Two WEEKS ago, Michael Douglas fielded questions at a United Nations panel discussion on the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. During the course of the conversation, the actor/activist was asked to compare nuclear Armageddon to the "financial Armageddon on Wall Street." After he answered, he was asked by another reporter, "Are you saying, Gordon, that greed is not good?"
"I'm not saying that," Douglas shot back. "And my name is not Gordon. He's a character I played 20 years ago."
Actually, it was 21 years. And thinking back upon writing the screenplay of "Wall Street," I never could have imagined that this persona and his battle cry would become part of the public consciousness, and that the core message of "Wall Street" -- remember, he goes to jail in the end -- would be so misunderstood by so many.
After the film came out, many people who worked in the financial world felt that they knew someone like this character; others claimed he was unrealistic and gave Wall Street a bad name. But if director Oliver Stone and I had a nickel for every time someone uttered the words "greed is good," we could have bought up the remains of Lehman Brothers.
As the years have gone by, it's heartening to see how popular the film has remained. But what I find strange and oddly disturbing is that Gordon Gekko has been mythologized and elevated from the role of villain to that of hero.
The conceit for the movie was an afterthought on Stone's part. He wanted me to research and write a screenplay on the television quiz show scandals of the 1950s. During a story conference at a Mexican restaurant on a Friday night in Los Angeles, he interrupted me, "Why don't we do a movie about Wall Street instead?"
Long pause. "That's a great idea," I replied naturally. "Two investment partners get involved in shady financial dealings, they're using each other and eventually are tailed by a drab prosecutor, like the character in 'Crime and Punishment.' "
"Ed," Oliver continued, turning to producer Ed Pressman, "We're going to do 'Crime and Punishment' on Wall Street. Make a deal and fly Stanley to New York to start doing research." When in the presence of Oliver Stone, you get used to breathing the air of a different planet. "You ready to get to work?" he asked me. Nonplused, I nodded, "Of course." "Good. Read 'Crime and Punishment' over the weekend and we'll talk Monday."
At that, he bolted his drink and got up to leave.
