Screwy Goofs Make Solid Gold
Go Behind the Scenes of the Golden Tee Mockumentary
That is Sweeping the Internet
Solid Gold - Part Two (5:00)
You’ve seen the video. You know the players. You were left in awe at the rivalry, and admit it, you wish you had your own caddy. Or at least a green cardigan the color of Kermit. It is Solid Gold, the YouTube short about competitive Golden Tee that’s won over the hearts of almost every player to have ever stepped up to a track ball. Oh, yeah, should probably mention that it also won some prestigious awards like “Best Supporting Actor,” “Best Director,” and “Best Film” at the Gold Coast Film Festival in Chicago. Ever heard of it? But who needs awards? Not these guys. For the painstakingly long duration of four days the creators filmed, competed, slept, filmed some more, and edited - it's all for your amusement. And now it’s time to get an inside look into the minds of the makers: Nicole Milliken, Adrian Monte, Kevin Boehm, John F. Thompson and Frankie Cusamano.
GT.com: Alright, so who the heck are you guys?
Nicole Milliken: I’m a digital filmmaker with the artist collective Middle Mind Project, here in Chi-town producing short films and all types of media. Currently I’m working on a feature length film.
Adrian Monte: I’m a creative operative with the Middle Mind Project, focusing on writing and performing sketch comedy and improvised pieces for the stage and screen.
GT.com: Now what were your roles in the creation of Solid Gold?
Nicole: I directed and edited Solid Gold. I also loved it and cared for it when it cried, which it did very often. I only put a pillow over its face once.
Adrian: I wrote and performed in Solid Gold. I really love that it’s called ‘Solid Gold’.
GT.com: Have you directed before?
Nicole: I've done a variety of projects. I directed a piece called, The Yeastie Boyz, which was a parody of a Beastie Boys video. I also made one called Ocular Affair, about an optometrist trying to tell his patient he is sleeping with the patient’s wife through an eye chart. I have directed a couple of dramatic short films, as well as one documentary.
GT.com: Was there anyone else who helped you create the film?
Nicole: Kevin Boehm (Kevin Bolger), who is the owner of Boka Restaurant and Landmark Grill + Lounge. He’s also an indoor golf enthusiast. And John F. Thompson (Peter Von Bondage) and Frankie Cusamano (Franklin Beta) are both improvisers and we love them.
GT.com: So you’re all filmmakers, artists, and comedians. I get that. But how did you come up with the idea for a mockumentary on competitive Golden Tee?
Adrian: The initial idea came from conversations between Kevin and myself about the lengths a man would go to become a champion. And of course, we thought it would be fun to explore what happens to a man who loses everything he has on a Golden Tee game. But due to short time span in which the film was produced, we worked from both an original script and improvised dialogue.
GT.com: Yeah, but do any of you actually play Golden Tee?
Nicole: Well, I’ve never played GT because I’m afraid of flashing lights and technology.
Adrian: Kevin is the most experienced of the actors, having played GT at least one more time than John, who played GT at least one more time than Frankie, who played GT at least one more time than me, which is at least once.
GT.com: We should probably ask about the awards it won considering that’s kind of a big deal. So tell us about that.
Nicole: This was entered into the annual Gold Coast Film Festival, where it received “Best Film” (the big one), “Best Director” (me), and “Best Supporting Actor” (Adrian Monte, AD Jones) awards. I was actually in the back of the theatre ready to cover my head with a bag and then I heard all of these people laughing really hard. It was great to see such a reaction from people you don’t know. It is really inspiring. (Queue swelling instrumentals in the background.)
Adrian: I was working at the time, but I imagined that everyone loved the film, and that George Lucas and Martin Scorsese were in the audience and that they wanted to hire us to make a full-length feature of Solid Gold. Except that it would take place in space and star Joe Pesci and a talking golf club. But that was just my imagination.
GT.com: OK back to the film itself. So where was this all filmed?
Nicole: We filmed at a couple of different locations in Chicago. We give a special thanks to Kevin for letting us shoot at Landmark restaurant and also a thank you to the people at Goodbar. Both bars are located on Halsted. Check ‘em out!
GT.com: Did it take long to create? I mean it looked pretty professional.
Nicole: We shot it in two days and edited it two days, which was an incredibly small amount of time for any project. I was very surprised at how it turned out considering the time limits.
GT.com: Wow that is a short time. Was it scripted or adlibbed?
Adrian: Both. I wrote an original narrative and as the production progressed we added in the documentary style elements, which were improvised.
GT.com: OK, so the character, Kevin Bolger, is eerily similar to our current GT World Champion, Graig Kinzler. There’s no way that was planned. Or was it?
Adrian: The events and characters depicted in this photoplay are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons, living, dead, or undead, is purely coincidental.
GT.com: What about Pete Von Bondage, the 
supposed 3-time GT Champion? No 
correlation to Steven Sobe, the real Golden Tee three-time champion (also the help guy on the actual game)?
Adrian: Again, the events and characters depicted in this photoplay are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons, living, dead, or undead, is purely coincidental.
AD Jones (Team Bolger Caddy): Steve better quit his cushy desk job at IT and jump back in the trenches ‘cause Team Bolger is gunning for pole position this time around.
Peter Von Bondage (3-time GT regional champion): Incidentally, if young Steven does win this year, I have some lovely ‘4-time GT champion stationery for sale.
GT.com: Speaking of AD and Mr. Von Bondage where did you pull these names out of?
Nicole: I think we were really drunk at the time. And, as if in a dream, the names came to us.
Adrian: I like to make up character names that sound funny when said aloud, but still could be real names, like “Wade Kids".
GT.com: Before you made the film did you know that there was a real world of competitive Golden Tee out there?
Nicole: I had heard of these competitions, but to be honest, I didn’t know that they were as big as they are. I couldn’t believe it when I saw people drinking beer and screaming for a good putt. I’m sure these guys probably get laid on a daily basis. I mean, they play GT for money! Are their real jobs okay with them taking off work for competitions? Actually, I have another question… do you guys have groupies?
AD Jones: Hell yeah, we have groupies. Actually we refer to a woman who hopes to melt in the warm embrace of the indoor golf champion (or caddy!) as a “Golden Tease.”
GT.com: Now in the film there was $10,000 on the line. But the winner of the real World Championship actually takes home $15K? Do you think Kevin Bolger would choke under the pressure of an extra $5K?
Kevin Bolger (1-time GT regional champion): Due to ongoing alimony reclamation proceedings with my ex-wife, my lawyer has advised me not to comment on any financial matters.
AD Jones: Yeah, that succubus would take every penny. She always hated our time out on the greens. Always treated me like the ‘other woman’. I’m not a woman.
GT.com: Alright I have one last question for you. Is there a Solid Gold 2 in the works or possibly an extension of the series? I mean Solid Gold was a hit. Usually that calls for a sequel. Look at Pirates of the Caribbean or Caddyshack 2. Actually don’t look at Caddyshack 2…
Nicole: I’ll tell you what. If people like these characters and all the crudeness they stand for, we may be up for some promotional videos. Call my agent.
Adrian: We are in discussions right now with some Golden Tee sponsors (Joey B’s GT All-Pro Hand Lube, Mark Luxor’s BEER BELTS: for ultimate hands-free gaming, and Viagra) about shooting some product endorsements. We’ll keep you posted.
For more information on the Middle Mind Project visit www.middlemindproject.com or www.myspace.com/middlemindproject
The extended, uncensored version of Solid Gold is available at www.middlemindproject.com.
Special thanks to Peter Von Bondage, Kevin Bolger, Franklin Beta and AD Jones
for their undying dedication to the sport of Golden Tee Golf.
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