It all began with a photo
I was born at a time and in a place where it was not unusual for men in gray suits and fedoras to wander unannounced into local nursery schools, snapping candid photographs of little boys and girls. It was the late 1950s, and Hollywood was on the hunt for its next child star.
If a photograph caught the eye of a television casting director, a postcard would arrive in the mail inviting parents to bring their child to a studio interview. That is precisely what happened to me after an impromptu photo shoot at my nursery school in Alhambra, California—just a few miles east of Los Angeles.
My mother and I soon found ourselves at KCOP Studios, where I became an on-air participant on several daytime children’s shows: Sheriff John, Bozo the Clown, Skipper Frank, and, my biggest break, an extended run on Romper Room. Riding high at four years old, I was eventually invited to audition as a possible replacement for Timmy on Lassie.
On the third day of auditions, they brought Lassie onto the set. No one had thought to ask whether I had ever been around a dog before—let alone a dog who, on all fours,
Miss. Roslin Lee (Romper Room,1960) & a younger me
was taller than I was. My hysterical reaction ended the audition on the spot and, with it, my childhood acting career.
The desire to act, however, did not disappear nearly as quickly. I moved to Hollywood and supported that dream as a cater-waiter–actor–dancer–singer–Tupperware salesperson (but that is another story).
The Screen Actors Guild strike of 1980 marked the beginning of the end of my life in front of the camera. The final pin in the balloon came when I was accidentally booked to audition for a Hanes pantyhose commercial. I was nonetheless invited to stand before the clients and confidently proclaim, “Hanes Makes Me Feel Good All Under.” Suddenly, it was me and Joe Namath—unexpected game changers in the pantyhose industry.
In 1984, I joined Cannon Films in its post-production department. I quickly rose through the ranks and, in 1986, was appointed supervisor of the department, overseeing the creative and technical post-production of more than one hundred feature films.
In 1989, I assumed the role of Vice President at Pathé Communications, where I headed its Los Angeles–based post-production facility, Pathé Services. As a corporate officer of the newly formed company, I helped bring the operation into profit during its first year.
During my tenure, I was instrumental in locating, analyzing, and supervising the restoration of more than 1,500 feature-film elements stored around the world—collectively comprising the company’s film library. These assets ultimately formed the equity foundation for Pathé’s acquisition of MGM/UA, where I subsequently served as Vice President of Post-Production.
In the 1990’s, I decided to explore my own entrepreneurial venture and opened my own film and theater production company, Michael Alden Productions, producing films such as Just Cause starring Sean Connery, the fashion-forward documentary UnZipped for Miramax, the multi-award-winning comedy Kissing Jessica Stein, and Stephen Daldry’s The Hours.
You can see the full listing of all the incredible film works over the years on My Projects page.
As a theater producer, my work has been represented in the West End with Come From Away (Olivier Award for Best Musical), David Seidler’s original play The King’s Speech, and Bat Boy: The Musical. On Broadway, my credits include Come From Away (2017 Tony nomination and Olivier Award winner for Best Musical), Disgraced (Pulitzer Prize for Drama), Grey Gardens the Musical, and Bridge & Tunnel (Special Tony Award). You can see all the wonderful theatrical works on My Projects page.
As an author, my recent screenplay What About the Kids has been optioned by Hive Studios (Greece) and is currently in development as an animated short. My children’s book, Jack, is in illustration, and I have recently completed a demo for a Christmas song I wrote entitled "Christmas and You".
I currently serve as a collaborating professor at Scripps College, Claremont, where I focus on reintroducing storytelling into academic practice. I am also a board member of Youth Theatre Works, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing arts education to children ages eight through eighteen.