The news broke yesterday, legendary writer and director, Frank Pierson passed away. He was 87 years old.

Sometimes I'm glad to be some kind of a "hoarder". I have religiously kept the interview I made of him in 1996. We spent nearly 2 hours chatting over lunch next to his office. In these days, I was fresh off the university, and it was a big deal that he so kindly accepted to be interviewed by a swooning rookie with a thick French accent. 

As a side note, he was born on May 12th, like yours truly. I thought it was a good omen! Frank Pierson was an icon I was looking up to growing up. I was "lapping up" what he was saying that day. He came across as a very genuine man. At one point, he was a bit crude, and I savored that moment. It wasn't shocking at all, to the contrary it was very special. A token of trust. It was a man who excelled at writing the most chiseled and compelling film lines -- telling a story in a unique way. I felt like Pacino was around. Time to go listen to that tape...

Stephanie Ronnet