Quin Mathews Films

I didn't hear mention in the obits of fine actor Dabney Coleman his starring role in a CBS network movie set in Dallas in the mid 80s. Coleman played defense attorney Edwin Sigel, who in real life got a new trial and acquittal for Lenell Geter, an engineer wrongly convicted of a robbery.

The show employed probably half the actors and crew people in Dallas, including me in several scenes as an unnamed Morley Safer. I was briefly out of a job and happy to have four days of work on the film.

I was meeting with WFAA news director Marty Haag when I got a call from the film's casting director, who wanted to know my minute-to-minute whereabouts. I told Marty I had to take a call from CBS, which gave us both a good laugh. I started at WFAA that week.

The big three networks, as we called them, frequently came to Dallas to shoot movies of the week. At the time, Dallas had three big equipment houses, lots of soundstages, union crews, and a strong SAG chapter. The production business has changed in the last forty years, but Texas continues to have a great community of talent.

Here's to the best agent in the USA, Mary Collins, on the 40th anniversary of being the new kid in town. She signed me in 1987 or 88—my brain click right that far back—and took a chance on a youngish guy who needed a broadening of opportunity. Mary was even younger than I was, and she made it a practice from day one the stick to the highest ethics and have the best people in the business.

Mary guided me through Walker, Texas Ranger, a weird French/Spanish/Italian production with Martin Sheen, countless corporate productions, and after I quite on-camera work, hundreds of voice-overs, the latest celebrating fifty years of D/FW Airport. Her performers are seen around the world, and she has made Texas a center for talent in the industry.

Congratulations Mary and team, Kim Trusty (on the left), Sara Rhodes (right), and Alice Galipp (hidden thanks to the bad photographer—me).