Jerry Zucker waved his hands excitedly, shouting at the top of his lungs. In his agitation, a swinging hand went wide and clipped Gale's nose.
"Ow!" Gale cried out, crouching on the floor and covering her face. Her eyes watered instantly from the sharp pain.
Jim Cameron burst out of the inner office. He didn't see the accident; he only saw Jerry standing over Gale, who was clutching her face.
"Hey!" Jim roared. He shoved Jerry hard, sending him stumbling back, then knelt to check on Gale.
David Zucker, Jerry's older brother saw Jim shove his brother. He rushed forward, throwing a wild punch at Jim's head.
Ronald stepped in.
His wrestler instincts took over. He grabbed David's shoulders, hooked one ankle with his foot, and twisted his upper body. It was a classic takedown.
David hit the carpet with a heavy thud.
Ronald sensed movement in his peripheral vision. He ducked instinctively, narrowly avoiding a haymaker from Jerry Zucker. Ronald spun, clamped Jerry's arm under his armpit, blocked his hip, and executed a hip toss.
Jerry went flying, landing next to his brother.
Ronald stepped back, hands raised, breathing hard. "Everyone, stop! It's a misunderstanding!"
By then, Roger Corman had emerged from his office. The commotion had drawn a crowd of editors and assistants from the hallway.
"It's a misunderstanding!" Ronald addressed the crowd, his voice steady. "Everyone calm down. No one is hurt."
The third member of the trio, Jim Abrahams helped the Zucker brothers up from the floor. He brushed the dust off Jerry's jacket.
"We're not here to fight," Abrahams said calmly. "We just want to talk to Mr. Corman."
He looked at Ronald with a mixture of surprise and respect. He could tell Ronald had held back; the takedowns were controlled, designed to neutralize, not injure.
Abrahams extended his hand. "Hello. We mean no ill will."
Ronald shook it. "I'm Ronald Lee. You guys talk to Mr. Corman. I'll check on Gale."
Gale had recovered, though her nose was red. Jim Cameron helped her to the restroom to clean up.
Roger Corman waved to the gathered staff. "Show's over. Back to work, everyone."
He picked up the phone on Gale's desk. "This is Roger. Are Julie and Joe Dante still in the conference room? Good. Send them to my office immediately."
Roger gestured for the trio, Jerry, David, and Jim Abrahams to enter his office. They took three seats by the window.
Moments later, Julie Corman and Joe Dante arrived. The New World team sat opposite the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker (ZAZ) trio.
Seeing that Gale hadn't returned, Ronald made six cups of instant coffee and carried the tray in. He set it down and turned to leave.
"Stay," Roger said. "You might learn something."
Roger had done the math. It was three against three, but with Julie present, he needed more muscle in the room just in case tempers flared again. Ronald, who had just dropped two men in ten seconds, was a good insurance policy.
Ronald closed the door, pulled a chair near the exit, and sat down.
The situation was this: The ZAZ trio had been working together for years. They had written a spoof comedy based on the 1957 disaster film Zero Hour!, tentatively titled Airplane!.
They wanted Roger to produce it.
Roger had passed. He felt the script was just a collection of gags with no plot. And in the world of low-budget cinema, plot was cheap; gags were expensive.
But the trio had found a new champion. A mutual friend had introduced them to Michael Eisner, the President of Paramount Pictures. Eisner loved the concept. He handed it to his lieutenant, Jeffrey Katzenberg.
Katzenberg agreed with Roger: the script was a mess. But he saw the potential. He offered them a development deal.
If they spent two weeks rewriting the script with Paramount's doctors, he would greenlight the project with a budget of $3.5 million.
The trio was ecstatic. But there was a catch: Jerry Zucker was still under contract as the Second Unit Director for Rock 'n' Roll HighSchool. He had five days of shooting left.
Paramount wanted them now. Jerry wanted Roger to waive the final five days.
Roger refused.
"This is unacceptable!" Jerry Zucker shouted, slamming his hand on the table. "We can refund the advance! Just hire someone else!"
"It's not about the money, Jerry," Roger said calmly. "It's about the footage. I can't find a replacement who knows the material in time."
Ronald listened, analyzing the stalemate.
The ZAZ trio was going to Paramount no matter what. A $3.5 million budget was a lottery ticket. They would walk away, contract or not, and deal with the lawsuit later.
Roger's stance was practical. In a typical Hollywood production, the Second Unit shoots B-roll: establishing shots, stunts, inserts of hands picking up phones. It saves the main unit time.
But at New World, "Second Unit" meant "Parallel Main Unit." To save money, Roger had the Second Unit shooting actual dialogue scenes and major plot points while the Main Unit shot elsewhere. If Jerry walked, Roger lost 20% of his movie.
"Why not let Joe Dante shoot it?" Jerry argued. "He knows the script. He's practically co-directing anyway."
"Allen needs Joe," Roger countered. "Joe is there to support Allen. Just like Allen supported Joe on Piranha. It's a partnership."
Ronald knew the real reason. Joe Dante was already a DGA member. He was doing Roger a favor by mentoring Allen. He wasn't going to demean himself by taking a demotion to Second Unit Director just to fix Roger's staffing problem.
"That's nonsense," David Zucker snapped. "Allen is a competent director. He doesn't need a babysitter. This isn't the White House; you don't need a Vice President."
The room was heating up again.
Suddenly, Jim Abrahams, the calm one spoke up.
"I heard from Jerry that your dailies from yesterday were shot by a Production Assistant," Abrahams said, looking directly at Roger.
He pointed a finger at Ronald.
"Why not have him replace Jerry?"
Silence descended on the room.
Jerry Zucker, Joe Dante, Julie Corman, and Roger Corman all turned their eyes in unison toward Ronald.
Authors Note:-
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