A Door Closes, A Window Opens

“Welcome to Universal Studios, E.T.’s home away from home.”

That was part of our opening spiel on the tour in the 80s. I went back to full-time tour guide duty in the fall of 1986 after being let go from Segue Music. A bummer, to be sure, but at least I had a job that I enjoyed, could support my family and could still pursue finding another music editing gig without the barrier of not being in the union. The tour would be my “home away from home” for a while longer.

Well, THAT was quick!

I was ecstatic at finally landing my first professional music editing gig in 1985 as an apprentice music editor at Segue Music. “Apprentice” was defined in the union handbook (as I recall) as one who “winds, rewinds, and carries film” among other low-level tasks like cleaning up the office, getting coffee for the room-at-large and making pick-ups & deliveries. They had a company pick-up truck for the apprentices to use and I clearly remember going on my first delivery run to Warner Bros., turning up the radio full-blast and singing at the top of my lungs with joy over my new position.

Luck is What Happens When Preparation Meets Opportunity

The title of this post is what I tell all the students who have visited a SIMSPONS scoring session over the past nearly-twenty-two years. They ask for the secret for breaking into show biz and I tell them that the only chance they have for success in this business is to study and be ready for anything at anytime. They have no control over when an opportunity will come their way, but when it does they better be prepared. Not the sexiest advice ever but it has served me pretty well over the years.