Hollywood is less a place on a map than a state of mind, generally a hive mind that creates a comforting echo chamber intended to keep everyone in line, especially in matters and ideas political. So, it was no surprise my four luncheon companions were now all in the same mood: gloomy, seething, scared, almost disconnected. Until a few moments ago, the discussion had been lively, quick and entertaining. And then, at some unseen point, in an unnoticed moment, one of us crossed a line, said something or taken something personally — and a dark silence fell, shattering an easy fellowship that had survived amongst us for many years.
The subject had been Clinton v. Trump. As usual, in nearly all my interactions with my Hollywood colleagues, it was me against the house. As a well-known renegade conservative I was expected to be the whetstone (though I inevitably ended up the knife) in the contrarian position. From the beginning, when I first broke from the pack to work openly for Ronald Reagan’s election, I learned the town’s rules were stacked against me. Over the years, though, the bitterness increased, the invective became more vile, and one’s political views — if they differed from the norm — became cause to question one’s moral claim on existence. Well, maybe not existence but certainly one’s right to a career. From open argument to “Non-Democrats need not Apply” in a handful of elections.
.png)
.png)
