I, like Bruce, have many kindness of strangers stories. People without whom one's career might have gone in an entirely different direction or not happened at all. In 1980, I went to an open call at the Ahmanson Theatre for a play called THE CRUCIFER OF BLOOD that was to be directed by its author, Paul Giovanni. It was a Sherlock Holmes play, with Charlton Heston playing Holmes and Jeremy Brett,Watson.
I was called back several times. Mr. Giovanni took me out in the hall at one point and said to me, "Of the three hundred people you see at an open call, only about 70-80 have any talent and only a handful stand out. But what none of those folks who come out here with their battered suitcases full of dreams understand is, nobody cares. You have to make them care. I just want you to know you're one of those who stand out and I care. I'm going to do my damnest to get you in this show." Now part of that decision was Mr. Heston's, who was more than willing to work with young talent. True to his word, Mr. Giovanni got me in the show. I and one other actor were told we were the first actors to break the open call at the Ahmanson and ever get cast from it. All during the run, Jeremy Brett was kind and encouraging to me and we spoke often after the show closed and even met in London for dinner when our own respective Sherlock Holmes films were competing with each other.
There are many, many others...often teachers or professors or behind-the-scenes people who kept you going, inspired you, and steered you in the right direction when you needed it. These are the people who should be thanked at Awards Shows.
