Universal/MCA Television

What they should have done:

Universal/MCA Television should have made sure that the actor's safety was the most important factor on the set. They should have hired a reputable rental vehicle company to provide the props (dune buggies) and insisted that the vehicles were safe and stable. They should have provided training for our son and anyone else unfamiliar with the operation of dune buggies, especially dune buggies that were modified. They should have followed SAG rules and followed the requirements of the BLM Permit. They should have insisted on the wearing of seatbelts and helmets. They should have had a safety coordinator on the set to insure safety rules were followed. When the accident happened they should have provided the best medical care possible and protected the scene of the accident. They should have insisted that a thorough investigation be done to determine the cause of the accident and looked for ways to prevent this type of accident in the future. They should have taken responsibility for their role in allowing this accident.

What did Universal/MCA do to prevent this type of accident? What responsibility for the accident did they acknowledge? What have they done to insure this does not happen again? The answer to all of these is: absolutely nothing!

The Reality:

To begin with Universal/MCA Television personnel selected Willie's On/Off Road Vehicle rentals to provide the dune buggies that were used as props to make the "Desert Storm" episode of the television series "Sliders". We were told Willie's On/Off Road Vehicles is a company they had never used before. This company carries no liability insurance on their rental vehicles. Also, in a very unusual move, Universal/MCA Television personnel rented or leased these vehicles without any form of a written contract. Why would a large corporation like Universal/MCA Television hire a junkyard operation like Willie's On/Off Road Vehicles? A company with no insurance and with whom they had never before done business? Why, if they cared about their actors, would they not demand a written contract spelling out all the liability issues, the rental fees, and responsibilities of the renter and the rentee? Because no contract was signed, Universal/MCA took the stance that they were not in any way responsible for the accident due to any vehicular problems. No contract, therefore, no responsibility for any part of the accident due to the vehicle. This was just the beginning.

Universal/MCA provided no training to our son on the operation of this vehicle despite the fact that Ken had, to the best of our knowledge, never driven a dune buggy before in his entire life. They put Ken in a modified vehicle with a swing axle when they knew this vehicle was unstable!

Universal/MCA claims they were following all the rules. They claim all actors were told to wear their seatbelts. If all actors were told to wear their seatbelts why in the entire episode were no actors ever filmed wearing seatbelts? Watch the entire "Desert Storm" episode then decide if you think safety and seatbelts were a real concern of Universal/MCA.

Universal/MCA Television claims they told Ken to go 20 miles per hour. If Ken was told to go 20 miles per hour how could he comply when there was no speedometer in the dune buggy Ken was driving? That is like asking a blind person to drive on a freeway, following traffic.

They claim Ken was goofing off and was totally responsible for the accident. But how likely is it that he was goofing off? Ken was only 27 years old but he had spent the last 7 years of his life trying to make it as an actor. He was at crucial point in his career and was finally being recognized for his talent and abilities. Why would a young man, who knew how important it was to distinguish himself, to the directors and assistant directors, risk this golden opportunity to advance his career? Why risk everything and goof off in a dune buggy knowing that following directly behind him in a van was the assistant director? He had worked too hard and this was too important and he was too professional to risk upsetting an assistant director. Ask any person that Ken worked or acted with or any director that he worked with and they will all tell you that he did not goof off on the job.

Universal/MCA Television claims to have been very safety conscious and has done everything possible to express that in any way they can. If Universal/MCA is so safety conscious then why did they ignore the signs posted by the Bureau of Land Management that require everyone in dune buggies to wear helmets?

Why if they are so safety oriented, was the safety coordinator not even on the set the day of the accident, as required by SAG rules? Despite the fact that the safety coordinator was not even at the accident scene, the safety coordinator was one of the few people CAL-OSHA interviewed. How convenient!

If they really cared about the actors and the law, why did they even have Ken driving the dune buggy at that time? The rules state that actors are only to drive vehicles on the set when they are filming. They supposedly were not filming at the time, simply moving vehicles from one location to another to prepare for the next scene. Teamsters are to drive the vehicles at these times, not actors.

Why did Universal/MCA alter the evidence at the scene of the accident before the California Highway State Patrol arrived if they truly wanted to determine the cause of the accident and to prevent this from occurring in the future? We know 3 cameras had been mounted on the dune buggy Ken was told to drive when the accident happened, but Universal/MCA personnel removed the cameras immediately. Those cameras were off of the vehicle and out of sight long before our son's body was flown to the hospital and even before the CHP officer arrived on the scene. What made it so important to remove those cameras within minutes of the accident? Maybe those cameras made the vehicle unstable or obstructed the view of the driver? Maybe they were nothing and not important but they were a major concern of Universal/MCA because they were removed from the accident scene. Universal/MCA personnel altered the scene of a work-related accident and the California Highway Patrol was never informed of the cameras until we told them weeks later.

Why, if Universal/MCA was so concerned about Ken did they find it necessary to call the Coroner, from the scene of the accident, and tell him that Ken had been goofing off? Why would anyone find it necessary to make a call from the desert to the Coroner, unless they wanted to make sure Ken was determined to be the cause of the accident?

Why, after paying the State of California a Death Award for Ken did Universal/MCA personnel call Industrial Relations and have Ken's occupation changed to "stuntman?" Ken was a Professional Actor. He was not a stuntman and he was not doing a stunt at the time of his death. Why was it necessary to illegally change his occupation? This was not a mistake. This was an actual request by Universal/MCA Studios Claims Manager Rose Morris, to change official records and it was done.

What did Universal/MCA do to prevent this type of accident? What responsibility for the accident did they acknowledge? What have they done to insure this does not happen again? The answer to all of these is absolutely nothing!

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