Richard V. Rupp

October 30, 2021

Good Saturday morning. I'm author Richard V. Rupp, writing from Burbank, California. Welcome to RUPP'S NOTES/FBI SPECIAL AGENT HARTMAN SERIES posts.

 

This is an update to my 10.23.2021 post titled "The Emerging Universe and Metaverse" It's official Mark Zuckerberg announced Thursday that the corporate parent for Facebook will be called "Meta." The name is a nod to the idea of the "metaverse," a term for a potential future internet that emphasizes virtual spaces. Zuckerberg said the metaverse will be the internet's "next frontier."

 

In the lead-up to my novel SKYWARD, I have been talking about the problems with putting up structures on the Moon, the type of clothing being worn, how water and oxygen are to be provided, but I forgot about addressing the crap. You need a good waste management system if you go to space. You think finding a good plumber here on Earth is a problem, try finding one in space or on the Moon.

 

What brought this to my attention is this article from CNN BUSINESS -

 

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As Jared Isaacman and his three fellow crewmates were free-flying through Earth's orbit, shielded from the unforgiving vacuum of space by nothing but a 13-foot-wide carbon-fiber capsule, an alarm started blaring.

 

The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft's systems were warning the crew of a "significant" issue, Isaacman said. They'd spent months poring over SpaceX manuals and training to respond to in-space emergencies, so they leaped into action, working with SpaceX ground controllers to pinpoint the cause of the error.

 

As it turned out, the Crew Dragon wasn't in jeopardy. But the onboard toilet was.

 

Nothing in space is easy, including going to the bathroom. In a healthy human on Earth, making sure everything ends up in the toilet is usually a matter of simple aim. But in space, there is no feeling of gravity. There's no guarantee that what comes out will go where it's supposed to. Waste can — and does — go in every possible direction.

 

To solve that problem, space toilets have fans inside them, which are used to create suction. Essentially they pull waste out of the human body and keep it stored away.

 

And the Crew Dragon's "waste management system" fans were experiencing mechanical problems. That is what tripped the alarm the crew heard.

 

. . .The toilet anecdote also highlights a fundamental truth about humanity and its extraterrestrial ambitions — no matter how polished and glitzy we may imagine our space-faring future, biological realities remain.

 

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Will the lessened gravity on the Moon present a crappy problem for the Bowman colonists? Not unless I say so. It could end up being an interesting chapter. Thanks, SpaceX, for the idea. I love being the master of SKYWARD. Let me think about this a little further in the reading room down the hall, where you turn a handle, and all the crap goes away.

 

WOW, I just read the storyline for "Rust." The plot is based on a story created by Alec Baldwin and writer-director Joel Souza. It involves the character played by Baldwin (Hartland Rust) running from the law to escape the hangman because of an "accidental murder."

 

It is important to note two things. First, that Rust was a "pet project" of Balwin, who was central in getting the production financed and produced. Second, Rust was touted to investors as a  union-certified production, which was true at the start, but not at the time of the shooting.

 

For my old entertainment industry insurance/risk management buddies, here is what I could find out about the insurance on Rust. Several bonding companies were approached to get a completion bond to cover the costs if the film was not delivered on time and on budget. The decision was made to proceed without a bond, which complicated financing for the production. One interested investor tried to get a bond on the project, and his usual bonding company declined. The key to underwriting a movie completion bond is an analysis of the key personnel (Producer, Director, Production Manager, Director of Photography, Production Accountant, and others). I suspect one or more of the names on Rust raised a red flag with the underwriters.

 

Apparently, minimum general liability limits were purchased to comply with the requirements of the New Mexico shooting site. Chubb National Insurance Company is the insurer for Rust Movie Productions LLC, according to the insurance certificate filed with Santa Fe County. Chubb provided $1 million per occurrence general liability coverage and $5 million in commercial umbrella coverage.

 

Based on the feedback I'm getting, Baldwin is not that well-liked in the Hollywood movie industry. His past record of how he treats people strongly suggests he should stick with acting and stay away from producing. It is apparent Baldwin does not have the personality traits to be a film producer who is required to monitor the safety of the production. Rather, he has a tendency to create problems, not solve them.

 

Did Producer Alec Baldwin's disdain for everyday crew members create a negligent atmosphere on the set of Rust? One article describes his three-decade temper tantrums towards anyone who dares anger, inconvenience, or disagrees with him. Another describes Baldwin as "a homophobe, bigot, a bully, a precious prima donna – and worst of all, he is unrepentant." I was advised by someone that knew Baldwin that he was a calculating scheming person who only looks out for himself. Here are just a few of the adverse reports about him. If I were to include every incident, I found this post would go on for pages.

 

In 2019 Baldwin pleaded guilty to harassment and agreed to take an anger management course after a dispute over a parking space led to his arrest. 

 

In 2013 Baldwin launched a racist rant against a black photographer who identified himself to Baldwin as a former-New York City police officer. During the confrontation on a public sidewalk, Baldwin called retired decorated New York police detective G. N. Miller – an African American – a "coon," a "crackhead," and a "drug dealer."  He also made disparaging remarks about Miller's mother and told Miller to "suck my dick."  Baldwin then went on another Twitter rant, in which he again called Miller, a "crackhead."

 

In 2012 he attached a photographer. Here's what the DAILY NEWS had to say about the incident – Serial shutterbug smacker Alec Balwin unleashed his fury on a Daily News photographer — and now he's the focus of a criminal investigation. "He comes after me, starts shoving and punching me — one time, right in the chin," said Santos, 42, adding that he was coming to the defense of another photographer. "And then he started shoving me and pushing me. He lunged at me like a raging bull." . . .Baldwin was clearly losing it. "He was like crazy, you know?" said witness Goren Veljic. "There was an eruption of mad. I think something's wrong with him."

 

In 2011 he was thrown off an airplane for refusing to turn off his iPad after repeated requests and then - with the seatbelt sign on - went to the airplane bathroom to try to continue playing a game ("Words with Friends") on the device. The airline says he swore at the flight attendants and slammed the bathroom door.

 

In 2007, Baldwin called the cell phone of his daughter Ireland, who lives in L.A. with his ex-wife Kim Basinger, for a court-approved chat and got her voice mail. Here's the message he left with rage in his voice, "I don't give a damn that you … are a child or that your mother is a thoughtless pain in the a–," he said in the message. "You are a rude, thoughtless little pig, okay?" After hearing the recording, a family court judge barred Baldwin from seeing his daughter.

 

In 1998, he shocked NBC's Late Night Host Conan O'Brien when he exploded into a rant that included, "Shut up! No, shut up! I'm not finished. We would stone Henry Hyde to death, and we would go to their homes, and we'd kill their wives and their children. We would kill their families. [stands up screaming] What is happening in this country? What is happening? UGHHH UGHHH!!!!".

 

In 1995 he covered a photographer Alan Zanger's vehicle with shaving cream and then struck him so hard he broke the guy's nose. A court awarded $4,500 in damages against him.

 

As I said earlier, he creates problems and is not someone you would want as a producer. Note I left out specific movie industry crew comments about him to protect their livelihoods. They are along the same lines as the comments above. An LA TIMES article indicates that "A friend acquainted with Baldwin for a decade, who, like others close to the actor, spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the actor's circle is 'very small, smaller than one might think.'" I wonder why?

 

No wonder the Rust set was in such disarray. Was there negligence on the set? YES!!!  Was there gross negligence on the set? YES!!! Did Alec Baldwin contribute to the negligence? YES!!!

 

It seems everyone associated with the production is now lawyering up. As an example, a high-powered attorney, everyone will recognize Gloria Allred is representing script supervisor Mamie Mitchell who could be heard saying while making a 911 call to report the shooting, "This fucking A.D. that yelled at me at lunch asking about revisions, this motherfucker," (in conversation with someone who was not on the call) "He's supposed to check the guns. He's responsible for what happened." The A.D. she refers to David Halls was fired from a previous film for a weapon going off unexpectedly. He has retained Albuquerque attorney and former Assistant D.A. Lisa Torraco. Robert Gorence, the attorney representing the on-set armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed said in a statement that "untruths have been told to the media." My client is "devastated and completely beside herself over the events that have transpired."

 

While I doubt "Rust" will ever get produced, I would bet the story of the shooting on the production will be. Welcome to Hollywood. Oh, wait, Alec is a New Yorker.

 

Have a fun and safe Halloween.

 

Cheers,

 

Richard V. Rupp, Author

Website – www.richardvrupp.com

Email – rupprisk@gmail.com

Copyright©2021 by Richard V. Rupp