Local Boys Make Good in Tinseltown with "Immortals"

They are, at the very least, A-minus listers among the swanky Hollywood set these days. Reservations at Beso, a kiss on the cheek from owner Eva Longoria and an order of her avocado guacamole with tortilla chips? No problem.

A nightcap while avoiding the velvet ropes at the Crown Bar, where the Top Cat Manhattan is shaken and never stirred? Right this way, gentlemen.

Staples Center seats behind Jack, within high-fiving distance of Kobe and a chance to rag Spike about the Knicks? Done.

When you write a screenplay for a $75 million movie that will gross around a $150 million, even a couple of Jersey boys can mingle with the posh, pampered, and preferential of Tinseltown … even if you’d rather have a boardwalk pizza from Maruca’s than an $8 grilled cheese at the Ecco Lounge in Hollywood and catch some rays with tourists on the O Street beach instead of Malibu.

It took nine years, but Vlas and Charley Parlapanides, who grew up in Seaside Park, are living the dream … just not to Rodeo Drive extremes.

The movie “Immortals,’’ which took in $43 million on  its opening weekend nationwide, has put the two Central Regional High School graduates on the often short-lived hot list in Hollywood.

“Yeah, we could probably get reservations … if we ever went out anyplace,’’ said Charley Parlapanides, a 1995 graduate of Central, where he was an all-conference football player.

“We went right back to work,’’ said Vlas Parlapanides, who graduated from Central in 1989. “You can’t have down time this business. You need to keep forging ahead and try keep momentum going.’’

The Parlapanides brothers said they earned $400,000 for the “Immortals’’ script. “Immortals’’ is one of four scripts the brothers have sold in Hollywood, but the first to actually be turned into a motion picture.

“Divided by the nine years we’ve been out here and then divided by two that’s about $40,000 a year,’’ Vlas said.

“What this does is get us invited to the party, so to speak,’’ Charley said. “It gets you the chance to do other work on other scripts or on rewrites. All this does is get your name on a short list, but you still have to chase jobs to have any longevity in this business.’’

While the brothers said “Immortals’’ was an original screenplay, they did admit the basis of the tale came from stories their grandmother, Sophia Miniotos told them when they visited her on summertime trips to Patra, Greece.

“She would tell us stories based on Greek mythology when we were 5, 6, 7 years old,’’ Charley said. “Those stories were a jumping off point for us. Greek gods were the first super heros.’’

Acording to imdb.com, the storyline of the movie is as follows:

“Eons after the Gods won their mythic struggle against the Titans, a new evil threatens the land. Mad with power, King Hyperion (portrayed by Mickey Rourke) has declared war against humanity. Amassing a bloodthirsty army of soldiers disfigured by his own hand, Hyperion has scorched Greece in search of the legendary Epirus Bow, a weapon of unimaginable power forged in the heavens by Ares. Only he who possesses this bow can unleash the Titans, who have been imprisoned deep within the walls of Mount Tartaros since the dawn of time and thirst for revenge. In the king's hands, the bow would rain destruction upon mankind and annihilate the Gods. But ancient law dictates the Gods must not intervene in man's conflict. They remain powerless to stop Hyperion ... until a peasant named Theseus (played by Henry Cavill) comes forth as their only hope. Secretly chosen by Zeus, Theseus must save his people from Hyperion and his hordes.’’

“We wanted the characters to be from our generation,’’ Vlas said. “We didn’t want the gods to old, be gray, living in clouds and staring into a cauldron.’’

The 110-minute film is rated “R.’’

“The film is violent and graphic but it wasn’t written that way,’’ Charley said. “But the director (Tarsem Singh) felt the film was at a violent time in the world. We love the way the film turned out.’’

“It’s gratifying to see all the hard work we put into writing it come to life,’’ Vlas said. “The success we had on this screenplay affords us the opportunity to tell more stories. It was wonderful to share this accomplishment with our parents, Angeliki and Wallace.’’

It also means they get be full-time writers for a while longer, anyway.

After graduating from Villanova, Vlas Parlapanides worked on the international desk with Oppenheimer Funds on Wall Street. Once in California he worked as a substitute teacher, a caddie, a production assistant and an assistant director.

Charley Parlapanides graduated from Swarthmore College and had two production assistant jobs in New York – one as an intern where he worked for free.

“You do whatever you have to do so you can afford to live and keep writing,’’ Vlas said. “Oliver Stone was a cabbie, George Lucas drove a truck … they are survival jobs.’’

But on Nov. 7, at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles the film premiered complete with the red carpet, search lights and paparazzi. Henry Cabo, the next Superman, was there; so were Luke Evan and Marcia Gay Harding.

Hollywood was decked out in its opening-night best, however, the Parlapanides boys went basic.

“Riverdogs black suits,’’ Vlas said. “The whole thing was kind of crazy. My mom was here, my sister and my brother (Tom, the the Superintendent of Schools at Central Regional).’’

The opening night was quite an experience for Tom Parlapanides.

"People thought I was their bodyguard," the husky Parlapanides said. "Everybody out there is so thin."

The celebration was short-lived, however. Current projects include a shot at a television script with Aaron Kaplan, who brought “Terranova” to Fox TV, and something called the “Atlantis Project’’ with producer Andrew Lazar (Space Cowboys, 10 Things I Hate About You) and director Bryan Singer (Valkyrie and Superman Returns).

“It’s in its infant stage, but Atlantis has great potential,’’ Charley said.

So the brothers will remain bennies in Los Angeles for a while longer.

“We miss the ethnic vibe of the East Coast,’’ Charley said. “Everyone out here is a transplant. It’s very different.’’

“And the pizza out here is a joke,’’ Vlas said. “It’s a bagel with tomato sauce on it.’’

Vlas and Charley know they will come home again – but it will be because they want to and not because they have to.

“We’re just a couple of blue-collar guys,’’ Vlas said.

A couple of Jersey boys who’d rather have an orange-vanilla swirl cone at Kohr’s than Mashti Malone's ginger rosewater ice cream in LA.