Up & Out - Ariella Papa [56]
“I want you to take some initiative on the production of Hannah’s Hacienda.” She starts to shuffle papers around her desk without getting too close to it.
“What do you mean?” Hannah’s Hacienda is a show that we have been talking about for a while. It was originally called Joanna’s Hacienda and was supposed to promote diversity by taking an American girl from the city and sending her to live in Latin America. It is live action. One time it was on my plate when it was in animation. “Is it back to animation?”
“No.” She still strangely isn’t sitting close to her desk. Were we being bugged or something? “I just think that if you are going to be the executive producer your title says you are, you need to work on more than one show.”
“So this is a test?”
“No, this is experience you need.” She was looking at me as if she had already won some sort of battle. “You know that Jack Jones’s production company has expressed interest in this. We are already casting. You could oversee their production.”
“Whoa! What about Esme?”
“I’m sure you can handle both this and Esme. I have the directive from above, and if I were you I would choose your battles.” This is weird. I haven’t done live action and I probably could have figured it out if that was all I was executive producing, but not with Esme. It was impossible, and we both knew it. It was her way of getting me out.
Just fucking fire me, I wanted to say. Up and out, lay off, terminate me, whatever. I can’t take it anymore.
I don’t say that. I don’t say anything.
Finally I see why she is sitting so weirdly. She’s trying to get me to notice the card that she has propped up next to the bouquet on her desk. From Hackett.
Delores,
I know you are working very hard. You are doing a great job.
Matt
How could he? Hackett was supposed to be overseeing the whole department, but he was obviously clueless about what was going on, splitting his time between London and New York. It sucked. And what was worse, Delores knew I saw the card—just what she wanted. She smiles.
“Now, we all know Jack is someone we need to impress.” Jack Jones had been a sitcom star in the seventies, and no matter how cheesy celebrities were, Explore! Network liked to be associated with them. The theory being it made us seem cooler when everyone thought of us as a dorky network. Fuck us! I’m not part of the us.
“Sure,” I say.
“So he’s coming in for a meeting with us and Hackett tomorrow at nine. You’ll want to be on time and do a lot of kissing up.”
“I’ll use my tongue,” I say, and walk out.
I really said that. I am so getting fired.
I walk by Don’s office and he’s on the phone. There is nothing worse than hovering around someone when they are on a call, but Don sees me and gestures me in.
“Does it seem like a problem, Kurt? Okay. Let me know.” He hangs up. “Hey, I was actually going to stop by your office after this.”
“Why?”
“Does your friend Jordan have a drug problem?”
I smile. “Well, no. I don’t think so. No more than anyone else.” I knew he smoked pot and there was some talk of cocaine when things went sour with Lauryn. I wasn’t sure how much I should trust Don.
“Okay. My producer, Kurt Cressotti, tells me he’s been showing up late and is kind of out of it.”
“Well, I guess sometimes he could be more responsible.” This is the last thing I want to hear. Don sighs.
“You didn’t come by to talk about this.”
“I just got put on Hannah’s Hacienda.”
“We’re actually doing that?”
“Jack Jones’s company is into it now.”
“You know how we love getting boned by celebrities.” I laugh at his crassness. “Talk about drug problems. I’ve seen the E! True Hollywood Story.”
“Apparently that’s all behind him and now he’s a perfect candidate for kids’ TV. And I’m executive producing. I’ve never done live action.”
“Are they trying to make you fail?”
“That’s what it seems like, doesn’t it?” I stare out his window.
“How are you?”
“I