Remember the Alamo-Part 11

March 24-April 4

For one entire night, a camera mounted on a very tall crane looked down on us with a wide angle lens and filmed the Alamo in sections. The scene was the final day of the siege with the Mexican army attacking the walls from all sides. Of course, there were not nearly enough soldado extras to reinact this battle, but Disney will use a bit of computer magic to make this scene seamless so that we appear to be defending against some 2500 fighting soldados. Whenever they filmed the southwest corner, Deuce, Clayton and I all got killed one more time.

We did a scene involving Jason Patric, Billy Bob, and all the Bowie and Crockett men. Bowie and Crockett are meeting for the first time in a cemetery on a tall hillside. It's a cool scene in which there is a bit of confusion for both men who believe the other could be an enemy. The hillside was rugged and dark, so footing was treacherous. (I pity the Mexican army extras that were asked to MARCH in straight lines over that same terrain.) Our action was to crouch out of sight, then to move forward and protect our boss and friend. Speaking of Bowie, Jason stood behind me in line at the Craft Service table when they served burgers. We (background actors) have been told ad nauseam to allow crew and principals to the front of the line when food is served, primarily because they usually have less time between shots. So, though I was almost at the table myself, I offered to let Jason cut in front of me. He insisted that I go first, and that I put two meat patties on my burger. He talked me into it. Hell, I was hungry, so I didn't argue. Some of the guys in front of us seemed to be taking excessive time putting the toppings on their burgers and Jason had some funny things to say about how slow they were. It was all in good fun, everyone understood that he was joking, and everyone laughed. I only mention this anecdote as a testament to Jason's polite demeanor because too many people have said too many negative things about him. Everyone needs to understand that he becomes his character when he is preparing to shoot a scene (a technique called "method acting"), so if it's an intense scene, he's gonna be intense. If his character is supposed to be sick, he's gonna "become" sick...therefore, that would be a stupid time to ask him to sign an autograph or pose for a photo. Just like anyone else, a great actor will respect you if you are respectful of his time and space. And for God's sake, don't judge a person based on a 5-second interaction. Consider yourself the last time you had a bad day or were in a bad mood, and consider whether or not you'd want someone judging you based on a 2-sentence conversation. Anyway, enough of that soapbox lecture. Sometime during the night, while creeping across this rocky terrain in the scene, I pulled something out of whack in my hips and lower back. I've seen my chiropractor a couple times since and I think I'm on the road to recovery, but I'm still moving around like an old man. I'm sure I'll be back to normal soon.

I was fortunate enough to work in a scene in which Crockett addresses the crowd in the Bexar plaza with a speech that includes his famous quote when he told his former constituency to "go to hell. I'm goin' to Texas!" There's more, but I unfortunately can't reveal the rest of the dialog. Some of Crockett's speech was funny, and we all reacted to it. After a few takes, just to keep things fresh and to get bigger reactions, Billy Bob improvised some lines. We laughed our butts off! We probably laughed TOO much during a couple of those takes. I did a bit more stand-in work for Robert Prentiss. I was placed in his position and handed the sides for the day. (Sides are the call sheet and script for the day.) I got a bit nervous and asked why I needed sides, and if I needed to do Robert's lines. The PA told my he wasn't sure. I got a bit MORE nervous. I knew I would not be filmed playing that part, but I still wanted to be as professional as possible and act well so John Lee could see how the scene might play. As usual, activity was whirling all around me: actors, grips, camera operators, hair and makeup specialists, AD's and John Lee were circling about, and there I was trying to memorize lines. I learned Robert's 2 lines and where they fit into the rest of the dialog. As soon as I started feeling comfortable, Robert appeared and took his rightful place, so I was off the hook. But then I was disappointed, because, dammit, I was ready. ;-) Ironically, I found myself silently critiquing his acting. I know...it's weird. I would have delivered the lines differently...not better, but differently. After all, Robert Prentiss is the pro, and I'm not. He did a fine job and I'm sure John Lee was pleased. I was also filmed in the scene, starting from the back of the scene, and slowly working my way toward the front. I ended up at the front and became part of the crowd that shook Crockett's hand at the end of his speech.

The same night of the Bexar plaza scene, a cold front hit Dripping Springs around 2 or 3 a.m. It was unmistakable. A wind just blew in from nowhere and didn't stop for about 3 days. During the first 10 seconds after the front hit, the temperature must have dropped 15 degrees. Lots of dust blew in with it. Our set medic was busy rinsing out people's eyes, including mine. I spent part of the night collecting coats for the ladies who wore non-winter costumes and had to wear coats between shots to stay warm. Aren't I a gentleman!

We finally got around to the cantina scenes. Bowie told a story to the men at his table. It started out with a funny bit about a fight he started and moved toward more serious matters. Everyone in the room was drinking and having fun. (We were drinking colored water that looked like tea.) I sat at a small table in the corner of the room with another Bowie man, Jeremy. I was asked by Props if I wanted to smoke during the scene. After learning a lesson during the stew-eating scene, I declined since I knew I would have to smoke a LOT, depending upon how many takes we would film. Jeremy was not quite as wise. They gave him some terrible tobacco to smoke in his period pipe and he hated it. I felt sorry for him after about 8 or 9 takes. A Bexar "prostitute" chatted with us at our table for a minute or so during the scene, then moved to another table. The room was fairly packed with tables, chairs, ladies, and men. Many of the men were specifically Bowie's guys. The scene addresses the beginning of a fairly combative relationship between Travis and Bowie. At the end of the scene, Bowie and his men all rise and exit the cantina. If I show up in the final cut, you'll see me rise from my chair, and walk toward the door without completely straightening up. My back was killin' me at that point and I had a lot of trouble standing. Hopefully, it'll just play like I'm a little drunk. I also stood-in for Robert as Grimes for part of the night, as Grimes attempted to sell a rifle to a local Tejano.

I brought my Fender acoustic guitar to the set for the first time and it was well-received. As I have mentioned, there is always some down-time. Sometimes I'll have 5 minutes to spare, and sometimes I'll have 5 hours. So I brought my guitar and shared it with many talented background actors who also played and sang to entertain the rest of the extras on stand-by. The songs that I performed went over well as the gathering crowd seemed quite pleased by my singing and playing. At any rate, having a guitar there was a big hit and everyone appreciated having a fun way to pass the time. I had fun too.

The next cantina scene was unofficially titled the Fandango scene. It was a fairly complex scene with lots of principals and lots of camera angles. There were musicians and trained dancers inside the cantina and loads of defenders, Tejanos, and ladies inside and outside. All I had to do in the beginning was to walk to a place barely inside the main doorway and act like I'm enjoying the festivities. The music, great dancing and beautiful ladies made my job easy. ;-) The dialog basically helps explain more about many of the main characters, including more discord between Bowie and Travis. An intense confrontation ensues and I was lucky enough to be almost right in the middle of it. Jason Patric and Patrick Wilson were both wonderful. Unfortunately for me, I could only see Jason from the back for much of the scene, and therefore couldn't see his face, but he sounded great. Some of his actions literally scared me, even though he (as the character Bowie) wasn't even mad at me. He was so freakin' intense, like a caged tiger. He would prowl around the cantina between takes, looking mean. I got to the point (and I think everyone else did too) at which I couldn't even look him in the eyes, because he looked so menacing. It was incredible. I had a front row seat for Patrick's performance (as Travis). Damn, he's good. I wish I was at liberty to say exactly what was spoken. I'll just say that more of Patrick's subtle brilliance was on display. He was so good, that some extras admitted to me afterward that they almost missed their queues because they were so moved by his performance. Billy Bob also played an important part in the Fandango scene, and he's always great. One night, he just walked over and said, "Hey, have you seen this?" And he was holding his movie "hero" knife, which was beautiful, and he told me about the engravings on the handle. He even let me hold the knife. It was cool. But, to be fair to the others, I have to say that every actor that I've spent time with was very nice, especially Jason, Afemo, Patrick, Robert, Stephen, Kevin...hell, I could basically name 'em all. I don't want to pretend to be close friends with them, you know, but when there's a lot of free time on the set, you mingle with those around you. You can find a somewhat complete listing of the cast and crew (excluding extras, grips, and some specialists) on Internet Movie Database. Anyway, back to the cantina: Robert Prentiss and I will actually be onscreen at the same time in some of those shots, so you can judge for yourself if we resemble each other. I guess we do...I mean, he IS a great looking guy. ;-) Since we were all in such close quarters for a few days, I got to know some of the actors a little better. I joked to Robert about how he needed to go to my spot to stand in for me. Silly Robert almost did a couple of times. It was all in good fun. And the only other thing I'll say about this scene is that YES, you will get to see the famous Bowie knife (although some historians may scoff and say that it's the wrong shape). It's still a beautiful and hefty piece of work.

One day was spent in the 2nd Unit (directed by Phil Hardage) for a few hours filming some quick scenes that showed the Texians firing cannons and also receiving cannon fire from the Mexican army. The rest of the evening was spent in and around the cantina. For one shot, the cantina was in the background and I was the drunk guy passed out and slouching on a short wall on the front porch of the cantina. I guess I just wanted to be the first guy in the door the next day. ;-) You know friends don't let friends drive horse-drawn wagons drunk. ;-) Somebody must have taken my keys. ;-) I could go on with these bad jokes for pages and pages...but I won't. I helped with one more quick scene walking with fellow defender Shane past Billy Bob and Kevin Page. I didn't get the sides for the night, and couldn't quite hear what they were saying, so I don't know what the scene was about. I remember being quite sleepy, especially after pretending to be passed out for the previous hour or so. Delirious as I may have been, I joked with Shane quite a bit, and I think the folks around us were enjoying our little comedy show. Like when they would cut the scene and ask us to reset, we would walk backward and whisper backward to our starting point. You know...stupid stuff like that. I guess you had to be there.

Stephen Bruton (portraying Capt. Almeron Dickinson in The Alamo) played with his band at the Saxon Pub on Saturday, April 5th, and I was there. I knew Stephen would be great, but I didn't figure he would be that great. He was truly amazing. I have 2 of his solo CD's and love them. They are mostly what I would call blues-based soul rock: not too soft, not too hard, with a little funk thrown in and a dash of country. But it's hard to guess how someone will perform live compared to in the studio. His studio recordings often include keyboards, horns, acoustic guitar, etc. He performed Saturday as a 3-piece (with drums and bass) and I didn't miss the additional parts at all. Stephen blew me away, tearing up the fretboard with effortless precision and soul, a la Eric Johnson. But I think Stephen's lyrics and voice are cooler than EJ's. That's just my humble opinion. Check out Stephen Bruton when you can, and buy his CD's.

I have received several messages about how happy many people are because Disney has elected to make an "accurate" Alamo movie. I'm glad that you all are excited about it. I am too, but I want everyone to have realistic expectations about this movie. I think this will be the best Alamo film. However, since so many details of the final siege (and the people and preceding events) have only survived in the form of legend and oral family stories, nobody truly knows exactly what happened there. Anybody who says they know the complete truth is either unrealistically arrogant, stupid, insane, or in possession of a time machine. ;-) The bottom line is that this movie will be great, but that there will invariably be some people who will criticize it, no matter how it interprets the story.

I wish I could say more about my Alamo experience. Since kentman.com was featured on the Alamo Film web site, I have received numerous messages showing support and gratitude. I am glad you like what I have shared here. That's why I have this site. Even so, I feel that I have actually shared very little. There are many wonderful details that I simply CAN'T publish because of disclosure and personal privacy issues. Believe me when I say that I wish I could tell a more complete version of my story, but I can't and won't. If anyone has any specific questions about my Alamo experience, feel free to ask. If I have the right answer, I'll send it your way. However, I don't want anyone's feelings to get hurt if I can't answer. It's not that anything bad has happened. I don't really have any gossip. But there are many things that Disney would not want me to discuss (and I think I've done a fine job of avoiding legal trouble with Disney so far) and some things are simply private, among friends, and I would never do anything to jeopardize the trust I have earned.

There. I have preached about some serious issues on this Alamo page, but I hope I didn't come across too preachy. ;-) Some stuff just needs to be said. So I got some of that out of the way. I'm still having loads of fun every day and I dread the inevitable end. I am proud that so many Alamo fans have sought my site as a source of entertainment and information. And I apologize for being so damn long-winded this week. Next week, I'll try to be a bit more concise.