Two more Jones pieces

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"When other people in the junket rooms would just nod politely, do whatever was asked of them by the studio, and play ball (myself included), Andy Jones would speak up, occasionally get thrown out, but always manage to sneak back in.

"I still don't know what happened at the double-junket for Jeepers Creepers 2 and Cabin Fever, but after there was all this chatter going on with him finally being shown the door, he was at my roundtable fifteen minutes later asking his questions and going to town like nothing happened." -- from Mark Wheaton's farewell piece to Andy piece on CHUD -- warm, affectionate, well-written.

And here's a Variety obit by Diane Garrett -- three wafer-thin graphs about Jones' death and career history, and five graphs exploring how A Mighty Heart, which Jones was watching the night before last as he suffered his fatal heart attack, has stirred up more than its share of trouble and tumult. If Garrett had worked it a bit more, she could have thrown in an assessment about Angelina Jolie's career curve.

Seriously, the piece reads as if a Variety editor told her, "This guy Jones didn't accomplish enough and wasn't important enough to warrant a regular obit so make something out of the fact that his heart gave out when he was watching A Mighty Heart....that's a catchy angle."

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on June 23, 2007 at 8:19 AM

comment #1

BurmaShave says ...

It's too bad she couldn't bring in the CABIN FEVER thing and write about Eli Roth's career implosion. Pancakes! PANCAKES!

Posted by BurmaShave at June 23, 2007 8:44 AM

comment #2

BurmaShave says ...

By the way, I know you guys all knew him, but most of us who ever watched E! knew him as Anderson Jones, so we didn't really know who you were talking about for awhile. I shouldn't speak for others actually, but I know it was true in my case.

Posted by BurmaShave at June 23, 2007 8:46 AM

comment #3

jeffmcm says ...

What career implosion? One movie that doesn't meet expectations despite being profitable?

Posted by jeffmcm at June 23, 2007 8:48 AM

comment #4

BurmaShave says ...

jeffmcm, you really shouldn't be so easy to bait. Change it up a little bit. Switch up your routines. Sleep in a different bed every night.

Posted by BurmaShave at June 23, 2007 8:50 AM

comment #5

Josh Massey says ...

Somebody should be fired over that Variety headline: "Film critic suffers fatal 'Heart' attack."

Maybe I'm more sensitive as a friend of Andy's, but that is in extremely poor taste.

Posted by Josh Massey at June 23, 2007 8:58 AM

comment #6

tholl-yung says ...

I told you, his "...heart gave out BEFORE a promotional screening at the ArcLight," you're not working hard enough to confirm. Right about the nasty headline and measly article, it's more of a local beat story than an obit.

Posted by tholl-yung at June 23, 2007 9:29 AM

comment #7

tholl-yung says ...

It also establishes his age as 38. Even Mark Wheaton thought he was older.

Posted by tholl-yung at June 23, 2007 9:37 AM

comment #8

The Winchester says ...

Damn shame. I worked the junkets for a little bit, and Andy was one of the few people I could joke around with. That Brokeback Mountain/Ice Harvest junket was more fun than it had any right to be. I'm sorry to see him go. What disturbs me more is that I was at the Arclight when it happened, but I was seeing a different movie.

Posted by The Winchester at June 23, 2007 11:13 AM

comment #9

William Goss says ...

That Variety headline is unbelievably tactless, and the fact that the majority of the focus is on the film itself is pathetic. Can't believe they let that shit slide.

Posted by William Goss at June 23, 2007 1:15 PM

comment #10

erniesouchak says ...

I only ever knew him as Anderson Jones too. I thought he was just a gossip queen, so I was surprised to hear he'd turned into a film critic. Amusing guy.

Posted by erniesouchak at June 23, 2007 2:11 PM

comment #11

RoyBatty says ...

Very friendly guy and a gentle soul, RIP

Posted by RoyBatty at June 23, 2007 5:51 PM

comment #12

ArnzJ says ...

He was always a film critic, and never afraid of who he was. As his only brother, I will never stop missing him. I will not read Variety again. Thank You, to those who have taken the time to leave a kind note; at the moment, it means more than I can say.

Posted by ArnzJ at June 23, 2007 5:59 PM

comment #13

tholl-yung says ...

I am really sorry about your loss. I had, in an earlier post, pointed to Variety and CHUD and posted this:

His "...heart gave out before a promotional screening at the ArcLight," says Variety. From what I've read (i.e. Chud), I think Andy could handle me saying that he was classy and thoughtful to the end. He was with his brother, and I hope that brought them as much peace as possible.

Posted by: T.Holly at June 22, 2007 11:52 PM

Posted by tholl-yung at June 23, 2007 7:03 PM

comment #14

filmradar.com says ...

I met Andy Jones in 2005 when I was a guest film critic on AMC's "The Movie Club". He was very outrageous and funny. He was also very nice to me and I'm sad to hear of his passing.

Posted by filmradar.com at June 24, 2007 12:18 AM

comment #15

James Whale says ...

Andy was a magnificent writer, electric personality and a good friend with a warm heart. Like so many of you, I loved him, too, and miss him much already, but those of us who knew him must have the guts to speak up here. Andy was an alcoholic who suffered a tragic career collapse because of his substance abuse. The bosses at E! begged him to get help and so did many of his longtime friends like me, but he didn't as far as I know. At least he was still boozing heavily a year before his death, I know that much. At one point after he left E! he came close to getting a major media job on the condition that he face his problem and go into rehab, but he denied he had a problem. So the offer was withdrawn. What a sad, sad, sad situation that doomed a warm, wonderful, brilliant, loving man.

Posted by James Whale at June 24, 2007 11:06 AM

comment #16