B Movie: A Play in Two Acts (The Hollywood Legends) - Softcover

Druxman, Michael B.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1495428486 ISBN 13: 9781495428487

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2014

Synopsis

On September 14, 1951, the front page of virtually every major newspaper in the United States carried the story of how B picture actor Tom Neal had brutally beaten dapper leading man Franchot Tone’s face into a bloody pulp over the affections of sultry blonde actress Barbara Payton. The sordid narrative surrounding this ill-fated triangle would have “legs”. Only Franchot Tone’s career would survive the disgraceful events. Barbara Payton would soon descend into a desperate world of drugs and prostitution and, in the 1960s, Tom Neal would be prosecuted for first degree murder. B MOVIE dramatizes the most notorious scandal to hit Hollywood during the first half of the 1950s. 2 Men; 1 Woman. Simple Open Set.

About this title

About the Author:

Michael B. Druxman is a veteran Hollywood screenwriter whose credits include CHEYENNE WARRIOR with Kelly Preston; DILLINGER AND CAPONE starring Martin Sheen and F. Murray Abraham; and THE DOORWAY with Roy Scheider, which he also directed. He is also a prolific playwright, his one-person play, JOLSON, having had numerous productions around the country. Other produced stage credits include one-person plays about Clark Gable, Carole Lombard, Spencer Tracy and Orson Welles. Additionally, Mr. Druxman is the author of thirteen other published books, including several nonfiction works about Hollywood, its movies, and the people who make them (e.g., BASIL RATHBONE: His Life and His Films, MAKE IT AGAIN, SAM: A Survey of Movie Remakes, ONE GOOD FILM DESERVES ANOTHER: A Survey of Movie Sequels, MERV [Griffin] and THE MUSICAL: From Broadway to Hollywood). He has written two novels, NOBODY DROWNS IN MINERAL LAKE and SHADOW WATCHER, plus the humorous revisionist history, ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD: From the Secret Files of Harry Pennypacker, and FAMILY SECRET, a non-fiction book co-authored with Warren Hull, which reveals the true facts behind the 1947 murder of mobster “Bugsy” Siegel in Beverly Hills. An acknowledged Hollywood historian, he has also written television documentaries and has been interviewed for various retrospective featurettes that have accompanied DVD releases of classic films (e.g. THE MALTESE FALCON, etc.). Mr. Druxman is a former Hollywood publicist of 35 years experience who has represented many film and television stars, as well as noted directors, producers and composers. One of his Academy Award campaigns is often mentioned in books dealing with Oscar’s history. He has taught various dramatic writing and film appreciation courses in an adult university and is the author of How to Write a Story...Any Story: THE ART OF STORYTELLING, which has been used as a text in several colleges. A native of Seattle who graduated from Garfield High School and the University of Washington, Mr. Druxman moved with his wife, Sandy, from Los Angeles to Austin, TX in 2009. His two memoirs, MY FORTY-FIVE YEARS IN HOLLYWOOD AND HOW I ESCAPED ALIVE and LIFE, LIBERTY & THE PURSUIT OF HOLLYWOOD, are published by Bear Manor Media.

Review:

"It's a fascinating and tragic story, told with humor and empathy, and a great sense of the people and time and place involved.  After I read it, I watched MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY, and DETOUR, and Payton in BRIDE OF THE GORILLA, and was struck by how well Druxman captured their voices in his words." -- Henry's Western Round-Up

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1495428486
• ISBN 13: 9781495428487
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 80