"It felt like our brains were connected by a blistering hot wire:" Johnny Depp's new tribute to Tim Burton

Fans of Johnny Depp or visionary director Tim Burton will want to pick up a copy of the new edition of “Burton on Burton,” which features a new foreword written by Johnny about his dear friend Tim. Longtime Deppheads will recall the foreword Johnny wrote for the 1994 edition of “Burton on Burton,” in which he reminisced about his experiences working with Tim on EDWARD SCISSORHANDS and ED WOOD. Now Johnny brings us up to date with his experiences shooting CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, which was “as good as anything gets. To me, it felt as if our brains were connected by a blistering hot wire that could have generated sparks at any minute.”

Most affecting are the passages where Johnny reflects about the changes that fatherhood has brought: “[A]ll kinds of wonderfulness have flowered and showered the both of us, and caused radical changes in the men we were and the men we’ve become [. . .]. Yeah, you see, Tim and I are dads. Wow. Who’d have ever thought it possible that our progeny would be swinging on swing-sets together, or sharing toy cars, toy monsters, even potentially exchanging chickenpox?”

Johnny continues, “Seeing Tim as proud Papa is enough to send me into an irrepressible weeping jag, because, as with almost everything, it’s in the eyes. Tim’s eyes have always shone: no question about it, there was always something luminous in those troubled/sad/weary peepers. But today, the eyes of old pal Tim are laser beams! Piercing, smiling, contented eyes, with all of the gravity of yesteryear, but bright with the hope of a spectacular future.”

You can read both of Johnny’s forewords to “Burton on Burton” on the Zone’s News & Views forums; thanks to sandstorm for posting the 2006 version and Cesar’sSusie for the 1994 version. “Burton on Burton” is available from Amazon.co.uk.; you can order a copy HERE. Thanks to emma and Gilbert’s Girl for that information.