The Little Stuff Matters Most

by Brillstein, Bernie

• ISBN13: 9781592400799
• ISBN10: 1592400795
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-09-23
• Publisher: Gotham

Summary

An uncommon collection of common sense, The Little Stuff Matters Most delivers the hard and fast lessons of Brillstein's unparalleled business experience in fifty pithy, wise, and completely entertaining essays. Brillstein, whose name is synonymous with some of the highest-profile Hollywood careers, shares these invaluable lessons in the clever, unfailingly honest, and inimitable tone for which he is known and loved. Memorable tips include: Know the difference between "hot" and "good" Only doctors and hookers need pagers Don't pet the snakes Have an opinion, even it it's wrong It's all lies, and that's the truth When your time has come, success will find you The stomachache-and other gastrointestinal warnings Each of the book's fifty "Bernie-isms" is followed by refreshing commentary, peppered with colorful tales from Bernie's career and clever drawings by acclaimed New Yorker cartoonist David Sipress. This book is the next best thing to having your own personal manager on call 24/7-without having to fork over 15 percent of your paycheck.

Author Biography

Bernie Brillstein is the founding partner of Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, the most powerful management/production company in Hollywood. Bernie-'s current personal clients include Rob Lowe, Wayne Brady, Martin Short, and Saturday Night Live creator/producer Lorne Michaels. During his career, Bernie has also represented Jim Henson, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, and many others. Brillstein is also the author, with David Rensin, of Where Did I Go Right?: You-'re No One in Hollywood Unless Someone Wants You Dead.

David Rensin has coauthored eleven books and five New York Times bestsellers, including Chris Rock-'s Rock This! and Tim Allen-'s Don-'t Stand Too Close to a Naked Man.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. xi
The Little Stuff Matters Most	p. 1
First, Put Yourself in the Game	p. 5
Know the Difference Between Hot and Good	p. 7
No One Is Ever Scared of a Fat Man	p. 11
Tell 'Em Your Name Even If They Already Know It	p. 13
It's All Lies, and That's the Truth	p. 15
Good Cop/Bad Cop Means There's Two Bad Cops	p. 19
Sublimate Your Ego for Cash - and Other Ways to Get What You Want	p. 23
If You Want to Make a Great Deal You Have to Be Willing to Blow a Great Deal	p. 27
Always Have a Backup Plan	p. 33
If You Can't Whip It Out, Don't Play the Game	p. 37
Success Begins with Being Yourself	p. 41
It Never Gets Better Than the First Date	p. 45
Winners Make the Tough Calls	p. 47
Have an Opinion Even If It's Wrong	p. 49
Follow the Loser	p. 51
God Helps Himself; You've Got to Ask	p. 53
Always Smell the Room	p. 55
Never Trust a Man Who Walks You to the Elevator with His Arm Around Your Shoulder	p. 59
There's No Such Thing As a Good Divorce	p. 63
He F****D Me but Now We're Best Friends Again - Because We Really Need Each Other	p. 67
I Haven't Heard from Him, He Must Be Doing Well	p. 71
Don't Confuse Business Friends with Real Friends	p. 73
When Your Time Has Come, Success Will Find You	p. 77
Don't Pet the Snakes	p. 81
Let Your Enemy Bury Himself	p. 83
Always Trust a Stomachache and Other Gastrointestinal Warnings	p. 87
Just Don't Talk Behind My Back in Front of Me	p. 89
Deliver Bad News Quickly	p. 93
No Call Is the Same As Calling to Say No	p. 95
Let the Guy Who's Paid to Decide, Decide	p. 97
It's Not Over Until You Walk out the Door	p. 101
Sometimes the Only Way to Get Ahead Is to Leave the Company	p. 105
The Best Way to Take Failure and Rejection Is to Wallow in It	p. 109
Don't Confuse Ego with Self-Confidence	p. 113
The Other Guy's Not As Smart As Either of You Think He Is	p. 117
Leaders Don't Always Have to Be Assholes	p. 119
Don't Be Afraid of Fear	p. 123
Nothing Is Brain Surgery Except Brain Surgery	p. 127
First It's About the Idea, Then It's About the Money	p. 131
Real Men Get Nervous	p. 133
Keep the Odds Even and You Might Survive	p. 135
Talent Only Sleeps, It Never Dies	p. 139
Only Doctors and Hookers Need Pagers	p. 143
Don't Stiff the Help and They Won't Stiff You	p. 147
You Can Never Get Back from the Future	p. 151
Just Give Me the Gift Bag and Let Me Go Home	p. 153
Carry a Big Stick But Have a Bigger Heart	p. 157
What's the Big Deal? We're All Going to Die	p. 159
Someone Up There Is Watching	p. 163
Acknowledgments	p. 167
Table of Contents provided by Rittenhouse. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Introduction WHEN THE NEW YORK Times reviewed my 1999 memoir, Where Did I Go Right?: You’re No One in Hollywood Unless Someone Wants You Dead, the book was described as unmistakably Brillstein: loud, astute, crude, alternately self-aggrandizing and self- deprecating, and full of stories.”And, by the way, they loved it.Much has been said about me since I started in the mail- room at the William Morris Agency in New York fifty years ago and worked my way up and out as an agent, consultant, TV packager, movie and television producer, motion picture studio head, and talent manager. Some of it is even true. But I think producer Lynda Obst, writing in the Los Angeles Times, got to the heart of me when she declared, Bernie Brillstein is a way of being in work. It is rapture in work.”We’ve all got to make a living. What’s the point if you don’t love your work?Because I love what I do, I’ve tried to be smart about it. I’ve paid attention to the lessons of tradition and kept my eyes on the new. I’ve celebrated my victories and made the best of my mistakes. I’ve solved problems with common sense instead of fancy theories.I guess I did all right. I’ve personally guided the careers of Jim Henson; John Belushi; Gilda Radner; Dan Aykroyd; Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels; John Larroquette; Martin Short; Rob Lowe; Wayne Brady; my first client, Norm Crosby; writer/producer Alan Zweibel—and many others.In 1992, I cofounded Brillstein-Grey Entertainment with Brad Grey, who now owns the company and has taken it to new heights. Among the many clients are Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler, and Nicolas Cage.The company also produced shows like Just Shoot Me, ALF, NewsRadio, Politically Incorrect, Mr. Show, and the current sensation, The Sopranos.Along the way, I had the idea for Hee Haw, helped get The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters made (and Dangerous Liaisons, among others, when I ran Lorimar Pictures), got my own star on Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame, won an Emmy, and got to know Jiminy Glick personally. Go figure.Not only have I managed to survive and prosper, but I’m happy. My greatest achievement.But I could never have done any of it—and kept it going—if I hadn’t remembered this: In business as in life, the little stuff matters most.Outcomes rarely turn on grand gestures, high-flying concepts, or the art of the deal—and more often on whether you’ve sent someone a thank-you note.It’s the truth.Success is almost always about the basics. You stay in the game by playing by the right rules. Manners. Smarts. Open eyes. Counterintuitive thinking. A lot of knowledge about what you do. To me, truth comes through life experience. Common sense. The wisdom of trusted friends.But how do you get that knowledge? I always looked to the past, to people who’d already learned the lessons. I got what I had to know to survive from the street in an era when one still had the luxury of time to absorb and grow. Now everything is too fast-paced, too corporate, and this bedrock of wisdom is being lost. It shouldn’t be.I try to do my part to perpetuate tradition. For instance, at my company I’m now the guy the kids—and I call everyone kid,” even if they’re older than I am—come to. My office door is always open, and rarely a day goes by without someone wandering in to ask for advice or to talk about a situation. I’ve lived long enough, watched the wheel of life turn often, and paid attention. I’ve seen the same act again and again, no matter how much it looks like it’s changed. That’s probably why—not because I look like Santa Claus—that people always ask, What should I do, Bernie?”That’s fine, as long as no one wants to sit on my lap.When someone selling a movie script, or themselves as an actor, or their service as an executive producer on a TV show, asks me, What’s the right price?”—a question that