The Big Brass Ring was about America at the end of the century, the way Kane was about America at the beginning of the century. I couldn’t believe it – I had him write, essentially, a bookend to Kane. Now, I was sure the wallets would open. I told Orson, “You know, all the people I came up with and struggled side by side with have by now become the top stars and the key production and studio heads. I know them; they’re my friends. We were all unemployed together. They all worship you!” And I wasn't making it up. They had all, at one time or another, been crazy fans of Orson's films. Just like me.

The ‘Ring’ cycle

So, I went around to everybody, had lunch in every executive dining room, and I couldn’t get anyone to do it. No one! Every studio turned it down – after a wonderful lunch they had begged to have with Orson, of course, during which he would regale them and entertain them for hours with wonderful stories. He called it his "dancing bear act" and said, wearily, that that was really all they wanted from him now. I protested but, sadly, he was right. The times had changed. These people I came into the business with changed. Instead of talking about film-makers now, or about the movies being made, they were talking about grosses. Orson understood this. He said, “I expected the studios to turn me down. Why wouldn’t they? I’ve never made any money for them. Not one of my films made a profit. But what about the actors? Call the stars. They’ll never turn me down and that will force a studio to do it.”