One Helluva Ride
If you notice an uptick in Michael Douglas stories in the cycle or wonder why you’re seeing him making appearances here and there, the legendary actor has just released an autobiography, titled One Helluva Ride (which you can buy right HERE). The book is sure to give you an inside look at the many Hollywood inside stories that involve Douglas. Douglas reveals stories about the making of Wall Street and his famous promiscuity in Tinseltown (he admits that when Catherine Zeta-Jones wanted to have an exclusive relationship with him, he had to first break it off with no less than five other women).
Douglas talks about Yūsaku Matsuda
In his book, Douglas talks about how enjoyable a time he had making the crime thriller Black Rain with Ridley Scott. He also talked about working with co-star Ken Takakura. According to Douglas, “I’ll never forget the way the Japanese reacted to the sight of Ken Takakura. Ken-san was a massive star in Japan at the time, and his public appearances during filming drew huge crowds. I had never seen that kind of adulation back home for anybody except Bruce Springsteen.”
Black Rain is also dedicated to Yūsaku Matsuda, who played the villain in the film. Matsuda would pass away mere months after filming and Douglas reveals that he kept his illness a secret from fear of getting let go from the movie. Douglas writes,
Yūsaku Matsuda knew that he was gravely sick with bladder cancer but chose to hide this fact from Ridley, even though he knew the stress of the tough shoot might shorten his life. When I found out, it took me back to Billy Redfield hiding his leukemia on the set of Cuckoo’s Nest. Matsuda ended up dying at age forty, less than two months after the film’s American premiere. Ridley dedicated the film to his memory.”
Black Rain
Black Rain was heavily advertised as Douglas’ first post-Oscar role. In it, “A corrupt American cop (Michael Douglas) and his partner (Andy Garcia) wind-up in Japan after a prisoner exchange gone awry. With their former captive cutting a swath through the local Yakuza in an attempt to establish himself as the new Tokyo boss, the cops are forced into an uneasy alliance with a by-the-book local police inspector (Ken Takakura).” The movie also stars Kate Capshaw from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
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