Miami Beach, need I say more?
Just the words alone evoke a million images from a million dreams.
And I was about to live one of them. After the gig shooting "Sunshine Dreamer", we quickly landed another one. The Miami Beach Film Festival was going on and our work with Tigress had us on the guest list not only for their performance, but the festival itself. Chuck Tyler was really being a man of his word. After our Vegas transportation debacle, he quickly made up for it by getting us in anywhere and everywhere Tigress would be. Their performance would be one night and we'd have the rest of time to ourselves, for a change. I was looking forward to hitting the legendary beaches and seeing some movies. But more importantly, to get a chance to enjoy some of this life that had been a whirlwind for me up to now.
The first night of the festival was typical of the whirlwind. A gala opening was organized and we'd be there. But for a change we'd be guests, not hired help. Though we didn't get to walk the red carpet, we did see a lot of stars arriving. We headed for the bar and indulged in several exotic drink concoctions provided by one of the sponsors, Captain Morgan rum. Chris and I were getting star struck as we saw more of our film idols, past and present, arriving or casually walking past us. There were many press people there as well as TV crews. Chris and I stood there and took in the scene with our newfound concoctions when he looked over at the arrivals area.
"Uh-oh, here comes trouble." He said looking over my shoulder.
"What?" I replied.
"Look who just arrived." He said pointing down the long hallway
I turned around and saw Paris Hilton arriving amid the usual gaggle of flashbulbs and shouts. She stopped to do a TV interview with a pretty young blonde from VH1 who looked somewhat familiar.
"Uh-oh is right." I said with trepidation.
"Knock yourself out 'Hollywood', you're on your own." And he walked away.
So I took a deep breath, and wondered what new adventures I might find with Ms. Hilton. I stayed where I was and hoped perhaps she'd look my way.
As it turned out, she did.
Her eyes had a look of surprise and she immediately flashed a huge smile and gave me that small wave she was famous for. I responded back with a smile and a smaller, discreet wave of my own. She continued her interview but looked like she wanted to move on. She immediately trotted over and hugged me laughing.
"Hey baby! What are you doing here?" she said excitedly
"Working with Tigress, hopefully seeing some films." I said.
As we talked, the blonde reporter came over, without her camera crew.
"Hey Paris, who's this guy?" she asked
As I looked more closely at her I realized it was Brooke Hogan.
"Oh, he's an old friend Brooke, that's all." She said confidently as she held my wrist.
"You guys look cute together" she turned to me "Hi, I'm Brooke Hogan." She said in a perky voice.
"Hi, I'm Jim." I said shaking her hand.
Brooke looked very hot in a tight white mini dress with a scooped front that really showed off her ample cleavage.
"So how'd you two meet?" she asked with an inquisitive tone.
Before I could answer, Paris jumped in
"Oh, that's not important Brooke. He's just a cool guy I run into sometimes."
