In his defense, fatherhood is no piece of cake. Just ask my friend Ted Melfi. Ted directed the movie I wrote and starred in, (above, that’s Ted on the left, Mateo Londono, our director of photography in the middle, and me at a film festival for my film) and it was his incredible effort that made it something I am so happy with.
Just after we wrapped my film, Ted’s brother suddenly passed away at age 38, and Ted and his wife didn’t hesitate and selflessly adopted his brother’s 11-year-old daughter. The awesome sense of parenthood and responsibility set off a chain of events, in which Ted’s wife reconciled with her father and Ted was inspired to write a screenplay. It took a couple years until he was fully satisfied with it, and then he attempted to get it into the hands of some big people.
I’ll let Ted describe what happened next: “I’m driving one day, the phone rings and it’s Bill Murray, and he says, ‘Ted Melfi, I don’t know who you are, but I love your script.’ He asked me to meet him at LAX and go for a ride as he returned home from a golf tournament. I met him in baggage, we got in a town car. He pulls the script out of an attaché case. It’s dog-eared and there are notes all over it. We stop at an In-N-Out Burger, and spent a three-hour drive to I don’t know where discussing the script. He understood everything about the character, and his notes were simple, direct and to the point. He said, ‘This character is who I am at times, and this is how I talk, at times.’ It was one of those days where you think, if I died tomorrow, it would be okay.”
The film, called St. Vincent de Van Nuys, is in pre-production, and will star Bill Murray, Naomi Watts, Melissa McCarthy and Chris O’Dowd. (The Irish cop from Bridesmaids.) Don Cheadle is one of the producers. Ted is directing.
Ted, I have never been more proud of you. Outstanding.
