We at Manolith wrote an article about Justin Mentell earlier. It’s crazy seeing news of his passing on the internet rounds, because he was a good guy, and we had just spoken months earlier.
I had the privilege of working with and knowing Justin. Not terribly well, but enough. We were both secondary characters on a movie that’ll most likely never see the light of day, but was a great learning experience for all who were involved. He was a nice guy, a good professional then, and when I ran into him in LA, he was still warm and friendly, telling stories about painting on Venice Beach and nearly quitting the acting business because it sometimes got so frustrating. We were auditioning, again, for a terrible movie, but it didn’t matter. We talked about sketch comedy, and he was nice enough to take some time out to read my writing and give a few pointers.
He was a good guy living out his dreams. That’s always the vibe he put out. And if any measure of comfort can be taken from this, it’s that he helped everyone back home realize that it was possible.
RIP, Justin. You will be missed. This life is transient. All you can do is live in the moment.
Comments
James
February 2nd, 2010 - 5:05:50 PM
Mark. Thank you for adding this personal touch. He was someone who I hoped to work with... I was tremendously saddened writing something "journalistic" in nature for someone who was such a phenomenal talent - thank you for coloring the outline, because these are the people the public truly will miss... not only for what they've done, but what they would have continued to do!
1