How Luck Happens

Author: Janice Kaplan, Barnaby Marsh

You don't have to travel far in Hollywood to meet men and women who drive for Uber or perform routine tasks for TaskRabbit while waiting for the lucky break that will make them famous. Many majored in drama during college, and some even starred in musicals – today, they just need someone to notice their talent. "You have to give yourself the chance to be lucky," said Casy, a bright-eyed redhead I met one warm evening at a cafe on Sunset Boulevard. She was behind the bar, mixing a Moscow Mule, a blend of orange juice, lemon, and ginger. (I ordered a sugar-free Coca-Cola), but making the perfect drink wasn't what kept Casy going. When we chatted, she told me she had recently graduated from college and driven her beat-up Kia over three thousand kilometers to come to Hollywood. She was waiting for the happy coincidence that would make her a star. "I kept reminding myself of Harrison Ford," Casy said. Lucky Harrison, of course; his early adventures are legendary among aspiring actors in the epic film series. When he first arrived in Los Angeles in the 1960s, Ford's acting prowess didn't attract anyone, so much so that he started working as a carpenter. Once, a young director at the beginning of his career commissioned him to build some cabinets in his home. Then they got to know each other better and became friends, which led the director to cast him in a small, low-budget film that six production companies had rejected, but the film achieved unexpected commercial success. That film was by director George Lucas. Perhaps you've heard of it? A few years after the film's release, Lucas got approval to make another film that production companies weren't enthusiastic about – – and cast his new friend Harrison Ford in it. "Do you think you'll find a director like George Lucas in a cafe?" Casy asked as she came closer to refill my drink. She replied with a smile, "Absolutely." And why not? She had given herself the chance to be lucky, here in a corner of the Hollywood Hills, where many producers and directors live. Perhaps the next person she serves will be an executive at Paramount (or at least on the Disney Channel) who will notice her potential. Coincidence led Harrison Ford to a series of events that made him one of the most important stars of his generation. Without those cabinets he built, he might not have achieved such global fame in Star Wars. Another actor could have played the incredibly cool Han Solo and been encased in a large block of carbon. The idea that coincidence can play a significant role in any career is both encouraging ("This could happen to me!") and discouraging at the same time ("But what if it doesn't?"). Many people in Hollywood and elsewhere believe that you make your own luck; that's why aspiring screenwriters carry their scripts with them wherever they go to give to any friendly person.