobbly back leg spoils it.

​3. Roger Moore (suit only). I enjoy the early Roger Moore gun barrels before he decided to change into a dinner jacket. It is a shame that he never really fired the gun in either sequence as the actor had a habit of closing his eyes whenever he pulled the trigger.

​2. Daniel Craig. Always the bad ass. From “Casino Royale” to “Spectre,” Craig has delivered a consistent gun barrel that oozed both confidence and a familiarity with his weapon. The best of the lot is his first in the pre title sequence of Casino.
 

​Drumroll please. And the number one gun barrel sequence, from an Eon Production of a James Bond movie, goes to George Lazenby in “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service!  Mixing it up a bit by going down on one knee, this oft belittled Bond not only happens to appear in the best movie of the entire series but executes the signature sequence with both bravado and swagger, two trademarks of a perfect Bond.

​Okay, I think our collective pallets have been cleansed. We will be back in the coming weeks with some new news, interviews and maybe even a list or two. I am currently working on a beauty, Top 3 “Pitch Perfect” movies and why. Can’t wait.
 

​Did I mention that Wiley’s rewrite of “Baja Adventure” (previously known as “The Touristers,”) sucked balls? What was once a comedy about mismatched tourists on a RV excursion to Baja had now become a dark thriller about drug running. At least all the legal advice I was receiving was consistent. With Wiley Bowman at the helm, “Baja Adventure” would never get made. Just wait out your option and the property will once again revert back to you.

The concert promotor who had agreed to raise production funds proved to be quite the con herself. In doing a bit of research, I found that her company had a profile on a website known as “The Rip-Off Report.” Seems some investor had not been paid back and was suing in court. So much for the dream investor. Like rats deserting a sinking ship, the rest of the crew and cast departed, leaving Wiley alone with his project. Before he could quit, Wiley fired the director and announced that he would be helming the picture himself.

After the extremely painful wait of two additional years for the terms of the option to expire, I sent a registered letter to Wiley informing him that I was reclaiming ownership of my work and that was that. Seems easy enough, right? Not so fast, little buckaroos. Wiley was incensed and was not going down without a fight. Mr. Bowman immediately filed Writer’s Guild paperwork along with submitting a copyright application over the material. Luckily, I had a copyright predating his by over twenty years. Wiley’s legal argument was my copyright was for what I had written all those years ago. Again, I went to the the lawyers and again they answered, he will never get any movie, let alone mine, made. Bullshit! I was not having it. This was my material and I would protect it with my dying breath.

​Here are some little-known facts to consider before I continue. Did you know that a copyright is just a piece of paper and if someone does infringe on your work, it can still be challenged? As I was told, you’d probably win but how much is it going to cost you? Something else to consider, the office of copyrights can only do so much. It did not help Wiley’s case when he refused to answer the copyright’s questions regarding his claim to own previously copyrighted material. Still when it was announced on GoFundMe that Wiley was seeking funds for “Baja Adventure” the emptiness in the pit of my stomach returned. Was this ever going to end? I began to doubt it. To my relief, not one person donated a dime to Wiley’s directorial debut.
 

Hollywood memory is relatively short. Years have passed since the saga of Wiley Bowman concluded. The industry stink that was once so associated with the project has finally faded. I have made a film and rewritten others. I continue to get work in the film industry and have learned to never sign anything without first consulting a lawyer. And still the question remains, if my version of “The Touristers” ever gets made, will Wiley magically reappear and demand payment? Looking on the bright side, the whole shit show made me a smarter.
 
“On March 12th, trial was held in Department 98, Superior Court of the State of California, in and for the County of Los Angeles. In a moment the results of that trial.”
 
Just wishful thinking on my part. But I would’ve loved to post a picture of Wiley Bowman along with the above “Dragnet” narration. 
 
Before we say goodbye, I think it is only fitting that I feature a direct quote from Wiley Bowman’s LinkedIn profile: 
 
“Available for your casting needs, for small or big budget films, short film, music video and more. You can count on us to read the screenplay and make a breakdown that fits. Then we will per screen actors and actress for the lead and supporting roles and we have the right connection to proved extra for your project as well.”
 
I think the above speaks for itself. At any rate, I am glad he still keeps a toe in the business. Oh, by the way, besides being a movie producer and director, Wiley is also a photographer. 
​
A comedian, a fashion photographer and sells real estate. 
 
Looking forward to seeing you all next week. 

​Seems like it was only yesterday when I announced that I’d be taking a break for a couple of weeks. Well, I’m back. Had a wonderful time collaborating with Top Knot Films. It was a lot of work and I can’t wait to tell you all about it.

 
A lot has happened over the last two weeks and I wanted to make sure I sent out a special THANK YOU to all of the brave men and women of CAL FIRE, working tirelessly in both South CA and here to keep property and people safe. We came extremely close to losing the Linde Hacienda and we are very grateful for those who risked their lives to save our little neighborhood

​In the meantime, sit back and relax and I will regale you with another installment from the fucked-up saga of Wiley Bowman.
 
Although we never signed a formal contract, Wiley and I had our signatures firmly affixed to a deal memo that promised me the world if “The Touristers” ever got off the ground. A meeting in Beverly Hills Talent Agency was on the books and I immediately loaded up the car for the thousand-mile drive to Los Angeles. I arrived the very next day at the prestigious Beverly Hills Agency 13th floor lobby. Waiting in the lobby was everyone ever associated with Wiley and the project. Not only were the director and the cinematographer present, but the ENTIRE crew was waiting in the small reception area. What the fuck is going on, I asked myself as we were led into the conference room. Wiley was late and, for the first time, I suspected that I was not the only one in the room being conned. When Wiley did show up, he was met by the agent and the rest of us with cold, icy stares. The director and I quietly excused ourselves and we left, leaving Wiley alone to explain himself.

(The Touristers Budget)

​​It’s a remarkable feeling being conned. You want so much to believe that you managed to a script in development that you repeatedly ignore the warning signs. Well, this warning sign was just too big to ignore. I confronted Wiley and he was surprisingly apologetic. “I’m just so proud of the work of all of you,” he attempted to explain contritely. But I was not having it and was now officially biding my time until the option would be over.
 
Sensing I was about to move on, Wiley was very insistent on getting my signature on a more formal agreement. I was reticent, having just undergone the ordeal of the Beverly Hills Agency. We were at loggerheads. Enter a concert producer from Texas and the promise of funding. She looked like she knew what she was doing, had some experience in promotion and motion pictures and was currently promoting concerts in large to midsize venues in Texas. She was smart, intuitive and very anxious. Wiley insisted that we would have the money within the next few weeks, but I had to have my signature on a more formal option agreement. At one point, he even said, I can’t pay you until you sign. What can I say, friends, I signed. 

(A cast member's deal memo)

​As an extra added bonus, along with my signed copy of the contract, I received Wiley’s complete rewrite of the entire script. The title of the project had transformed seemingly overnight to “Baja Adventure,” and Wiley had given himself full writing credit. The script had been turned from a 100-page comedy to a drug-running thriller. I had been had and was now trapped in a 2-year option agreement with a man I could no longer trust.
 
The final installment next week.