Note: Recently, I met up with @HardlyNormal, aka Mark Horvath, founder of Invisiblepeople.tv, a man for whom I have developed a deep level of respect. Mark doesn’t just talk, he acts. When people hurt, he helps. When children starve, he feeds, he clothes. Now, Mark would be the first to tell you that this mission is not about him, but I felt that revealing his rough past under a bright light through a profile-piece would be the best way to, as Mark would say, open blind eyes to the epidemic of homelessness.
Wm. Marc Salsberry (left) and Mark Horvath (right)
Thank you to Mark Horvath for his time, meeting me at the Hollywood and Highlands Center. Also, many thanks to Ann-Marie Welsh (@padschicago), William Marc Salsberry (@wmmarc), and Pastor Matthew Barnett (@matthewbarnett) for lending their voices to this piece. May they be heard by all who read it.
For publications interested in running this article, please Contact Me. All photos were taken by Wm. Marc Salsberry.
With that, here is…
“The Untold Story of @HardlyNormal”
He stands on the matte black stage of the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, Calif., surrounded by fans and followers seated in padded, red seats, a guest and lauded speaker. It’s Oct. 27. The event: a Twitter conference called 140 Characters, is casual in nature and stands in sharp contrast to the Academy Awards. Dressed in blue jeans and a cream-colored collared shirt with black pin-stripes, this 6-foot, gray-haired, green-eyed man loaded with charisma stands straight and seems well-fitted to the building where celebrities like Jack Nicolson and Will Smith pass out gold-plated statues each year.
But this theater, next to famous landmarks like Grauman’s Chinese Theater and the “Hollywood Walk of Fame,” is not that unfamiliar to the man on the stage. More than 14 years ago, Mark Horvath called the loud, dirty street of Hollywood Boulevard home.
Web TV. So young, yet you’ve come so far. Millions of eyeballs scour your content and lift a special few to somewhat of a celebrity status. But who are these people? Where is that E! angle?
Enter: The Web Files, a web series hosted by Kristyn Burtt and directed and produced by Sandra Payne, puts the spotlight on web celebs and gives them the star treatment. The show is all quality and class. No pot-shots, no paparazzi, just admiration for those whom the mainstream media has considered second-rate stars.
This isn’t a gut-punch to mainstream media; they have to aim their lens at the big stars who draw the most views. It’s a money game. With The Web Files, it’s all about appreciation and information. I, for one, didn’t know the origin of Tay Zonday’s name or that he didn’t eat cupcakes. What a shame; cupcakes are my favorite, but oh well.
According to a tweet by @TheWebFiles, the show’s first video has already seen more than 1,000 hits. The next episode, set to be released sometime next week, will feature the cast and crew of The Crew.
There’s this internet television show called Goodnight Burbank and it is part of Hayden Black’s dream. Black describes the show as a combination of NBC’s The Office and Comedy Central’s The Daily Show. Black is an immigrant from the UK and for years he wrote promos for Warner Bros, ABC and NBC, working on such TV shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Black wanted to do more with his life.
He decided to quit his job three years ago and give up a six-figure salary to pursue his dream of writing and acting. Black said he took some improv classes which led very quickly to the world of internet TV when someone talked to him about podcasting.
“I had never acted in my life. I’d never even been in a high school play or anything like that,” said Black. “I thought, you know, I’ll try it, and it went from there.”
Then Black started his own production company Evil Global Corporation and started work on Goodnight Burbank. He writes, produces, acts in and sometimes directs the show. Black fights hard for his dream and has had to take loans from friends to keep the show going. Recently, Babelgum – a video portal website – came on board and funded 20 episodes of a spin off, the Goodnight Burbank: Hollywood Report. The show was also shot on a Disney sound stage with a bigger budget. Black directed this series himself (previously it was in the hands of Bry Sanders).
Except for his dog Salford, Black also lives alone. But things are looking up for Black and his brand is becoming something of a success. Evil Global Corporation-produced shows have seen multi-millions of views for several of its series like Goodnight Burbank and Abigail’s X-Rated Teen Diary, a show about the struggles of a 13-year-old girl who has a (fictional) genetic condition that makes her look like a 30-something guy.
Black said that Abigail’s X-Rated Teen Diary was a real change in his acting style compared to Goodnight Burbank.
Black plays the main character on the show.
“You either go all the way or you just don’t bother at all … so I had to throw myself into this,” said Black.
Black is also getting ready to start production on his latest Internet show, The Cabonauts. That show is a sci-fi musical comedy about cab drivers in space and Black has built a green screen studio in his garage to shoot the show, and will edit it from his own editing suite. Black will also write, direct, and act in the show just like in Goodnight Burbank.
Black said he is excited about The Cabonauts and that it could be larger than any of his other shows. His number one inspiration is Douglas Adams, the writer of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Those who want to watch Goodnight Burbank: Hollywood Report can find it at www.babelgum.com or any of his other shows linked from www.evilglobal.com.
