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| This kid knows how to have a good time, obviously. |
Is New Year's Eve a big deal for you? It isn't for me. Neither is New Year's Day, though I'm happy to get some time off work for it. I've just never been big on celebrating the start of another year or lamenting the end of the previous one. Neither one means a thing to me.
Maybe it's because I don't drink. But you know who did? Edward D. Wood, Jr. I'm sure Eddie had a few eventful December 31sts along the way. Somehow, though, the holiday doesn't play a major role in his films or his writing as far as I can tell. The one major exception that comes to mind is an anecdote Ed included in his posthumously-published manifesto Hollywood Rat Race (1998). Today, I thought I'd share that anecdote in its entirety.
A little context: It's December 1953, and Eddie is trying to revive the career of his friend, actor Bela Lugosi. Putting the frail, 71-year-old actor in a play would be too demanding, Ed decides, so the best strategy will be for Bela to make personal appearances and meet his fans. But where? Well, I think I'll let Eddie take over the story from here.
Happy New Year, everybody!