Making The Elephant Man: A Producer's Memoir (Paperback)

“an exceptional, insightful, compelling, and impressively information account”—Midwest Book Review; “Jonathan Sanger’s book on the making of The Elephant Man is more than a ‘memoir’ of the film. Yes, it is an intimate recollection of the hundreds of daily details demanded to bring a movie from an idea or ‘pitch’ to its theatrical release—but it also is a guide for any producer or filmmaker to understand why the human factor of personal connection is, finally, what makes a mere movie a work of universal art.”—John Bailey, cinematographer, film maker and recent president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; “This work is fantastic. For one thing: you tell the truth...who behaved well, who didn't; who was difficult. It drives me crazy that everyone always pretends on movies that everything was perfect...which means no accountability, no reckoning...egos spinning out of control. For another: you don't spare yourself. A third: you give the real day-to-day experience. This is what it's really like, folks. This is how close we came to disaster. This is where one false move would have sunk us... And so on. Lastly: you have a sense of humor. Without which, life would be intolerable. It's a really invaluable book.”—Nick Kazan, screenwriter and playwright, Academy Award winner for Reversal of Fortune.