It was typed right there under my senior picture in the yearbook “Loves California.” Four years later I was standing on Beverly Boulevard at La Cienega and it felt like the center of the world.

It was 1992. I was 22 and fresh out of Jersey. The sun was warmer here. I’d say it even sparkled prettier. As I looked north to the hills and felt the bustle around me, the possibilities seemed endless. After all, this was Hollywood!

In the early years, I interned at Love Connection, and PA’d on whatever film would take me. To make ends meet I bartended nights all over Hollywood at places like the famed rock ‘n roll bar, The Troubadour. I spent two years at the Writers Guild of America, West, and was the trophy girl (not sure what the politically correct term is for this, probably should look it up!) at the WGA Awards for 11 years. I met some of the most famous and talented people in show business, some super nice and some not so much, but those tales are for wine night around the firepit!

Soon after the WGA, I became second assistant to director, Renny Harlin. He was married to Geena Davis at the time. I had hit the A list stratosphere and my Rolodex was filled with the names of all the assistants to a list of stars, power agents, and whatever fad jeweler of the moment was. Our offices were across from Arnold Schwarzenegger upstairs from Denise DeNovi’s. The building had one of the smallest elevators in town which made for some interesting ascents and descents. I worked with Renny from the end of Cutthroat Island through the beginning of Long Kiss Goodnight. At the time this Shane Black script was the highest-selling script ever!

When I landed at REAL TV it was my first time working on a studio lot. It was the RKO Studios on the old I Love Lucy soundstage and it was the beginning of my television career. And no, not a day passed by on that job that I didn’t think about Lucille Ball and how wild it was that I was there. The possibilities were truly endless.

I made my way up to producer working on almost every format there was: clips shows, games shows, hidden-camera, teen-docu dramas, true crime, dating shows, red carpet, virtual, EPKs, quiz shows, comedy and drama, in the field, and on sound stages. Nothing blew my mind more than swiping my card at the guard gate and driving through the iconic Paramount Gates. And for a bonus parking in the tank. The buzz of being on a major studio lot cannot be beat. It’s just like they show in the movies, golf carts flying around, make-up trailer doors opening and closing never knowing who you’ll see come out, sets being carried around, the hammering of the art department building, actors in costumes milling about, red lights circling above stage doors, and my two favorite places the commissary and the standing outside sets.

2022 was a year of full-circle moments. I had the opportunity to work on a gun safety reform campaign and an anti-hate-fueled violence initiative with the Office of American Possibilities and Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors which aligned with my passion and desire to make a social impact. The experience and the people I met were truly food for the soul. More about that experience in my writings!

The second full-circle moment was becoming a member of the Writers Guild of America, East. In an odd and lucky of events

Thirty years later 2023 hit and it hit hard. I had no idea the strikes would affect me. After all, I work in unscripted with no writers and no actors, but that was not the case. I was months out of work, more than I had ever been before. I decided to take this time to learn new skills and sharpen old ones. I spent time taking classes on Linkedin Learning and Masterclass and doing tutorials in the Adobe suite. I reconnected with former co-workers and people I crossed paths with throughout my career. We shared our misery and how stunned we were and we tried to keep each other motivated and hopeful. It’s hard to explain to people who don’t work in the industry why it’s so hard to leave. It’s hard to explain the freelance life to those who are used to staff jobs and corporate workspaces. So the oneness I felt with my colleagues made me feel less alone and kept my self-doubt at bay on the rough days. I finally figured out how to build a website, this one!

But one thing that shook me was how I forgot. I forgot how much work I had done, how many teams I was on, and how much experience I had. As I built this website adding all my credits in, searching for photos of me on set, in the field, or on the red carpet, my confidence started to firm up. It reminded me when I say 30 years I mean 30 years of working my butt off, of victories and near misses, of concessions and opportunities, the stretches and the evolution, of the hustle and the juggle.

Hollywood still glitters for me. The sun shines as sparkly as ever and the possibilities are still endless!