Johnny Be Good in Ed Wood

The world has become the movies as the carnival barkers, con artists, freaks and radicals of all stripes can scream and yell at us from a million screens. At one point in media history, this was secluded to the boob tube or silver screen. I guess we all should has listened to our own modern day P.T. Barnum, Andy Warhol, who said that in the future, everyone will have their 15 minutes of fame. (Still wanting for mine, Drella!)

I am going to sidestep the huge hole called the Amber Heard / Johnny Depp trial and forge ahead. Tim Burton was at the height of his power with Batman, Beetlejuice and Edward Scissorhands all being massively popular & profitable. He had the juice in Hollywood to do or make whatever he wanted to so…

Johnny Depp had been trying to break out of the TigerBeat phase of his career ignited by 21 Jump Street. He wanted access to better projects, but he also wanted to fly his freak flag. It was likely tapped down to keep his boy-next-door perception broad so larger audiences would continue to show up and ogle him.

The Burton / Depp connection was a symbiotic relationship, checking the boxes of their shared wants & desires. The rest, of course, is Hollywood history. I could stop here, but that would be like leaving the Tulsa Race Massacre out of American history books. Friends, Ed Wood Jr. was a really, really bad director. His work was uneven and badly written and the execution of his films suck. But I think what team Burton / Depp saw was his unabashed spirit and passion for his projects. Even if he didn’t have the budget or the cast, Ed showed up and did his best. This plan for living is something I can get behind, but I also really respect. Like many artists who tried and failed, after shuffling off this mortal coil, they received their day in the spotlight.

Ed Wood died poor and alcoholic, but if you asked anyone about him, they’d probably say they loved that movie with Johnny Depp. Hollywood ending. Fade to black.