Screen/Script Writer Wanted!

I continued to work on the patent application and finally got a completed draft to Dan Gane. Dan edited and modified the application to make it legally sound and then submitted it to the patent office. The records show the patent was applied for on May 8, 1977. Thus Gamma Supplies now had my testimony and in all probability a patent on the “Rapid Set” system. One more item was needed before I became completely disposable.

Example 12 in one of the patents under litigation was now the focal point of the legal battle. Although I had testified extensively on my inability to make Example 12 work, my deposition still had not been transcribed and signed which meant there were no legal documents in place to present to the federal judge. In mid-May, Arnold and Darth came into my office and told me they wanted me to sign and affidavit that Example 12 had been falsified and did not work. Dan would then submit the document to the court. I refused.I had given them my testimony and a potential patent and still I was being driven out of the job. I was not about to put my name on another court document. Arnold and Darth argued vigorously and applied tremendous pressure, but I would not budge. Finally, I told them I did not see why Example 12 would not work, and I wanted to run some more experiments. They left but not before telling me I had one week to run more experiments and that they would be back with the affidavit to sign. Darth and Arnold made it clear that I had no choice but to sign the affidavit. The whole scenario was like one of those scenes in a Western movie where the bad guys force the ranch owner to sign over the deed to his ranch.

I had won a momentary victory, but I did not know what to do. I really had no experiments to run, and I was running out of excuses for not signing the document. That week, at least once a day, Arnold or Darth would call or come into my office and ask me if I was ready to sign the affidavit. Finally, I acquiesced and signed the document stating that Example 12 did not work. Dan Gane then submitted the document to Judge Myron Gordan for consideration.

I continued to try to establish a working relationship with Jeff and Buzz, but I was constantly rebuffed, and they along with John continued to make my life in the laboratory miserable. At one point I asked them to join me for lunch, at my expense, for some informal talk. I was hoping that maybe outside of the work environment I could find some reason their antagonistic attitude and find some solution to the problem. During lunch we talked and I tried to explain what I expected the lab to accomplish. I came back to Gamma feeling I had made some progress. That illusion was quickly shattered the next day, when a follow-up conversation, Buzz accused me of trying to buy his friendship! I felt totally
frustrated. No matter what I did, the negative aspect of it was thrown back at me; I could do nothing right in their eyes.

Finally, the situation with Buzz got totally out of hand. He would not discuss his work with me, and his work habits were still poor. I was really puzzled by Buzz's performance. In rummaging through lab drawers, I had found some reports written by Buzz prior to his six month sabbatical in Iran. I found those reports to be reasonably well written and generally of good quality for a person of his training and experience. Yet his work during the period I was at Gamma Supplies had been poor and his written communications had been horrendous. It seemed as if his poor performance was deliberate. In addition, Buzz refused to direct his research in the direction I wanted it to go and seemed to care less about what I wanted. Any attempt to discuss the issue with Darth or Carl resulted in the usual frustration.