ECHO:
The second category is: "In a Group."
Harry Styles is the youngest
member of this boy band.
What is One Way?
ECHO:
Shucks.
Hubris is an excessive amount of this,
which can come before a fall?
What is conceit?
ECHO:
Shucks.
You only scored one of six today.
Echo, be mean to me.
ECHO:
Hmm, I don't know that.
BEN BERMAN:
Echo, who is The Amazing Johnathan?
ECHO: John Edward Szeles,
born September 9th, 1958,
in Detroit, Michigan.
Better known by the stage name
The Amazing Johnathan,
the American standup comedian/magician.
BEN: Echo, what is the best
Amazing Johnathan documentary?
ECHO:
The jury is still out on that one.
Mm.
[ electronic music with animals
bleating and mooing playing ]
[ bleating, mooing continue ]
[ owl hoots ]
[ midtempo electronic music playing ]
Put your hands together
for Amazing Johnathan.
The Amazing Johnathan.
The Amazing Johnathan.
The Amazing Johnathan.
[ cheers and applause ]
NEWSMAN:
In one of his most amazing illusions,
Johnathan seems to slice open
his arm with a butcher knife.
[ audience laughs ]
Aah!
We're always looking for someone who has
nothing to lose in their performances.
I think we've got it in Johnathan.
MAN:
Oh, my God!
JOHNATHAN:
Oh God!
I actually bought the rights
to a couple of his pieces
because I wanted it for my own shows.
It was aggressive, but there was
no question that he had taken a stand.
That he had said, "This is what I do."
"WEIRD AL" YANKOVIC: Magic got
a reputation for being a little cheesy,
and people like Penn and Teller
and The Amazing Johnathan
sort of deconstructed magic
in their own way.
ERIK ANDRE: I would see him on,
like, a lot of variety shows
when I was younger,
and he was like a rebel magician.
I loved him.
He was just, like, in the zeitgeist.
JUDY GOLD: There were not a lot of male
performers who helped female performers.
The fact that a guy would say
I want her to open for me...
He's a disrupter.
As a prop guy,
he was always one that I would...
Dumb as fuckin' dumb could get,
but it's brilliant.
It's brilliant.
JOHNATHAN: I've performed
in over a hundred TV shows.
I went around the world a few times.
I did a show for two presidents
of the United States.
And I've made millions of dollars.
I've got a beautiful wife...
and everything came crashing...
[ audience murmuring ]
down when I was told I had a year to live.
[ audience member laughs, claps ]
It's not a joke.
So, um...
[ voice breaking ]
I'm dealing with that right now.
I promised I wasn't gonna cry, but
thank you all very much for coming out.
I'll see you on the other side.
[ clicks ]
[ jet roaring overhead ]
Are you gettin' in or what?
Every day is just whatever we want to do.
ANASTASIA SYNN:
Yeah, it's a blessing and a curse.
It's hard to get motivated
when you know that every day
is just gonna be more of not having
anything that you really have to do, so...
But it also yeah, and it also makes it
so that if you have
the little slightest thing to do,
it seems like a real pain in the ass.
[ chuckles ]
That's the curse.
I mean, if we have to mail
a letter, it's like,
"Oh, in two days,
we've got to mail a letter.
Fuck."
[ Anastasia laughs ]
ANASTASIA:
Yeah, that's very true.
Very true.
You know, don't you feel sorry for us?
Well, my diagnosis with a heart problem
was years ago, so...
I'm overdue.
I mean, I've lived a lot longer
than the doctor said I was going to.
My daily life after I retired
was laying in bed
most of the time.
You know, I like to draw
and to paint and, as you see,
everyeveryeverything
is at my disposal right now.
I try to be productive
and it just doesn't work out
because my mind is on, on, on my health.
I remember when he went in
to the ICU and the doctor saw his heart
and brought me into the room to show him
the heart beating, and he's like,
"This is what a heart normally does."
And then when I saw Johnathan's
heart on the screen,
just the top right corner of it
went like that.
JOHNATHAN: Every time we go
to get my heart numbers,
the infraction rate of my heart,
it goes down, down, down.
It is getting worse and worse.
This is the bane of my existence.
That is so fucking big.
That's probably how I will go
quick, of a heart attack.
That's what they tell me.
[ gags ]
[ gagging ]
No... [ gags ] I'm not.
[ indistinct chatter ]
JOHNATHAN:
What's the trick of the year?
Yeah, I have that.
WOMAN: You look good.
I'm not supposed to be here,
so I'll take anything I can get.
The best thing in the world for you
is getting back into magic.
You know, if you've gotta go,
that's a good way to go.
Yeah.
Working.
Better than bed at home.
Yeah.
I've gotta do something or I'll just...
I'll go crazy, you know?
I understand.
Yeah, get us together.
BEN: Who was that?
JOHNATHAN: Mr. Burns from The Simpsons.
"Excellent."
BEN: Who is that guy, for real?
JOHNATHAN: For real?
He's, uh, Mr. Lightbulb, Mr. Electric.
BEN: Wow.
JOHNATHAN:
He was a bigtime magician.
[ noisy chatter ]
JOHNATHAN:
I was the longestrunning comic magician
in the history of Las Vegas.
I watched that go away
because I had to retire.
Everybody slides down eventually,
and, uh, it's not an easy thing to do.
Thank you so much, Johnathan.
You're the best. You proved 'em wrong.
Ha!
[ cheering, whistling ]
Watch this, here's the real trick.
It's an illusion.
[ audience laughs ]
But I'm gonna fix it by placing
the pieces in his hand,
sprinkling what we call magic dust
over the ripped pieces.
[ snorts ]
All right.
[ laughter and applause ]
[ cheering, whistling ]
Tapping it twice with the wand.
Excuse me.
[ laughter, cheers ]
[ yelling ]
Okay.
Let's hear it for Robert
for coming up here and helping me out!
Robert!
[ cheers and applause ]
JOHNATHAN: All right, my street
is not this one but the next one.
Hello.
WOMAN: Can I help you?
JOHNATHAN: I used to
live in this house,
and I'm Amazing Johnathan.
WOMAN: No.
JOHNATHAN: Yes.
The basement is where
I used to have my stage.
DOREEN SZELES:
He was a good kid. He really was.
He was very quiet.
He loved to read.
He started out at kids' parties.
That's when he started out.
And they'd just crack up.
His dad didn't have any patience
which is pretty typical to dads sometimes,
but he never got to see John.
He died before he got to see
John in action,
really doing good.
He died before he did.
He needed to leave.
There was nothing here for him.
What he did when he left home,
I have no idea, and I don't want to know.
[ laughs ]
I don't want to know.
WOMAN:
You're on.
I'm on.
WOMAN: You're on.
Johnathan's our main man.
I'm their main man.
Definitely their main man.
Everybody spit their gum
out at the camera.
One, two, three.
[ laughing ]
The whole world has let him down
[ Johnathan snorting ]
[ women shrieking, laughing ]
JOHNATHAN: I was hooked on coke
for about 20 years.
Every weekend I did it.
I wrote My whole act
I wrote on doing coke.
And, uh,
then something got me off of it.
I switched to speed,
that got me off of coke.
So, I like to, uh,
do a little speed now and then, so...
[ inaudible ]
In here.
[ indistinct ]
BEN: The speed, um,
like, how do you take that?
How is that?
Let me show you.
[ Ben laughs ]
Would you like to see?
BEN: Well, uh,
not if you weren't gonna do it now anyway.
JOHNATHAN: I'll do it now.
BEN: Huh?
JOHNATHAN: I'll do it right now.
I want to anyway.
It's about that time.
Just take a hit off this and boom.
[ clicks ]
[ Johnnathan speaking ]
It kind of looks like a guy
smoking a pipe.
That's all it is.
[ beatboxing playing over speakers ]
[ electronic music playing ]
[ record scratching, warbling ]
ANASTASIA: I canceled a show
that I had scheduled so I could go out
on my first date with Johnathan,
and he tells me
that he does speed like vitamins.
"I didn't know you could
smoke speed," and he's like,
"Well, it actually not speed, it's meth."
And I'm like, "If you had told me
on our first date
that you did meth like vitamins,
I would've walked."
Then I fell in love with him
and now I'm fucked.
[ chuckles ]
[ Johnathan speaking ]
No, I'm happy.
I'm very happy.
He's in the bathroom.
Because I fell in love with you
regardless of your addiction.
I don't even know what to say to that.
There's been a lot of times
where I've tried to get him to quit.
He's just he's never gonna quit.
Sorry.
Um...
And he even says, he tells me, he doesn't
even get high from it, you know, so...
He's such a strong person,
so I don't understand.
[ TV playing indistinctly ]
BRUCE BLOCK: Everything that he's gotten
and everything that he's accomplished
happened while he was on drugs,
so he associates the success
with the drugs.
You know, what are
we telling him to go back to?
JOHNATHAN:
I don't know why I do it anymore.
I probably could stop it and do
the same exact thing I'm doing.
But why?
What's the point? Why stop?
But I'll tell you what, I'm getting bored.
I'm getting mighty bored.
I wanna go back on the road
and do some more shows.
[ on TV ] It's ventriloquism.
I've studied it.
It's pretty cool, watch.
Look that way and move your mouth
but don't say any words.
Watch.
No I'm not a doctor,
I'm just not an idiot.
[ laughter ]
Once, one time...
Stand on the trapdoor, you're gonna hit
your chin on the way down.
So we got nothing done.
We're at square one right now.
We don't have any props so far,
but I gotta scrape that together.
I gotta find a stooge who's willing
to come up and do the bit with me.
Yeah. You.
You wanna do it?
Yeah, I could definitely do that.
[ chuckles ]
So we got that taken care of.
So we have to be there,
probably about, about five?
What time is now?
Holy shit. That's not a lot of time.
[ whirring ]
Aw, fuck.
I haven't put this fucker on in ages.
JOHNATHAN:
That's pretty good for us.
Yeah, I'm nervous about it.
But, I mean, to get dizzy
and pass out on stage
or even die on stage,
yeah, that's not, that's not...
I mean the legacy,
it's good for the legacy, isn't it?
And people can say,
"Hey, I was there,"
but, uh, it doesn't do me much good.
STAGE MANAGER:
You got some hardcore fans out there.
JOHNATHAN: I hope there are hardcore fans,
seeing the same shit.
STAGE MANAGER:
The struggles he's gone through of late
and the fact that he is
standing here on stage
for you shortly tonight, is truly amazing.
Would you now sit back, relax and enjoy
The Amazing Johnathan Show.
[ cheers and applause ]
[ woman screams ]
[ microphone thuds, feedback whines ]
Come on, I'm trying to do a show.
God damn it.
[ laughter ]
That goes on the list of shit I can't do.
[ laughter ]
Let's try that again.
WOMAN: No
No, I'm kidding.
It's these flimsy mic clips.
Let's start with a trick.
Do you have a handkerchief?
[ on TV ]:
Do you have a handkerchief?
You, sir, with the blue, in the front.
There's something on your nose,
just do this.
Yeah, cool, all right.
I drink it all the time.
I want to take my clothes off
and run around.
That prevents me from streaking.
[ laughter ]
This prevents streaking.
[ laughter ]
This prevents streaking.
[ laughter ]
[ slurping ]
That's good stuff.
[ cheering, whistling ]
It'll be better,
every show will be better.
Every show will be better.
We're coming to your town
[ Johnathan speaking ]
MAN:
The Amazing Johnathan is going to be
appearing at the Wilbur Theater
Friday night,
setting off a little bit
of a comeback tour.
MAN 2: Today on the show,
The Amazing Johnathan.
And Johnathan's dealing with
some pretty heavy shit right now.
WOMAN:
All right, that's good stuff, so you'll be
at The Funny Bone... Sunday?
Check him out.
I'm gonna go back out and give fans
one more run, you know?
MAN: What do you mean,
he's coming back?
Is he better? Is he still sick?
MAN 2:
Gotta catch him before he's gone.
[ announcements overlapping ]
MAN 3:
Tickets are still available.
[ clicks ]
[ phone ringing ]
[ clicks ]
[ organ music playing ]
[ jet roaring overhead ]
MAN [ over PA ]: Final boarding call
requiring the boarding of passengers
of Seville, Harrison, and Fort Worth,
Gate 7 reporting your aircraft is
now ready for departure.
Mr. Ben.
How are you, buddy?
BEN:
How's it going? How are you feeling?
Well, I feel all right today,
but, I mean, the last few days
I've felt really bad.
BEN: How's it going?
I haven't slept.
I'm very tired and frustrated.
Get those three right there.
BEN: Hey, how you doing?
[ organ music playing ]
[ director's voice distorted ]
BEN:
Yeah, that's okay. Well... yeah.
Um...
[ loudspeaker voice ]
Stop two, serving American Airlines,
American Airlines Priority Access,
American Airlines Credit Union.
ANASTASIA: Why do I always have
to get the cot or the mattress,
the shitty thing. I want the good thing.
It's because you don't want to sleep
in the same bed with me.
I can't. You don't sleep.
You snore and kick the bed
and punch the bed.
You snore.
[ snores ]
BEN: Uh, I'm meeting with [ bleep ]
and his crew at 2:30,
just to talk through stuff.
Okay.
BEN: So I'll be down in the lobby
pretty early if you want to stop by.
Okay.
JOHNATHAN:
I played this placed 20 years ago.
Jay Leno used to play this place.
I mean, this place has been
played by everybody.
ANASTASIA: How did your meeting
go with the other film crew?
BEN: Uh, you know, to be honest,
it's... it's interesting,
trying to, you know, suss it out.
There's two documentary crews
making a documentary
with the same subject.
ANASTASIA: Yeah.
BEN: Um.
Well, the thing about it is,
is they're huge.
They're a huge company.
I mean, fuckin' Man on Wire.
I wouldn't let them even be doing this
if they weren't who they were.
We should let them release theirs
and then you should
come in on a swoop
on the success of that one.
And we can get a lot better interest
on this documentary
than we could if we went second
or went first.
BEN: Well, yeah, I'm not,
I'm not sure about that.
Uh...
I am.
BEN: To be honest,
I don't blame you for having
this other documentary.
I understand
JOHNATHAN: I understand what
the second one would do for us.
ANASTASIA: What do you mean?
Because it's not...
He's talking about the second one.
That's what he's referring to.
Yeah, I know.
The second one being this one.
BEN: This one was first.
The first in the timeline, yeah,
but I think it should be
second in the release.
BEN: Here's the thing.
The fact that there's another
documentary crew making
a documentary about you,
I want that to be an element
in this documentary because it's real.
JOHNATHAN: That's a great idea man.
ANASTASIA: Did they like that idea?
BEN: They're, um, bumping up against it.
JOHNATHAN:
They are vying to get me on tape.
I am so popular right now.
You're both gonna kill each other.
WOMAN: The thing is that
they didn't hold anything for this at all.
I'll be up here.
[ indistinct chattering ]
[ other director speaking ]
[ indistinct chatter ]
Wanna see my drawing?
Wanna see my cock?
BEN: Look at it, it's colorful.
ANASTASIA: It's a pretty nice cock.
JOHNATHAN: Nice cock.
BEN: Is that where you wanna be?
Do you want to be...?
BEN: Yeah.
[ cheering and whistling ]
Ladies and gentlemen,
sit back, relax and enjoy
The Amazing Johnathan Show.
[ cheering, whistling ]
[ Johnathan groans ]
BEN: Want me to go get you some water?
JOHNATHAN: Sure.
[ cheers and applause ]
Thank you. Thank you.
Actually I need a volunteer
from the audience to come on stage
to help me out with a trick.
This can be anyone.
Raise your hand if you're out there.
All right. Where's all my stuff?
Come on over here with me.
I've got some cool stuff.
[ audience laughing ]
Oh, shit.
[ audience laughing ]
[ laughter ]
JOHNATHAN: I had a choice,
I could sit around and wait to die
or I could go back on the road
and die on stage.
[ whispers ]
That would be so awesome.
[ audience cheers ]
I know, you'd get to be there too.
[ laughter ]
ANASTASIA:
I don't have any say or any control
of anything that he does, I never have.
I didn't think he could handle
one show, let alone five.
What if going on stage
and stepping on stage
was the thing that kicks him over.
It's not a good idea, and I thought
about people like Tommy Cooper.
He died on stage with people laughing
because they thought
it was part of his bit.
Clinging to the curtains
and falling to the floor
and people are frickin' laughing at him.
[ audience laughing ]
And that's, kind of, what I imagine
happening to Johnathan.
I mean, he has fears of dying
but we can't help him.
JON MUGAR:
Cemetery. Death. Death.
Cemetery.
Dead people.
BEN: Why are you
People die.
BEN: Why are you saying those words?
People die.
Death. Death.
Cemetery. Death.
BEN: Give me two pieces of advice
for the documentary I'm filming.
You need to, uh, keep shooting
your documentary
and see what happens
with the other crew and just meddle,
just get in there and be meddlesome.
Be very passiveaggressive and meddlesome.
BEN: But positive.
Very, very positive outwardly.
Inwardly you can remain
extremely negative and troubled.
BEN: Yeah.
And now with, um, with me
But you're being given
the runaround, and, uh...
BEN: Do you think?
Oh, yeah.
You're being battered around
like a... shit... head.
BEN: Hmm.
Put this in real life terms:
You show up to work
and there's already a man
sitting at your desk,
do you continue to do the job
right next to him?
BEN: Are you kidding me?
No, I mean, you're both doing
the same exact thing.
Why don't you see how weird that is?
BEN: I do, well, I do.
I do see how weird that is.
Yeah, well, you're doing the same job,
and you're pretending like
you're happy and friendly about it,
but you're doing the same thing.
We're all headed to the cemetery.
Death. Death.
[ Ben chuckles ]
[ rock song playing ]
Here I am
Like a hurricane
Good morning, this is Loren and Wally
with our special guest this morning,
The Amazing Johnathan.
How are you doing?
Good, Loren.
LOREN: You're looking, uh...
You're looking pretty good
because last time I saw you, Johnathan,
you told me I wasn't
ever gonna see you again.
Yeah, I have to retract
that to everybody now. Isn't that fun?
Just don't ever say you're down and out
until you're down and out.
HILLMAN:
Completely commercial free.
Good morning.
And hello and how are you?
I'm fine. Yourself?
Good, we've gotta get you set up
with a microphone here.
Now, wait a minute, you gotta
a whole camera with
Yeah, you just walk right into
Yeah, well, we're doing a documentary.
HILLMAN: You're doing a documentary?
Yeah.
No, I'll get two
documentary crews this week.
And this is Ben,
and then we have the other
really important camera crew.
They've done Man on Wire,
have you seen that documentary?
It's about the guy who crossed the wire
between the World Trade Centers.
HILLMAN: Right.
The French guy. Yeah. Amazing.
They've won two Academy Awards.
Two, Ben, two.
[ laughter ]
HILLMAN:
So if the doctor tells him he's gonna die?
The first thing I do is sell
almost everything I have
because material possessions
don't mean anything anymore.
HILLMAN: Yeah.
Uh, surprise!
Now, I'm trying to get
all my stuff back from my friends.
[ laughter ]
HILLMAN: Now, the show
you did last night, new stuff?
I did write some material,
uh, and then I chickened out
doing a lot of it last night
because it was the first time
in three and a half years I've performed.
LOREN: Johnathan, I hope to see
you back here many, many
Thank you.
Hank, what is the latest out there?
HANK: Well, we do have a crash,
93 South, by 125.
And then you're jammed
at Roosevelt Circle.
128 South, busy.
Route 3 down into Lexington...
Well, I'm not in your documentary,
and I didn't give you permission
to put me in your documentary.
ANASTASIA: Oh, boy.
JOHNATHAN: You wanna be in this one.
I want to be in that one? All right,
I want to be in the documentary.
[ silence ]
[ laughing ]
So is it a race to get
yours out first now?
How does that affect you?
I mean, sorry, I'm interviewing you now,
but I'm curious.
You know, you just never know with him.
Is this a joke or is this real?
God, I'm so fascinated by this.
And they don't want to be filmed,
and the guy's smoking crystal meth.
It's like...
But did the other documentary,
has it won an Oscar or something?
[ chuckling ]
I understand that this is
extremely impolite of him.
On the other hand,
if I had a death sentence
hanging over my head,
I can understand him saying,
"The more the better,"
you know, uh, uh...
Okay, and the Oscar goes to
Searching for Sugar Man.
[ audience applause ]
Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chinn.
And the Oscar goes to Man on Wire.
James Marsh and Simon Chinn.
[ audience applause ]
CHINN: Rodriguez
isn't here tonight, um,
because he didn't want to take
any of the credit himself, and
BEN: He wins.
He wins.
CHINN: ...that man and his story
that you'd want to know.
[ squealing ]
Hi, I'm Ben.
Hi, I'm Jennifer.
I already have a film crew here.
Yes. Story of everyone's lives.
There's two.
JENNIFER:
Do you have credentials, sir?
Just to find out who cleared it.
BEN: Sure.
And, again, I'm not trying
to give you a bad time.
I get it.
[ indistinct chatting ]
I get it.
JOHNATHAN:
I gotta go to the bathroom.
Tell him I'll see him afterwards.
[ lighter clicks ]
[ Johnathan inhales ]
[ audience applauds ]
JOHNATHAN: We're gonna try some
weird stuff tonight.
Uh, it's been, like I said, three
and a half years and a lot of it I forgot.
I have no clue what any of this shit is.
It's definitely not like
it used to be so effortless.
Suzy!
I'm good for about 15 minutes
of feeling invincible, like I used to,
and then, all of a sudden,
everything starts to lock up.
My hands lock up.
I can't do manipulation of objects
like magicians should be able to do.
Andand it slows me down.
I have to sit down
during part of the show.
It's hithit and miss.
BEN:
Well, I'm sorry to hear about that.
Who cares.
BEN:
So you're not, you're not affected?
Give me a straight answer.
Why are you even asking me that?
Don't you know what the answer to that is?
[ sighs ]
I appreciate you all coming out
tonight to see the show again.
It's been a real kick for me to do.
[ cheers and applause ]
[ knock on door ]
Hi.
Hi.
What will The Amazing Johnathan
do without you?
Is... Is he gonna miss you?
Because, like, you know, you guys
have been hanging together
and now,
it's time for you to go home, I guess?
BEN:
I don't think so.
Okay.
BEN: How long is the drive?
About an hour.
STEPMOM: An hour.
[ country song playing on car stereo ]
I want to see
that spark light in your eyes
Come on, baby!
STEPMOM:
That's mine.
Why does my food taste
better than your food?
BEN: So what do you know
about the project?
What have I told you?
That you're documenting
Johnathan's, uh, life,
and, uh, apparently, that he's been ill.
BEN: Not long ago, he let me know
that there is another
documentary crew making
a documentary about him.
Oh.
BEN: So...
STEPMOM: So we could say,
the more the merrier here.
BEN: For once, I was making
a documentary out of love and art.
Now there's
Now you have competitors.
There's competition.
How does that affect you?
Or does it? Or should it?
BEN: All good questions.
STEPMOM: Mm.
At some point he's gonna die,
and things will get really interesting.
STEPMOM: Well,
that could be the end point.
It could maybe not be
the end point if he dies, but
What's your observation?
Are those guys good? Are they capable?
BEN: Well...
Can they pull it off?
They have a good story to tell?
What story are they telling?
STEPMOM: It doesn't
What story are you telling?
STEPMOM: It's not that
What story is anybody
What is the story here?
No, are they good?
Cut.
[ patrons chattering ]
COMEDIAN:
I just got done working a cruise ship.
These are the oldest people
you've ever seen in your life.
BEN: How's it going? I'm Ben.
CHAD: Ben? Chad.
BEN: How are you doin'?
CHAD: Good.
Are you just pan/tilt roaming then?
BEN: Sorry, who are you?
Chad, Chad Taylor.
BEN:
Uh, yeah, so what are you filming for?
I'm making a documentary.
Been working on it for a couple years.
I didn't know you guys were
Have you been following
doing this tour with him then?
Yeah.
Oh, okay.
I had no idea of that either.
So, I'm not that worried that ours
would conflict or anything...
BEN: Yeah.
...but hearing there's another crew...
He's the guy who gave us
both permission, so here we are.
[ organ music playing ]
ANASTASIA: Hey.
I didn't think you were comin'.
This guy is the original,
original one from years ago.
He's been working on this for years.
COMEDIAN: These are people
who put off taking their vacation
until their last week on Earth.
[ laughter ]
Let's give it up
for The Amazing... Johnathan!
[ cheering ]
As you can see, they're already linked.
That's a timesaver.
[ rings clatter ]
[ laughing ]
[ noisy chatter ]
[ music playing in background ]
WOMAN: I have to get my picture
taken with my brother.
ANASTASIA:
What size shirt did you want?
It says "Fuck Yeah" on it, is that okay?
CHAD: Well, I'll start.
I'll just start by just saying, um,
how did it feel up there?
How did it look?
It looked good to me.
And how does it feel,
as compared to prior,
how's it feel to be back on stage?
How's the show feel compared to then?
Um, it felt good. It was fun.
Are you shooting 4K or regular 1080?
BEN: Uh, 4K.
You are shooting 4K. Nice.
[ laughter ]
BEN:
How was it for you?
How was it for you?
Decent, decent.
Well, yeah, feel free,
you know, totally get
Do what you want
in the green room and all that.
Uh, standup comic.
A lot of competing docs.
When did you start?
December of 2014.
BEN: Really?
Two years ago in December.
[ indistinct chatter ]
CHAD:
Would you be willing to sign a release?
Oh, for sure.
CHAD: In case I end up
wanting to use a snippet of you?
I'd love it.
[ music playing in background ]
Thank you.
BEN: All right, I'll show you
what I found last night.
[ keyboard clacking ]
So in an article here,
Johnathan is asked,
"What else is coming up next?
What are the new goals you
are looking to achieve?"
He answers, "This guy Ben Berman
has been doing a documentary
"for a year on me and then this
other company came along
"and said, quote, 'Hey, we want
to do a documentary about you.
"We've won two Academy Awards.'
"So, now they're competing
with each other.
"They made me sign a thing
that says Ben has to wait two years.
"I feel bad that the other company
kind of cut in
but, like I said,
they won two Academy Awards."
This is on the Internet.
This is what Johnathan said.
"They made me sign a thing that
said Ben has to wait two years."
So where does that put me?
What is really going on?
[ doorbell rings ]
Howdy, man.
Hello, Ben.
BEN: How's it going?
Nice to see you.
Yeah.
BEN: A big reason
that I'm here is to apologize to you
for doing to you what the other
documentary crew did to me.
Come in on someone else's turf
And I, as much as I appreciate that,
I would say no apology necessary
because, number one, you didn't know
I was there, but even if you did know
I was there, as long as
he gave permission, you know,
that's really all you need, in my opinion.
If he wants to do a hundred
documentaries next month,
all I can do is hope mine is
more interesting, you know?
So as much as I appreciate the apology,
I really feel there is no need.
BEN:
Are you a fulltime documentarian
or what is it that you
consider your career?
No, my main job is juggling chainsaws.
[ chainsaw buzzing ]
[ laughs ]
I do a comedy and juggling show.
That's my main gig.
[ rock music playing ]
ANNOUNCER:
Sporting events around the country,
as well as television shows
around the world...
MAN:
Mad Chad!
MARC MARON [ on TV ]: And if you're ever
asking me this question,
"Have you seen that
documentary with the..."
Stop right there.
There's too many documentaries.
It's like, slow down on the documentaries.
We're all loaded up.
We've got a enough for now.
For some guys, I think
documentary filmmaking
is just a Hail Mary pass for someone
almost giving up on the medium.
You know, like...
[ Ben speaking ]
[ Jon laughs ]
[ Jon laughs ]
BEN:
Uh, I got this letter, I think, literally,
the day of my mom's funeral, I believe.
So, she wrote it right before...
So, as an 11yearold kid
getting this, I'm sure, you know...
BOY:
Ben, come here. Ben, come here!
Hi Ben. Are you filming very well?
BOY: Ben, come here!
YOUNG BEN: Yeah.
Nice and steady?
Bye, Ben.
YOUNG BEN: Bye!
It's been a great day.
BEN:
I'm gonna walk you out to the car.
Hey, Ben.
BEN: You like it, Mom?
Huh?
BEN: Like Florida so far?
I love it. How about you?
BEN: All right, Mom.
This video is entitled
Our Life by Ben Berman.
It is produced by Ben Berman.
Dad, I want to see your face on this.
I don't give facial interviews.
Nice and steady, Benny.
No, no, no. Stop it. Stop it!
BEN: Mom, hi!
Hi.
BEN'S DAD: Nice and steady.
BEN'S MOM: Oh, hi, Ben.
What?
BEN'S MOM: Hi Ben.
What?
BEN'S MOM: Hi.
Hi.
Did you buy these for me?
Ooh, they're heavy.
These are neat!
And before you leave the room,
you're going to take your napkin,
and are your hands clean?
YOUNG BEN: Here's my mom.
Hi.
YOUNG BEN:
It's Sunday. Okay.
I hear that dog in the sink, again.
BEN: Let's go check it out.
BEN'S MOM:
Yes, you go check it out. Get it on film.
[ train rattling ]
YOUNG BEN:
Okay, Dad, tell me your feelings.
I can't tell you all my feelings.
There are too many feelings.
YOUNG BEN:
Tell me some of your feelings.
Mom died on February 9th,
and it's very hard. It's very hard!
[ children's choir music blaring ]
Every... Every day there is
something new for me.
Every... Every month there is
something new for me.
YOUNG BEN:
Getting good footage here.
Enough.
BEN: "Dear Ben, I know that this is
a difficult time for you.
"I know you will continue to be
a good student and work hard.
"Please stay creative by drawing
and making your videos.
"I wish, when you grow up,
that you experience many successes.
If failure should occur, learn from it."
I don't know, man.
[ sniffles ]
I've always done videos.
Sometimes I like making videos
about death, I guess.
Maybe I like it. I don't know.
I think we should get back
to Johnathan's movie now.
[ sniffles ]
JOHNATHAN: All right, so,
I'm gonna show you the new paintings.
Yeah, it's a fuckin' total mess.
You are now taking a picture
of a picture of a pitcher,
holding a picture of a pitcher.
You don't get it?
All right man, shut the cameras off.
Don't even think.
BEN: Hmm?
JOHNATHAN: Don't even think.
BEN:
Why, what are you doing?
JOHNATHAN: I have to go
to the bathroom for a second.
Palming. Palming.
All right, I'll be right back.
[ lighter clicking ]
[ Johnathan inhales ]
BEN:
So you were in Los Angeles recently.
JOHNATHAN:
I was in LA recently.
Criss Angel, he got his star
on the Hollywood Boulevard.
BEN:
I live in LA.
I would've loved to have been there
at Criss Angel's ceremony.
JOHNATHAN: Everyone would.
BEN: But I'm making a documentary on you.
The other documentary team was there.
BEN: Well, it's up to you.
You have to tell me.
I'll try to update you.
Ideally, you can tell me
when you're doing interesting things,
so we can have interesting things
for this documentary.
JOHNATHAN: So, you take it up.
You find a video of us
because there was, like, fucking press
from around the world and you use that.
LERON GUBLER: Hello, Hollywood!
[ crowd cheering ]
Welcome to this morning's
Walk of Fame ceremony.
A special shout out to our fans
who are watching the live video stream.
[ cheering ]
JOHNATHAN: All right.
BEN: You guys made a pretty
funny motley crew.
You, Criss Angel, Flava Flav
and Gary Oldman.
JOHNATHAN: He's not much
of an actor, but I like the guy.
BEN: Ideally, can you
in the future please keep me
Yeah, it's me, it's me.
BEN: When you come to LA,
you should've told one of
your three documentary teams.
Four.
Don't forget Nikki.
BEN:
And who's Nikki?
[ scoffs ]
[ organ music playing ]
All right, so I just made contact
with Nikki.
She made it very clear she does
not want to appear on camera,
but she agreed to hand off
some of her old tapes.
Let's not do this here.
JOHNATHAN:
This'll be a good background.
See?
Everyone wants a story
where you have your career,
you start to become famous,
you start doing drugs,
you lose everything
and you stop doing drugs
and you become famous again.
Well, that's not the way it's happened
and that's not the way
it happens sometimes.
I had nothing.
I started doing drugs,
didn't ever stop doing drugs.
That's not the ending people
want to see or read about
according to my publishers.
The book on my life story is
not a book they want to do.
That's super bright.
High on a rocky ledge lives a Mdel...
JOHNATHAN: I don't like it.
I like having a presence in Vegas,
even if I don't have a presence in Vegas.
If I didn't do drugs,
then I probably would've ended up
in Michigan like all my friends did.
[ Nikki speaking ]
JOHNATHAN:
I think it makes you a little bit distant.
Less accessible to people around you.
Maybe. Is that true?
Will begin to grow in snow
Beside the one you have waited for
[ Anastasia speaks ]
I'm telling you,
that's what I'm trying to show you.
Yeah, my feet are dead.
I literally can't feel
them most of the time.
I don't feel my feet, remember?
BEN: Right.
[ clears throat ]
So, yeah, they feel fine.
Anastasia's head went
through the windshield.
Her head broke the windshield
and I was in a coma.
I do it like a vitamin, you know?
He tells me that he does speed
like vitamins.
Makes you into Superman.
You can be like me. Superman.
Because he's so good as a performer,
once he comes up with something
good to say to one of us,
you know it's right
in the back of his head,
the second the topic comes up,
he probably says
the same thing to all of us.
Because he knows when something's good
and he'll use it again.
He's a smart guy.
BEN: It's frustrating because
it seems now, more than ever,
much more apparent that everyone
the second crew, Chad, myself
we're all making the same documentary.
We have the same sound bites,
and we have the same interviews
with the same subjects.
So how, you know, how do I separate mine?
What do I do?
MAN: We've got a special event
coming up in April...
[ Johnathan speaking ]
BEN: You just don't want the visuals
BEN: That's different
We've talked about this already.
Whose chicken wings are those?
I've told you I didn't want to use
that footage before.
I said my manager said he doesn't
want you to use that footage...
BEN: Yeah, but
...because it's damaging.
Ben...
I want you to smoke with me
and I want it on camera,
so if you use me, you use both of us.
Then I'll do it.
BEN:
If I took a hit of meth on camera...
JOHNATHAN: Yeah.
How do you feel?
BEN: I'm thinking, I'm now considering
taking a hit of fucking meth.
JOHNATHAN: Why wouldn't you?
[ woman on recording ]
MAN [ on phone ]: Good morning,
thank you for calling law office.
This is [ bleep ].
How may I help you?
Uh, I had a law question.
I think a question that pertains
to law regarding a contract.
If my subject asked me to smoke
methamphetamine on camera,
can that ever be legally binding
if I smoke methamphetamine on camera?
MAN [ over phone ]:
I'm not a hundred percent sure.
I'm gonna go ahead and give
the lawyer all this information.
I'm gonna tell him that you're
making a documentary
and you have questions
about them wanting you to, um,
you know, um,
do a meth on, on camera.
And, um, once the lawyer reads
the message and all of that,
they'll be giving you a call back.
Thank you very much.
Thanks for the Thank you.
MAN [ on phone ]:
Byebye.
I hear a sound
It's goin'
Through my brain
[ laughing ]
All right, well, that would be
commitment, I suppose.
Not something I would do personally,
but, I mean, it's your movie.
I see a man crying...
[ Jon speaking ]
Kids are laughing
at the funny faces...
I mean, you've gotta be...
Of a clown
You gotta be out of your fuckin' mind.
Make it a fuckin' blockbuster.
Sell it. Boom.
You have to.
It'll be so impactful.
I've never smoked meth, but I would.
If I was in your shoes,
I would smoke meth.
I can't see, I can't think...
I mean, start with one hit
and then see how you feel.
BEN:
Um, so here's the thing,
so I put a good amount
of thought into this thing...
[ Johnathan speaking ]
JOHNATHAN: I mean, I don't know
what offer you're talking about.
JOHNATHAN [ on video ]:
Ben, I want you to smoke with me,
and I want it on camera
I'm not gonna be the one
that gets you hooked on that shit.
BEN: I don't.
JOHNATHAN: Well, and neither do I. So...
BEN: You know what it is?
What if he overdosed
and had a heart attack?
Wouldn't that be fucking
BEN: Stop it.
Is that possible?
Yeah, this is stupid.
Why do you want to show it?
It doesn't make sense.
I want the most interesting documentary.
This is part of it.
What if I
I'm just gonna take half a hit.
JOHNATHAN:
Go ahead.
Now there's smoke
already in here, right?
Here... I gotta...
This thing flares,
so don't put your face by it, okay.
Now hit it.
Okay.
JOHNATHAN:
Hit it hard.
[ clicks ]
[ woman speaking over phone ]
[ distant sirens wailing ]
[ Ben's Dad speaking on phone ]
[ cameraman speaking ]
It's been going on
for too long to not know...
what the hell I'm doing.
[ cell phone ringing ]
BEN: Hello?
MAN [ on phone ]:
Hey, Ben. How's it going?
Good, how are you?
Well, wait.
So you reached out
to Johnathan or Simon?
Rodriguez isn't here tonight,
because he didn't want to take
any of the credit...
[ Jacob speaking ]
BEN: Johnathan, Amazing Johnathan,
has been telling me that it's been
Man on Wire, Searching for Sugar Man
crew from the very beginning,
and it seems like the only ties
to those films are Simon.
So if Simon isn't producing the other
Amazing Johnathan documentary,
what the fuck?
[ Jacob speaks ]
[ birds singing ]
[ Jon speaking over phone ]
[ indistinct chatter ]
JOHNATHAN: Come on, hippie dance.
Hippie dance?
Hey, how are ya, buddy?
How you doing?
You gotta just relax
and put it way out, like this.
[ laughing ]
Hey Petey. Thanks, man.
Lookin' good.
PETEY: Yeah.
The party hasn't even started yet,
Bruce.
Yeah, I know.
I don't do that. I don't...
Wish there's a new party.
Yeah.
[ laughing ]
[ indistinct chatter ]
[ Bruce speaking ]
Bruce Block on Facebook.
[ indistinct chatter ]
BEN: Is there anything
that you know that you think
has been hidden from me?
If you were offering to be
my man on the inside
No, no. I don't think that there's
anything that he's hiding,
and, in fact, he told me,
and he told other people
to be completely honest with you.
So, there's never and I mean this
there's never been a moment where he says,
"Oh, don't tell them about this or that."
But...
I think everyone thought that
the whole dying bit was a prank.
Myself included.
But I know he researched
the legal ramifications
of faking his death at one point.
He also talked about having
somebody else come back as him.
I guess there's less legal
ramifications if somebody
shows up that appears to be him
in the future.
Always be thinking in that term,
that access might be cut off
without any rhyme or reason.
Get whatever you need
to finish something up
in case he says, "No more."
[ phone ringing ]
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
Hey, what's goin' on?
Hold on a minute. Hold on.
Yeah, what's happening?
Yep, that's just my answering machine.
Please leave a message.
[ beeps ]
[ line ringing ]
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
Hey, what's goin' on?
Yep, that's just my answering machine.
I know.
Uh, hey, Johnathan, it's Ben.
Um, please give me a call back.
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
Yep, that's just my answering machine.
I appreciate it very much.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Thank you very much.
Please give me a call.
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
Hey, what's goin' on?
[ Ben growls ]
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
What's goin' on?
I have a pimple on my nose.
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
What's goin' on?
I'm getting old.
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
Yeah, what's happening?
Not much.
Went to the gym.
JOHNATHAN [ on phone ]:
Yep, that's just my answering machine.
[ beeps ]
[ computer chimes ]
[ keyboard clacking ]
CHAD: Well, hey, Ben,
congratulations [ bleeps ]
for pulling that off because,
dang, he just did it in a year
and it's debuting at the festival, so...
Vancouver I want to say
Montreal Comedy Festival,
but I think it's in Vancouver,
anyway, the first one of us
to cross the finish line.
It sounds like they did
pretty well so far.
All right, bye.
You absolutely have to go.
You're gonna erode.
Your whole brain is gonna erode.
There's a lot of unanswered questions.
It's huge for you and for your movie.
BEN'S DAD: I think you're
overthinking this a little bit.
This is way out of my realm.
Almost like private investigator work.
JON:
You need answers, buddy.
You're dealing with a mess,
and you've got to tie it up somehow.
BEN'S DAD: Well, you decide
what your purpose is there.
There should be no reason
for conflict, right?
MODERATOR: So at the end of the film,
we're gonna have
a little Q&A with the gang.
So enjoy the film and, uh,
yeah, stick around.
[ applause ]
[ applause ]
MODERATOR: Please welcome
to the stage, the director [ bleeps ],
ladies and gentlemen.
[ applause ]
First of all, how did you
become involved in the project?
[ director speaking ]
Awesome.
Do we have any questions in the crowd?
Right there, in the middle.
First off,
congratulations on the film...
DIRECTOR: Thank you.
...which was really entertaining.
I just wanted to know, the filming process
that you used for this film
was it similar
to the filming process you used
for Searching for Sugar Man
and Man on Wire?
[ director speaking ]
BEN: What's up, man?
How's it goin'?
BEN:
I guess practical matters first.
Can I get you to sign a photo release?
Yeah, yeah. Yes.
I appreciate it.
No problem.
I think it would be good
if you allowed one other person
to get a question off, and that's really
the, kind of, the heart of this.
We're just trying to figure out
how this misunderstanding happened.
That they were advertised as being
the people that made these
Academy Awardwinning movies.
But then, yeah, the question being,
you know, "Was the process
of making this film similar
"to the way that you made
Searching for Sugar Man
and Man on Wire?"
Man on Wire. Yeah.
The filming process
that you used for this film,
was it similar to the filming
process you used for
Searching for Sugar Man
and Man on Wire?
[ director speaking ]
[ applause ]
MODERATOR: Thank you very much.
BEN:
Thanks. I wanted to say great film.
BEN: They were good questions.
People people uh, had...
...good questions.
Johnathan's such a prankster.
Did you ever think
that his illness was this...
So, I was told I had a year to live.
[ audience laughs ]
It's not a joke.
[ director speaking ]
BEN:
Well, great job, guys.
I'll see you guys around.
Thanks, have a good one.
BEN:
You too.
In the clip you sent me,
Johnathan said in the clip,
I think it was like a radio interview
or something you guys were gonna do.
He goes, "Somebody else wants to do
a documentary on me,
and it's they're attached to these
awardwinning movies."
BEN: Yes.
KEITH: So, isn't he referencing them?
BEN: Yes.
Okay, but they didn't do shit.
That's right.
But he thinks they did.
BEN:
I don't know what he thinks.
KEITH:
Oh, he could just be fucking with you?
BEN:
Maybe.
KEITH: Okay. So much is confusing,
but you've got your work cut out for you.
And you need more from him still, right?
BEN:
I think so, yeah.
Man, better hop on it
because the way they're making it sound,
like he's gonna be gone next week.
[ indistinct chatter ]
BEN: So yeah, we got the answer
that we expected to get from them.
As I knew, you know, all signs
kind of point to Johnathan.
So any further answers
to any of the questions,
the many questions that I have,
have to come from Johnathan.
Uh, so...
So I just have to go talk
to Johnathan and, kind of,
I think, finally demand truth.
BEN: What, um... What documentaries
have you seen lately?
Um, I watch, I watch about
I watch all of them.
I think I've gone right down the list
and seen them all.
BEN:
Um, kind of going back,
do you remember the first email
you ever sent to me?
No.
BEN: I want to show you.
Do you have it?
It's very short, very simple.
Okay. Yeah.
BEN: So it ends with,
"if we just stick to the truth."
JOHNATHAN:
Right.
BEN: I wonder, do you have
any thoughts on that?
Well, yeah, what do you mean?
In regards to what?
BEN:
In regards to
Have I been dishonest
with you somewhere?
Well, I don't know
if it's dishonesty or I'll say this.
You're a magician.
You're an illusionist,
and you're also someone
who is a selfproclaimed prankster.
Right?
Mm.
Where I am right now is,
I'm really not sure what's real
and what's not real.
What do you think might not be real?
BEN: At this point,
you have me questioning a lot.
Here's the thing: We know
that the second crew isn't
who you originally claimed they are.
There is no one
I'm telling you what they told me.
The Searching for Sugar Man,
that's who they told me that they were.
The two main guys from London
aren't taking
a handson approach to the documentary
because they don't do that anymore.
So you weren't lied to.
This is the truth.
I would've done it regardless
because, you know, if I can have
two documentaries made of me,
why wouldn't I have
two documentaries made of me
rather than one?
You're just waiting.
You're just waiting
biding your time until I die
and then you get that ending you want.
That's not true.
Are you disappointed
that I'm not dying,
in your time frame?
Anyway, I know you don't consider
yourself a grand magician
or a grand illusionist,
but you definitely are a prankster.
My big question is, you were diagnosed
with a heart disease,
given a year to live
and four years later, you're still here.
What's your point out of this?
BEN: My point is,
you were diagnosed with the heart disease,
given a year to live
This is getting old. Move on.
And four years later, you're here.
JOHNATHAN: Yeah.
What's your point to this?
What are you saying, Ben?
What do you think a person
out in the world would,
after all these
Here's what I think.
I don't give a fuck what they think.
If they're, if they're, if they're weary
or if they're leery that,
that I'm still living for some reason,
I don't give a fuck.
I'm still living. Wouldn't you rather have
that than anything else?
You're saying
that I'm faking my own death.
So not only are you accusing me of that,
but you're saying I'm doing it for
methods of, of, of just being a prank.
Haha, I got you?
How, how far have you gone
for a prank before?
Would, are you
Are you serious?
You think that this is a prank?
Where would be the payoff?
You can see...
Ben, Ben, you're wasting my time
because I don't want to think
about it anymore.
Because when someone tells
you got that long to live,
every second of every day,
you're, you're, you're back on it.
It makes me miserable.
I'm in the hospital all the time,
and the doctors can verify
everything is real, you know?
So you're accusing me of this as
it wouldn't be a prank,
it would be for some other motive, like,
like, what, getting publicity from it?
Losing all my work on the road from it?
Losing my job or make it so
nobody will hire me anymore?
That's the prank?
Haha, that's the prank on me.
I don't get any work anymore.
That's funny, huh?
It's real funny that I'm in the hospital
all the fucking time.
What a prank.
You're wasting my time right now.
I honestly
Don't, don't go.
JOHNATHAN:
Fucking idiot.
I already have a documentary
that has a good ending.
[ muttering ]
Gotta get the fuck out of here.
ANASTASIA:
Every fucking morning I wake up
worrying that he's gonna
not be alive anymore.
That's every single fucking morning.
And then, I'm gonna have the guilt of,
"Should I have called
an ambulance sooner?"
"Should I have got him to the hospital?"
So, uh,
I worry about that a lot,
like about making the wrong decision.
That's a lot of weight.
DOREEN:
He was told he was gonna die.
Just took the wind out of his sails.
But look what he's done since then.
He's been on the stage, that's his life.
If he dies that way, that's fine.
He's not gonna let it stop him,
and I am glad.
I am glad.
[ knocking on door ]
[ dogs barking ]
Lentil!
Benny! Hi.
[ stepmom cooing dogs ]
BEN: How's it goin?
Don't I get a kiss?
BEN: Yes.
STEPMOM: Okay.
JOHNATHAN [ on recording ]:
So we got nothing done.
I gotta find a stooge
who's willing to come up
and do the bit with me.
Yeah. You.
You wanna do it?
Yeah, I could definitely do that.
BEN:
This one was first.
JOHNATHAN:
The first in the timeline, yeah.
But I think it should be
second in the release.
YOUNG BEN:
Tell me some of your feelings.
BEN'S DAD:
Mom died on February 9th.
[ choir music blaring ]
And it's very hard...
It's very hard.
Every... Every day there is
something new for me.
Every... Every month there is
something new for me.
JOHNATHAN:
That's funny, huh?
You're wasting my time right now.
I honestly
Don't, don't go.
JOHNATHAN:
Fucking idiot.
[ silence ]
You interviewing me? Wow.
That's crazy. I don't remember that.
BEN:
I don't remember that either.
It explains why you love
to make films about death. [ chuckles ]
It does a good job of that.
Well, I think it means
And it's a nice
I don't know if there is a love,
but there is an understanding.
A need.
BEN:
I feel bad.
I feel bad.
Yeah.
Well, you don't know that
Johnathan is on board or not.
You don't know where he's at, so...
You don't want to exploit him,
but at the same time,
you've got a movie to make.
Well, what I was about to say is,
"Yes, I'm concerned
"that I'm using him for his death
to tell a death story."
But, basically,
what I'm telling you is that
Johnathan is not happy with me right now.
Well, the question is,
"What ending would satisfy him?"
Literally, what, you know
Specifically, what ending would...
defuse this open issue?
[ indistinct announcements over PA ]
BEN: I started filming
a documentary on a magician.
He calls me and he tells me
he's allowing another
documentary crew to come into his life
to film another documentary on him.
And he also told me that, um, the people
making that documentary
had won Academy Awards.
Cheers.
And specifically told me
that you and Lightbox Pictures
were producing his other documentary.
Are you familiar with, with
any project on a magician?
SIMON:
Well, funny you should mention it,
but I read an article, um, that named me
in... in the context of a project,
of, of, of the project that you mentioned,
which I have I had no knowl
no prior knowledge of whatsoever.
Right.
Is, is there other stuff out there
that sort of, that, that suggests
that I'm involved in the,
in the making of this film?
Um, this is probably what you saw.
I wasn't even actually
planning on bringing that out.
It's an interview that Johnathan
did on Public Nevada Radio,
and it references me
and it references you.
Wow.
BEN:
Is that what you saw?
I don't think I saw this quote.
No, I don't think I saw that quote.
Yeah.
So there's a couple interviews
that are publicized from Johnathan.
This is, uh
BEN: But, I'll say this,
Johnathan also reveals to me that there's
not only a second documentary crew,
there's a third crew that's filming
a documentary on Johnathan as well.
[ chuckles ] I would say that
the marketplace has become frenzied.
You know, there's been more competition
than is comfortable,
and, you know, you do begin
to question whether,
whether you should be pursuing subjects
where there's inevitably going to be
lots of competition.
BEN:
Right.
We hear that a man is dying.
Three, four, five,
who knows how many people,
rush in to claim
that man's story as, as their own.
SIMON: Right.
BEN: So just the other day,
I sat down in an interview
and blatantly had to ask him,
"Johnathan, are you actually dying
or is that another illusion of yours?"
In, in that moment, it became
very clear to me that
Johnathan is, indeed, dying.
Wow.
So basically, at the end of the day,
I think we have a fantastic,
very strong, very unique,
really engaging movie here,
and I'd love for you to consider coming on
as an executive producer of this movie.
You know, Johnathan tells me that
you're producing a documentary on him,
that ends up being not the truth.
So, if you were to come
and produce this movie,
he would have
an Academy Awardwinning producer
producing a documentary on him.
Yeah.
So will you produce my movie?
[ jet roars overhead ]
[ phone ringing ]
JOHNATHAN:
Yep, this is my answering machine.
[ beeps ]
BEN [ over phone ]:
Hey Johnathan, it's Ben.
I saw that you and Ana
are gonna be in Detroit this weekend,
and, um, I'm gonna be there
and it would be great to meet up
if you're, um if you can.
I'd appreciate it.
Hope to talk soon.
Bye, bye.
GROUP:
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday, dear Doreen
Grandma
Happy birthday to you
[ cheers, applause ]
[ indistinct chatter ]
Nancy, for the camera crew I'm going,
"Here comes the airplane, Ma."
[ laughter ]
JOHNATHAN:
What's the matter with Doug now?
He has a lot of heart issues.
He is, um...
He's having back surgery next month.
I saw him not too long ago in Florida.
WOMAN 1: Megadoses of Percocet.
WOMAN 2: Megadoses of Percocet.
[ chattering continuing ]
Hey, Johnathan, um,
do you think I could speak to you
in the other room?
Yeah, yeah.
That'd be cool.
You can bring your cake if you want.
BEN: Um, I think basically,
the way I think a couple things have
have played out recently,
I think I owe you some apologies.
First of all, I feel like,
throughout the whole process
of making this documentary,
I feel like I might've exploited you
or leaned a little bit more heavy
into the death angle
of your story than I needed to.
Uh, and I'm sorry about that
because I think it's...
it's, I think some, you know, history
or baggage of my own,
and I don't think that was fair to you.
And I feel really bad about, you know,
questioning the validity
of your illness the last time
we did that interview.
Well, I question the validity of it
myself because I'm still here, you know?
So, nobody feels more
of that way than I do.
Like, I'm confused
as why I'm here as well.
I can understand why you would want
that's a perfect wrapup
for a documentary, but, I mean,
I have no control over that.
You're confused about how you
can end this documentary
and I don't blame you because it,
you know
How are you gonna end the documentary?
What's, what's gonna be the, the, the
your, your saving grace on that?
Well, that's what I'm about to tell you
is, I ended up flying to London,
and I, um, met with Simon Chinn,
who is the producer of
Searching for Sugar Man
and Man on Wire, the British guy.
Right.
And I pitched him this movie,
our documentary.
You did?
And, uh, I basically, in that meeting,
asked him, you know,
"Would you consider coming on
and being a producer on this documentary?"
And, um, he said, "Yes."
He's going to come aboard.
Are you serious?
Yeah.
Wow. That's kind of strange
that you would go to him
knowing that he already kind of
had his hand in the other one.
Had he seen the other one?
He had no idea about the other one.
He had no idea. Really?
You told people that you have
an Academy Awardwinning producer
producing a documentary on you
and now you do.
So you were always right.
JOHNATHAN:
Hmm.
Mom, like, we just got really good news.
Those guys just got
the green light from this company
in London who,
Academy Awardwinning...
these guys are personally coming
aboard to do this documentary.
They're like the biggest
documentary makers in the world.
Good news.
Everybody's happy about that.
They did Man on Wire,
and they did
Searching for Sugar Man.
Yeah, they're pretty famous
documentary makers.
Twotime Academy Award, man. Yeah.
MAN: Really? The guy was right here?
They've made famous
documentaries before.
DOREEN:
I'm proud of him. Yeah.
I'm always proud of him.
[ Something Big
by Burt Bacharach playing ]
Like a grain of sand
That wants to be
A rolling stone
I want to be the man I'm not
And have the things I really
Haven't got
And that's a lot
There'll be joy
and there'll be laughter
Something big is what I'm after now
Yes, it's what I'm after now
After taking
Take up giving
Something big is what I'm living for
Yes, it's what I'm living for
Living for
[ clicks ]
After taking
Take up giving
Something big is what I'm living for
Yes, it's what I'm living for
After taking
Take up giving
Something big is what I'm living for
Yes, it's what I'm living for
Living for
After taking
Take up giving
Something big is what I'm living for
Yes, it's what I'm living for
Living for
After taking, take up giving
Something big is what I'm living for
Yes, it's what I'm living for
Living for
After taking, take up giving...
[ song fades ]