The following is part two of our exclusive interview with the
most well connected producer in the world, Paramount’s A.C.
Lyles. Part One of the interview can be found in the last
issue.
THE HOLLYWOOD SENTINEL - BRUCE EDWIN: I had a
person that was a client and friend who passed away about a month
ago. I went to his funeral, and I bring this up because in some
of the clips you’ve done, you stated you’ve done a
lot of eulogies. So the question is, is there any thing you
haven’t done that you want to do before it’s
over?
A.C. LYLES: (…) As you can see, I have
hundreds of pictures all over the wall, and a lot of them, we
have lost, and it’s a tragedy because talent is hard to
find, and in this business, it’s tough. There are 120,000
members of Screen Actors Guild, and the days we talked, I think
its close to 90 percent that were un-employed, (…) Because
you can’t employ 120,000 people every day, and in that
120,000 people, there are actors, there are stars, there are
superstars, and there are fewer legends. And I’ve been
lucky, I’ve known actors, and I’ve know stars,
I’ve known superstars, and I’ve known legends. With
the pictures we make, all of it comes together, and there are a
lot of young people in Hollywood now and they too will become
actors, and stars, and superstars, and they will become legends,
and I’ve seen that happen to so many, many people.
I remember the day Bob Hope came here, and did a picture here
called ‘The Big Broadcast of 1938,’ (the musical
comedy won and Oscar® for best music and best original song
of ‘Thanks for the Memory,’) and he got I believe
sixth or seventh billing, but he became one of the biggest
legends here. And I remember the first picture John Wayne did for
us in 1941, ‘Shepherd of the Hills,’ and we became
close, close friends, so I’ve seen a lot of people come
through the gates (of Paramount). And this office used to belong
to Fred Astaire. (…)
A.C. LYLES: They named an A.C. Lyles building
for me. We have buildings named after a lot of our favorite
people, Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Marlene Dietrich (...), so I feel
very honored to have that. And then my other friends of mine, are
on the walk of fame, in front of the El Capitan Theatre, which is
right across from the Chinese Theatre, and there are a lot of
famous names of my friends there, and I am honored to be among
them (with his own star).
BRUCE EDWIN: That’s very commendable. So
many people try to break in to this business, and obviously
getting attached to a big picture will do it, but do you think
having worked with all of the big names you have, aside from
‘Obsession, Obsession, Obsession,’ do you think there
is any other ingredient that really helps make one a star or a
superstar?