The First Time I Got Paid For It : Writers' Tales From The Hollywood Trenches [Hardcover]

William Goldman (Author), Laura J. Shapiro (Author), Peter Lefcourt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2000

The First Time I Got Paid For It is an unprecedented collection of essays by over 50 leading film and television writers, edited by Laura Shapiro and Peter Lefcourt for the Writers Guild Foundation, with an introduction by screenwriting legend William Goldman. Linked by the theme of a writer's "first time"--usually the first time they got paid for their work, but sometimes veering off into other, more unconventional, "first times," these essays examine what it takes to succeed, what it takes to write well, and other aspects of maintaining creativity and integrity while striving for a career in Hollywood. Richard LaGravanese ( The Fisher King, The Horse Whisperer, Living Out Loud ) confesses that his first paying writing job was crafting phone sex scripts. Nicholas Kazan ( Reversal of Fortune, Mathilda ) explains why, in Hollywood, a verbal "yes" often turns out to be a written "no." Peter Casey writes about the unparalleled pitch meeting for the award-winning NBC series Frasier. Virtually every big name writer in Hollywood has contributed to this collection; it is essential research material for anyone trying to make it in the entertainment industry, and a perfect read for movie buffs everywhere. The First Time I Got Paid For It is an unprecedented collection, edited by Peter Lefcourt and Laura J. Shapiro for the Writers Guild Foundation, of essays by Americas best screenwriters. Linked by a theme of the writers first timeusually the first time they got paid for their work, but sometimes something a bit more unconventional, each essay investigates what it takes to succeed in Hollywood and what it takes to write well. Richard La Gravanese ( The Fisher King, The Horse Whisperer, Living Out Loud ) confesses that his first paying writing job was crafting phone sex scripts. Nicholas Kazan ( Reversal of Fortune, Matilda ) explains why, in Hollywood, a verbal yes often turns out to be a written no. Peter Casey writes about the unparalled pitch meeting for the award winning NBC series Frasier. Amy Holden Jones ( Mystic Pizza, Indecent Proposal ) discusses her first sale: Slumber Party Massacre . Cameron Crowe ( Jerry McGuire, Say Anything, Singles ) tells of his astonishment when his screenplay for Fast Times at Ridgemont High makes people laugh. Steven Bochco ( NYPD Blue, Hill Street Blues ) writes about his first job: (unknowingly) rewriting the legendary Rod Serling of Twilight Zone fame. Daniel Petrie , Jr. ( Beverly Hills Cop, The Big Easy ) explains why being fired from his job as an agent was the first step toward becoming a real writer, and Alan Alda discusses the challenges of writing for M*A*S*H, and why dancing around a hotel room is a sure sign of a script coming together.Over fifty writers, virtually every big name in Hollywood, have contributed to this collection, which is essential reading for anyone who wants to make it as a writer in Tinsel Town. Each essay reveals what life as a writer in the real Hollywood is actually like. Full of wisdom and incredible stories about surviving in the movie business, The First Time I Got Paid For It is crucial for anyone whos dreamed of hearing their words spoken on the silver screen. With a foreword by screenwriting legend William Goldman, it is also a perfect read for anyone who is a movie bluff or curious about what happens on the other side of the camera.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This delectable collection of entertaining essays by more than 50 TV and screenwriters is a treat not only for neophytes hoping to break into the business, but also for film buffs. While most of the contributors write about their first paying job in the profession, many of the tastiest tales venture off to detail other "firsts": Chuck Lorre (Roseanne; Cybill) hilariously recalls the first time he was fired (from a Beany & Cecil revival show); Melville Shavelson recollects the first time he was sued (by former First Lady Mamie Eisenhower to stop the filming of a movie about the Ike-Kay Summersby affair); and 12-time Emmy winner Carl Reiner remembers getting $1,000 to write his first novel, Enter Laughing. Many of the short pieces create suspense by withholding the name of a long-delayed or much-rewritten project until the very end. One of the best stories illustrating Hollywood's fickle nature is Australian Jan Sardi's piece on being at the center of a fierce bidding war over Shine; it concludes with the sobering fact that, over 12 years, he's had six movies produced in Australia but none in America. Each reminiscence is only a few pages long (Michael Tolkin's biography at the end of his recollection is almost as long as his story), which keeps the pace quick and the writing lively. The sassy title, eye-catching faux noir cover art and the impressive list of contributors (Steven Bochco, Eric Bogosian, Cameron Crowe, Delia Ephron, Larry Gelbart, Lawrence Kasdan and Joan Tewkesbury are just a few listed on the back cover) make this a compelling item for film buffs.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Showbiz mavens ought to like the inside poop this gathering of script scribblers' testimonies serves up. Cop show master Steven Bochco remembers his first writing job, which involved stretching "unsold one-hour pilots and anthological [sic ] dramas into two-hour movies" for a "cigar-chomping veteran producer" who pronounced his given name "Stiff." Youth culture chronicler supreme Cameron Crowe registers his memories of discovering that his first movie, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, was a hit in the sticks, though it had tanked at an L.A. preview. M*A*S*H TV veterans Larry Gelbart and Alan Alda expound, though only Alda talks about the long-lasting hit series: he cites Schnitzler's La Ronde as the inspiration for the episode he wrote about a pair of long johns being passed around during the frigid Korean winter. Other contributors include Eric Bogosian, Gary David Goldberg, and Carl Reiner. Great vocational reading for scripting wanna-bes. Mike Tribby
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: PublicAffairs; 1st edition (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586480138
• ISBN-13: 978-1586480134
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,872,170 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not what I was expecting, April 24, 2002

By 

anonymous-pete (los angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The First Time I Got Paid For It: Writers' Tales From The Hollywood Trenches (Paperback)

Maybe I missed the fine-print or something, but this book isn't what I was expecting, really, or what I was looking for. The book doesn't get three stars because it's bad -- it's not a bad book -- but because I think, well, the title is a sort of false advertising. When I picked up the book, I was expecting essays by successful writers about how they broke into the business of screenwriting ... inspirational-type stuff. Instead, what the book contains are stories about:

"The first time I ...

"... sold a tv-pilot after working for fifteen years as a staff-writer for a highly successful television show."

Or ...

"The first time I ...

"... adapted one of my highly sucessful stage plays into a screenplay."

And so on.

Many of the personal essays are interesting, some are funny, and the book is worth reading, if what you want to read are the kind of mildly amusing, sometimes hopeful essays contained in this book. If what you want is a book of essays by highly successful screenwriters about how the broke into the business, you'll find little (although some) of that here.

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lots of laughs and a little wisdom, October 10, 2000

By 

Debbie Lee Wesselmann (the Lehigh Valley, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The First Time I Got Paid For It : Writers' Tales From The Hollywood Trenches (Hardcover)

This book is a hoot! The tone of this compilation of short essays by Hollywood writers ranges from thoughtful to irreverent to downright hilarious. The title is somewhat of a misnomer since not all chapters tell about a writer's first sale. Chuck Lorre tells of the first time he was fired from a writing job (for defending a remake of "Beany and Cecil" from the eventual creator of "Ren and Stimpy.") Carl Reiner skips telling about his extensive television and screenwriting but focuses instead on the sale of his first novel. Delia Ephron covers the sale of several books as well as how she came to be a screenwriter. Peter Casey, already a successful television writer, relates the miraculous meeting when he and his partners pitched the idea for "Frasier." While these essays provide glimpses into the Hollywood machinery and a few of its gears, facts and advice are scarce. You won't learn how to navigate the "trenches" by reading this. Instead, you'll be entertained by the irony, good humor, and storytelling presented by this large group of talented writers. Because each piece lasts for only three or four pages, you can dip into this book for a few minutes at a time and read passages out of order. Don't skip any, though, because you might miss a gem.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring in an offbeat way ..., February 21, 2002

By 

M. Yung "mooshmeesh" (Santa Monica, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The First Time I Got Paid For It: Writers' Tales From The Hollywood Trenches (Paperback)

For anyone who's ever wanted to get paid for it, you ought to read this book. Especially wonderful for those who follow the Who's Who of Hollywood writers, and how they struggled. The foreword by William Goldman is especially charming as is the closing anecdote by Steve Zaillian, which I found touching. Audrey Wells' tale is flippant and funny as is Pamela Gray's.