'Numb3rs' star offers tribute to Tony Scott
Screen director Tony Scott, who died Sunday at age 68 of an apparent suicide, was a successful and well-liked figure in Hollywood circles — two attributes that don't always, or even often, go hand-in-hand there. But via his production compan, y Scott was also a vital presence in TV circles, too. Two major productions come immediately to mind: “The Good Wife” (created and produced by husband-wife team, Michelle and Robert King) and “Numb3rs,” both for CBS to which he was most closely allied. Sunday, Queens-born David Krumholtz, co-star of CBS' forthcoming “Partners,” and Charlie Eppes on “Numb3rs,” tweeted this tribute that ended with “what a great dude..."
So, I was delivering one of my long Math-based monologues (called Charlie-Visions on the Numb3rs set), in the first episode of Season 4, the one guest starring Val Kilmer, the one directed by the late, great Tony Scott. I had come to know Tony as a warm, enthusiastic and whimsical general with great vision and pride for his work and for the art of action. He lit me from overhead, I had not been lit that way before on the show. I had big bushy long hair, that made it impossible to see my eyes, unless I was looking up and directly into the light. After a few takes, I still couldn't get it right. It felt odd to look up while I was talking to the seated FBI agents in the room. Finally, Tony walked in and said, “David, just imagine that you're talking to God. And God has all the money. In order to get the money, you gotta talk to God. GOD AND MONEY!!! GOD AND MONEY!!!" He skipped off set, in the way that he did, keeping me energized, and firmly strapped into his roller coaster ride of film making. He spent way more money than he should have on shooting that episode. He had ACTUAL Vietnamese gangbangers, whom he knew personally, play themselves on the show. He was wild and big and crazy and uncontrollable and he gave it his all, every moment, because he believed in his crew, his cast, and the show. It saddens me that something inside him told him to take his incredible life spirit away from us, from the film making community. May he rest in peace. What a great dude.