Adam Conquers Earth
By Chris James
Chapter Seven
With the audience finally gone, the boys hurried off to change clothes and Tim wandered over.
"Seems you got what you needed," He said.
"That's a relief, I know Mark is happy," Brian said.
"Kids are always flexible, but I was talking about you. I've seen the worry lines on your face. Or maybe it was that little incident last night. Tommy made his report."
"The mugger? That was just a small distraction. Tommy seems like a nice guy," Brian said.
"Very dedicated, he was headed in the wrong direction when I picked him up. Nice man, he handles some rough stuff," Tim said. "So ready to drop in on Daddy? We couldn't pick a better time."
"Works for me."
They were walking out to the limo when Mark suddenly appeared, running across the parking lot with Stevie on his tail. "Brian, wait up," He called.
"What, no school?" Brian asked.
"Yeah, well...we sorta drove Mr. Conyers nuts, too much excitement to settle down so he gave up."
"Class today was probably a bad idea anyway," Brian said, and he looked over at Stevie. "Where's your mom?"
"Won't be back until six, where you guys going?" Stevie asked.
"Up the road to the studio offices, I suppose she won't mind if you come along."
Tim nodded. "I bet Dad would like to meet them both."
"You're going to see the head of the studio?" Mark asked.
"Not the working head, just the money head," Tim laughed. "And who is this?"
Mark smiled. "Steven Biddle meet Tim Real, he's my babysitter."
Stevie gave Tim a smile that would melt butter. "Nice to meet you." And he held out his hand. Tim grinned and shook, gazing down at Stevie's adorable face. "You did a wonderful job in the show, Steve, I liked your performance."
Mark looked over at Brian and smiled, his look said it all...maybe?
Steve blushed, the man didn't call him Stevie like some of the other adults, the little kid image was gone. They got in the limo and Steve slid into a seat beside Tim, trying very hard not to make it obvious he was looking. Mark didn't dare laugh, hell this might be the answer to Steve's adoration, now he had something new to look at.
Brian smiled inside, Tim was under scrutiny. It would never work...the age difference alone...and Momma. Her little Stevie was watched very closely, his mother was afraid of what fame would do to her son. Tim on the other hand had no experience with boys and he would never be able to get the boy alone to begin a courtship.
Of course, he had thought the same about Mark, and yet Rosie let him have a free hand. Shit, Steve might just fall for the man, but it was too soon, he was too young. It would remain to be seen what Tim would return in the way of affection. Hell, Steve didn't even know the man was gay.
The two mile ride was a bit awkward; there were a lot of feelings floating around in the back of that car. But they got to the offices and James pulled up out front. The receptionist didn't bat an eyelash as Tim strode through the door.
"Good Afternoon, Mr. Real," She said.
"Hi, Gloria, is Dad in?"
"Yes, he just finished a meeting; do you want me to tell him you're here?"
"He hates surprises, maybe you better. Tell him I brought the two stars of his new hit series with me."
Gloria smiled and picked up her phone. By the time they got to the third floor Leland Real was standing in the hall. He smiled when he saw Brian, and stared at Mark and Steve.
"Hello, Lee," Brian said.
"Good to see you, damn you get stronger looking every time I see you, and who are these gentlemen?" Lee asked.
"Leland Real, meet Mark Harrison and Steve Biddle, they're in the Adam Conquers Earth show," Brian said. Tim stood back in amusement as his dad stared at his two potential moneymakers.
"Yes, I saw the pilot just this morning with Walter Triton...you boys did just fine, we have something good here."
"Thank you, sir," Mark said.
Lee put a hand on the shoulder of each boy and walked them into his office; Brian and Tim had become invisible. The man would never have grandchildren, his biggest beef with Tim's choice in life. It was part of his attraction to Brian, the boy he had treated like the other son in his life, but those days were over. Now Lee doted on other people's kids and he seemed to enjoy doing that.
He seated the boys on his ten thousand dollar Corinthian leather couch and took a seat across from them. "So tell me about the show, how did you get involved?" Lee asked.
"I auditioned," Steve said, and then he looked over at Mark. "And Mark picked me to be his sidekick."
"Mark chose you? I thought the director did that?"
"In this show Mark does everything," Steve said. Brian could see Mark blush from across the room. Steve was back in adoration mode.
Lee now turned his attention to Mark. "You do that much on the show?"
"Mr. Dawkins is very kind, he gets a lot of input from the cast," Mark said.
"I think you're being modest," Lee said. "I hear great things about you. They tell me things you see, things to make me feel good about investing my money in a project. I never know how true it is, I have people who judge that. But I liked the pilot. I haven't laughed like that for years."
Then he got serious. "You boys stay with the show through the season and maybe...just maybe I'll get around to finding someone who needs a star or two in a good film."
Steve smiled but Mark looked puzzled. "Mr. Real, do you get involved in casting?"
Lee nodded. "Sometimes all it takes is the right introduction. Hollywood is full of actors vying for the same parts. I'm not saying a director will favor me by casting you, but I see you both have talent, it just needs to blossom."
Mark smiled. "That would be very kind of you."
"We all want the perfect television show, the perfect movie, it happens rarely. So many factors to consider, scripts, casting, director, production values, I'd rather just do the funding. But I see and hear a lot. I know what's coming up and what's going down, it's my job to do so. The economy is tight these days; decisions have to be carefully made. But I like what I see and predict you have years of work ahead."
Lee looked up at Brian. "What's your association with these boys?"
"I'm an assistant to the director on the project now, but Mark and I started off on Beacon's World and I became his coach."
Lee nodded. "Its best that show went off the air, sad little thing, deserved no better. But you guys have a new hit here; it takes a lot to keep those ratings up. I think you'll do just fine, Dawkins is a good man."
The phone on his desk rang and Lee looked bothered. Tim casually picked it up and spoke. "Yes, Gloria?" He nodded. "Okay, I guess he's important enough to disturb Dad's meeting, I'll tell him."
"Who is it?" Lee asked.
"The governor is on the phone, what have you done now?" Tim asked.
"Arnold Schwarzenegger?" Steve asked.
"The Terminator himself," Lee laughed. "We're after some matching funds for...but I won't bore you with that. I'm just sorry we can't chat any longer, but you come back any time you want. I'll be keeping an eye on you two, such great promise."
They shook hands and Lee hugged Brian and Tim as they left.
"I'm sorry," Mark said as they got on the elevator. "We hogged the whole time with your dad."
Tim smiled. "I think he'd rather talk to you anyway, he just likes yelling at me."
Lee and Tim had a tempestuous relationship, Brian had seen some of their arguments. But he knew there was a good amount of love between them. There was still over an hour to kill before Steve had to get back and meet his mother. Tim had James take the road past the offices and into the studio lots at the rear of the property.
Here there were huge buildings containing sound stages where films were made. He explained to the boys that more and more on location scenes were shot away from the studio, just like the show they were in now. The sound stages looked pretty quiet for a Monday afternoon, only two of them had anything going on. James drove them out to the back lot where the big western and city streets had been built by MGM, and there the car stopped.
They all got out and walked the streets where the bad guys used to shoot it out, Steve was really impressed. Mark and Brian wandered away to the other side of the wide roadway.
"You think?" Mark asked.
"With his mother? No way," Brian replied.
"So? They could at least be friends and later on make something of it."
"You're a romantic, Mark. Steve is just easily infatuated, you know that. I didn't know he was into older guys."
"I know he wants to explore things, he's envious of us and Tim would be a good choice."
"My, my...you are so full of surprises. But I guess he talks to you, who else does he have?"
They stepped through the doorway of a storefront and saw the building had no back to it, just scrub growth up towards the hillside.
"I just wish he could have something nice like I do," Mark said, sliding up close.
Brian kissed him and smiled. "No one has what we do."
They looked out through the storefront and saw Tim sitting on the steps of the saloon building with Steve, they were in deep discussion. Tim put an arm across Steve's shoulder and hugged the boy; at least they could be affectionate. Being gay at that age was so hard, Mark knew all about it. He just wasn't sure what Tim was willing to do about it.
They drove back to the theatre and Steve got out just as his mother pulled up, Brian got out to explain where they had been. It was a proactive approach to the woman; they would be spending a lot of time around one another.
"Hello, Jean...we just brought Steve back from seeing the producer," Brian said.
"Wow, really? This thing is taking off isn't it?" Jean said.
"Like a rocket. That man is Tim Real. Rosie hired his outfit for Mark's security. So when the boys are together like this they're both covered."
"Another wow, that's great to hear. It gets to be a bit much, all this worry about him."
"Jean, he's in good hands here, I'm watching him too. We both have a life to lead, Steve will be well protected from all the crazy stuff we read about," Brian said.
"Thank you...I suppose the guy is expensive?"
"A little, but you don't need to hire him, Steve is never more than thirty feet from Mark at all times," Brian laughed.
She smiled. "Yeah, there is a little bit of hero worship going on there. I don't mind, at least Stevie has a good role model."
"Mark will never step out of bounds, I assure you."
"I need to talk to Rosie, is she here today?" Jean asked.
"No, I brought Mark in, is everything okay?"
"Yeah, sorta, kinda. My sister has a wedding the middle of next week, I want to go and so does Frank since his brother is in the wedding party. But we're shooting the show, we can't take Stevie. I was wondering if Rosie would allow him to stay with Mark."
"I don't think that will be an issue, you go ahead and make plans. I'll tell Rosie, and Mark will enjoy having some company. I don't imagine they'll do much except work, eat and sleep during that time period," Brian said.
"Oh, that would be wonderful. It's in Connecticut, I hate to ask, but we might be gone a week. I've never left Stevie alone that long before," Jean said.
"He's a well mannered boy, Jean, you've done a wonderful job with him. In fact today the producer said he was keeping an eye on the both of them for some future film projects."
"He did? Wow, I just knew Stevie's career was going to take off, that's so exciting."
"I'm sure he'll tell you all about it. I'll talk to Rosie and let you know what she says tomorrow," Brian said.
"Yeah, great...Thank you, this really is a team effort isn't it?"
"All the way, Jean." And then Steve walked over and he smiled at Brian as he got in their car. Brian wanted to laugh; Tim was in for a surprise.
Brian didn't say anything on the ride back to Rosie's, it was too soon. No, he had to find out what Tim felt for the boy and then consult his expert in the field. Mark would bear the brunt of having Steve around, his opinion counted.
What he'd said to Jean was true; they would be busy that week. But if there was a weekend involved, well, the boys could always go for a night at Tim's place. Not that he felt like pimping the boy to the man, but Tim needed some outlet for his feelings, Brian could plainly see that. Maybe the boy was too young for Tim, but he would be a gentle lover if it came to that. Brian was sure Steve would push the point.
He had been nineteen when he first met Tim at a karate competition. Tim was running his own school back then, he had since handed it over to others. But Brian had competed against another college boy and lost the first round on points. He was sitting on the sidelines awaiting the next round when Tim approached. The man was no nonsense right off the bat.
"You have moves but not the speed, did you warm up?" Tim asked.
In fact he had not; he'd been late getting there. "I wasn't here in time," Brian confessed.
"You could get hurt out there, you should have dropped out."
"Who are you?" Brian asked.
"Tim Real, I run the dojo your opponent represents." He affected a big grin after saying that.
Brian laughed. "So I should just drop out and let him win?"
"He's already won, you weren't prepared," Tim said. "What's your name?"
"Brian Simmons."
"You have strength, you have style, but you need a professional to teach you. Call me." And with that he laid a business card down on the chair and got up. "Keno is Hawaiian, he feels little pain during a fight and he's better focused today so watch yourself."
And Keno proceeded to kick his ass in the next round, Brian was out of luck. He held onto the card for a while and finally drove over to the address to see what it was all about. There were twelve men going through the moves, none of them college boys. Brian stood in the little lobby and looked in through the doors.
"We don't bite you know, come in, Brian," Tim said.
It took him eight months of intense training before Tim asked him out. They had dinner, a few drinks and ended up in Tim's bed. It was the most satisfying sex since Brad, but something wasn't right in Brian's mind. He was wined and dined by the man, met the family and was overwhelmed by the wealthy social life, a life of privilege Brian had never known.
He told himself it would never work and yet he allowed Tim to please him. Then Tim had flown off to Tokyo for a business meeting, Brian had time to breathe. He picked up one of the hustlers on Hollywood Boulevard, some kid sitting in a diner. The boy looked nervous, real or acting, the kid was fucking attractive. Brian felt he needed to do something about it.
They got a motel room off the 101 and the kid stripped for him. It was only a means of delaying the inevitable Brian realized, the kid had never done this before. The boy said seventeen, he was all of fifteen, but he had all the right equipment. He was dirty under those clothes and Brian led him to the shower.
'Barry,' if that was his real name, was dark and beautiful, long hair, brown eyes...a real fuck puppy. And yet Brian knew he was a virgin in at least one aspect of gay sex, it was a shame really; he would have loved to be the first. But washing the boy was a turn on and Barry slid to his knees in the shower and tried to earn his money fast.
Brian allowed the boy to work a while, noticing that cock sucking was something he had experience in giving. But then he pulled away and dragged the kid out to the bed, the both of them soaking wet. He lay Barry down and proceeded to love his body, licking the water off with broad strokes of his tongue.
By the time Barry was cleaned off the kid was in a raging passion and Brian backed off, he didn't want it to end.
"Why are you here?" Brian asked.
"I want to suck your cock," Barry said.
"And you have, very well I might add. Why are you here in Hollywood, hustling and scared to death someone might fuck you?"
"I...I," Barry managed.
"Tell me the truth, I won't throw you out...I might even help you," Brian said.
'Barry', his real name Samuel Parks, cried on Brian's chest for an hour and unburdened himself. The same old story, gay boy, bad parents, he was from Bakersfield and now out on the street. He knew no one; he didn't want to know the other boys, they had already stolen most of his money. Brian ordered Chinese from across the street and they ate together.
"Will you come home with me?" Brian asked.
"I can't...he'll follow me."
"He?"
The flip side of hustling was the pimps; he had a bad one according to Sam. The man had threatened him and then 'auditioned' him in a side alley, he said the boy could blow for a living, he didn't have to fuck. Sam knew that was a lie, it was only a matter of time.
"Is he armed?" Brian asked.
"No gun, he has a big fuckin knife and brass knuckles, he's probably out there watching for me now. I'm sure he followed us, he always does."
"What does he drive?" Brian asked.
"Old Lincoln, a blue one," Sam said.
"I'll be right back, you go on eating," Brian said.
He stepped outside in the gathering gloom of evening and saw the Lincoln parked in a corner of the lot. The man behind the wheel got out as Brian quite openly approached and held up both hands.
"Barry says I need to talk to you," Brian said.
"About what?" The guy was overconfident, that would be his downfall. He was maybe thirty, close cut scalp to increase the intimidation factor, the skinhead look. About Brian's height but pudgy, the man was too far out of shape to be a threat. Brian needed to get closer.
"I...I want him for the night, gave him fifty for the blow but I want his ass, he says only you can approve that."
"All night and his ass? That will cost you....say a hundred."
"He looks ripe," Brian said.
"Total virgin," The guy said, and he grinned, exposing a gold tooth.
"Yeah, a hundred ought to do it," Brian said, reaching for his back pocket and stepping closer. He kneed Gold Tooth in the groin, dislocated the man's right shoulder, and then he kicked in the face. The man was out when Brian broke his left leg in such a way the guy would probably never walk again.
He dragged the unconscious man to the rear of the Lincoln and dropped him. He then fished the keys out of the ignition. Gold Tooth went in the trunk and Brian slammed the lid, tossing the keys in the storm drain on his way back to the room.
"So where were we? Oh yeah, pass the chop suey," Brian said.
Sam remained silent for a long time until he couldn't stand it anymore. "Did you see Lester?"
"Guy with a gold tooth?" And Sam nodded. "Yeah, we talked. I terminated your contract with him."
Sam looked shocked. "Who...who are you?"
Brian shrugged. "Just a guy, pass the egg rolls."
Sam did spend the night, but not there. Brian took him home to Bakersfield after borrowing Tim's Ferrari for the evening. They gunned up the 99 and Sam was frightened all the way, begging Brian not to take him home. He was sure his parents would be furious and they were, until Brian talked some sense into their heads.
"Fifteen years old...so he's gay, get over it. He belongs in school and you've cut that off by throwing him out. He's home and he'll stay here. You argue with me and I'll have you both arrested after I break your legs." And with that Brian slammed a fist right through the top of their kitchen table, shattering the damn thing.
"You throw him out again and I'll be really pissed off. You get in counseling, tomorrow if possible. He's gay, not a crack head, be thankful for that. I know people, powerful people who will wreck your life. So if you want the spectacle for your neighbors I'll call the cops right now. You deal with this so I don't have to, are we clear?"
Brian smiled and took a deep breath. "Now Mr. and Mrs. Parks, I'm going to leave quietly. I'll be calling here on a regular basis and will want to talk to Sam and not you. If he says anything is wrong I'll be back, and you don't want to know what I'll do if you see me again." With that he lay three hundred dollars on the counter. "Buy a new table."
He grabbed Sam and gave him a big kiss and then held him off at arm's length. "Go to school, join a gay student group, and get a real life. I have your number, I'll call you regularly. If they so much as punish you for this I will be back, and then you might end up an orphan."
With that Brian walked out and gunned the car back down the highway, laughing all the way back to Hollywood. He followed the boy's life for several years, calling most every week. The parents hardly talked to him, he made other friends, but he was still in school and destined to join the Navy. Lots of action there for a handsome gay boy.
The whole thing left him elated, and yet he now knew what he wanted and the relationship with Tim was doomed. Sam's body had turned him on, he loved boys. But what he felt best about it was that he didn't sleep with Sam, he couldn't put lust above the needs of the boy. He had done the right thing.
He was honest enough to tell Tim how he felt and all about Sam. Tim looked terribly sad, he had been hoping for more, but it just wasn't there. They continued to spar and stay friends, and then Brian had gone deeper into studio work as he turned twenty-one and graduated. Tim was always there for him, Brian could never forget the kindness.
For three years he had picked up boys, always wondering if this one would do it for him, but none of them did. Hustlers were callous, mindless in their sex, off the fucking wall emotionally. And then he met Mark. It was like stepping into the sunshine, he didn't have to hide his love anymore.
They managed a quiet dinner; there was too much thought about tomorrow and the return to shooting. Rosie seemed to sense the attitude and left them alone, and that's when Brian led Mark outside to the pool deck.
"You like spending time with Steve?" Brian asked.
"So you have Steve on the mind...again. What caused that?" Mark asked.
Brian smiled. "Puberty."
Mark laughed. "I guess so, he needs to grow up. Is this all about Tim?"
"His mom and dad are going to Connecticut for a week, I volunteered us to keep the boy out of trouble, and that means he's staying here. But I haven't asked Rosie yet."
"What? Oh Lord, in my room I suppose. He'll be all over me."
"No he won't, why would he do that?"
"You said it, puberty. I imagine he can't keep his hands out of his pants now," Mark said.
"Well, Oh Mature One, are you discussing his masturbatory habits with him now?"
Mark rolled his eyes. "Not exactly, but he does ask silly questions."
"And do you answer them? He needs to hear the truth at least," Bran said.
Mark smiled. "He is. Yes, Steve, you can ejaculate more than once. No, Steve blow jobs don't hurt. Yes, Steve getting fucked probably does hurt the first time...how am I doing?"
"Smart ass, I hope you explained it better than that," Brian said.
"I did, he got all the gory details I know. So he stays here, what about Tim?"
"I don't know what he wants from Tim and neither do you I gather."
"We'll be busy I suppose, should we allow them time together? Seems we'll be in control of the little sex machine," Mark said.
"Yeah, you guys can have some show and tell moments," Brian laughed. "I suppose we could arrange a sleepover at Tim's."
Mark smiled. "I thought you liked the guy, don't you think that would pressure him? I didn't think he was into boys."
"I just think he's out of it at the moment. He wouldn't hurt Steve; there will be no pain in anything they might do."
Mark shook his head. "Steve is primed to do something; Tim might find himself with a teenage molester on his hands."
"I think Tim needs someone to pay him some attention, and Steve is already there. If all they did was blow one another I could live with that," Brian said.
"Yeah, that would be about it, but I would hope Steve does a lot of cuddling, you seem to like it," Mark said.
"It makes you divine, my little angel," Brian said.
"If we plan to let Steve sleep with Tim then I better explain a whole lot more to the boy first."
Brian smiled. "See, you are a good friend. You'll have all week to do it."
"Lucky me," Mark sighed.
They practiced Tai-chi at seven and ran at seven-thirty. They stopped at Brian's, had glorious sex and then ran back to Rosie's. If the rest of the week went like that Brian could live with it. He spoke to Rosie about Jean Biddle's request, and she agreed that the boy would be most welcome, Steve was all set up...just for what Brian sure didn't know.
The limo picked them up at nine, no Tim today. The bustle of the studio was a welcome sight, and Mark went off for his line rehearsal, Brian went to find Alan. He was talking on the phone and waved Brian into a chair.
"One of the highest ratings they've seen, Triton said that this morning. He must have been up half the night to get that. All I know is that he's paying the bills this week, all of them, Charlie. Yeah, we start shooting at one over at the high school, bring it on. Thanks." And he hung up.
"So ready for a big one?"
"If you mean a heart attack, no," Brian laughed.
Alan smiled. "Five articles on the show are in the works for this week. Triton says we got the highest audience response rating he's seen in five years, and the T-shirts are here."
"Goody, I love free shirts."
"Let me show you something that Mark is just gonna love," Alan said. "No one else has seen it yet." He walked over to his office door, shut it and then he grabbed a cardboard tube off the couch. He picked up two push pins from his desk and pulled out the contents of the tube. He held the rolled paper up to his already cluttered wall and tacked the two top corners, still holding the roll.
"Drum roll," He said. "I give you Adam." And he let go. Brian smiled, yes, Mark would adore this.
The poster showed Adam standing astride the space car, the rays of the sun lighting the sky and the name of the show etched across the mountains. "I want one," Brian said.
"That's just it, everyone will want one, we have a marketable object here," Alan said.
"Then come the dolls, space cars, who knows what?" Brian said.
"Marketing is already working on a game. This is hot, way hot."
"YouTube...let's not forget that, and Mark needs a MySpace account to talk to the fans." Brian smiled. "That will get old fast."
"That's fine, we'll write the copy and just let him sign in and out," Alan said. "But these are all distractions, how's Mark?"
"Ready to go, he's psyched just like you are," Brian said.
"I hope his aunt has a good business advisor, you make sure she does, Brian. Once this brief season ends there will be contract negotiations, and marketing shares to discuss. She'll need someone top notch to cover Mark's ass."
Brian smiled. "She's working on it. I convinced her that managing him is way over her head right now, she'll get some good advice, and she can afford it."
"Great, seen too many actors lose out, and Mark is this show, we both know that. So on to other business. The new principal is due here any minute; Wayne Edwards will make a great Mr. Puckett."
"You're sticking with that name?" Brian asked.
"Yes, it works in a humorous sense. We will not hear any Fuckett jokes I hope."
"Not from me," Brian said. "He's a well respected actor. I would say Wayne is a coup for the show since everyone already knows his face."
"Yeah, well he was selling kitchen faucets on cable television for God's sake, he's happy to be working with us. So go schmooze him, show him around and if you can, introduce him to Mark. I can't wait to get them in the lens; we got some funny stuff ahead."
Wayne Edwards had done bit parts for years in just about every kind of television show Brian could imagine. He was their secret weapon as the principal; the confrontations with Adam would become legendary. Brian walked out to the lobby looking for the great man.
"Dena, have you see Mr. Edwards come in by chance?" Brian asked.
"He's wandering around here somewhere," Dena said.
Brian sighed. What was the point in having a receptionist if they just let people in to wander? Brian walked down the hall to the break room, and that's where he found the famous man.
"Mr. Edwards?"
"Hello, Wayne if you please."
"Brian Simmons, I'm one of Alan's assistants on the production, I also work for Mark."
"Mark? Oh, the boy...I hear he's very talented."
"Yes he is, you'll have great fun together making America laugh," Brian said.
Wayne smiled. "I gathered that when I saw the script, very imaginative. I understand the pilot is out, I didn't get by to see it yesterday."
"I can show it to you now if you'd like to get a feel for the show," Brian said.
"Yes, that would be good, I suppose we have the time," Wayne said.
"We have two hours, but if we give up half an hour now we won't miss lunch, right this way," Brian said.
Wayne seemed a bit overwhelmed by all of this, and Brian felt like he had to sooth the man's nerves. He scooped up two bottles of water and led Wayne down the hall to the library. There was a wide screen television and professional level playback machine at hand. The pilot wasn't hard to find, there were six cassettes of the show on the shelf. He slid one in the player and turned on the monitor.
Brian dimmed the lights as they took seats facing the screen and he handed Wayne a bottle of water. "Ever since the shoot in the desert we've all been a little crazy about drinking lots of water."
"I imagine so, I was in Vegas just last week," Wayne said.
"Ready? Here we go," Brian said.
It was great to see the pilot again, even better to watch Wayne's reactions. The man was virtually in tears over the scene with the dog and laughed throughout. When Adam's final smile lit the screen the tape faded to black.
"Wonderful...simply wonderful, I haven't laughed like that in a long time," Wayne said, and as if to prove it he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his eyes. He smiled at Brian. "I do believe working with Mark will be fun, just as you said."
Brian looked at his watch, five minutes to break time. "Would you like to meet him, he's going over lines but they break in five."
"Yes, it will be my pleasure." Wayne said. "You know all the jargon, I'm afraid I'm not up on things anymore."
It was time to be truthful. "Relax, Wayne, there is no pushing here. Everything will be explained, that's how Alan works. Up until three months ago I was a cameraman on a lousy soap opera, this is all new to me as well. If it weren't for my friendship with Mark this never would have happened."
Wayne smiled. "Thank you for that bit of honesty, I was feeling like an outsider."
"Most of the cast is green, but the chemistry they've developed is incredible. You'll get into the groove very fast. You have immense experience, and I know the company will like you very much."
"Good, I need some excitement in life. Shall we go find the boy?"
Mark was just heading to the break room when Wayne and Brian came up the hall, he smiled until Wayne snickered and all but bellowed. "Adam Vernon, have you been cutting class again?"
He had the principal tone down pat and everyone in the hallway froze to see how Mark would react to the challenge. But the boy slipped right into character. "No, Mr. Puckett, I have a hall pass for the men's room." Mark replied and he waited three beats. "Do you?"
"I...I well, I never," Mr. Puckett stammered in what was to become the first of many stammers inspired by Adam. Wayne and Mark broke up laughing and there were smiles up and down the hall.
"You must be Wayne Edwards," Mark said, walking up and extending a hand.
"Nice to meet you, Mark. Brian just showed me the pilot and I laughed myself to death," Wayne said.
"Oh? You look fine to me," Mark said with a grin.
Wayne shook his head and chuckled. "Oh, you are a prankster aren't you?"
"I have fun, yes," Mark replied. "You'll have fun too. We shoot a scene together today, several in fact."
"Yes, I know my lines, do you know yours?"
Mark couldn't help himself. "Yes, I wrote them."
"You did?" Wayne replied looking at Brian.
"Mark does more than act on this show, he advises the writers," Brian said.
"Goodness, a real talent...yes, I am going to enjoy doing this."
The setup in the show between the Principal and Adam was simple really: Adam had no respect for authority. He wasn't a rude alien, just someone going about his own business. That form of confrontational humor would happen time and again, but Adam always won. The principal was tongue tied when it came to disciplining the boy, he couldn't help it. Adam had been forced to do a bit of altering in Puckett's mind just to get in the school.
Steve on the other hand was Puckett's favorite whipping boy, he was too shy to fight back and Adam was out to change all that, among other things. The first day of school script laid out a lot of that lackadaisical Adam image, as he seemed to float in and out of normal and not so normal school situations. Today they would shoot Adam going to class and being sent to the principal's office.
The classroom extras were not due on the set until four, but things were never shot in sequence anyway. The only reason to shoot close to sequence was if they had to make changes or re-shoot a scene. Alan was pretty confident that wasn't going to happen with Mark, the rest of the kids were unknowns.
Mark led Wayne down the hall to the rehearsal room where they all sat around a long table. "Here's the shooting schedule," Mark said, sliding a sheet over in front of Wayne.
"Yes, I've seen these before," Wayne said.
"Alan always keeps us informed, these rehearsals are just to be sure we have the lines down and mostly memorized. I did a lot of stage work, I know how to memorize pretty well, but Alan isn't that strict."
"Oh? Well I guess, that's good. I tried to memorize the entire script for this episode," Wayne said.
Mark smiled. "You don't have to, but I did as well. I think it's a good habit."
"Agreed," Wayne replied.
They read through the lines for the three scenes they would shoot this afternoon and Brian watched the chemistry develop. Steve came in just before lunch and was introduced, as was Beverly when she arrived. They all trooped down to the cafeteria for lunch.
"Perks of the show," Mark explained. "Free food, and pretty darn good."
Brian had figured out that Wayne was in a financial rut at the moment, which would soon change. The uncertainty of a paycheck often overwhelmed some actors; he'd seen that grateful look before. Wayne was about sixty, he would have ten to fifteen more years on screen before casting him would become difficult. Hollywood was full of aging stars, and the best ones were still working.
They sat at a long table and Wayne ate slowly while the kids inhaled their food and then left for the remainder of the lunch period. Mark would take a limo to the school set with Steve and Beverly slated to ride along. Brian smiled over at Wayne.
"Can we give you a lift to the set? Otherwise the studio provides a van to make sure the cast all gets there on time."
"You drive over?" Wayne asked.
"No, Mark has a security detail. We ride in a limo belonging to that company."
"If you're sure I won't be a bother...that would be nice."
Alan swooped into the cafeteria to grab a sandwich to go and fill his thermos with soda. His eating habits annoyed Brian, but it was a set pattern by now.
"Alan, you know Wayne Edwards," Brian said.
"Hello, Wayne, good to see you again. You all ready to work?"
"Looking forward to it," Wayne said, standing up to shake hands.
"Great," Alan said, "See you on the set." And then he blew out of the room.
"He's a man on a mission," Brian said. "Always on the go."
"To our benefit I imagine," Wayne said.
They joined the kids in the limo fifteen minutes later and rolled out of the parking lot. Old McKinley was a seventeen minute drive, and when they arrived there was a red Ferrari in the parking lot and a man standing outside watching it, Tim was back.
James let them out at the gym entrance. The locker rooms had been transformed into dressing rooms for the cast since there were so many involved. Tim was inside the door and he smiled as they walked in.
"Ahh, the stars arrive," He said. Tim fist bumped with Mark and Beverly, doing much the same with Steve except they did a wrist slide and a slap at the end. Okay, Brian almost laughed at that, Tim was treating the boy special. Once the walk-through started Brian figured he'd better tell Tim what was planned for Steve.
The first scene to be shot was in the school office, Adam's first visit. Just prior to making his entrance he would have a talk with Steve and learn he needed to find out his class schedule, but the scene with Steve and Beverly would be shot later when they had a hall full of kids filling in the background.
Adam was to approach the counter and talk with Mrs. Kennedy, the foil to Puckett's Principal role. She was slated to be the power behind the throne. Mark walked through his paces, said his lines to Lila Evers, aka Mrs. Kennedy, and watched her struggle with the copier machine. Then he stepped behind the counter and fixed it with a thump of his fist. Kennedy was grateful and the scene moved on.
Puckett stepped out of his office and the first confrontation with Adam occurred. The bell rang and Puckett admonished Adam to get to his first class. Taking that at face value, Adam walked out of the office and down the hall to the first classroom he saw, and stepped inside.
The teacher asked him his name and Adam told her, she looked in her book and realized he was not on her roll. He sat down and was asked by the teacher to return to the office and see which class he was assigned to, the classroom full of kids all laughed at his frustration.
Scene four and Adam was back standing at the counter in the office and Kennedy was happy to see him again. This time he was ushered into Puckett's office and the first in-depth scene between them evolved.
The sixty school kid extras would arrive at four and so would the three school buses Alan needed for background in several shots. Number 249 was already on the lot, the studio owned that specially rigged bus. At least there wouldn't be any dust blowing out the windows again.
Brian knew all this because of Tina's handouts, she did the scheduling and most of Alan's quirky odd jobs, there always had to be someone for things like that and she did it all very well. Now she hovered behind the crew awaiting Alan's orders and watched the camera crew going through the moves.
"Quiet on the set," Tina finally called. It was time to shoot what they had just rehearsed.
Adam took his place and Kennedy hers. Puckett was standing behind his office door awaiting his cue. "Running," Frank yelled. "Action," Alan replied a bit too loudly, yeah, he was wound up again.
"Hello," Adam says.
Kennedy looks up from where she is crouched in front of the copier, the door open as she peers inside. "It ate my paper," She says.
Adam's eyebrows went up. "It eats paper?" He asks.
She smiles. "That seems to be its main function these days, it doesn't work properly."
Adam smiles back. "Maybe its empty, did you feed it?"
"Yes, I put paper in it, but it just doesn't come out."
Adam walks behind the counter and approaches the machine. Frank swung the boom
around and Camera One caught the two of them staring down at the machine.
"If I can't get it fixed there won't be any attendance sheets today. That will be a crisis," Kennedy says. Camera Two's boom lowered to catch the next shot.
Adam leans over and puts an ear to the cover. "It growls, is it angry?" Camera Two zoomed in on his face and stayed there to catch the boy's smile.
"No, I don't think so," Kennedy chuckles.
Adam puts a hand on the side of the machine and closes his eyes, using his mind to ascertain the problem. Camera One moved a bit to the left, filling the shot with just Adam. The boy suddenly stands up and grins, giving the machine a rap with his fist. Kennedy looks on in surprise as the machine suddenly comes to life and begins to spit out her copies.
"I don't believe it," She says. "Thank you."
"Feed it regularly," Adam advises. There is a noise behind them and they both turn to see Puckett standing in the doorway to his office. Camera Two took the back shot, looking over Adam's shoulder at Puckett.
"Mrs. Kennedy," Puckett says. "Will there be an attendance sheet today? I'm waiting."
"Yes, Mr Puckett, working on it," Kennedy says.
"Young man, were you sent here?" Puckett asks.
"No, I came by myself on the bus," Adam replies.
"Then you had better be off to class." Right then the bell rings and Puckett's face shows his annoyance. "And you're late; now get off to your first class, if you please."
Adam looks surprised but does as he is told, exiting the office. "Cut," Alan said. "I think that worked. He stepped over to the playback technician and watched the scene once again from both cameras. "Yeah, we got it," Alan said.
"Reset," Frank yelled and the camera crews moved their cranes.
"That was fun," Lila said.
"You sure looked fierce," Mark said as he approached Wayne.
"Over the top do you think?" Wayne asked.
Mark smiled. "Aren't we all? Nature of the beast."
"Ahh, a literary alien as well," Wayne said.
They talked for a bit as the camera crew got ready, then Tina yelled, "Places."
One camera behind Adam as he stood at the counter facing Kennedy. "Action," Alan said.
"You're back?" She says.
"Teacher said I was in the wrong class, are their others?" Adam asks.
"You'd better talk to Mr. Puckett, he has the files," Kennedy says.
"What is his duty?" Adam asks.
"He's the Principal, and he has to make all the decisions since...well, since our Vice-Principal, Mr. Neil, left with a nervous breakdown last month. I don't know why I'm telling you this, the students don't know..."
Puckett's door flies open. "Mrs. Kennedy, I..." Puckett stares at Adam. "And what are you doing back, young man?"
"I was in the wrong class, but you sent me," Adam says.
"Get in my office, we'll straighten this out right now," Puckett says, turning around and marching back into his office.
Adam deadpans a look at Kennedy. "Is he angry?"
"Always, just don't thump him with your fist," She advises.
"In here...now," Puckett calls out. "Cut," Alan yelled. "Reset," Frank yelled in return.
The scene in the office would set up the whole relationship between Adam and Puckett, for despite his ability as Principal to intimidate the other students, Puckett would no longer be able to affect Adam.
Ten minutes later they were ready to roll. Camera One was now behind Puckett, Camera Two on the right looking in at the desk. They had rebuilt this classroom into the Principal's office to allow the cameras room to roam. The addition of two fake moveable walls allowed for that cubby feel and yet they could be opened up to allow the shots Alan wanted. Adam was now standing in front of the desk, Puckett seated behind it...and they began.
"Action," Alan said from the corner of the room.
"I don't understand your problem, are you new? I thought I knew all my students, what's your name?" Puckett says.
"Adam Vernon."
Puckett reaches into the file cabinet beside his desk and starts thumbing through the files. "Where are you from, Adam?"
"Regalia," Adam says truthfully.
"Oh? Is that a new community out in the valley?" Puckett asks.
"It's in what you would call Andromeda," Adam says.
"I would call...what do you call it?"
"Frengldupiznlkr," Adam says.
Puckett pauses in his search. "I hope you aren't joking with me, I'm not in the mood and I can't find your file anywhere, what school did you transfer from?"
"School is for children, you have my file," Adam says.
Puckett pulls a large chunk of files out of the cabinet and plops them down on his desk. "I do not have your file."
"Yes, here it is," Adam says, pulling one at random from the stack.
"Let me see that," Puckett says.
Camera Two took the shot as Adam walks around the desk and places the file in front Puckett. "This says..." Puckett says, and Adam put a hand on his shoulder. Puckett looks up and freezes as Adam closes his eyes.
Camera One zoomed in on Puckett's face as the man blinks twice and looks down again. Here the edit would insert a camera shot of a file that read Manual Herrera, a second shot would be inserted after Puckett blinked would show it to read Adam Vernon.
"Oh, yes...here it is," Puckett says. Adam smiles and resumes his place before the desk. "It says you have Mrs. Congreve, English first period. Now here is a copy of your schedule, you are already fifteen minutes late for her class."
Puckett looks up at Adam and smiles. "Mrs. Kennedy will give you a late slip."
Adam nods. "Thank you."
"Cut," Alan yelled. "And it begins," He laughed, and turned to Tina. "Do we have time for the follow up?"
Tina looked at her clipboard and then her watch. "Twenty minutes to call, only needs one camera."
"Let's do it and get it over with," Alan said.
"I'll set up for the shotgun effect in the lobby," Frank said. "Mitch, you take Two back to the outer office."
Alan led the way as the smaller crane with attached boom was rolled back to the office set. The scene would take a little over a minute to shoot. Tina yelled down the hall for Lila and someone went to get her.
"What are they doing?" Wayne asked.
"Shooting ahead of schedule. I have a scene with Kennedy that follows what we just did," Mark said. "You set it up, the late slip. It's only about six lines I think."
"Oh, it wasn't planned?"
Mark smiled. "We've made up time, Wayne...no errors so far. Alan keeps a tight schedule and this was supposed to follow tomorrow with the other office things. The kids are due here shortly, that opening scene with them will take a good while to block out."
Wayne smiled. "How do you know all this? I understand the script, but how do you know what the scene involves?"
"We bat things around at rehearsals, I just remember the conversations," Mark said.
"Shotgun effect, I don't understand their language," Wayne said.
Mark nodded. "Cameraspeak, technical talk about the setup. Frank and Alan share ideas, they have words for the effects they want to achieve. This is about the arrival of the kids, you'll see."
Mark followed Mitch and the boom down the hall, Wayne walked back to the locker rooms. Lila was already in place.
"Wow, jumping schedule already?" She said.
"Just a quickie between us," Mark laughed.
Lila laughed. "Naughty boy....watch out."
Mitch got the camera in place and Alan walked over. "Run the lines for me will you?"
"How did it go in there?" Kennedy says.
"Just fine, he found my file," Adam replies. "I'm English."
"Scribble, scribble," Lila said. "That's what I do next, then I say 'Here's your slip, have a good day.'"
"Thank you," Adam says. "That's it?" Mark asked.
"Yeah, kinda flat isn't it," Alan said, and then he smiled. "Do you have a suggestion?"
Mark looked around the room and his eyes fell back on the copier, he smiled. "Yes, I do."
The scene ran Mark's way and Alan stood back and watched the thirty second bit turn golden.
Tina called makeup to the set and they came running with their little box of tricks and potions. Mark explained what he wanted and Lila laughed. Finally they were ready to shoot.
"Action," Alan laughed.
"Hello again, Mrs. Kennedy," Adam says.
She is on the floor by the copier, which once the paper tray was removed was busy spitting sheets of paper out on the floor. Her face and hands are smudged with black streaks, her hair slightly askew.
"I don't know what happened," Kennedy says. "It stopped working and I hit it just like you did."
"Oh no, Mrs. Kennedy. If it was angry before, now you've made it mad," Adam says.
Kennedy rolls her eyes and says. "Your late slip is on the counter, I have to call the repair man."
"Have a nice day, Mrs. Kennedy," Adam says, and he smiles at the camera.
"Cut," Alan said. "That was great. I'm going home, and you can direct the rest of the show."
Mark laughed and they hugged. "Good thinking, that's what I like to see...we're gonna win awards with this baby," Alan said. And then Tina walked in. "The thundering herd is here," She said.
Alan groaned. "Let's get on with it."
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