Michael Bay & Lunch at the Chateau Marmont

Monday, August 6th, 2007

The first time I went to the Chateau Marmont ~to drop off some printed materials for Mr. Dunne~ my husband and I were driving around shopping and running errands, and at first we didn't realize that the short driveway was actually how you enter. It looks like it's just the entrance to the parking garage. We drove past it up to the top of the hill and had to turn around when we realized our error.

This time, I knew right were to go. I had offered weeks ago to show Dominick how to find the various blogs on the Internet that were covering the trial as well as the Court TV message boards, but this was the first day that worked out for both of us. Court was not in session until the afternoon since Judge Fidler and counsel were to visit the Castle to see if the scene of Lana Clarkson's death had changed enough to prevent the jurors from seeing it.

The Chateau Marmont is often identified as "Hollywood's Castle." It sits on the north side of Sunset Blvd., a little over a short block west of Crescent Heights Drive. The old hotel is built into the Hollywood hillside and has six floors as well as various bungalows and suites with patios. Once you enter the glass double doors beside the parking garage, you need to take the stairs or one of the two tiny elevators to what is considered the first floor to reach the lobby. Walking into the Chateau Marmont is like taking a trip back in time into old Hollywood. There's so much rich history here, and the Spanish influences are striking. Naturally lighted spaces contrast against the dark wood antiques and upholstered fabrics via the highly arched windows and walkways, and the overall feel is that you have stepped back into a different era. I have always been drawn to old wood antiques of virtually every style, and have collected a few myself since I was eighteen. There are other writers who have described the place much better than I ever could, so I encourage you to click on the link to read about the place and see some images of Chateau Marmont for yourself.

After I showed Dominick how to get to the various blogs and message boards, I signed onto Court TV and made a post with a quote from him. This caused quite a flurry of postings on the Spector Forum daily thread, mostly from posters sending hellos and kind words to Dominick. I know that later that evening, he did read the greetings. Afterwards, Dominick treated me to lunch on the patio where we both chose the same salad, except I ordered mine without the crutons and the dressing. Sitting on the patio is like being in a small intimate garden, where you can look up and see the balconies of the upper suites. Dominick was kind enough to again autograph the latest issue of Vanity Fair for my sister, Jane. I know she will be thrilled when she gets the August and September issues.

Driving back to court, I get hung up in some traffic and Dominick gets there before me. At first I hear rumors that the reason there is no court on Tuesday is because Spector has a doctor's appointment. (Later, we learn that Judge Fidler had two doctor's appointments that day.) Inside the courtroom and in my regular seat I see that Lisa Sweetingham has finally made it to the trial. She had told me months ago that she was going to stop by. I met Lisa during the Blake trial, when she was the Court TV corespondent and blogger covering the trial. A tiny, pixie of a woman, she is a delightful person to spend time with, and I really enjoyed hanging out with her at the Van Nuys courthouse. Lisa sat all the way at the end of the second bench row so she could turn around and get caught up with Beth Karas.

Sitting in the front row is the family attorney Rod Lindblum's cute young girlfriend, as well as several other friends to support Donna Clarkson and Fawn. Miriam Hernandez is in the back row on her laptop. Looking on over at Rachelle I see she has on a loose fitting black top. Keep wearing black, Mrs. Spector. You'll need to get used to it with where your husband is going. I see Spector talking to the white haired guy. I know Ciaran McEvoy found out his name and I wrote it down in my notebooks but I can't seem to find it now. According to Ciaran, white haired guy never worked with Spector, but he is a friend and has come by the courthouse for support. Spector's son Dante is here again, and there are a few other people on the defense side today, showing their support for the accused. The back row is packed with press and trial watchers.

1:45 pm the attorneys come out of an in camera meeting with the Judge. Nick Terzian is back on the stand under cross by Roger Rosen. CCA and I are struggling with the correct spelling of his last name, and Donna Clarkson, turns around and corrects my attempt with the correct first few letters and gives me a smile. Rosen crosses Terzian on Lana's income for 2002-2003. Rosen asks Terzian about a word he thought he called Lana on Thursday. "Bible." Terzian gets this look on his face that almost says, I can't believe you actually passed the CA bar Rosen. Terzian says, "I said she was extremely marketable. She was "viable," not "bible." Rosen asks the witness what research he's done to support his percentages of working actors, and Terzian responds that the SAG (Screen Actors Guild) puts out newsletters with this information. Terzian is clear that it's not just one issue, but a compilation, but Rosen wants the exact issue.

Rosen asks the witness about the Brentwood Blondes production and her firing, and Terzian states that he didn't know anything about it. Two court interns enter and sit in the third row. Rosen asks more questions about the firing, trying to get him to say that her getting fired from this tiny, tiny theater production would have affected her career. Talk about "reaching" Rosen, lol. This is a ridiculous insinuation. When the witness gives a different answer than Rosen wants, he responds with, "I didn't ask you that." Immediately, the Judge slaps him down reminding him "It was unnecessary to say, "I didn't ask you that.""

A Juror is resting their head on their right hand, slightly slumped over to the side of their chair. Stan Goldman the law professor enters. Terzian says he did not know who Lana's other agents were.

Q: She loved the spotlight and always maintained her passion?

A: Yes. For the time that I represented her.

Terzian saw her about a half a dozen times in 2001 and in 2002.

Q: Were you aware of the fact, well, maybe we should approach. And the attorneys approach the bench for another sidebar. Beth and Lisa Sweetingham chat. CCA talks to Stan Goldman. The gallery starts to get a bit loud with it's whispering. A few of the jurors lean in to talk to each other. Some of the jurors watch us in the gallery. The jury is told they have to step out of the courtroom for a moment. Plourd and the white haired guy talk.

The Judge goes over a few issues regarding the jury visit to the Castle. Someone from the press will be present. There will be no photographer, and the press gets to choose the representative. Then Rosen stands up and says they want to recommend Linda Deutsch. I'm struck dumb. I've never heard of this ever happening before. Then the prosecution says they have no problem with that selection. The Judge makes it clear that the press will be the one who chooses who gets inside the Castle.

Outside the presence of the jury, the defense is printing out off of their computer at this very moment, emails they want the witness to read to himself. The room has cleared a bit. I look around and I don't see Peter Hong, and I could have sworn he was in here a bit earlier. I see that Dante is now sitting in the second row bench on the defense side beside the white haired guy, who keeps getting up to speak to Chris Plourd. Brunon and Spector chat, although Spector is actually slumped in his chair. Another Spector friend I've seen before is in the next row. He's a barrel chested man with salt and pepper hair. Peter Hong comes back in. The bailiff tries to get the room quieted down, and calls out to the gallery, "Quiet! Court is in session!" But the room is still somewhat noisy.

The witness is still reading the emails, and the printer at the defense table is clacking away printing out more documents. CCA leans into me and says that Rosen is purposefully confusing the national SAG numbers with the Southern California stats. Nationally, SAG has approximately 120 thousand members and So. California about 40 thousand members. Most years, about 18% of So. California members qualify for SAG health benefits. According to CCA, about 10-15% actually make a full time living. CCA says nationwide, only 4% don't have to supplement their income.

At 2:30 pm, the witness is finished reading the emails. Scratch that. More documents are presented to him. I see a few of the Court TV staff whisper and stifle laughter in the back row. Dante leaves the room. The courtroom is getting antsy. Rod Lindblom exits the courtroom and comes back in a few minutes later. The white haired guy gets up again to speak to Plourd. Spector is being animated again, talking to Brunon. He often uses his hands to talk. Beth Karas reads the paper, and Lisa Sweetingham and Steven Mikulan appear to be talking about the case.

I over hear a conversation near me. A gentleman whom I've seen in the courtroom quite a bit is talking to a regular trial watcher in the room. I don't know who he is, but I can guess. In a voice I can barely hear, he says, "Rosen is nice to your face, but he will easily stab you in the back. With Cutler, at least you know what you're getting."

Dixon leans into someone from the DA's office and says in a joking manner, "Is there any trouble going on? I just wonder the reason you're here." Meredith from the court's liaison's office, calls out my name from the back row. Several pieces of paper are passed up to me. It's the Media Advisory about the press meeting tomorrow morning. She has passed up four pages, so I keep one and hand the rest on down to my seat mates in my row.

Dante comes back into the courtroom. It appears Terzian has finally finished reading the emails he was given by the defense, and Rosen is going to cross him on the material in the emails. Rosen asks if after reading those emails, did it change his opinion about Lana's "marketability." Terzian answers in a firm voice, "No." The jury is brought back in the room. It looks like the defense will not get to enter these emails through this witness.

Q: Are you aware of Ms. Clarkson having training with weapons?

A: No.

Q: Did you know Jennifer Hayes Reidl?

A: No.

Q: Did you know Punkin Pie?

A: No.

Rosen gets the witness to admit that Lana's only booking in 2003 was the Chesterfield piece.

Jackson stands up to redirect his witness. The reel wasn't marketed by him because that wasn't what he did. He didn't need it to promote her. It's a 30 minute video. It was a work in progress, and she had been working on it for many months. This was a video that was only supposed to be viewed by industry executives. It was never meant to be shown to the public. Jackson asks Terzian, about what is "early" in Hollywood, regarding when he gets up in the morning. The witness replies, "Eleven to 12 noon." And the courtroom erupts in laughter.

Q: When you were trying to give that information to Lana (about a booking), she had already been shot, correct?

A: Yes.

The witness explains about the print advertising, and why it is commissioned at 20 percent. They are not SAG related work. SAG work is an industry standard of ten percent. Jackson gets the witness to explain about the play. Since it was a smaller showcase, with a small budget, and probably a small, under 99 seat theater, it wouldn't make an impact on her career. The witness goes onto explain that, if you're talking about a play that can't afford costumes, I think you're talking about a low budget play.

Q: What if I told you the playwright was now a bartender?

Objection! Sustained!

Terzian explains that in his work, his communication with his clients is mostly done over the phone verses meeting them in person on a regular basis.

Q: As you sit here today, do you still feel that in 2003, she was a viable, upbeat actress.

A: Yes.

Jackson is done with his redirect and Rosen gets up to recross. Like a dog with a bone, he can't let go of the video. He keeps going over it. This whole attack dog line of questioning is not the right tactic to take here.

Q: What if she had an alcohol problem?

The Judge steps in after this question and says, "I've already ruled on this."

Rosen: Can we approach?

Judge: We don't need to approach. I've already ruled."

There's no more redirect and we are all excited because we know Michael Bay is up next. One of the jurors is smiling at Michael Bay's name being called. Michael Bay states his profession is film director. He directed the following movies. The Island, The Rock, Bad Boys, Bad Boys II, and Transformers. He also has a commercial company where he directs commercials, from Victoria's Secret to car commercials. Bay met Lana in his early years around October, 1989, when he directed commercials for Mercedes. He was responsible for hiring at that time. Mercedes would look for a "type." He knew Lana. He would see her at Propaganda Films events, parties as well as auditions she would come in for. He invited her to a party at his house once. She was one of the few who would send him chocolates at Christmas.

Q: You would recognize her if she walked into a room?

A: Absolutely. She was six foot two. She was funny.

He is firm about the fact that he knew her. Bay states that in January 2003, he attended a party at Jeff Franklin's house. It was a Saturday, the third weekend of January. He went with Craig Katz, who was not his date. There were about 350 to 400 people at the party, and he was there for about two to three hours. He never saw anyone that looked like Lana Clarkson at that party. When he opened up the paper and saw that Lana Clarkson was dead, he thought, "Oh my God, when was the last time I saw her. It was eight to nine months previous, while he was working on Bad Boys II. Bay says that if he had seen her two or three days before, he would have remembered that. "If I had disrespected her, she probably would have slapped me. She was like that; kind of saucy." Bay says that if he had seen Lana, he would have definitely gone over to her to say hello.

Brunon gets up to cross the witness.

Q: Before you were a director, you were an actor, and that got you into directing?

A: No. Photography got me into directing.

Bay recalls when the first time he met Lana. She came into the room dressed like Marilyn Monroe. He's sure he did one Mercedes commercial with Lana. It as in October, 1998. The other one was later, but he's not sure if he used her in another commercial or not. Then Brunon tries to make a big deal about the fact that Lana was only on the screen for six, maybe seven seconds out of the 30 and 60 second pieces, as if this is a reflection of her acting abilities for a non speaking part. Brunon asks if between 1998 and 2003 he made about three movies, and Bay replies "That sounds about right." Brunon wonders why he never offered Lana a part in one of these movies, even a part of an extra, and Bay replies, "I would never offer her an extra part, because that would be demeaning."

Q: You never offered her a speaking part.

A: I never offered Tom Hanks a part either.

That answer seems to stump Brunon and he tries to go for a bit of humor saying, "Maybe he wouldn't accept?" But Brunon's attempt at humor is about as good as Rosen's. So he goes for the tactic that Bay never offered Lana a part in other commercials. Bay states that he knew he was going to be a witness mid week last week, and he testifies about the last time he thinks he saw Lana, which was at a Masquerade party that he gave at his house in 2002. "I know she was there." When asked about Jeff Franklin's party, he says he knows it was in the Hollywood Hills, but he doesn't remember the street or how he got there. Right afterwards he says that a friend took him to the party. From what I can see of Spector, he has this blank stare going. Bay says he stayed outside by the tent area and was there at the party two to three hours. Brunon puts up a photo of the Pie and two unknown men and Bay states that he doesn't recognize anyone in the picture except Lana.

On redirect, Bay is firm. "I did not have contact with that woman. I did not see her. She did not have contact with me." Bay identifies a photo of him and Lana together at the Mercedes shoot. And that's about it. Bay is off the stand. There are no more witnesses.

Once the jury leaves the courtroom, the Judge goes over a bit of business. He has two medical appointments. We hear that after the jury visit to the site, there will be testimony in the afternoon. The Judge orders Paula Rosenfeld back to court for Wednesday. Plourd wants to call as an expert a nuropathologist at this, the eleventh hour and the people object. Discovery was not given until last week. Spitz and DiMaio both testified to these involuntary breaths Jackson states, and to me, it looks like the defense is pulling as much crap out of the outhouse as they can. It's desperate. Two trial watchers behind me, tell me that they read my blog, and I thank them. The defense tries to get the Pie's prior statements in ~that they try to argue are consistent with her later ones~ but the Judge shuts down that motion. And that's all the notes I have for this day.

I already blogged about what happened at the press meeting in my entry titled Reporting on the Reporters...from outside in the hallway.

I'm putting up this entry totally unedited because it's way past my bedtime. I'm really looking forward to seeing houdinisback tomorrow, as well as a few other Court TV posters who say they are going to come.

A special thanks to Court TV member kellabeck for helping me finish the edit on my entry, Mr. Sprocket follows me to court.

The Castle

Thursday, August 9th.

On Monday, I had asked Dominick if I could ride with him to the Castle for the jury site visit. He said sure. I think it's the only favor I've ever asked of him, besides signing two issues of Vanity Fair for my older sister. I didn't know how to get to Alhambra and didn't want to try to find parking on the correct street. If I hitched a ride, I'd avoid all that. Dominick said he wouldn't know where to have his driver pick me up, and I told him that he didn't need to pick me up at all. I would meet him at his hotel and find local parking nearby, in the structure where Virgin Records is located. I could easily walk to his hotel from there. Dominick says he plans on leaving at around 9:00 am, and I tell him I will be there a little bit before nine.

I get to the Chateau Marmont way early, and wait on the street for a little while before I decide to head up to the hotel, and let him know I'm there. Dominick beats me to it, walking down the driveway looking for me. We take off from the Chateau about 8:45 am. I get introduced to Dominick's driver once I get in the car, but for the life of me I can't remember his name for certain. I think it was Justin. We make great time, and arrive at the press staging area. We're early, but there are a handful of press already there.

Peter Hong of the LA Times is there along with other LA Times staff and Court TV staff. Looking up at a house perched on top of a slight hill, I see the owners out on their front porch with binoculars, watching the reporters down below. Camera operators are already setting up their tripods for when Linda Deutsch comes down to report. I count eight tripods already. Peter brought a table, several chairs, bagels and cream cheese for the reporters. Court TV went in with Peter and brought donuts and coffee. Harriet Ryan is already there and mentions something to the effect of, "Peter, concerned for your heart, brought healthy food, Court TV brought the sugar." I'm offered to grab what I want, but I politely decline. I haven't eaten any commercial wheat or dairy in years. That special diet I've repeatedly mentioned. Beth Karas is there in a stunning short sleeved black dress, matching necklace and heels. I tell her the dress looks fabulos on her. There are several other familiar faces as well. Beth and Dominick grab two of the chairs to sit together and chat, and several of the reporters snap their picture together. I jokingly say, "This is how all the reporters look," and she and Dominick have a little laugh at that. I took one of them with my camera phone, too, and then my phone immediately died afterwards. So much for calling dini from the site to phone in a report. I forgot to charge the battery before I left the house.

The main street up to the front entrance of the house is blocked off, and there is an area off to the side where all the reporters are gathered with the table and chairs. Several of the smart cameramen brought hats. The other blogger, Carolyn Kellogg of LAist was smart enough to bring sun screen and that gets passed around to some forgetful people. The car with the Judge arrives and passes by the pool of the reporters and heads on up to the Castle. More reporters start to arrive. Russ, Ciarian, and Michael Christensen are here, as well as John Spano and Matthew K. (who's last name I know I will butcher if I try to spell it). Everyone is off in groups chatting, trying to get some shade under the Olive trees lining one side of the street. Michael C. and John Spano are reading the paper. The camera guys are checking their angles to try to get the best shot, and several of them brought their own chairs. They know the drill and have been through this before. In hindsight, it would have been nice if I had thought to pack a folding chair, but I don't mind sitting on the edge of the curb under the shade. The Asian looking Court TV reporter is here. I don't know her name and am too shy to go up to her and ask. There are motorcycle cops and cops on foot. More press continue to show up.

I see Sandi Gibbons made it. I look over my shoulder and see her talking to Ciaran. One of the witnesses on the stand, Officer Shawn Heckers is here on his motorcycle. One of the reporters clearly remembers he was the one who testified about plucking the anal hairs for the rape exam kit. Steven arrives. He's prepared because he has on a type of flak vest with lots of pockets. Perfect for the reporter on the go. At 10:11 am, the jurors arrive and pass by the pool of reporters. From this point, the countdown begins as to how long they will be on the site. I try to take a quick count as to how much press is here. I count about 30+ people. Many reporters are on their phones. I see Dominick is already being interviewed by the local Channel 2. In my immediate line of sight, I see four news vans with their antenna towers completely up.

I see Beth Karas and someone else (I forget to write who) walking down from the road that leads to the rear gate. Steven and I decide to walk up to the rear gate ourselves. It's a climb for me, and I'm slightly out of breath trying to keep up with him and not stop to take a rest. When we reach the back gate, one of the court liaison officers is there, along with a pool reporter. Soon after we reach the top, Officer Heckers drives up on his motorcycle and Steven and the photographer both take photos of him. Cathy, the liaison officer gets off the phone with the liaison officer that's at the front door and tells us a bit of news. One of the jurors walked all the way down the front stairs and back up again. It's one of the guys, who is tall, slender and has gray hair. Unfortunately, the other person who observed it doesn't know their juror number.

While at the back gate, I peer in to see if I can see anything. From where we are, I see some people off to the side, but they look like they are near the front of the house. I think one of them is Alan Parachini, but I'm not positive. One gentleman looks rather portly, and the other person is a woman and might be another court liaison officer. They are too far away for me to be sure. At the back gate, Steven and I take each others picture, and with not much visible, we decide to head back down to the street. I pass on the "scoop" to Ciaran about the one juror who walked down the front steps but he is unimpressed with the news. Oh well, lol. What do I know.

Back down at the staging area, I see Dominick is on his second TV interview. Afterwards, Dominick tells me that a woman on the corner was letting the reporters use her restroom. He and his driver took advantage of the generous offer. He said the woman and her son were watching the ball game. Outside, a woman and her young child come by and sell cold drinks to the reporters for .75 cents a piece. I had planned ahead and had gotten something at the gas station at Sunset and Crescent Heights before I walked over the the Chateau.

I talk to Carolyn Kellogg about reading on LAist where two of their top editors/correspondents were hired by mainstream newspapers. One reporter comments, "Internet bloggers are the new trout farm." There are two helicopters overhead the entire time, and at one point I thought there might be three. I notice that Peter has a practical hat on that has sun protector flaps hanging down. As the temperature rises, people are trying to grasp every tiny spot of shade. The jurors have been in the castle for over an hour now, and people are speculating that they will be done anytime now. I spot two officers on bicycles and see that Miriam Hernandez from local Channel 7 is here. At 11:25 am, we get the news that the jurors are finished with the site visit.

The reporters crowd around the microphones, trying to get the best spot. Several reporters are sitting on the ground right in front of the group of microphones, and Harriet goes and gets a chair that she places right next to the one Dominick is sitting in. Steven comments, "I think they wanted to do this when the sun was directly overhead. Cue the sun!" Earlier, while we waited, Ciaran entertained a few of us with limerick poetry. And we wait for Linda Deutsch to arrive. I'm standing, and my back is starting to ache terribly. Finally, someone is coming down the hill. We get a message that the jurors will be done in abut five minutes. So, I guess the earlier report was incorrect.

Linda finally arrives and as she steps up to the group of microphones she gives us a big smile.

more to come....