-Sally Field, 1985
Dan McGlaughlin's Interview with Davide Hegel,
28 year old Head Casting Director on The Emmy Award Winning Soap Opera
All My Children
D.M.:
(27, fat, feebly knocks at the door with horror and trepidation) Um…(inaudible)…is'zis…(inaudible)Davide
Hegel:
Hello.
D.M.:
Are you…
D.H.:
You must be Dan, nice to meet you please come in have a seat. So Dan, you've been with ABC daytime for about, uhh, let me see, okay five episodes now?
D.M.:
Can I…
D.H:
You can just put your lunch on the coffee table for now, is that from the truck in front of the building on 66th?
D.M.:
(cough) Yeah.
D.H.:
Oh…( Dan situates himself in the chair, and noisily puts his white plastic bag containing his Styrofoam clamshell on the nattily dressed, young casting director's coffee table, ruining it.)…
D.M.:
I spilled some coffee, it's just a little bit…
D.H.
No don't worry about, don't worry about, DON"T WORRY ABOUT IT hah, hah…What'd you get?
D.M.:
'Scuse me?
'Scuse me?
D.H.:
For Lunch?
D.M.:
Cheese steak.
D.H.:
They make those there?
D.M.:
I told'em to make me one, they made me one. 'Snot onna menu.
D.H.:
Oh yeah, ha ha, you know people who know people, right?
D.M.:
I don't know him.
D.H.:
…
D.M.:
…
D.H.:
So it looks like you've been doing a lot of supporting cast work on our show.
D.M.:
Background work. Carrying clipboards.
D.H. :
Uh, yes, You've been – let's see what was you're character's name?
D.M.:
Recurring Hospital Orderly Number 7.
D.H.:
Yeeeesssssss…So how do you find the experience of working with us so far?
D.M.:
It's good, ya' know, I bring a book to read. Yeah.
D.H.:
Excuse me?
D.M.:
For the, you know, (Points to the left with his finger).
D.H.:
... Uh huh...Well let's just look at your resume. It looks like your face has filled out a little since you've had these headshots taken, when were these taken?
D.M.:
Oh no, look it's just the angle, see, the angle that the pictures were taken.
D.H.:
When were they taken?
D.M.:
Oh I'd say, maybe…It's 2007?
D.H.:
Yes. It is the year two thousand and seven. That's what year it is Dan.
D.M.:
(Counting on his hands, his left hand palm up all fingers extended, his right fist palm up, thumb and index finger extended) seven, six, five, four, three, two – shhhhhugar – seven, SIX, fivefour, THREE – 2003? I think?
D.H.:
And you're still, ahem, (reads from paper): "Mountain biking, Juggling, Running Marathons, Mountain Climbing, Translating Online Articles into French and Italian for Lonely Planet, Playing Amateur Soccer, Skydiving, Shooting Bows and Arrows…"
D.M.:
Huh?
D.H.:
Your resume, under "Miscellaneous skills"?
D.M.:
Oh, OH yeah. Yes. Yes, I'm still doing, I still do those things. All of them.
D.H.:
Isn't it called Archery?
D.M.:
What called Archery?
D.H.:
Shooting Bows and Arrows, on your resume, isn't it called Archery?
D.M.:
Yeah, it's called Archery, that's what "shooting Bows and Arrows" is, Archery, you don't shoot the bows though, actually you USE the bow to shoot arrows, it's important to know that. It's actually one of the first things that they teach you. That.
D.H.:
Do you go to a shooting range, or a, what's it called…
D.M.:
No, you had it right.
D.H.:
Had what right?
D.M.:
The name, it's called a shooting range. (Clearly lost now) Y'see they use the same name for a place where you shoot arrows with a bow and a place where you fire a gun. It can get kinda confusing so that's why when you call an operator and you say "Can I have the number for the local shooting range?" They made it, I think they made it a law, or at least it's a rule, that's what it is, it's a rule for all telephone operators to say "Guns or Arrows, sir?" or "Ma'am" Politically correct and everything nowadays.
D.H.:
Uh...Well, I think in the digital age we live in now people probably just look it up on the Internet.
D.M.:
Yeah, that's probably what they do.
D.H.
Do you, uh, go regularly?
D.M.:
No I go to Central Park to do it.
D.H.:
You shoot a bow and arrow in Central Park?D.M.:
Well, of course not, THAT'S illegal. I train there.
D.H.:
You train there?
D.M.:
Yeah like, lift weights and stuff to stay in shape for my acting career.
D.H.:
You lift weights in central park?
D.M.:
…Yes.
D.H.:
Well, uh Daniel, I think that, you know - we'll be in touch and there might be an audition for you for an underfive somewhere in the future. What are you reading there?
D.M.:
Oh, this, uh...This is called "The Ascendancy of the Scientific Dictatorship"
D.H.:
The what?
D.M.:
Well it's an examination of epistemic autocracy, it's funny, I didn't know that Eisenhower talked about this stuff.
D.H.:
Okay it was nice talking Dan.
D.M.:
I can lend it to you.
D.H.:
That won't be necessary.
D.M.:
No but really, it's cool.
D.H.:
I'll order it on Amazon.
D.M.:
...No you won't.
D.H.:
You're right I won't.
D.M.:
I'll just leave it right there.
D.H.:
Wait, there's coffee there, just (sigh) just hand it to me.
D.M.:
Cool.
D.H.:
...
D.M.:
It's really good.
D.H.:
...
D.M.:
I'll just be going now.
D.H.:
Bye.
D.M.:
...
D.H.:
What is it?
D.M.:
You know that book I just lent you?
Can I borrow it?
