Let's Talk About Hollywood™

Ep. 40: Assistant to the Editor (2002)

September 13-18, 2002. The Hollywood Reporter newsroom. Looking back, the job and salary negotiations were straight forward and direct: my boss called me in, closed the door, and a plan to fill the Assistant to the Editor role was cemented. Clear. Direct. Respect. I took the role: Assistant to the Editor. More than a 1/3 salary jump in 11 months. My co-assistant is the editor for the Calendar of Events page with her much deserved byline. I keep my 52-extension phone console so we all have access to breaking news. "What I don't know, I need you to H-E-L-P me," I told my boss. He said, "You're good at math." Stone wanted to run around the office yelling. Mom said get close to the salary number. Peter Pryor said "great hire." Bob Dowling still has to approve it, but "there's no turning back." Black journalists were ∼5% of U.S. newsrooms then. I was one of them. On the phones. On the floor. Everyone's career peak is their respective ride....just be ready. I'm frustrated with the news ecosystem today, but I will always and still do believe in talent, writers, and journalists with integrity who truly inform, edify, take risks and explain a complex world and the complex human beings that we are. From the newsroom floor to 30 countries. This is Season 2: 2002 of "Let's Talk About Hollywood." Written and read by Karl Gibson. 💛 To support the podcast and help keep it independent, donations can be made from 96 countries here: https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support [https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support] or to support my GoFundMe here, international currency donations available: https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2 [https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2] The podcast will always be free and runs on audience donations. I'll thank you on the air in an episode! Thank you!

Ep 39: Leaving It All on the $50 Million Dollar Floor (2002)

September 10-12, 2002. The Hollywood Reporter newsroom. My supervisor's leaving. I turned her job down. Twice. Boss asks my salary and the first two numbers lower than my age. He looks astounded. "Your boss needs you both. If you leave, he's f*cked." Raises submitted for January 2003. $13.50 an hour. Sales up 23%. It's the 1-year 9/11 anniversary. Moment of silence in the office park. THR's issue: no exploitative pictures. Stone's IT department confiscates his World Trade Center photos for their commemoration. "Why do you need these?" Emmy meeting. "No way in hell I want a temp on that night." 3pm-1am overtime. Red carpet. Bomb sweep. Stone: "Think positive!" Me: "It's about thinking realistically." I was 32. Leaving it all on the $50M floor. Because that's how you stay A-list on any rung of the totem pole. From the newsroom floor to 30 countries. Season 2 continues. Pressing play is enough. If you can donate, link in notes. No ads. No brand notes. Just truth, Stone, and receipts. 💛 To support the podcast and help keep it independent, donations can be made from 96 countries here: https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support [https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support] or to support my GoFundMe here, international currency donations available: https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2 [https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2]

Ep. 38: Thank You to My Audience in 30 Countries!

Thank you to my listeners in 30 countries, so far. It is a true honor to be a part of your day or evening. This is Episode 38 of Let's Talk About Hollywood : a listener appreciation episode from the newsroom floor to you. Less than 1% of independent podcasts reach 30 countries. This one did. With no ads, no PR, no notes from brands. Just a 2002 newsroom diary that leads to 24 years (and counting) of Hollywood and you. In this episode: My thank you to my listeners both in America and the world! Why I'm here. To share not just my Hollywood journal, but the loss of a spouse, the weight of $100 million and multi-billion dollar brands, and the truth that art and entertainment are the great equalizer. Audiences are the key to any profession and I'm grateful you're here with me. I talk about which episodes you've connected with most, and my aim to stay honest while building a global narrative community. From editorial assistant to studio executive, this archive is ours now. Season 2 continues. Thank you for making this more than an audio memoir. Love is real and I wish you all great things!

Ep. 37: It'll Get Better, Trust Me (2002)

It's fall 2002 in Hollywood and everything is shifting at once. A new apartment, a new schedule, a boss who keeps telling me it'll get better and a newsroom that never stops. In this episode, I take you inside my Labor Day move-in with my husband Stone, including the moment I grabbed him by the chin and made it clear he wasn't going anywhere, and why that mattered more than he knew. We swim, we laugh, we plan a housewarming with a very strict guest list, and I become a human catamaran. Meanwhile at work, my supervisor is leaving, the Emmys are calling, a Shannen Doherty superfan flew 7,000 miles for reasons I had to talk her out of, and two executives had a shouting match that was just this side of Itchy and Scratchy. Episode 37 is about new beginnings, holding on to what matters and growing up. Written and read by Karl Gibson. 💛 To support the podcast and help keep it independent, donations can be made from 96 countries here: https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support [https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support] or to support my GoFundMe here, international currency donations available: https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2 [https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2] The podcast will always be free and runs on audience donations. I'll thank you on the air in an episode! Thank you!

Ep. 36: Hollywood Heatwave 2002: Labor Day Fight, 125 Degrees

Labor Day 2002. New apartment. No A/C. 125 degrees inside. Me and Bebbles Stone, unpacking boxes, making daiquiris, trying to start a life. I was an editorial assistant at The Hollywood Reporter. He was staging our new home, I was cooking, and the heat got into everything. This is Let's Talk About Hollywood. Career clarity plus real life from the mediasphere, for adults. I'm Karl Gibson and this is a first-hand audio Hollywood memoir from 2001 on. No blind items. No gossip. Just what it costs to build a marriage and a career in the shadows of the A-list. Love is not naive. It is a choice you make...even when you are exhausted and overheated. Bebbles was my first husband. I honored him in Season 1 in In Memoriam: Thank You, Bebbles Stone. I will tell that story in Season 5. For now, it is 2002. It is Labor Day. It is hot. We are a hidden power couple. Written and read by Karl Gibson. The podcast will always be free and runs on audience donations. I'll thank you on the air in an episode! Thank you! 💛 To support the podcast and help keep it independent, donations can be made from 96 countries here: https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support [https://letstalkabouthollywood.com/support] or to support my GoFundMe here, international currency donations available: https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2 [https://gofund.me/9fa60a3b2]