HOW THEY STOLE MY STORY
A WOMAN EXPERIENCING MENOPAUSE WAS A FILM THAT JUST KEPT GIVING TO A SELECT FEW PEOPLE.
What an insult to the author when her personal story was butchered and manipulated by the copyright infringers. (And then the perpetrators, added salt to the wound by claiming, it was written by a man.)
In almost all of these copyright infringement cases the writer and copyright holder is always the last to find out. When I was told by someone, who read my script (which I was still promoting for years) that the film had already been made, I spent the best part of a year investigating what could have taken place and who was involved.
During that time, I reached out to Susan Seidelman, Brooke Shields, Daryl Hanna, Virginia Madsen and Wanda Sykes on social media and none of them made any efforts to enquire what I was referring to.
At some point I happened to find an article in a local California newspaper where Laurie Kraus Lacob claims to have been the executive producer of the film called The Hot Flashes. She goes on to say that she had received the script in 2010 via a friend in New York (no name mentioned) who introduced her to the unknown unaccredited writer of The Hot Flashes, a Brad Hennig.
In (2010 is when Kathy Griffin does her public Pap smear.) Kathy Griffin was included in the copyright lawsuit because I had reason to believe she took part of the script which contained the “public” pap smear. After the screenplay was read out at the Canadian Film Festival, the feedback I received was that it created “quite a stir”. We believe this was the scene that prompted Kathy Griffin to do something for “women’s health.”
In August of 2021, I filed in the central district of California, Kathy Griffin and the rest of the defenders did not send in a waiver, they waited for the summons to be delivered the second time. During that time Kathy Griffin was putting out (up dates) on her health issues and kept the fact, that she had received a summons for her (Griffins) copyright infringement part, (in another woman's story about the authors health issues) out of Griffin's public domain by keeping the focus on herself.
Kathy Griffin made it public knowledge that she had bought back all her rights from BRAVO TV after her public spat with Andy Cohen. Her lawyer, Michael Moss in a 73 video conferencing call tried to convince me that my claim was time barred. He kept me on the video call for 45 minutes trying to bully me to drop the charges or Kathy Griffin would sue me for one thing or the other.
However, the fact that Kathy Griffin had bought back all her rights meant that she has triggered a new infringement. Her lawyer then said that she denied buying back all her rights and her online interview itself was altered to remove that part of the conversation of her buying back ALL her rights.
The above comments where from her lawyer, so we have to assume they were sanctioned by Kathy Griffin
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At that time, in 2010 Joy Behar is seen at the poolside pap smear for Kathy Griffin. It just so happened that THE VIEW were trying to secure Brooke Shields to host The View.
I then reached out to Laurie K Lacob, Jenny Johnson (executive producers) and Paula Robichaud (producer) named on the IMDB webpage. To date they have not replied. Turns out Paula Robichaud has a close connection to Mikey Hoag.
Credit Picture: Angela Weiss
Mikey Hoag and Paula Robichaud 2012 at Part The Cloud gala for the foundation.
Above picture: Reed Hastings. Credit Toronto Star
Netflix pays actors to pretend to be customers and talk to press at Canadian launch in 2020
Credit: Cory Doctorow
"Netflix has had to apologize after it was revealed that the "enthusiastic customers" talking to the press at its Canadian launch were actors hired for the occasion, reciting lines from a prepared script. It's funny how bizarre a corporate culture this move implies, a board-room full of people inhabiting a reality-distortion bubble nodding enthusiastically to one another, saying, "Yeah, sure, sure, no one will ever find out that they're all actors. It'll be great. Really, really great!" "
According to public source documents, Netflix had somewhat of a controversial launch in Canada in 2010 and it was exposed on Twitter that Netflix had rented a crowd to manufacture support….”misleading the public.”
Netflix Apologizes for Coaching Extras at Canadian Videostreaming Launch Event. September, 2010.
I noticed that The Hot Flashes had been available of Netflix since August 2013, so I reached out to Netflix. No reply. I then discovered an LLC called Nights Capital 111 LLC. It was only when I asked Reed Hastings on social media, who Knights Capital 111 LLC was, did I get a reply from Netflix.
Knights Capital 111 LLC belongs to Jay C Hoag one of the founders and independent director at Netflix. Michaela (Mickey) Hoag and her husband are the members of Knights Capital 111 LLC. Knights Capital was one of the biggest investors in The Hot Flashes film project.
The Hot Flashes LLC is registered first week of December 2011, by producer Nina Henderson Moore and a week later Knights Capital 111 LLC is registered in December 2011.
Despite Jay C Hoag and his wife being the major stakeholders in the film project, their friend Laurie Krause Lacob, an unknown unaccredited producer, claims she was the executive producer and raised the $4 + million dollars. Lacob makes no mention of the Hoag's.
I noticed that The Hot Flashes had been available of Netflix since August 2013. When Netflix did reply, it claimed it was not involved in the production and expected the public to believe, it Netflix, was not aware that its director was "competing" with Netflix. In other words the coverup was planned from the beginning. This has been a pattern with Netflix and the endless copyright lawsuits against them.
After these events the film project had a very limited theatrical release, July 2013 in the United States. Despite a story appealing to women worldwide the The Hot Flashes goes straight to DVD and becomes available on Netflix and Amazon in August 2013.
Before my screenplay was submitted to the WildSound Film Festival in Canada 2009/2010, it was submitted for review on the Zoetrope Website in 2008 under the title What Men Want And What Women Are Prepared To Give, available in the below link.
www.zoetrope.com/workshops/screenplays#submissions:108978
During my investigation I discovered that, in and around 2009/2010, when my screenplay was read out at the WildSound Film Festival in Canada, a small winery in BC claims to have developed the wine called Hot Flash in celebration of women of a certain age .i.e. menopausal.
Even in the publicity, they attempted to cover up that it was a story about women over fifty(50) and they changed it to women over forty (40). In my story the friend doesn’t die from breast cancer in their version the friend dies from breast cancer. Below is an extra from the original screenplay describing the mammogram.
The film was completed in February 2012 in Louisiana. This implied that the screenplay was moved across borders into the United States without my knowledge or my permission.
In the image on the left please note the reference to women over 40.
EXTRA FROM THE ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY. THE PROTAGONIST DISCRIBING THE MAMMOGRAM PROCEEDURE.
After a short while the radiologist is back, puts her hand gently on SOFIA’S back and moves her towards the machine. She adjust the metal plate with the foot peddle and proceeds to lift SOFIA'S left breast onto the metal plate. She keeps lifting and pulling at SOFIA'S breast.
SOFIA (V.O.)
Looks can be deceiving, but that's all I have to offer this damned metal plate.
The RADIOLOGIST starts to PUMP the other FOOT PEDDLE, the top metal plate moves down, SOFIA suddenly realizes what the other foot peddle is for, the vice is tightening on her breast and the radiologist keeps pumping.
SOFIA is forced to move forward, the side of her FACE is pinned up against a glass panel. Just when she feels her breast is about to split open at the ends. The radiologist stops pumping the pedal. She indicates for Sofia not to move. The radiographer walks to the X-ray room.
DISSOLVE
According to public source information, as the film was wrapping up, a "friend" in New York told Brooke Shields about the Hot Flash wine in BC Canada and some cases of Hot Flash wine were shipped from Canada to Louisiana for a $4+ million Hollywood film for the A-list actor’s after party. Above picture; Brooke Shields makes a quick endorsement from her trailer, kissing the wine she claims she has never tasted. There were scenes in the screenplay where the couple are drinking a good bottle of wine and when the money runs out the couple are having to buy cheaper wine. (it proves that they worked straight from my script and then just butchered it and manipulated it to mislead the public and obviously the courts.)
Two months later in May 2012 Michaela M Hoag launches her Foundation and cast-members of The Hot Flashes, Brooke Shields and Virginia Madsen are used as a draw card.
In 2013 and before the launch of The Hot Flashes the Hollywood A-list cast, Brooke Shields and Virginia Madsen again used as a draw card for Michaela M Hoag and her long time friend and associate Laurie K Lacob's Part The Cloud Foundation.
Extracts from my original screenplay
In this scene the sheet covering the protagonist is green. In the Kathy Griffin version the covering sheet is pink.
This scene is where the perpetrators get the title The Hot Flashes and the idea of a ball game.
Before the public launch of The Hot Flashes film, Laurie K Lacob host's a charity event showing the premier of the $4 + million Hollywood film at Stanford University. With Lacob is Michaela Hoag. The film was shown at a so “so called” appreciation dinner at Stanford. An appreciation for what?.
No doubt, this film (a woman experiencing menopause) was a gift that just kept giving.
The commercial film project is then showcased by LOOK TO THE STARS at another charity event. Nina Henderson More publicly states that the American Cancer Society was an early partner. The American Cancer Society confirmed that it was not a party to the film project by merely a host for the charity event.
Email confirmation from the America Cancer Society on the left.
After the LOOK TO THE STARS event, (remember)Aura Rose from the BC Winery, she hosts an event with the $4+ million Hollywood film with the Canadian Cancer Society and including in the price, is a glass of her Hot Flash wine. Again, the Canadian Cancer Society confirmed it was merely a host for the event.
Social media post from the Canadian Cancer Society.
In good faith, I sent Nina Henderson Moore a copy of my WGA certificate which shows my registration in August, 2007.
Also important to mention that the WGA gave me the run around before they gave me my copy.
During our investigation, the “so called” writer sent us a falsified WGA certificate and avoided summons and the perpetrators never called for him to present his credentials. We have circled, in red, the narratives missing from this falsified WGA certificate. In particular the registration date is July, 2006, allegedly to give the impression it was registered before my screenplay. Bear in mind that I had sent a copy of my certificate to them in good faith.
The red circles indicate the missing narratives from the WGA and the incorrect date format of the WGA and of course it is not signed.
The image on the left is proof that they tried to create a fake profile of the "so called" writer. At the time on his IMDB profile there was a reference to a video of a "trout bum" and similar images where found elsewhere on the internet.
Then there was a reference to a film Eve Was Framed. After we questioned the whereabouts of this film...see the reply from Kiki Goshay. After that, it would seem any reference to that film linked to the writer was scrubbed from the internet.
Kiki Goshay tried to convince me, via email, that Brad Hennig had written The Hot Flashes from the heart.
In all the media interviews with the cast and the director, the "so called" writer is never interviewed.
The level of fraud committed on this project is on a grand scale. The problem copyright holders face is that these cases never get to go before a jury because they are either closed down in the district court or, if the copyright holder has financial backing Netflix and the like settle out of court. In my case the Judge refused me video conferencing facilities and he abused his discretion on the 100 mile rule and the Ninth Circuit Courts opinion was that the district Judge did not abuse his discretion and my case was closed giving Netflix and others a victory by default.
When I filed my appeal a three judges panel agreed to hear my case and after endless delays and extensions from defendants counsel the three judge panel changed without my knowledge and my appeal was denied.
Defendants counsel only filed their paper copies after my reply brief.
This was presented to the appeals court. It was claimed that the writer did not live at that address anymore.
So why would the Sheriff's department go back to the same address for the second time.
The second copy is an alleged falsified copy of a supposed second delivery of summons to the place where the writer supposedly didn't live anymore.
The date stamp of the clerk of the district court was moved to the centre of the page and the month changed to March and the 22 of 2022 stayed the same.
Copyright law needs to be revised as it protects the perpetrators. Manipulating scenes from original screenplays and covering up the chain of title of the original author should be punishable with heavy penalties.