HOLLYWOOD FAME GRABS CAPE NATIVE

Matt Johnson wasn't exactly a starry-eyed kid from Cape Girardeau when he arrived in Los Angeles.

By then, he had graduated from Northwestern University in Chicago, lived in Colorado, Arizona, even France, and had written a few short screenplays.

But besides his few years of wandering, the small-town-kid-makes-it-big theme fits. Johnson will turn 30 on Wednesday, and he just sold his first big screenplay to Universal Studios for a six-figure sum. The sum doubles if Universal turns it into a movie.

The son of Dr. and Mrs. Jack Johnson of Cape Girardeau, Johnson's movie career began when he was 9 years old. He took the family's old Super 8 camera and shot short films using neighbors as the cast. Johnson was writer, director and camera operator.

After three years of private schooling in Chattanooga, Tenn., Johnson went to Northwestern to get a bachelor's degree in speech. He wandered for another four years following graduation, even working on some art-house films in France before settling in Los Angeles.

"I knew I had to move to L.A. because that's where the film industry is in this country," Johnson said. "I got little jobs and found a little place to live. What I wanted to do was write and whatever I did supported that."

Things were tough in the beginning. Most of his jobs were as a personal assistant to people, picking up their laundry, making their coffee and driving them places.

His best job was as a director's assistant during the filming of "Love Affair," starring Warren Beatty and Annette Benning. Filming and editing stretched out over a year, and the director didn't require much assistance. Johnson spent his days in a studio office working on his own material -- more bleak art-house films.

His car was stolen three times, a big earthquake hit, the L.A. riots came and went, but Johnson kept hanging on.

"I kept asking myself what I was doing and whether I should think about another career," he said. "I felt I had to give it a full shot, and I didn't want to leave there bitter."

He finally wrote a "spec" script -- one written without the promise of a buyer -- that attracted the attention of a small studio. They asked him to write a low-budget cop thriller, then wanted changes every time he brought in a draft.

The movie finally was produced and went straight to video.

But Johnson's time was coming. He sat down and took a month to pound out "Adrenalin," something different from the art house films. An "extreme sport action adventure," the writer said, it's about three thrill-seekers who stumble onto a drug smuggling operation run by a mountain rescue team.

The three must use all their skills to escape evil members of the team.

It sold Oct. 16, attracting the attention of Variety and the Hollywood Reporter, two trade magazines based in Los Angeles. Johnson's life changed dramatically.

"I don't have to worry about the rent for awhile," he said. "And although I've been out there writing for four years, now I'm a writer. I'm meeting with filmmakers who I probably couldn't have even gotten in to see about a job as an assistant."

He met with people from Arnold Koppelson's production company, which made "Platoon," "Outbreak," "Seven" and other hits. He also met with people from Sylvester Stallone's production company.

Other things haven't changed. He still writes for awhile each morning, rides his mountain bike for a couple hours, then writes some more. He drives a beat-up Volvo wagon and restlessly shifts his tall frame when discussing his newfound success.

Johnson is even less comfortable being photographed, but agreed to smile for a newspaper article in his hometown.

He was with his family in Cape Girardeau for Thanksgiving, but had to rush back to Los Angeles after only a few days. There's rewriting to be done on "Adrenalin," then more spec scripts to be written.

The screenwriter said his ultimate goal is to be a director.