Hollywood Is Filmmaker's Life, But Mercer Island Is Home

Shortly after writing "New Jack City," Thomas Lee Wright moved from Los Angeles to Mercer Island. He did it mostly for the sake of his children, but he hasn't lost touch with the film industry.

His powerful documentary "Eight-Tray Gangster: The Making of a Crip," which was filmed partly during the L.A. riots but completed in Seattle, was the most vital Northwest-produced movie at this year's Seattle International Film Festival. Now it's beginning to get recognition elsewhere.

"I lost money on it, but it's the most satisfying thing I've ever done," he said. Film clips were shown Wednesday night on "The Larry King Show," "60 Minutes" will do a segment about it in October, and an hour-long version will be shown Oct. 18 on The Discovery Channel.

Wright is also the co-author of "Working in Hollywood," which has become a standard text in film schools, and the new "American Screenwriters: The Art, the Craft and the Business of Writing Movies" (Avon Books, $12). Although it has taken several years to put together, this collection of interviews is remarkably up-to-date.

"We wanted writers of substance who had earned reputations who we thought would be around a long time," said Wright. Indeed, the list includes several writers represented in this summer's movies: Caroline Thompson ("The Secret Garden"), John Singleton ("Poetic Justice"), Shane Black ("The Last Action Hero"), Joe Eszterhas ("Sliver").

Wright and his collaborator, producer Karl Schanzer, were also interested in diversity. The subjects range from Callie Khouri, who won an Oscar for her first script ("Thelma & Louise"), to James Cameron, who created the first and second installments of "The Terminator," to Phil Alden Robinson, who is best-known for writing and directing "Field of Dreams" - though he spends much of his chapter recalling Sylvester Stallone's ghastly rewrite of Robinson's pet project "Rhinestone."

"I really don't want to be that powerless again," says Robinson.

Yes, this book is in part a collection of writers' tales of being mistreated by executives, actors and directors. But it's also a rewarding glimpse into the minds of people who are often more creative than their movies suggest.

Around town

The world premiere of the locally produced film "Crossers" is scheduled at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Renton Civic Theatre. It's a benefit to help purchase the theater; daily showings begin next Friday. . . . The 1953 Dr. Seuss fantasy "The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T" plays tomorrow night at the Outdoor Summer Cinema in Fremont. Showtime is 9:30 p.m.; the location is the parking lot behind the Red Door Ale House, 3401 Fremont N. Suggested donation: $2 to $3. Next up is the 1959 Japanese science-fiction film "The Mysterians," Aug. 21. The idea appears to be catching on: Richmond Beach has scheduled an "outdoor movie night" at 8 p.m. Aug. 19 at Richmond Beach Community Park. . . . Shining Moment Films is screening the silent horror movie "The Last Performance," with live music by Sugarfoot, at 7 and 9 p.m. Sunday at the Weathered Wall, 1921 Fifth Ave. Starring Conrad Veidt and Mary Philbin, it was shot on sets that were built for the Lon Chaney Sr. version of "The Phantom of the Opera." Tickets are $6. . . . The Pike St. Cinema at Pike and Boren is showing Jim Van Bebber's gang movie "Deadbeat at Dawn" at 7 o'clock tonight and 9 p.m. tomorrow, and Amos Poe's "Subway Riders," starring John Lurie as a saxophone-playing serial killer, at 9 o'clock tonight and 7 p.m. tomorrow and Sunday. Richard Kerns' "The Right Side of the Bride" will be shown with other Kern films at 11 o'clock tonight and tomorrow and 9 p.m. Sunday. Next Friday, the theater begins a two-week retrospective of its "greatest hits" with "The Mormon Church Explains It All For You." Tickets are $5. . . . At 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Neptune concludes its Sergei Eisenstein series with "Ivan the Terrible," Parts I and II, plus a four-minute fragment of the never-completed Part III. . . . Brad Vandenburg brings his feature-length road movie "Live With This: Adrift in America" to 911 Media Arts Center at 8 and 10 p.m. tonight. Tickets are $3 for 911 members, $5 for others. At 8 p.m. Monday, 911 will hold a "Live Art TV Public Forum Meeting" about the creation of television documentaries, focusing on Seattle artists. . . . The tube becomes a showcase for local filmmakers tomorrow night. "You Thought It Was Snow," Jacqueline Polonko's disturbing film about the effects of asbestos on factory workers, plays at 8:30 p.m. on Channel 29. Kathryn Hunt's poignant documentary about a homeless Seattle family, "No Place Like Home," which has been invited to the Venice Film Festival later this month, turns up at midnight on Channel 9. . . . "Twin Peaks" Log Lady herself, Catherine Coulson, will introduce a rare 35mm screening of David Lynch's first feature film, "Eraserhead," at 7:30 p.m. next Friday at the Seattle Art Museum. This marks the Seattle premiere of Lynch's refurbished version of the film. Tickets are $6 for museum members, $7 for the public. For information, call 654-3100.

Out of town

The Tacoma Art Museum will screen the 1919 German-expressionist classic "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" at 7 p.m. Thursday. Tickets are $3. . . . The Olympia Film Society is showing Federico Fellini's "Intervista" and Zhang Yimou's "The Story of Qiu Ju" at 6:30 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday at the Capitol Theater. Tickets are $3 for society members, $5 for others. At 2 p.m. Sunday, the society is also screening an animation program for children, including "Every Dog's Guide to the Playground" and the Oscar-nominated "Paradise." Thursday night only, the society is moving to Olympia's Skyline drive-in for a double bill of "Brazil" and "Rock N Roll High School." Showtime is 9 p.m.