Defendant’s Ways Led Inexorably to a Box of Troubles

When all was said and done, it was the classic tale of human frailty and its consequences. After reading the whole story, I wept softly into cupped hands.

Once, you see, there had been nothing but gamboling and carefree laughter and the sense of imperviousness that power produces. Nothing, it seemed, could stop this person of perks and privileges and popularity from flaunting that power in the face of others.

Thus the power begat the bad judgment.

And the bad judgment begat the deception.

And the deception begat the downfall.

Finally, the downfall begat the condemnation.

The final fall from grace, executed just this week, is certain to make us all wonder whether we can ever trust again. Will we ever be able to look into that face . . . that face that has become so familiar to us . . . that face we trusted and, yes, dammit, loved . . . and ever feel the same way about it again?

As for me, I think not. At least, not for a very long time.

Huh? What do you mean, ‘ Yes, it’s a shame about Don Roth ‘?

Who’s talking about Don Roth?

I’m talking about Kim Basinger.

Surely you saw the story or caught a glimpse of it on television. For every man in America, it’s the kind of story we’ll mark years later by remembering exactly where we were when we heard about it.

Kim Basinger ordered to pay nearly $9 million for reneging on an oral contract to play in a movie? Say it ain’t so. Kim of the flaxen hair, pouty lips and soft bone structure? Dear, sweet Kim who acted the pants off of us in “9 1/2 Weeks”?

The gist of the case was that Kim violated a contract after allegedly telling the producers of a small film company that she would play the lead role in their movie, “Boxing Helena.”

And who could blame her for wanting the role? She was to play a woman injured in a car accident who becomes the love object of the doctor who rescues her and then amputates her arms and legs and keeps her hostage in a box in the hopes that she’ll fall in love with him.

I know it’s a tired old plot, but imagine what Kim could have brought to the part.

Anyway, according to the press accounts, the producers spent lots of money in pre-production in 1991 based on their assurances that they had Kim lined up.

Then, something went wrong. For some reason, Kim lost interest in the project. The newspaper accounts said her disenchantment seemed to coincide with her agent reading the script and throwing it against the wall in contempt.

For an agent of Kim’s to be repelled by a script, it must be one god-awful piece of work. Remember, this is the fragile beauty who graced the screen in “Blind Date,” in which she played a woman who goes bonkers after one sip of champagne, and “My Stepmother Is an Alien,” in which, well, let’s just say she played the title role.

Who knows, perhaps the thought of playing an armless, legless hostage in a box came to lose its appeal for her. Whatever the reason, she withdrew from the project.

But the producer sued, and a Los Angeles jury agreed that the company was injured by Kim’s withdrawal and hit her for $8.9 million in damages. Kim’s attorney said in his post-mortem that the jury “took a disliking to Kim.”

Took a disliking to her? What trial were they watching?

Kim argued that she hadn’t really committed herself to the project, and I believe her (although I know none of the facts). The producers countered by saying she had talked up the movie and hadn’t objected when trade publications linked her to it. They said she even wrote a song for possible use in the film and that she discussed script changes and nude scenes with them.

Kim’s people say they will appeal.

I hope this doesn’t sour Kim on Hollywood. Nine million bucks sounds like a pretty stiff penalty for deciding to back out of a movie in which you play a quadruple amputee stuck in a box. That sounds like the kind of decision for which you ought to be awarded 9 million bucks.

Couldn’t they just force her to play the lead in “Boxing Helena II” and forget the whole thing?

Or, how about community service? I volunteer my community, and so would lots of other guys.

I don’t get it. Don Roth pulls all kind of shady deals and gets community service. Kim breaks one little promise and gets socked for $8.9 million.

Don Roth pleads guilty and says he’s going to Disneyland.

Where is lovely, sweet Kim going?

Same old story. The pretty boys get all the breaks.

Dana Parsons’ column appears Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Readers may reach Parsons by writing to him at The Times Orange County Edition, 1375 Sunflower Ave., Costa Mesa, Calif. 92626, or calling (714) 966-7821.