The Official Before the BIG Break Blog

Celebrating 4 months of programming.

2009-02-01T16:55:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe we launched our first episode with Joe Franklin (Part 1) less than five months ago. October 1st. In fact, it was four months ago today. And now we're full circle, proudly having launched Joe Franklin (Part 2) this afternoon.

It's amazing really. Not only did I never think I would be hosting a talk-show, but I certainly never thought I would be one of the producers, and honestly, I am pretty stoked that the show is still going strong (and that we've been able to stay on schedule every two weeks with a new episode!) We are all pretty thrilled.

We're also thrilled about the Webby Awards. We submitted the show in the 'variety show' and 'variety show host' categories. We're hoping that we get nominated; that would be a great honor. And if not, life goes on. That's how it works: you just keep plugging away, trying new things, learning from your mistakes, and then trying something new.

Anyway, I wanted to take this moment to say 'thanks' to all of you; to all of you who have joined us on this journey to date. And let's all give three cheers to the show's NEXT four months: Feb, Mar, Apr, and May. Spread the word friends! Tell everyone you know to check out the site; to visit and watch the show at http://www.BeforeTheBigBreak.com

Thanks for all your support!
-Monroe

Dan Lurie on Overcoming Obstacles, Doing the Impossible, and Never Giving Up

2008-11-30T21:13:00.001-08:00

BLOGGER: Dan Lurie
3-Time Mr. America's Most Muscular Man, Co-Star with Ed McMahon on "Sealtest Bigtop", and author of the autobiography, "Heart of Steel"

I was born on April 1st, 1923 in Brooklyn, New York. The day I was born, doctors told my parents that a hole in my heart they had discovered would not allow me to live past the age of five. Boy, did I fool them!!! This April 1st, 2009 I will turn 86 years young and I am still going strong and never miss a daily workout! I began working out at the age of 15, at a bodyweight of 116 lbs. After five years' training I was able to set several World Strength Records, some of which included 1,665 Push Ups in 90 minutes, 1,225 Parallel Bar Dips in 90 minutes and a One Handed 285lb Overhead Lift at a bodyweight of 168 lbs.

During seven decades as a health and fitness industry leader I have learned many lessons and have found that father time can be the greatest of all teachers. Being involved extensively in business, bodybuilding, and the entertainment and fund-raising fields has provided quite an education and it has been a great ride, and one that continues today with the promotion of my newest event, "The Mr. And Ms. Jones Beach USA Bodybuilding Spectacular".

In recent years I have often been asked what drives me, in my 80's, to continue vigorously promoting bodybuilding and the health and fitness lifestyle. One word that automatically comes to mind is "passion". To become successful, in any area, you must have great passion for what you do otherwise you are likely to simply go through the motions, achieving nothing of real magnitude, and leaving no trail for others to follow and benefit from. You must be 100 percent committed to whatever you do, never taking your eyes off what it is you wish to achieve. And it must be fun.

When I first began weight training back in the late '30's, it was a natural progression for me: my life up until then had been filled, from as far back as I can remember, with sporting interests and physical activities. With my entry into the world of bodybuilding I had built upon what I enjoyed most: developing my physical potential. And my initial interest in bodybuilding developed into diverse, yet interconnected opportunities for success.

I urge anyone seeking success in life to build upon his or her strengths. Find what you are best at and explore ways to succeed in these areas: in doing so you will not only gain greater success faster, but will remain motivated and passionate about what you are doing, and this will ensure the continued improvements necessary to prosper at the highest level.

Competing in three consecutive AAU Mr. America contests, from 1942 onward, was a richly rewarding experience that profoundly shaped my life and built an appreciation for the potential we all have for achieving lofty goals. In fact, training hard for several years led to my first big break: inclusion in the '42 Mr. America contest. This led to another, even bigger break: winning the America's Most Muscular Man title. But before being named America's Most Muscular Man - the first of three wins - I was a young kid with a dream.

Many people told me to forget about winning my titles - that it would be a waste of time and I should, instead, begin a life of work like almost everyone else I knew had done. Yet I chose to follow my dream and it lead to unimagined success. Don't let anyone steal your dreams as all success begins with a single thought. Use your imagination to craft the life you want. Never, ever give up. Persistence pays off more so than anything else in life, and if you give all you have, realizing that there will be roadblocks that must be navigated from time to time, there is no reason why you cannot succeed.

I believe the greatest gift we have is our health and, if we are willing to put forth the effort, an ability to realize our dreams. As a poor kid growing up in the Great Depression, there were few opportunities. Most were destined for a life of constant struggle and only those blessed with tremendous talent were able to achieve great success. The daily grind permeated the lives of almost everyone else.

But talent can only take you so far. Without the right mindset, which includes an unwavering devotion to achieving your goals and an ability to learn from your mistakes, you are at some point likely to fall short of all that you are capable of. As a high school student I dearly wished to excel in physical education more than anything else, so I asked the teacher how I could become the top student in this class: "Achieve 100 percent and attend all classes without fail," he explained. So this is exactly what I did and became the top physical education student in that school's history.

My point here is that you must have a defined goal if you wish to reach a specific target. For anything worth achieving, a mental image of the final result, combined with a clearly written plan of attack, is essential.

Love and best wishes

Dan "Health is Your Greatest Wealth" Lurie

NOTE: Check out Dan's live interview at www.BeforeTheBigBreak.com talking in depth about these great stories above! Read more about Dan at www.DanLurie.com

Gary W. Goldstein Shares His 10 Essential Ingredients for Success

2008-11-14T17:28:00.000-08:00

BLOGGER: Gary W. Goldstein
Producer of Pretty Woman, Under Siege, Under Siege 2, and the Mothman Prophecies

What are the 10 essential ingredients for success ?

#1: Integrity
#2: Authentic Talent (raw AND learned talent, expressed with a commitment to being
deeply authentic)
#3: Smart Business Strategies (simple, easy, quick, daily ‘do-able’ in 20-30 minutes)
#4: Mentor(s)

The other 6 don’t matter!

Creativity, on the other hand, has only 3 ingredients:

• Courage
• Commitment
• Communication

1) COURAGE

If you truly desire a long-term meaningful career in the business of entertainment – as actor, filmmaker, producer, writer, or otherwise - then you must commit to taking a deeper cut, make a full on commitment to yourself to take daily action, and do whatever it takes.

Do you have the courage to play a bigger game, and take consistent action that makes you uncomfortable? This isn’t about acting class or the easy stuff. It’s about a deeply honest internal conversation that you then act out in profoundly effective ways with all around you and those you target.

That Greek chorus of little voices (doubt, insecurity, the “I can’t” voices) must be appreciated, thanked and then habitually ignored, as you take bigger actions, set and continuously revisit and revise your goals, expand your networks and make it happen. Do you have the courage to overcome your doubts? Are your dreams more powerful than your fears? Are you willing to change behaviors and live your dharma as an artist, taking real steps every single day to advance and make real your goals?

2) COMMITMENT

If you commit to no more than 30 minutes a day to plan and execute smart, concrete business strategies, you’ll stop focusing on how far the distance between where you are and where you desire to be. As Dag Hammarskjold once suggested, don’t judge the height of a mountain till you’re standing on top of it. You’ll realize it wasn’t so high, after all.

Taking result-oriented, positive daily action is one of the golden keys to success. Every few months, you’ll look back and be astonished at your progress, the core professional relationships you’ve nurtured, the marketing tools you’ve created that you’d not even been aware were possible, and so much more.

Critical to the above is knowing the best, smartest, result-yielding tactics and strategies that actually work. The strategies that require the least time and effort; the ones that don’t have an expensive price tag, but consistently deliver the quality of result that will make you feel positive and in your ‘flow’ and – most importantly – create concrete, measurable results.

For whatever reason, these skills are not taught, and there’s no central training ground or source. But they are time-tested and so sensible, effective, and logical that it surprises most people when they first have it laid out for them.

3) COMMUNICATION

And what about communication? Do you wake up each day and express your gratitude, reaffirm your intentions, focus your attention on your intention, and decide how and with whom you need to align and communicate on this particular day to add value to others, while enriching yourself, advancing your career and objectives, and creating a win-win that is in perfect lock-step with your short and long-term goals?

Feeling deeply connected with yourself is crucial, so that each conversation (with a friend, professional acquaintance, or someone you’ve targeted as a key influencer you want in your network) becomes grounded in a way that is undeniable, that distinguishes you, that is rooted in absolute authenticity and truth, and that makes each of you leave that moment better off, having learned something, and having connected with ‘value’.

Here’s the truth: I have failed all my life.

Here’s my other little secret: I love failure.

Failure and success are the same damn thing. We just malign failure and celebrate success. We’re judgmental creatures. We live by a system of weights and measures. We’re in denial.

Looking back, my pattern is simple: failure, failure, persistence, failure, stubborn persistence, failure, rejection, failure, persistence, mentor, persistence, more mentoring, success, a little more failure, more mentoring, even more success (the hard work is a given, a constant, never forget that), and a dash of failure again, always leading to more mentoring and bigger successes.

Failure has energized me, taught me my most valuable lessons, made me re-commit to belief in self, to internal and external goals. Failure is an essential ingredient to enduring success. They live in the same house, always will.

Being a product of the 60s in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury and graduating Berkeley in the early 70s, I had fantasies of becoming a great criminal defense lawyer handling the hot political cases of the day. Instead, I ended up representing the indigent adults in a very large and problem-ridden ghetto and my clients were far from politicos. But even that wasn't an easy accomplishment: a few years earlier, I was rejected outright from law school--a 'failure' I had to overcome by finding another way into my law school of choice, and a harbinger of what awaited me in LA (yes, every single film is a failure many times over before it becomes a success).

I quickly realized the harsh day-to-day reality of legal defense was not well-suited to my temperament, so I ran away to Los Angeles at age 31, to the fantasy world of storytelling and film. Norman Mailer had described filmmaking as "a combination circus, military campaign, nightmare, orgy, and a high" and that sounded right up my alley.

So I arrived, knowing nothing and nobody, proceeded to rent offices, and launched a literary management firm, with zero clients. I went to every screening, gathering, party, joined every organization I could find. And played tennis. Turns out that was my best strategy. In the middle of the afternoon, LA’s tennis courts were filled with writers. Who else would be playing at that hour?

Well, ignorance does turn out to be bliss, so long as it’s accompanied by a very stubborn streak and a daily regimen of persistence. With talented writers and well-crafted screenplays, I was able to ‘up my game’ and begin producing with and for major studios. One of the keys to playing in that arena is to forge relationships with bigger name actors and their agents, managers, attorneys, publicists -- anyone close enough that you can get them to read and attach to your project.

I found Julia Roberts by attending a pre-release screening of ‘Mystic Pizza’. By merely accepting an invitation from the producers of that indie film, I struck gold and they were kind enough to introduce me to Julia and her agent.

I’d sold ‘Under Siege’ as a script to New Regency who, at the time, had a deal at Warner Bros. Knowing the studio had just signed a deal with a then up-and-coming Steven Seagal (after his success with smaller films like ‘Hard to Kill’ and ‘Above the Law’, etc), I encouraged everyone to get the script into his hands as his first project with the studio. And it worked.

Sometimes an actor responds well, other times you have to be persistent beyond reason. Richard Gere loved ‘The Mothman Prophecies’ and tracked the project as we were developing it. But earlier, he’d turned down ‘Pretty Woman’ on multiple occasions. He just wasn’t interested.

But after I’d submitted the script to Touchstone (Disney) and it finally got set up at the studio, we were able to convince the executives Gere was the best choice and to make him an irresistible offer. And the rest, as they say, is history.

The lesson learned is simple: trust your instincts and then just become single-focused in your determination and advocacy and pursuit. Hopefully, it works out.

***
If you want to learn more about me, please visit my website:
http://garywgoldstein.com

Or go to a specific area that interests you:
Free Resources (e.g. Indie Filmmaker Resources, free chapter from my new book, etc)
http://garywgoldstein.com/free_resources.html
Scaling the Great Wall of Hollywood (teleseminar)
http://garywgoldstein.com/how_to_scale_the_great_wall_of_hollywood.html
Coaching for creative professionals, including writers, actors, producers, directors:
http://garywgoldstein.com/screenwriter_filmmaker.html
Speaking Engagements
http://garywgoldstein.com/speaking.html

There are other categories, but feel free to come and play on my site.
If you’re an active within social communities, please feel free to connect with me as well:
Facebook: http://profile.to/garywgoldstein/
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/garywgoldstein

NOTE: Gary W. Goldstein wrote this blog entry to accompany his appearance on the celebrity talk-show, "Before the Big Break with Monroe Mann". A new episode airs on the 1st and 15th of every month exclusively at www.BeforeTheBigBreak.com. Watch Gary's inspiring interview today!

Sammy Petrillo Speaks Out on Fame, Exposure, and Hollywood's Golden Years

2008-10-24T12:34:00.000-07:00

BLOGGER: Sammy Petrillo
(co-star of the cult film, "Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla

Transcribed and edited by Monroe Mann from a recent 10/24/08 phone interview with Sammy Petrillo

Living through the golden years of Hollywood was absolutely the apex of my life; it was the most marvelous thing to rub shoulders with the biggest stars of the time—the stars who I looked up to as a kid when I used to go the movie theaters. At the time, movie theaters charged only 25 cents or 35 cents a show, and motion pictures enveloped my life because they were my escape. These movies were one of my greatest escapes. They were double features and I would go from one show to the other to escape from the poverty I was living through. At the time, my dad was in the service, and my mom was pregnant through part of this time. They were both trying just to make ends meet.

Well, it was the biggest thrill and biggest accomplishment of my life to see people on screen as a kid, and years later, to discover that they had become my friends! People like Eddie Cantor, who was a classic in those days; Jimmie Durante; and Lou Costello. Milton Berle most of all who became almost a grandfather to me.

I grew up watching these screen legends in the local 25 cent theaters, and then years later—it was amazing—I found myself actually working with them or friends with them! Even Jimmie Durante became a friend of mine. He was a very close friend of my comedy partner Duke Mitchell, and he became a friend of mine as well.

And Step ‘n Fetchit—he is historical. Look him up. You’ll see what I’m talking about. He and I did a review together. A two-man review. This was years later, in the 60s or 70s, we did a two-man review, just he and I, and we traveled around Pittsburgh and we’d drive away in an old jalopy car. Step looked so young; no one believed that he was allowed to drive. One time, he and I were actually kicked out of a club because Step looked so young; the club owner said, “This guy can’t be Step; he’s far too young!” They thought we were impersonators!

Probably the biggest lesson I learned over the years is that your childhood dreams most certainly can come true. I am still in awe: I actually fulfilled my childhood dreams! To have gone from poverty row and childhood dreaming in these theaters to years later actually appearing in those very theaters—how amazing. I learned that success doesn’t necessarily mean money, or being the biggest success in the world, or even sustaining it. For me, just GETTING there has made it all worth it. I can’t believe that my dreams became a reality.

Another lesson I learned from all this (and what I always tell those in the arts) (and this is a popular philosophy among my Hollywood friends) is that you don’t have to become a wealthy international star in order to be considered a success. To me, each show is a success; every show where you entertain an audience is a huge success that you should be hugely proud of. If you have done this—if you have brought entertainment to an audience, no matter how big of an audience—then you should be very proud of yourself; you have become a success. Even if you don’t go any further, you have already become a success because you have successfully entertained people. If you set a higher goal for yourself (money, fame, etc), that’s great, but to me, the highest pinnacle is having brought entertainment to others, even if you remain an amateur.

Now, if someone does want to become a rich and famous, [the formula] is simple: exposure, exposure ,exposure and persistence, persistence, persistence. You need to be more persistent than anyone else in getting as much exposure as you can: get any type of legitimate type of entertainment job; get people in the business to know you and want to use you and work with you; go to auditions; enter amateur shows; get publicity; do anything for exposure and experience. NOTHING replaces exposure and experience.

Today, unlike the golden days of Hollywood, young people want fame over money, and I think that’s smart. Years ago, I was ridiculed for pursuing fame over money by some of my peers, but it was this self-promotion and publicity that helped me to get my role in Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla. This is why I think my friend Monroe is on the right track—he is always promoting himself and his projects, and I know it will serve him well. In fact, that’s how I ended up as a guest on this show, and I am certainly proud to be a part of it.

Well, that brand name recognition that you create for yourself is what is going to lead to your monetary fame. That was why I made some clunker films over the years that people ridiculed; I did it to get experience; to learn how to produce; to direct; to learn the business end; to get more people to know who I was—I wanted to learn every end of the business so I would have some control over my professional career. I wanted people to know who I was—and it worked.

To become a success, you need exposure. Exposure. Exposure. Exposure. Never give up. Learn to take rejection, toss it over your shoulder, and keep going. It’s all sales. It’s a numbers game; 1 out of 40. You get a million rejections, but it’s the one that you GET that matters. All the rejection will all be worth it for that one job you get.

In conclusion, if you want to make it to the top, you must accept all rejections and be prepared for them because you’re digging for that one piece of gold. Every knock is a boost and every knock is a stepping stone to the top. Anybody who has been a little success or a big success will tell you the same thing: you need the exposure, and you need the persistence.

Check out Sammy's on-camera Before the Big Break interview at www.BeforeTheBigBreak.com. A new episode on the 1st and 15th of every month!

Monroe Mann on Ludo and Rock Band Success

2008-10-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

BLOGGER: Monroe Mann
(Host of Before the Big Break; Founder of Unstoppable Artists, LLC; lead singer--Running For Famous)

So, a big thanks to Ludo for sitting down for an interview with us. Thanks Andrew and Tim! We love you... DEAD!

Now, we did try to get a blog from the boys from Ludo, but unfortunately, their tour manager said they were too busy on tour right now to get us one. We hope they'll find the time to contribute a blog post once they get off their latest tour.

In the meantime, here are some of my own tips on rock band success for those who may have musical aspirations.

* Non-negotiable: You have to produce your own first album/demo. Unless you somehow blow the socks off some major producer at a live performance, you need to produce your own album. Once you have that, it's then just a matter of promotion, promotion, promotion. And don't believe it when they say you need thousands of dollars to produce your first demo/CD. If you have good enough negotiating skills, and you project confidence, you can get your album produced and mixed... for free! I did, at the famous Quad Studios in New York City, and heck, one of the songs is the theme song that you hear at the beginning and during the end credits of Before the Big Break called, "Hollywood Girls". You CAN get that first CD made. More importantly, you MUST. Do whatever you need to do. Just get it made. Even if it means starting your very own indie record label.

* If you already have a CD, you can easily get your songs on iTunes, Rhapsody, etc. Just go to CDBaby.com, and register, and then select 'digital distribution'. It costs about $100 or so, and voila, soon you'll be on iTunes, etc. For example, go ahead and search for "Running For Famous" on iTunes. That's my band, and our songs are on there as a result of exactly what I just outlined. Easy as that. :)

* MARKETING BABY! You need people to hear your music and learn about your band! Do this in ANY WAY POSSIBLE. For instance, this talk-show is a marketing vehicle for my music in a roundabout way: that song playing in the opening and during the closing credits is my own band's song, "Hollywood Girls". Now it's not just there because it's my song--that would be crass and unproductive; instead, it's there because it actually FITS the subject matter and flavor of Before the Big Break. But as a bonus, everyone who watches each interview is getting a taste of my funny song about all the girls I want to date from Hollywood, haha. Along the same lines, you too need to do whatever you can think of to get people to hear your music. Like Tim Ferrell of Ludo says in our interview, "It doesn't matter if they love you or hate you as long as they have an OPINION". So love my music dead (or hate my band alive), but please don't be indifferent!

* Marketing, part two: Make SURE you have a website. Check out: www.RunningForFamous.com. When you go there, it takes you to my band's MySpace page. How simple: a professional URL, and you can listen to our songs at the MySpace site. Perfect and inexpensive for marketing purposes. Most importantly: it allows people to form an opinion of your music, and that is KEY.

* Get a good lawyer. I'm a 3rd year JD/MBA student at Pace Law School and I am actually in entertainment law class right now. We've been pounding away at record label agreements for the last 6 weeks and it blows my mind how complicated music industry contracts are (as compared with film, television, and publishing). Not only do you need a good music lawyer to help you negotiate your deal with the labels, etc., but you may also find that a good music lawyer is in a great position to SHOP your demo CD to record labels on your behalf. Start spreading the news: you're looking for a music lawyer! Tell everyone you know; you may just find the one person who can help you move to the next level.

* Finally, PLAY OUT! The more you can play to a live audience, the more fans you will earn, the better you will become, and the more label and media interest you will ultimately receive. Remember that. And remember that it may take YEARS before the 'deafening silence' that Andrew Volpe of Ludo talks about starts turning into a 'rustle'. WORK FOR IT!

ROMP ON! And meet you at the top!
-Monroe

NOTE: Watch a new episode of Before the Big Break on the 1st and 15th of every month at www.BeforeTheBigBreak.com

Joe Franklin Speaks Out

2008-09-29T07:18:00.000-07:00

BLOGGER: Joe Franklin
(Invented the TV Talk-Show; Radio Host on Bloomberg; TV Legend)

My advice to those who aspire to a spot in the business that there is no business like--the entertainment field--is the following: Get specific. Do not hound everybody. Instead, set your sites on one or two people and concentrate on those two.

When I was 15 years old, I pursued Eddie Cantor and the famous radio personality/disc jockey Martin Block, host of the "Make Believe Ballroom." They both became enchanted by my youthful vigor and persistence. As a result, they both retained my services--I wrote radio scripts for Eddie Cantor and became Martin Block's record selector.

People always ask me for additional advice. I advise the following: don't leave your wallet in the dressing room... Don't bump into the furniture... And what's your motivation? Your motivation is your paycheck on Saturday night--work for it. Work for it.

One last bit of wisdom might be to tell a few lies on your resume. For example, back in the days when you were allowed to advertise cigarettes on television, I told my television viewers that nine out of ten doctors who tried Camels went back to women… That remark got me censored off the air for a full week—quite a difference from today’s free wheeling on the media. Yet, I single handedly created today’s wide open atmosphere and I hope that my good friend Howard Stern appreciates what I did for him.

(READ MORE CELEBRITY BLOGS BELOW!)

Note: watch new episodes on the 1st and 15th of every month at www.BeforeTheBigBreak.com

Welcome to our Celebrity Blog

2008-09-26T20:59:00.001-07:00

BLOGGER: Monroe Mann (Host of Before the Big Break)

Greetings from the top!

On behalf of the entire team at Before the Big Break, I want to take a moment to thank you ALL for taking the time to support us. This project has been over a year in the making, and took a whole lot of blood, sweat, and tears to become a reality. We are SO stoked that--even after many false starts and wrong turns--we are now able to inspire you every two weeks with a brand new 15-minute celebrity interview that will leave you inspired, encouraged, and ready to create your OWN 'Big Break'.

On that note, welcome--ladies and gentlemen--to our 'Celebrity Blog'. We think our blog is very unique for one reason in particular: each of the stars, celebrities, and super entrepreneurs you see in each episode are also going to share their thoughts about success on this blog. As a bonus, in between celebrity blog posts, you will also be inspired by commentary and motivation from the rock star team from Before the Big Break.

Be sure to tune in on October 1st for the very first episode--Joe Franklin, Part One. Joe Franklin (no joke) single-handedly invented the television talk-show, and today holds the world record for the longest-running talk-show ever on television. He also is credited with launching the careers of thousands (again, no joke) of today's stars and celebrities.

Some of the people he shares stories about in the first part of his interview FROM DIRECT PERSONAL EXPERIENCES include: Woody Allen, Jack Warner, Bob Hope, John Lennon, Dick Clark, JFK, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford, Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Rudy Valentino, Fred Silverman, Natalie Wood, Jack Parr, Martin Block, Rudy Valley, Elvis Presley, Bruce Springstein, Barbara Streisand, Eddie Fisher, Tony Curtis, Billy Crystal, Julia Roberts, Steven Spielberg, Peter Bogdanovich, Chris Steinbrenner, Bette Midler, Greta Garbo, Barry Manilow, and folks---this is just from part one! :)

I kid you not: this interview is officially now a part of television history in and of itself. Joe shares some NEVER BEFORE HEARD stories about the people listed above.

I hope you'll tune in and learn from Joe Franklin's experiences... Before the Big Break!

Meet you at the top!

-Monroe Mann
Host, Before the Big Break

P.S. - We launch a new episode on the 1st and 15th of every month, and you can watch the interview ANY TIME during that period. For free! And don't fret if you miss your favorite star--after the initial two-week period, we simply move the interview to the archive, where you can watch older interviews. Awesome, right? ROMP ON!