USA: Laurie David, environmental activist, documentary film producer, and wife of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star Larry David, talks about global warming.

Record ID: 189884

  • Title: USA: Laurie David, environmental activist, documentary film producer, and wife of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star Larry David, talks about global warming.
  • Date: 23rd November 2006
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) "AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH" PRODUCER LAURIE DAVID, SAYING: "To tell you the truth, I wasn't. People say 'wasn't it hard to sell a movie about a slideshow with a former politician?' And the truth is, it wasn't. I saw a ten minute version of Al Gore do this slideshow, and it was so clear, the explanation of what is happening is so precise and well thought out. He spent thirty years working on this issue, so I knew this was going to make a great movie, and I knew people would see it, and I knew the only inconvenient truth would be that when people went to the theatre and they saw this film, that they would be different people when they left. That would be inconvenient, and that's it. I just knew the film would reach people and people would change as a result of it, and I think they are changing."
  • Embargoed: 8th December 2006 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Nature / Environment
  • Reuters ID: LVACWDJHMGH9YYHVJ5VBKSA53FK3
  • Story Text: Environmental activist Laurie David, producer of the Al Gore global warming documentary "An Inconvenient Truth," is excited about the momentum the film has generated but still believes there is much to be done in American and the world with issues concerning global warming. David, wife of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star and "Seinfeld" co-creator Larry David, has been a fervent political and environmental activist for much of the past ten years, and was not at all surprised with the success of the film at the box office even though it may be considered a hard sell by Hollywood standards.
    "To tell you the truth, I wasn't. People say 'wasn't it hard to sell a movie about a slideshow with a former politician?' And the truth is, it wasn't. I saw a ten minute version of Al Gore do this slideshow, and it was so clear, the explanation of what is happening is so precise and well thought out. He spent thirty years working on this issue, so I knew this was going to make a great movie, and I knew people would see it, and I knew the only inconvenient truth would be that when people went to the theatre and they saw this film, that they would be different people when they left. That would be inconvenient, and that's it. I just knew the film would reach people and people would change as a result of it, and I think they are changing," she told Reuters.
    Although "An Inconvenient Truth" was an unlikely box-office hit, it became the third-largest grossing documentary of all time and has been shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination. Laurie David is convinced the film's word of mouth appeal will help to spread its message even further as the DVD version goes on sale this week, and timing couldn't be better.
    "I view global warming as the mother of all issues -- and at this point, everything sort of comes underneath it," said David. "But I think the American people, look -- every day, there are extreme weather events, this is exactly what the world scientists have said are going to happen. We're going to have more severe rains, more severe floods, more severe tornados, more severe hurricanes, more severe drought. We just came through a summer where 2700 heat records were broken in July alone. We now are just coming through the worst wildfire season the United States has ever seen, so something's going on here."
    David was thrilled with the results of the recent United States elections, and believes that the Democratic party is going to be instrumental in the next congress' passing of environmental legislation. Citing Barbara Boxer's vow to hold global warming hearings and Nancy Pelosi's outline for the Democratic party's agenda listing energy concerns as the top priority, David is optimistic that Americans will demand change so loudly that the government will be forced to act. She is taking the initiative to fuel the debate by touring America on a biodiesel bus with one of the biggest names in music, Sheryl Crow, in the spring of next year. Crow, David and a group of close friends, will arrange concert stops in cities and states that are lacking in global warming initiatives, with the tour starting in Texas and ending at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.
    "There is a window closing here. The experts have said that we have less than ten years, and that was a year ago, so now we're talking nine years. And if they're saying nine years or ten years, then I'm thinking maybe it's five years, because they're the most cautious people on the planet, scientists, right? So we've got to do everything we can to try to get this country addressing this problem. And by the way, the rest of the world is so much more engaged on this issue than the United States is. We're the biggest cause of global warming pollution now, and we're doing the least about it, and that is not acceptable It's not acceptable to me as an American citizen," says Laurie David.
    While she realizes that not everyone may have the time to devote to global warming, she urges people to make small changes in their life that can greatly cut down on energy use, thus reducing the massive amounts of pollution that the United States puts out daily. She says that doing simple things like switching to energy efficient light bulbs, unplugging cell phone chargers from outlets when not in use, and switching to 100 percent recycled toilet paper can greatly reduce each individual's carbon "footprint." She even convinced her husband to drive a hybrid vehicle, the Toyota Prius, on his show "Curb Your Enthusiasm" to help put environmental concerns to the forefront of the public consciousness.
    "Unless you're sitting in a tree eating nuts, as the governor of montana once said, you're a carbon emitter. We're all guilty. You cannot compete in this world today, you cannot live in this world today and not be guilty. But the key is small changes by millions of people, now that's powerful, and if you choose a hybrid car, you are part of the solution. You're choosing a car that gets almost 50 miles to the gallon, that's a great choice you're making. You're a part of the solution. We can't hold anybody up to perfection, it won't work, and all that ends up doing is to push people out to say well don't bother doing anything. It's not about doing everything, it's about everyone doing something, and I really believe that, and I believe that we will get to where we need to go if everybody does something," says Laurie David.
    In addition to "An Inconvenient Truth," David is currently producing "Too Hot Not To Handle," a television documentary outlining further evidence supporting scientists' claims of global warming. She has also helped in creating a "virtual march" against global warming, which can be found at www.stopglobalwarming.org.
    "An Inconvenient Truth" arrives on DVD later this month. ENDS.
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