AWESOME WELLES There but for the grace of God, goes God – Herman Mankiewicz enfant terrible showman shaman monster maestro who reached for Mars and raised Kane Xanadu and Cotten All’s Welles that ends Welles, mused the collaborator turned auteur, although the screenplay was Mank’s prank, another loser-genius, but no crank with hauteur; while Gregg Toland’s takes into dark and deep focus makes the twenty-five year kid splice the shadows of the two-year old whiz-man. Mercurial Welles, whoreson Orson, too gross for ordinary roles, fell foul of Citizen Hearst, who shunned and cursed, played the card Wolsey in crimson rolls and racketeer Harry sliming Vienna’s gutters for a dime and mock gothic Macbeth, the craven himself was hoarse. What reeled in the pug swell? Hollywood. Mugged, bugged by corporate heads and canned, banned and RKO’d by the yellowpress lord, hearsed, a headless corpse Orse.
Michael Small April 20, 1994 published The Mozzie, vol.18, issue2, 2010