The Dark Side of Fame Part 1

By Lawrence Crockett

A very obsessed, frustrated and brashly ambitious doorman seeks wealth and fame as a successful film director and producer. After years of working long hours and making untold sacrifices, he earned enough money to outfit his small production crew. Finally one day his big break came. A young naive producer answered his Internet ad with the perfect opportunity. Driven by money, greed and power, he was determined to make his mark in the entertainment industry with this first chance at success. The stage was apparently set for him and the producer as they both pursued their big break; after all, they both needed each other until the opportunity took a very unpredictable and ill-fated turn. Angered by the disappointment, the doorman resorts to blackmail using skills learned first-hand while working at 740 Park Avenue which is the home to some of the cities wealthiest tenants; the likes of Koch, Schwarzman and Thain, just to name a few, were some of the building’s most acclaimed residents and were also among his staunchest idols. Coming to admire them while he watched as they made millions of dollars on Wall Street over the years, he wanted what they had. Firmly convinced by their tactics, he thought if they were good enough for wealthy Wall Street tycoons, then those same tactics coupled with his military training, should be good enough for him to make his mark as a director and producer in the entertainment industry. Extorting five million dollars from a top film executive was just the beginning, he thought, but a necessary step to enter a world he was all too desperate and willing to join.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lawrence Crockett
• Release date: Oct 1, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310649288

Lawrence Crockett

Lawrence E. Crockett, born in Dermott, Arkansas and a University of Arkansas graduate. For the past twenty-five years, New York City has been his home. He's a husband and father who has found a new passion in life writing about his many experiences, especially those in New York, while pursuing an extensive career in marketing, sales and personnel. Through fictional characters, he creates a very entertaining perspective and presents some very fascinating and colorful stories in his novels.

Book preview

The Dark Side of Fame

Part 1

The Dark Side of Fame

Part 1

Lawrence E. Crockett

Published by Lawrence E. Crockett at Smashwords

Copyright © 2015 by Lawrence E. Crockett

All rights reserved. No part of this eBook may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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CONTENTS

Summary

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

SUMMARY

A very obsessed, frustrated and brashly ambitious doorman seeks wealth and fame as a successful film director and producer. After years of working long hours and making untold sacrifices, he earned enough money to outfit his small production crew. Finally one day his big break came. A young naive producer answered his Internet ad with the perfect opportunity. Driven by money, greed and power, he was determined to make his mark in the entertainment industry with this first chance at success.

The stage was apparently set for him and the producer as they both pursued their big break; after all, they both needed each other until the opportunity took a very unpredictable and ill-fated turn. Angered by the disappointment, the doorman resorts to blackmail using skills learned first-hand while working at 740 Park Avenue which is the home to some of the cities wealthiest tenants; the likes of Koch, Schwarzman and Thain, just to name a few, were some of the building’s most acclaimed residents and were also among his staunchest idols. Coming to admire them while he watched as they made millions of dollars on Wall Street over the years, he wanted what they had. Firmly convinced by their tactics, he thought if they were good enough for wealthy Wall Street tycoons, then those same tactics coupled with his military training, should be good enough for him to make his mark as a director and producer in the entertainment industry. Extorting five million dollars from a top film executive was just the beginning, he thought, but a necessary step to enter a world he was all too desperate and willing to join.

DEDICATION

In loving memory, I dedicate this book to my brother, James David Crockett, January 31, 1953 – June 17, 2015, and cousins, Dorothy Ann Hoston, December 09, 1943 – July 01, 2015 and Lemoyne Deke Richardson, November 05, 1930 September 14, 2015

My dear brother and cousins:

Your deaths crippled my heart in succession with rue and grief. The sadness lingers, with loneliness abound, but I struggle through the days when I grieve the most. Something peculiar happens, I’ve noticed, when the Holy Spirit is present in me. There’s a noticeable difference in the way I speak, think and feel about most things, including other people when our Lord exacts his presence imposing a non-negotiable halt to all my daily activities inconsistent with his Will. For me the order of business becomes clear and irrefutable; his Will must be done, with urgency, reverence and purpose. And so, on Thursday, June 25 and July 9 and Monday, September 21, 2015 at precisely 11:00 a.m. three churches and the extended communities were entrusted with the task of three funerals, burials and repasts for James David Crockett, Dorothy Ann Hoston and Lemoyne Deke Richardson. For my brother and cousins, on behalf of our family, I want to thank three congregations: First Baptist Church of Wilmot, AR-Reverend Albert Fenceroy, Marshall Road Baptist Church of Jacksonville, AR-Reverend Roy Jones and Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church-Pastor Louis Sibley III. Three funeral homes: Dillard Funeral Services of Dermott, AR, Ruffin and Jarrett Funeral Home of Little Rock, AR and Northwest Funeral Chapel, Inc. of Milwaukee, WI. I extend our heart-felt appreciation and thanks for a job well done by everyone involved. The food, service and hospitality were second to none!

Now, the challenge before us and our friends is to carry-on with their memories in our hearts. Because of the many acts of kindness, our transition has been made somewhat easier with the hope of joy replacing our sadness. In the Book of Matthew 18: (Verses 19-20) it is written: "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." On each occasion, our gathered numbers not only were greater than required two or three but substantially exceeded the count and I trust everyone wished them safe passage to our father’s house in heaven.

While I was in Arkansas, I went to visit one of our relatives, the Reverend Jesse Lee Turner of Dermott, a close cousin and friend to our deceased loved ones. We had a good visit; our laughter and fellowship, as always, was heart-felt. Like a good home cooked meal, it does my spirit good when I connect with family and old friends. The next day, he saw me walking; I was headed to his sister’s house, Ms. Carvie Callion. But he stopped and asked me to get in his car; he wanted to take me back to his house and show me something he forgot during my visit the previous day. It would have been unthinkable not to see his sister during my brief but expected trip home. Only after I promised emphatically a return visit did he relent. Later that day, I went to his home and he eagerly greeted me at his door then took me straight to his bathroom. Bristling with pride he pointed to his wall and said, Your brother did this for me! Look at it; a job well done. It made me feel proud as I stood there admiring my brother’s work.

Suddenly my mind flashed back some fifty years earlier. It was a hot summer day in Dermott; so hot I could see the heat from the Sun blowing across the fields where we were working. The scorching Sun was beaming down on my head and the hot air was blasting my face with such unbearable intensity it was as if the gates of hell were open and the furnace was working at full capacity making air too hot to breath; it was such an unpleasant day but the work was necessary and needed to be done.

I was about six or seven years old, chopping cotton on our farm in the heat with my mom, dad, James and a few other people I don’t remember so well. Unable to keep up, I fell behind them; the heat had exacted its toll and as the distance grew between us, the more discouraged I became. No one helped me and my frustration only grew more with each passing minute working behind them in that hot Sun. My eyes filled with tears and I wanted to just give up which would have certainly displeased our father. After wiping sweat from my face and tears from my eyes, I saw my brother James chopping on my row working back toward me; he had left his row to help me catch up. He knew we could rest underneath the big oak tree in the shade and drink cold water once we reached the end of our long rows; his love for me boosted my spirit that day and