Confessions of a G-List Actress: BETTY'S PAGE

When we last heard from Lilly she was working 40 hours...

So, as I was saying a few days ago, after a 40 hour work week I found myself in Raleigh around 1:30 am.  Went to the boyfriend's house.  And arrived just in time to shower and go completely unconscious.  I literally hugged my boyfriend, showered, and slept.

This kinda made me sad, been needing some actual human interaction and students at an art college are only so good at that.  Ever driven almost two hours and been excited to see someone and maybe talk?  Yeah, soon as I washed the day off that was not going to happen.

Every actor knows this level of exhaustion.  You are still perfectly functioning, but you know it won't last.  You think you might be smelling yourself so you climb into the shower and that water feels so nice.  I mean it, so nice you sit in the bottom of your shower, a la lifetime, and just let the water run over you.  You don't have the energy to scrub.  You just need a minute and the energy will come back.  But it doesn't and you actually fall asleep for a second in the shower, just sitting there.  You wake up and figure, oh a little sleep and you will be fine.  So you step out of the shower, put on your pajamas and...HOLY CRAP!!!  IT'S 8AM!!!!  When did I go to sleep?!

The older I get, the more of a narcoleptic I am.  I can sleep anywhere.

ANYWHERE!

**Side Note:  Now that I think of it I do seem to pass out more easily when the boyfriend is around.  He must be bathing in chloroform.  That would explain the sudden need to pass out in his presence.  Either that or he has created some sort of airborne rohypnol.  This would make him a maniacal genius.  I'm OK with this.  Martian Sandcastle, World Domination, Sandwich!**

So somewhere in my comatose like sleep I wake up to the annoying  sound of alarm and drag myself out of bed and into "action."  Actually, to be honest I laid there and eventually pulled myself out of bed by sheer force of will and the promise of a chai tea latte, and screen time.  I always have time to awaken for a line and screen time.

About 45 minutes, and a bumbling, half asleep, attempt to put my makeup on in the car later, we arrive.  I was not driving.  Arrival is just in time to feast upon doughnuts and coffee and get ready for what might be the fastest day of filming we have had on Fix It In Post.

Today we get to eat on set, what do I mean by that?  We get to eat the food put before us and enjoy while someone video tapes us.  The kid on City Island would be having a field day.  And Betty gets to be compassionate and content.  Kinda alien, but I can dig it.  She got what she wanted.  

I got to eat out of a skull.  BBQ out of a skull is kinda fun actually, until you realize every single time you pick it up BBQ is wasted on a table you really don't want to lick.  You might lick it anyways when no one is looking.  It's BBQ for crying out loud!  You can't help but think of Hamlet while eating pork out of a plastic replica skull.  Alas poor Yorick.  His brains were from Lexington.  Somehow Alan got the best picture of my profile I have seen in a long time.  WOW.  Seriously.  Mad props.

Lines were said.  Laughs were had.  Food was eaten at great speed.  Few more cannibal jokes and we are done with the scene.  Time flies on set, except when it doesn't.

At least it wasn't cold that day.  It was freezing the following day when they had to shoot all that summer stuff.  But that is another story.

As the sun sets we tape the window closed so it will appear to be nighttime.  Yeah.  The Magic of Film making.

We close all the doors and lock ourselves into a stable.  Back to rage.  Time for William and Betty to gently threaten Lexy, who is too stupid to defend herself.  We practice some shoves and the first time Lexy bangs her head on a bar.  Ooops.  Well, now she's scared.

Putting Miles and I in a scene together opposite one another is a dangerous enough thing.  It can get quite volatile.  Putting other people in it can make it even more dangerous.   

The first take I saw some genuine fear in Lexy's eye and I really don't want to hurt another human being.  Betty shoves her against a wall and claps a hand over her face.  William rips her off and they fight a bit.  He suddenly is confronted with exactly how stupid Lexy is and that's his breaking point.

After a few fumbled takes , as everyone is trying to rush to pry William off Lexy, the chair Bill is sitting on breaks and in a very Matrix Style, he forces himself to stand up as the chair crumbles underneath him.  It was really impressive.  Wish I had video of it.

Now that we are in the swing of the scene I cry for help as Lexy explains how Scott is going to fix everything.  When William pulls me off of Lexy I fight him.  People gasp the first few times.  I cuss him out.  Call him names.  Climb up the bars of the cell.  Threaten to kill.  Grab William and try to console him and calm him.  It's great to be gasping for breath after a scene.

Since Betty has now been pleading for help in the background they decide to film a little of me going nuts.

"Hey!  Help!  Hey we got a fat one in here!  I'll snap her neck for you!"  I can hear Lexy gasp in faux annoyance.  Do it the other way.  OK.  We are done.  

Food.  Bed.  Was going to watch DOCTOR WHO but the day wore me out.  Besides, I spent a few dollars and watched it later and was very angry with the MOFF!  Stop changing rules.  The Doctor can't be perfect.

I fade in and out of sleep, while Highlander, the TV show, plays on Netflix.  I slept through most of it.  Ehh, Richie wasn't in the episode anyways.

7:30 am and my car won't start.  A sweet landlord jumps my car and I am on my way to Charlotte for Partners!  

I get to Charlotte a little before 11 and climb from my car into Darren's car.  Nice Mercedes with heated seats.  Good thing too.  It is freezing outside!

We talk on the way over.  On location they are setting up our scene...OUTSIDE.  We pull a large white blanket out and walk over to the edge of a lake.  Thankfully the sun is straight above us, causing enough heat to make the cold bearable, but now the light is right in my face and I am lying on my back trying not to squint into the sun that is right in my line of sight.

They move way too quickly into close ups.  Now Darren is trying to shield my eyes while I act.  I am trying to not look into the sunlight.  We kiss.  They cut.  We start over.  Dialogue.  Kiss.  Cut.

  

The scene is over so quick it makes your head spin.  Back into the warm.  Change and get mentally prepped to emote.

As a rule, if you think you might hit someone it is a good idea to ask.  Especially if the person you are about to hit is a highway patrolman.  Didn't know if I would.  But an emotional woman will do anything so I figured I would ask.  He said OK.  First take he sits down on the floor next to me and I am bawling.  I am crying so hard Darren starts to cry and then BAM!  Couldn't help it.  Slapped the fire out of a state trooper.  Got up and ran out of the room.

Director says cut.  Umm?  Do we need a safety?  Nine takes from different angles later and I am on the verge of an asthma attack.  Thankfully we are done with my filming and I can go downstairs and take a nap until dinner.  We eat and fill out paperwork. Before I know it, hey hey hey, I am on my way home.

Work tomorrow and for the next few hours I will be living on cloud nine.