It was a sunny afternoon, and I was standing at the security booth on the Lions Gate studio lot. I was early as usual, dressed in a red halter dress and tall black boots. That afternoon, I was supposed to be auditioning for Scooby Doo the movie, and didn't know in which studio the auditions were being held. The security guard told me to wait by his booth while he went to find out where I was meant to be. I guess nobody was answering the radio.
As I was standing there, waiting for the security guard to get back, the studio gates opened, and in drove this big, black, tinted SUV. Like out of a movie, everything seemed to happen in slow motion. As the SUV drove by, a window rolled down, visibly showing the driver, who lowered his big, black sunglasses as he stared at me. The SUV left, and all I could think was, "I wonder who that is?"
Five Minutes later, I was still standing in the same spot. I hadn't moved, because the security guard told me not to. All of a sudden, the same SUV came speeding backwards, just to stop right in front of me. Again, the window rolled down, and the same face from 5 minutes before, was visible. This time, still with his sunglasses on, he spoke in his deep voice, "Would you like to meet Will Smith?" Unsure whether I heard him correctly, I didn't answer. Again, in his deep voice he asked, "Would you like to meet Will Smith?" This time I heard him, and shyly, shook my head "Yes". The back of the SUV swung open, and the next thing I heard was, "Hop in." As I began walking towards the SUV, the security guard came back. Seeing me leaving, he shouted, "Your audition is in stage 2." I thanked him, and continued walking towards the big, black, truck. Little did I know, stage 2 was exactly where I'd be headed.
Inside the truck were 3 large black men. They drove me to the other side of the lot, where Stage 2 stared back at me in bright red. The driver helped me out of the truck, and then said to follow him. We entered the stage door, and right in front of me were a flight of concrete stairs. With my eyes, I followed the stairs upwards, until I reached the top. When my eyes got to the top, I noticed a man standing there. Could it be Will Smith? No? But it was. It was like he was waiting for me the entire time. Nervous, though pretending to be cool, I climbed the stairs to meet him. He introduced himself, but all I could pay attention to was how many grey hairs he had on the top of his head. I coyly introduced myself, after which he told me why he was there. They were interviewing mature female actors to play his mother in the film
I, Robot.
Will asked me if I lived in Vancouver. I said, "Yes." He then mentioned, that if I had the time, I should wait for him in the truck with his guys, and that after he was finished with the auditions, maybe I could show him around the city. Excitedly, (come on...this is Will Smith), I shook my head "Yes." Of course I had my own audition, and didn't know how long he would take, but like I said, I was early, so why not wait for Mr. Smith.
While waiting for Will Smith in the back of the SUV, I was officially introduced to his entourage. The only name I remember was the driver who introduced himself as "Charlie Mack" Alston. Charlie was Will's best friend, bodyguard and business partner. They grew up together in Philadelphia. We had a great time chatting and listening to the music he, Will and Jazzy Jeff made back in the day.
I am not sure how much time passed, but I do remember I had my own audition to attend. I told Charlie I needed to go, and almost as if he knew, instantly handed me over a white envelope. He said that it was a formal invite to a dinner Will was throwing that night, and that I should come. I thanked them, then re- entered stage 2, for my audition.
Secretly, I was hoping to run into Will again that afternoon, but never did.
Later that evening, back in my small, downtown studio apartment, I opened the invite to Will Smith's dinner party. It took me the full journey home, before I opened the letter, as I knew I had a predicament. You see, I had a date planned for that night with a guy I really, really liked. For most, this wouldn't be a dilemma, but for me it was. Will Smith vs Guy I Like. I was in a pickle.
Admirably, yes, but also stupidly, I chose not to go to the dinner party, and went on the date with the guy I liked. Needless to say, even after my decision to choose him first, we didn't work out.
In a weird twist of fate, I ended up working on the movie I, Robot, and of course spent the day hanging out near Will's trailer. I met the guys from the SUV again, his makeup artist, and his longtime hairstylist Pierce Austin (still his hairstylist today). Pierce Austen and I hit it off immediately. Let's just say the guy even spoke to my mother. Pierce was, well... this blog post is getting quite long, so let's leave it here, and continue my next post with the next chapter: My date with Pierce.
Till My Date With Pierce
Love
Melissa "HunnyB" Veszi
