Secrets of My Hollywood Life: There’s No Place Like Home by Jen Calonita

Hollywood in a tizzy. They wanted her back. “As much as I love Los Angeles, I think we needed a break from each other,” Kaitlin admits. “Those three months in New York were wonderful for me. I got to be sort of anonymous, learn about live theater, and work on the stage. It was get in, get out, and find my purpose in life again, which I did.” The creator of a pilot called Big Fish, Small Pond took notice. “I always thought Kaitlin was a talented young actress,” says Amy Peterson. “I thought she lost her way a little, but I knew she’d find her way back. Her guest hosting gig on Saturday Night Live slayed me. I had no idea she could do comedy! When I realized that, I didn’t just want Kaitlin and Sky Mackenzie for my pilot. I had to have them.”
    Amy needn’t have worried. Kaitlin and Sky wanted in, and soon all the other pieces fell into place, including a name change for the pilot to Small Fries . (Maybe you’ve heard of it?) A risky marketing ploy—airing the mid-season show in the early fall after an episode of Dancing with the Stars —paid off and was followed by YouTube clips and catchy ads that featured the cast in fast-food chain ensembles with the tagline “Do you want fries with that?” The PR blitz worked and Small Fries debuted in the top ten its first week out of the gate. Critics love the show (including Tome’s own Sam Sherman), saying it’s: “ Friends for the younger set, told with a fresh, funny voice and lots of style and charm.”
    Matty also had a good summer, nabbing the part of Velma’s sort of goofy but totally kick-butt boyfriend in a new live-action Scooby-Doo . Already a bona fide hit on the CW, Matty is reaping the rewards of being patient. “I’m so glad I didn’t jump at the first thing I found,” he says happily from his decked-out dressing room on set. “ Scooby is a great show and a wonderful place to work. I couldn’t be happier.” Neither could Matt’s mom, Megan Burke, who has more than enough managerial duties between her two kids to keep her busy. “It’s a lot of work,” she says when she phones in from Matty’s set at 10:00 PM, “but who knows my kids better than me?”
    “I didn’t just want Kaitlin and Sky Mackenzie for my pilot. I had to have them.”
    With two kids on two hit shows, Megan’s job is only going to get tougher and more lucrative. Matty says he is already fielding movie roles to film during his summer hiatus, and rumors are flying that Kaitlin is up for the highly anticipated, top secret James Cameron project shooting this spring. “Wow, James Cameron, huh?” Kaitlin says, sounding surprised when we mention it. “I would take a job shining that man’s shoes! You can tell him I said that.”
    We don’t think we’ll have to, Kaitlin. All you have to do is wait for his call, and we’re sure it’s coming along with a million other well-deserved offers too.
    Welcome back, Burkes. We missed you.

FOUR: Another Sticky Situation
    We’re driving to dinner after watching Liz, Josh, Sky, Trevor, and Austin drive off toward A Slice of Heaven, and I don’t
     even have to look up from applying my lip gloss to know why Rodney put this song on. It’s Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go
     On,” the theme song from James Cameron’s Titanic . I look up anyway, and I can’t help but smirk. “Rod! It’s bad luck to play that right now!”
    “Oh, shush,” Rod admonishes me. He’s sipping a vanilla shake from Carl’s Jr. and has his other hand on the wheel of the Lincoln
     as he cruises down Sunset Boulevard toward the Beverly Hills Hotel where I’m meeting my family, Seth, and Laney for dinner
     at the Polo Lounge. “That rumor is legit!” he says. “You are going to work with the king of the world!”
    “You’re about to become a Na’vi expert,” Nadine adds giddily, referencing the alien species in Cameron’s Avatar . Rodney picked Nadine up on the way to get me so that we could go over some work stuff before my dinner.