The Hollywood Celebrity Show

I pulled my car up to a parking space with my buddy.
The car next to mine was a beaten Saturn.
The 70 year old man sidled up the car, waiting for us to park. The lines were tight.
"Man, they really don't make it easy to park" he commented. I laughed since the parking structure was packed with everyone. Which I assume is aways on this way on a Saturday at the Westin Hotel next to the airport.
When I parked, something in me decided to ask him questions. He was a former actor who had segued into screenwriting and he was there to see if he could solicit some actors to read his script. He had that nervous energy that comes with most hustlers. Laughing as he spoke, uncomfortable in his own skin. To calm him a little, I simply told him we were there for the same reason.

And it occurred to me...
...this was precisely the conversation I was having prior to parking. During our drive down to the hotel, I was talking to my friend about how I refuse to be beholden to the industry. That means I receive no money from them and in return don't give a flying fuck what the industry says. Or the public for that matter. Unfortunately, I deal with people who do need that. They need audiences to pay money so they get paid...to live. I know, know...having a side job that sustains this "hobby" meant that I can thumb my nose at the industry. Most don't have this luxury. That's where this man comes in...
...the man had been hustling for decades. He had a novel. That got turned to a script. That got turned into back to a novel. And he couldn't pitch the story to save his life. He was waffling between a lot of incongruous thoughts. And for the minute there, I thought I'd started a conversation with a retard.
This was an incredibly sad reminder and evidence, that we don't all get to work in this business in any level. And whether or not you think I'm just bracing myself for never being accepted into the elitism that is Hollywood, I would not want to be a part of a group of people that would want THAT me as a member. To paraphrase that famous guy who said that.
I admire and pity those who tread on the acceptance of the world stage. Instead, I wrap myself in the freedom I get never having to impress anyone. It is really liberating.