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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 5, 1997)
Web site draws admiring fans By Bret Schulte Senior Reporter Notoriously paranoid about the press and distant to her admirers, actress Demi Moore still receives the uncondi tional love and support from thousands of fans across the world. Now, they can call Omaha home. Since the summer, Demi Moore’s Official Fan Club has operated out of Omaha, because of a new “career opportunity” for the club president and founder, who identifies himself only as Scott and would only conduct an inter view strictly via e-mail. As president of the fan club, he shares his feelings about Moore and dis cusses her career, personal life and gos sip with fans from nearly all 50 states and more than 50 countries. The interac tion with other fans is perhaps the great est part of his role as the club president, he wrote. “My admiration goes along with the opportunity to talk to her fans,” he said. “I probably talk to 20 to 50 fans a day. •n__. j . i n x xwi tuimcvicu uj ucl Having created the club in February while living in a small Washington com munity, Scott said Omaha offered a more central location, working out per fectly with his career move. But that’s not the only reason Scott is so pleased with Omaha. “I love the Big Red,” Scott stated. “This was another benefit; I was able to go the football games. Go Huskers!” The object of desire well before she ran away from home at the age of 18, Moore has led a checkered life of failed relationships and drug abuse before finding peace with the bulldog-ish, T shirted actor Bruce Willis. Even now, she receives regular criticism for the entourage of personal bodyguards and assistants she keeps in her constant company, perpetuating her lofty image. « Her voice initially caught my attention ’’ Scott founder of Demi Moore Fan Club Scott thinks his position as the pres ident of her fan club allows him a chance to dispel the myth that Moore isn’t just a bitch in the movies. “I have the ability to portray her in a positive way,” he said. “Many have pre conceived notions regarding a celebrity because of what they may read in the papers.” Indeed, Moore has been scrutinized by many publications, frequently con trasting her apparent snobbery with her husband’s gregarious and affable char acter, painting an unfavorable portrait of the actress. Bom Demetria Guynes on Nov. 11, 1962, in Roswell, N.M., Moore was the daughter of a frequently unemployed father, who divorced and re-married her _ll_a_i_A A. i o i i_. • 1 uii/uiwi iwitt. m 10, iviuuic nidiileu a musician 12 years her senior, and never completed high school. After a few modeling roles and bit-acting pieces, she landed a recurring part on “General Hospital.” Although her marriage quickly dissolved, her career was finally beginning to take shape. It was when Moore began running with the Brat Pack on the silver screen that she became a recognized talent in Hollywood and gained national atten tion, including that of the future presi dent of her fan club. “I first became interested in her when I saw her in ‘St. Elmo’s Fire,”’ Scott said. “Her voice initially caught my attention, and each of her characters (since) seems to have specific moments where they shine in their movies.” Although first noticing the driven and husky actress during the ’80s, it was more than a decade before Scott foynd ed an official fan club initerJidiiorr although he never intended to do so. “I was simply playing around on the Internet with creation ofWehpages*and I decided to scan a photo (of Moore) here and there. One thing led toiniote, and I published the Web site.” Before long, Scott’s site was draw ing responses from people interested in the up-and-coming actress wanting to discuss and trade information about her. Realizing there was no official fan chib for Moore, Scott finally created a fan club for the popular actress from its intangible beginnings on the Web, regis tering it with the National Association of Fan Clubs in February. Like any fan club, there are certain obligations and perks. Annual fees vary by residence. In j the United States it is $22, $27 fori Canadians and $32 for members in* other nations. For this feq, ra$mbe$?v receive a certificate ‘‘suit^e forftam^ ing,” an address to write fan letters to ; --_1. __t ,. ' itawiv uuu u vjwuiviiji uvnaivHVt wiir ten by members, Scott said. But you don’t have to pay to be part of the life of the famous and beautiful Moore. “Anyone can send e-mail with ques tions,” Scott said. “I try to personally answer all e-mail received. I have been able to establish relationships with many of ho-fans. It adds a nice person al touch.” Interested parties can access the Wbb siteof Demi Moort^^Bfi^ai^^ http://members, aol. com/InZax580/dem i.html or e-mail Scott directly at inzax580@aol.com. 7 ■ - --1 PaplliomLaVista makes Hollywood connection By Liza Holtmeier Senior Reporter Papillion-LaVista High School may look like an ordinary American high school. About 1,600 students in grades 10 through 12 attend classes there daily, and one of the most exciting events this semester was the state football play offs. But something extraordinary is taking place. Twenty feet of Papillion LaVista’s hallways are filled with the cameras, lights and crew of the MTV Feature Film “Election.” Not only is part of “Election” being filmed at Papillion-LaVista, cast and crew of the movie are involved in a guest lecture series with the school’s School-to-Work program. The film is directed by Omaha native Alexander Payne, who also filmed his last movie — the comedy “Citizen Ruth”—in Nebraska. “Election” depicts a high school election that goes awry when die stu « dent government adviser, Jim McAllister (played by Matthew Broderick), decides to sabotage the campaign of an over-achieving stu dent, Tracy Flick (played by Reese Witherspoon). The movie also stars Chris Klein as Paul Metzler and Jessica Campbell as his younger sister, Tammy. It is based on the novel of the same name by Tom Peiqtta. The film is being shot with the intent of receiving a PG-13 rating and is scheduled for a spring or summer release. The production crew for “Election’’ first visited the school in September. “They had been looking at Omaha Public School buildings,” said Frank Sunderman, Papillion LaVista’s prin cipal. “OPS decided they didn’t want to participate so they started looking at some of the suburban schools.” The crew took a quick walk through the building on Sept. 4 and decided to film there. Papillion LaVista administrators « This has been a really great opportunity for all the students. I don’t think they realized all the different facets of the movie industry.” Cheryl Bell School-to-Work Program liaison —■— agreed when they saw how the experi ence could be used to enrich the school’s curriculum. Sunderman said the primary con siderations was deciding the practical worth of expo sing students to an indus try they knew little about Since filming began, the high school and its faculty and students have been involved in many areas of production. The entire classroom of Broderick’s character is made up of Papillion-LaVista students, and a few received speaking roles. Also, a num ber of teachers received small speak ing roles and served as extras in the film. To involve the production crew in Papillion LaVista’s School-to-Work program, 25 teachers submitted ideas incorporating the film industry into their curriculum. “The producers have done out standing work with our school-to career program,” Sunderman said. “They have spoken to a wide number of classes already. Reviews from the teachers and kids have been very favorable and positive”. Production personnel have spoken about set designs, script writing, Web page development, the industry’s financial aspects and the social and eth ical responsibilities of movie making. Cheryl Bell, liaison for the School to-Work program, said many students were “star struck” when the crew first began its lecture series. “By the end of the class, though, the kids are standing up there with the presenters, and the presenters said the students asked a constant stream of questions” she said. Today, physics students will have the opportunity to meet an “Election” cameraman who also shot “Apollo 13.” The students have beat preview ing the movie in class in preparation Please see MOVIE on 10