Jimeoin stole my identity.
You may have already heard about Australia's favourite Irishman, Jimeoin McKeown, writing and starring in a new movie called 'the Extra'. The film concerns an actor who does work as an extra- that is, being in the background of shots, making the main cast look good by being conspicuously dull looking, mostly due to the lack of make-up and good costuming.
'Hey, that's a great idea for a movie!' I hear you say, and while that may be the case, I would like to bring to your attention a very simple fact. Jimeoin has robbed me. He has stolen my experience as an extra and bit-player and mined it for his own hackneyed comedic farce. How do I know this? I think it's pretty clear.
The year was 1998 and Jimeoin was shooting his film 'the Craic', to be directed by Ted Emery. I, your humble correspondent, was called in on emergency extra work. It was imperative that I play the role of 'Kid' in a pivotal scene in the film, where I sold sausages to the bad guy (Colin Haye) else the whole production would fall to pieces. I kindly obliged them, slopping on fake tan and sunglasses, as our scene was set in Queensland in the 1980s even though it was being shot in Melbourne in the late 1990s.
I sold sausages well and I sold them with all my bit-playing heart, never once suspecting that 'star' McKeown was watching me out of the corner of his eye, intently studying my skills as an extra and scribbing in his notebook. It's obvious all these years later what he meant when he was overheard saying 'Boy, that kid sure has a story to tell. Someone should make a movie about him'. Little did I know that I was to be fodder for his farce without so much as a 'thank you for the inspiration' let alone a royalty cheque.
Still don't believe me? Check this out:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0373252/
It is for this reason that I must insist that the Extra be boycotted. Thankfully, with the state of the Australian Film Industry this might happen anyway. However, I just can't take that chance. I urge every one of you to make sure Jimeoin knows that his plagerism of my very life and career as an extra will not go unpunished.
Thank you
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