1/18/07--- HOLY CRAAAP!! I haven't updated this site in a coon's epoch! Hmmm....where to begin? Well, one of the reasons for the delay is the priority of more personal non-creative matters taking over the front-burner of my brain, not to mention also some more literary-themed creative concepts that I've chosen to work on over some stuff in the visual mediums. (Or in non-wannabe uppity artsy speak, I decided to do some book work rather than script work! To this end, I've decided for the time being to also include some info on my literary projects, but OF COURSE I haven't forgotten the stuff directly meant for the camera. For more info check out the new summary blurbs on Tales of A Post-Modern Gunslingler (the literary project)   now in the Current Projects section and Victoriana, a new TV Series idea in On The Drawing Board. Here's to a New Year (or two!  ) of creativity at EKP!!

8/12/05--- Excuse me for my absence, but I've been busy, and well, I didn't consider updating the site as a high priority (Seeing I'm probably only one of a small handful of people who actually visit it!   One good bit of news, Who Will Hear My Scream is FINISHED...so now I have two scripts to potentially push! One bit of bad news though, Composite Sketch is going to be taken down from my list of projects for an indefinite period of time. I haven't completely abandoned the idea (yet  ) just that I have so many other ideas on my potential plate that I'm either already working on, or more interested in working on. Like Sons of Texas and Highlander: Seahawk for instance!) So, in other words, I have some serious shuffling going on in EKP story land. Stay tuned folks....  (All three of you )

5/15/05--- The Wordsmith's Workshop IS FINISHED!!(No drafts, done complete, it's goooooone, ouuuta hhheeerrre!) Now, all I gotta do is find a suit who can sell it for me...cross your fingers...and toes.... for me!

4/26/05---- A new scene added to the Extras section for The Wordsmith's Workshop.  Make your way over there and check it out. Oh and if this doesn't make you have a sneaky sensation in your stomach for savory spuds, nothing will!

4/20/05---- The Wordsmith's Workshop is now in its third draft. (well more or less, the first is in the can, the second is pretty much done, just needs to be printed up.) Yaaaaaaay! Uh...seriously, anybody care besides me? Anybody? (crickets churp) Well how about a big hand for those crickets!! Yeah, you churpie bugs soooooo totally rock man! Woooooooooh!

3/11/05---HUGE HUGE UPDATES TODAY!! First off, a new and improved EKP Poll Question page, that actually fuctions like...gee...I dunno... A POLL PAGE!!... so do the Davester a flavor...err...favor, and check that out and vote by picking your choice and submitting to me lol. Next, I've  now got a Counter...about time, yes I know! Also Photo Albumn and Guestbook pages, although neither one has too much on it yet...BUT...biggest news of all is the Webchatroom for EKP. Yes, now you can talk to yours truly directly via the site or any of the other handful of "EkPhoenix Phonatics" who visit this site, about whatever story ideas, life topics, shooting the breeze thing you want. I've got alot on my plate right now via acting, but once this site starts getting some serious traffic, I'll pop on here in the evenings roughly around 7-10PM US CDT.. the Chatoom is located on the Extras page at the bottom. Catch me if you can!

2/15/05---- New poll question. (finally!!)  If anyone actually reads this little dohicky website, stop by and vote by email.

2/09/05-----Added two somewhat new projects, Highlander: Seahawk to the "Drawing Board" page and The Outlaw of Torn to " Current Projects."

NOTE---one is an adaption concept of a 1920's Edgar Rice Burroughs (famous for his Tarzan books) novella and the other is a TV series concept based in the universe of the Davis/Panzer original Highlander  TV series and movies. I deeply esteem these people and their created works and intend no intentional copywight infringement. These are just my IDEAS at this point, not ripoffs. Please please please don't sue me! (There wouldn't be a heck of a lot of value to win anyway! I'm poor!  )

1/14/05----Added two new teaser scenes. One for WWHMS? and another for CS,. Mosey on over to the Extras section and all shall be revealed!

It is simply my vision for the future in my chosen career as a screenwriter/director/producer. (I being James Davenport, yes, it's nice to meet you too!) This is, hopefully, the name that will be tacked on in all my personal creative pursuits in movies and TV, whether it be a screenplay, a movie I choose to direct, or a concept for a television series. Full scripts that I've written or am currently working on? No, but there will be a few teaser scenes and a few extras to be sure.This is, for the time being, my personal cubbie hole on the web for promoting my cinematic and television ideas, nothing more.

However, it is my intention, once things take off, to turn this idea into a fully-fledged, little production company, a name that people can trust. Right now though this is just a glint of a glimmer, but one day it can...no...WILL...be something much greater. It'll take time yes, but after all, Rome wasn't built in a day!

Remember this name, you'll be seeing it on movie, TV screens, and DVD cases a lot later on!

The story goes back to July of 1991. I had just moved to what would be the fifth state I would live in my life of just ten years (going on eleven.)I was born in one place (Honolulu HI) a precocious three year old in another, (Michigan) rode my first "big wheel" elsewhere (New Orleans LA) got my first real glimpse of history in still another (Woodbridge VA/Washington D.C.) all before arriving here in Houston. (Well Humble to be more specific, but I'll explain a bit more in a second.)

My family was busy moving boxes and cleaning the house we'd rent in Atascocita North, which is a suburb of Humble, TX, and Humble in turn is a suburb of Houston. (See? I explained it.) Well, were going through some stuff in the driveway when this gawky looking brown haired kid in an Oakland A's cap had came riding up on the other side of the street on a cherry red bike with whitewash white colored tires. He just sat there watching my family unpack for about twenty minutes or so, but when I went to make an effort to say hello, the twerp peeld out on his bike and split back down the street. Now, I wasn't necessarily looking for any friends, after all, my folks were just renting the place for a year. That's exactly what happened though, and eventually after flagging this boy down after several  " recon missions" I found out his name was Matt Jonhson. If someone had told me I'd get my very best friend out of these first exchanges, I'd of said they were full of it...but like I said before that's exactly what happened. For 11 years all through growing up no buddy knew me better, every funny, goofy, and great moment since I came to Texas. So what has Matt got to do with all this?

In the words of Jim Caviezal as the Count of Monte Cristo, "I'm about to tell you."

Matt is and was a HUGE movie buff. There's almost nothing nothing Matt loved more than movies. (no comment on the other thing lol) Every chance he got it seemed we would go to the local arcade and battle it out playing air hockey (singles against each other, than perhaps a versus doubles game paired with cute girls!) then we'd stroll on over to the 24 screen and catch a flick. Even before that when we were playground pipsqueaks, Matt was constantly spouting off lines from movies. Heck take ANY two man scene from Glory, (They gots a lady ova dere servin' biscuits an' gravey...she sez if a man a' bring his frien' she'll feed him too.) Batman (Winged FREAK terrorizes....what'll they get a'load a'me! Ooooop........OOOP......HAHAHAHAHHARHAR!) or Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (I should have sent my diary to the MARX BROTHERS!) and Matt and I could act it out word for word...any time anywhere, no rehersal, even mid scene.

Flash foward to December of 2000...Matt gets his first video camera, just a little b/w handheld thing, but Matt loved fiddling with it. He'd make little movies, dubb over lines in Japanese with the language translator feature, and play with light effects, making people look red faced and evil, stuff like that. It was becoming apparent that this fiddling with the camera, and my natural propencity for creating stories might be a real calling...that eventully morphed into a fully fledged plan. We'd move out, he'd take film classes and I acting and writing, eventually we'd start a company where he'd make things happen behind the camera as a director, and I'd work in front and to the side of it as an actor and screenwriter...but things don't always go as planned.

In August of 2001 during one of our many movie watching journeys, Matt started to complain about a tingling in his left hand that just came out of nowhere. ("You should get that checked out man, could be a possible stroke from all the Pizza Hut you eat!)" By October, he'd have problems every now and then with his left grip, almost dropping a Big Mac and fries at MickyDees. Then, in November, the Wednsday before Thanksgiving, Matt collapsed in the lunch line of his school. He managed to make it home somehow once they revived him (I don't know why the nurse let him drive home!) but slept through the entire holiday weekend.

Fast forward to December, a sudden ER visit finds Matt having seizsures and losing feeling and function int the entire left side of his body, drool going down the corner of his mouth which he couldn't control, muffled speech and completely unable to use his left arm or see out of his left eye because it had crossed inward. ("Mrs. Johnson, is your son retarded?" "No, that's why we're here!) Then a doctor's visit to a neural specialist...a CAT scan and an MRI...Matt had a tumor on his brain...then an operation to remove it and test it, all just before Christmas. Once only part of it could be removed and the tests came back, the worst case scenario came to pass, Neoblastouma, Stage 4, Matt  likely had only 1-6 monthes to live, 20% chance or less of long term survival.

Then chemo, hair loss, weight loss, Matt's head and face swelling from all the poisionous meds they had to give him, and having to stumble with a cane, sometimes even needing help to take a leak. In my 11 years experience with him as his bud, I can't say Matt was always the bravest of guys, there was even a couple of times I was about to get my butt kicked and when I somehow got out of it I found Matt being a chicken behind a tree, but not through this. He couldn't go to school anymore (but for the first time in his life he wanted to!) He couldn't even go to the grocery store without people looking at him like "what is that thing?" or the movies his old stomping ground without people looking at him like he was bleeding out on the carpet. Yet, Matt went to the store with his Mom, and went out whenever  he was strong enough. He and I even went to see Black Hawk Down in the midst of the worst he had to go through. ("Dude, you KNOW how long I've been dying to see this movie...now it's an actual fact.)

Nobody ever really told Matt how bad it was for him, (it would probably not have done much good) but then again I don't think we had too. Matt would sit up in his dad's recliner when no one was watching him, (but we found out much later) making notations on the next years calender on important days,  The birthday he and his sister shared, Father's Day, Mother's Day, and Christmas(Wish I was there to see it...Merry Christmas Mom!)

We wished he had been there too.

It seemed like he had the cancer almost licked...but then on a March thursday  Matt complained he had a slight sore throat...within a day or two Matt couldn't speak when I tried to call him...another half day and that little frog in his throat turned out to be a rapidly spreading infection that his body was just too weak to fight off. By that Sunday, March 31, 2002, Easter Sunday of all days,Matt's crown of thorns was over, exchanged for a sallet of serenity. He went quickly in his sleep at just 20 years of age.  There was nothing anyone could have done, save take care of his final wishes by cremation (So those damn bugs don't get a hold'a me, burn it down and bag the ashes!)

My best friend and potential business partner died without ever shooting a single professional reel of film.

Well, I had made three solem oaths to Matt. One, that I'd do the best I could to help his family out, the way any son would do for his parents. The second, that I'd make sure he'd be remembered if I ever made it into acting or movies, and the third, I would rather not say until perhaps another time.

In this endeavor, I just might be able to fufill two of those promises. If we're successful...Matt's family will be well taken care of, if we get lots of publicity and name recognition,  Matt----Matthew E Kioto Johnson---  will be on movie screens and DVD cases all over the country (and possibly the world. )In a way, his name will get into motion pictures after all. This is my vision now, but it was also his. In keeping with my own creative pursuits, I also keep with his. Through EKP, the dream of two film fanatic childhood buddies from Texas continues.....