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Overview
Preston Rhodes was an extraordinary writer. However his actress wife, Carly, didn’t want him to over-shadow her talents so she set out to squash every opportunity that came his way. His father died and left Preston an extraordinary gift. It was his memoirs and Preston immediately saw that the book was literary genius. He set out to write a script and it was immediately touted as the next Gone With the Wind. He set out to sell the movie around the country until an errant bullet to his head sent him to a magical town where all the old Hollywood actors dwelled long after their starlight had been extinguished. Falling Waters was the town where spirits thrived and he was sure it was real. He was accepted and spent a lifetime amid the old stars of Hollywood. He met and interacted with all the greats. When he came out of his coma he tried to convince everyone that the town existed but nothing he could do would convince his friends. That is until they understood that miracles do happen.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781467870542 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | AuthorHouse |
| Publication date: | 11/21/2011 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 412 |
| File size: | 505 KB |
Read an Excerpt
Falling Waters
By Gary D. Henry
AuthorHouse
Copyright © 2011 Gary D. Henry and Colleen LockardAll right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4678-7056-6
Chapter One
Tough Times in Tinsel Town
Preston Rhodes was a young, brilliant, and gifted visionary. He was in his second year at UCLA, and it had become evident to his teachers at a very young age that he would stand out among other students. Preston had an uncanny ability. He could tell which movie would flop and which would be a box office smash just by reading the corresponding book.
During his sophomore year, he met Carly Carlson. She was a theater major and took an instant liking to young Preston and he to her. Preston had a keen eye as to what worked and what did not with regard to theatric endeavors, and she used his advice to excel in all the plays in which she appeared. Preston even changed the script up at the request of her teachers to maximize her talent. The writers had no problem with Preston changing the script because what he wrote was much better, and they knew it. Carly always looked out to the audience and knew exactly where Preston was sitting. She had told him that his presence made her perform much better. They did everything together and were nearly inseparable all the way through school. Just before graduation, Preston proposed, and Carly quickly accepted. It was a good year for Carly because that same year she also got an agent. Rick Reynolds heard through the grapevine that Carly was a can't-miss actor. He attended one of her plays, saw her performance for himself, and signed her on the spot.
Preston was excited for Carly but her signing did not take away from the fact that they would be married prior to her getting her first role. Still, Preston wondered if her pending career would change her in any way. They set the date for their wedding eight weeks after their graduation date. Preston and Rick got along very well, and Rick was good enough to allow Carly and Preston a few weeks in Barbados before he would launch Carly's career. Rick was also interested in signing Preston because Carly had touted Preston's extraordinary script writing talent.
Preston and Carly were married on a Saturday. Upon their return from Barbados, Rick landed her a role in a few commercials for a major car producer. It did not pay much, but it was enough to cover a few months of rent. They had just graduated from UCLA. Preston set out to be a writer and was itching to get into the movie industry. Carly had made her start, and Preston wanted to contribute as well. He did not know how to begin and Rick, even though he tried, could not help him. He did know he would have to work free for the first few years given the studios would hire no one while there was a pool of young graduates willing to work without pay. Preston was different though. He was an avid reader and could instantly envision a script after reading a book.
He and Carly were certain Hollywood needed such a gift. Preston could spot a good story very quickly and could automatically picture the movie in his mind. It did not matter whether the author was a good writer. Preston could create from any story a screen writing epic. Getting that first shot was the problem. He knocked on many doors and sent out hundreds of resumes, but cracking through the movie industry doors was next to impossible for a young guy who had just graduated from college. He and Carly did not have much money and knew he would eventually have to take any job that could keep food in their mouths while he formulated his plan to open a few doors. Carly continued to hold her own and for a while was the only breadwinner in the newly formed twosome. Carly did not mind since she was convinced that her talented husband would soon be making more money than they needed.
He decided to collaborate with a few new authors offering to adapt their books into movie scripts at no charge, with one condition. If he were able to sell it to a studio, then he would collect a portion of the proceeds. Preston gathered about twenty books all with great stories. He worked with the authors and reached an agreement. He would adapt their books and present the scripts to studios. He knew he was talented and knew if he could get the studios to read just one of them, then they, too, would see his talent. He got a job outside of his talents that did not pay much but allowed him to have a car, an apartment, and enough money to keep him and Carly fed, but he remained hungry for further success. They did not need the frills in life that most in the film industry flaunted. In fact, they needed very little at all to make them happy.
They just had a small one-bedroom apartment in a relatively safe part of town. Preston actually loved it there. However, Carly thought their place was a bit too small, but they had to have a place to stay. Preston was satisfied with a bed, a laptop, and a phone, although he and Carly did not often share the bed while both were awake. When he got off work, he went to his laptop computer and worked on adapting books until it was time to go to bed. This was his standard day for two years.
Carly continued getting frustrated with Preston's busy schedule. She was usually on set working for fourteen hours and was dead tired when she got home. Invariably, she would arrive home to find Preston tapping away on his computer where he stayed long after she had already gone to sleep. There was a time when he wanted to give it all up, but quitting had never been part of him or his family's makeup.
Prior to his graduation from college, his mother and father worked very hard to send him to the University of California. He was luckier than most because his parents started saving for Preston's education the very day he was born. His folks were not rich, but they did want to give him every possible advantage in life. Neither of his parents attended college, and his mother never even graduated high school. That made no difference to Preston's father because he loved her. She eventually did get her GED but still struggled to hold a few jobs just so they could add another twenty dollars to Preston's college fund. His father was a teacher. He also wanted to be a journalist, but the long hours teaching prevented him from pursuing that goal. Preston's dad was quite a good writer and was always pushing forward with his seemingly never-ending novel. He spent years writing it but never finished it.
Preston asked him, "Dad, I see you writing all the time. You've been writing for forever. Do you ever think you'll finish your book?"
Preston's dad removed his glasses and answered, "I suspect one day I will. Preston, there's something I need to tell you. The book has taken me this long, son, because my life is still going on. This is the story of my life, and I suspect I'll keep writing, if I'm able, until the day I die. I want to write the book well. I've thrown out whole chapters just to rewrite them. I want it to be good."
Preston asked, "Dad, do you ever think about how difficult it would be to find a publisher if you ever did finish it?"
His father replied, "Son, I won't have to find a publisher. I'll be leaving this to you when I die. I want you to finish it after I'm gone. It's not just the story of my life but also the story of your mother's life as well as yours. There have been times when we've had problems. I disciplined you all the time, but I've always loved you. Every time I raised my voice or turned you over my knee, I had to go write how I really felt about having to do so. There were times when I felt bad and times when I was angry, but I must say that regardless of what is written in this book, both your mother and me have always been very proud of you."
Preston was just a kid at the time. His father, it seemed, was always under a lot of pressure. It was a hard life trying to bring up a child the right way in Southern California. Everything was expensive, but his parents always provided food and insured his clothes were always clean. He would have liked to spend a bit more time with his parents, but they were always working.
Even his father was tutoring students after he got off work to gain a few extra dollars. Preston was a rare kid. He saw how hard his parents were working and tried his best not to make life any tougher for them. He stayed away from the drug culture and did not allow himself to associate with people caught up in it. He did not really get into that much trouble as a teenager and was happy to help the family out when he was old enough to work. He happily turned over his paychecks to his mother, and she was very thankful for his contribution. Invariably, however, all of the money he gave her went directly into his college fund. His parents never had much, but Preston never heard his mother or father for that matter speak of wanting anything other than their most basic needs.
That trait stayed with Preston. His fellow students always had a new car and stylish clothes, but Preston held no envy because of what the other kids had. He was even happy for them. Material things and the trappings of an elegant society were never his priority. He was satisfied with the few loves in his life, which were Carly, his family, and his desire to write. He always thought and dreamed of being a great novelist and wanted to be as dedicated as his father was in that pursuit. The only difference was that he did not want to spend twenty years writing any one book.
Sadly, Preston's mother died of cancer during his first year of college. Her death hit him hard as he nearly gave up his dream of becoming a best-selling author. She meant everything to him, but his father made him go on. Preston wanted to quit school to help his father out with the bills, but he would not hear of it.
He said, "Preston, you will not quit college. We don't have much, but the Rhodes family does not quit. Your mother sacrificed the most. You didn't know this, but she would always come home and cry because another day without seeing you had gone by. She walked into your room just about every night to kiss you goodnight."
Preston said, "Yes I know. She woke me up a few times."
His father continued, "Yes I know. She told me. Preston, it broke my heart to see her in such pain. I begged her to quit one of her jobs, but she always said she had to work because you need college. She went on to say she would work a third job if it became necessary to get you there."
The following year, Preston's father died of a massive heart attack in his classroom, and Preston was alone.
His father left him enough money to finish school, but the most precious gift that he left Preston was the novel that had taken his dad twenty-two years to write. Preston would not read it at first. Perhaps he thought if he delayed reading his father's book, his dad would remain alive in his mind for a few more months.
He read only a page a day just to prolong the experience. From what he read though, he believed the book was the best one he had ever read, and he didn't think that because his father wrote it. He really felt the power of the words.
Preston had little time to read it because he had a script to sell to get his career going. Carly tried to be supportive, but even though Preston had a part-time job, she brought in the bulk of the money.
Rick was getting her a lot of work, and she was constantly on the television in a myriad of commercials. Rick was supposed to be Preston's agent as well but could find no contact that wanted to listen to Preston or read one of his scripts.
The authors that collaborated with Preston started to pressure him because he had sold none of the scripts even though he had given them a great gift for essentially free.
It usually cost five thousand dollars to adapt a book to a movie script, and Preston did it for nothing but a few hundred dollars and the hope that a studio might buy one of them. Rick was able to secure Preston interviews with a few of the studios, but they were not interested.
Preston lacked a Hollywood pedigree, so garnering the attention of the people that matter was next to impossible. He felt guilty that years had passed and he hadn't sold a script. Eventually, he gave each of the twenty authors the scripts for their books completely free of charge. He wouldn't even get a commission should any of the scripts eventually sell. He tore up the contracts leaving the authors with scripts for their books. A few of them liked Preston and wouldn't allow him to leave with nothing for all the work he had done. Those few told Preston that should they ever sell a script, they would give him a percentage. With no more pressure by the authors, he needed another story and attempted to do what he had always wanted to do. He wanted to write a book, but struggled to think of a story. He pondered for weeks for an idea, but nothing came to him for months. Carly came into the house and excitedly told Preston, "Honey, I did it. I got a costarring role in a high budget drama with some very big stars, and it'll be directed by Douglas Banks, the three-time academy award winning director."
Excited for her, Preston asked, "Are you serious? We have to go out and celebrate. Congratulations, Honey."
Carly replied, "Now you may not have to get a job. If this turns out the way I want, it could be an important stepping-stone to something much bigger. I can't wait because I want a bigger house."
Preston looked around at their clean little home and said, "What's wrong with what we have. I kind of like it here."
Carly replied, "Honey, it's nice, but it's just too small."
Just as he was about to respond, Rick knocked on the door and asked both Preston and Carly, "Who's the best agent in the world? Both of you, gather your things. We're doing it up big tonight. My treat."
Preston said, "My God, Rick, what happened?"
Rick looked at Preston and said, "What? Carly didn't tell you? We're going to the big time, Preston. I got her one million dollars for this upcoming movie."
In the bedroom brushing her hair, Carly heard what Rick said. She let out a loud scream then ran out in her robe and hugged Rick while Preston looked on.
Preston said, "Um, Carly? Remember me?"
Carly replied, "Oh damn, I wasn't even watching who I was hugging. I thought it was you."
Smiling, Rick said, "Hey! How am I supposed to feel about that?"
Preston smiled and replied, "Okay, Carly, it's Rick's turn."
The three friends went to Hollywood and played hard the rest of the night. They dined at the best restaurant and partied at the best clubs. Rick hired a limousine for the night, and the three enjoyed a celebration to remember. Preston was now essentially a kept man. He could even quit his part-time job. To relieve his boredom, he decided to continue reading his father's book. Carly was away on location for five weeks and felt lonely when Preston wasn't around. She begged him to visit her in New Mexico. Preston had never been to New Mexico and couldn't wait to get there. He arrived in about a day and a half and went to the hotel where Carly had checked in, but she didn't arrive at the room for hours. She was filming a very important night scene, so she didn't return until midnight. She was very happy to see Preston but was exhausted and had to go to bed because she had a 7:00 a.m. call time. Preston drove her to the set, and the only time she could see him was when she had to have her makeup reapplied. He had forgotten to bring his father's book and told her he was going back to the hotel room and would see her later.
Carly said, "I'm so sorry, Honey, the shooting schedule is crazy, and they're making me do a dozen or more takes a scene. I should see you about eleven or twelve."
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Falling Waters by Gary D. Henry Copyright © 2011 by Gary D. Henry and Colleen Lockard. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Acknowledgment....................ixIntroduction....................xi
Chapter 1: Tough Times in Tinsel Town....................1
Chapter 2: Preston's Regression into Success....................33
Chapter 3: The Project and Preston Take Flight....................57
Chapter 4: Tragedy in New York....................91
Chapter 5: Falling Waters....................113
Chapter 6: Secrets Revealed....................145
Chapter 7: Gone with the Wind....................167
Chapter 8: A Project for the Spirits....................201
Chapter 9: The Premier....................251
Chapter 10: Preston's Life Induced Destruction....................281
Chapter 11: Rick Bears Down....................317
Chapter 12: Preston's Gift to the World....................357