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“The Best American History Movies NEVER Made”
As we at the American Film Company have endeavored to turn American history into movies, I've been struck by how many amazing true stories have not been given the green light. There are two reasons for this: first, Hollywood's formula for commercial success has only included the history genre sparingly, and second, there are so many incredible stories that it would take a company solely dedicated to producing only American history movies many years to make a dent in this enormous stockpile. Luckily, that company now exists and we're hammering away every day.
So, this is a discussion about those fascinating pieces of American history that have not made it to the silver screen. And by "fascinating" I don't necessarily mean "popular." I'll get the ball rolling with three American history stories that, as far as I know, have never been made into a motion picture (but should be):
1. THE BRADDOCK CAMPAIGN: British General Edward Braddock attempts to deliver a decisive blow in the French-Indian War, accompanied by a young and brash militia officer named George Washington.
2. THE MAYFLOWER: that's right, the ship that brought the pilgrims. May not be a laugh-a-minute, but you can't beat the conflict.
3. JOHN HENRY: Not just a folktale about a man who beat a steam shovel and died with his hammer in his hand. Recent scholarship suggests that John Henry may have been the real deal.
Keep reading for my own personal ground rules:
Here are my own ground rules for this discussion (feel free to challenge these):
(1) We're talking about movies here, so documentaries, home movies, plays/musicals, and anything involving sock puppets don't count.
(2) American history is 1492-1992 (okay, 1992 is a bit arbitrary but makes a nice 500-year span, and, I'd argue that anything after 1992 falls into the category of "recent non-fiction" as opposed to history).
(3) the story can involve an American abroad (think WWII, etc.), but MUST have an American or Americans to count as American history.
(4) History is defined here as real things that happened with real people, not historical fiction.
And, by the way, if you find that a real movie exists where someone says it doesn't, great! Although nobody likes to receive a public shaming (least of all me), it always helps to have our knowledge of cinema expanded.
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DISCUSSION
Risto
Congrats on the premiere showing at the Toronto Film Festival. Can't wait to see it!!
BrianFalk
And Sacco and Vanzetti is a compelling suggestion. Thanks!
BrianFalk
TAFC has had "Skeletons of the Zahara" on our radar for awhile. Unfortunately, the owners of the first script (which at one point had Spielberg attached to direct) failed to renew their option on King's book, which effectively rendered that script unusable. Another producer has picked up the option and is having a new script written. It's a phenomenal story, and a great read that I would suggest to anyone, not just history buffs.
dbrossman
Whatever happened to the film that was supposed to be made based on Dean King's Skeletons of the Zaraha? The book was riveting and it was so visually compelling. I had heard it had been optioned...anyone know of the status?
mpom
Since I have set myself to the task of investigating as many lines of our family history as I can I have come across a few very interesting historical stories. The story of Laura Lawson Blair, her marriage to Gist Blair, and the adoption of her brother's daughter, also named Laura Lawson, Is most compelling. (See Link) The whole history of the Blair family is rich with historical connections. Any and all time frames would make a great movie. The house they lived in is in itself a gem as it is now our country's official guest house.
Laura Lawson's family history is also wonderfull. Her grandmother was Eliza Israel, who was the grand daughter of Israel Israel and his story of being captured by the British after the Battle of the Brandywine is another historical movie in itself. He was a Masonic Grand Master and saved by using the Masonic sign. Just Google the name "Israel Israel" for this story.
Israel Israel's story of his contribution to the city of Philadelphia during the Yellow Fever epidemic of 1793 would also be a great plot. Find the book "Bring Out your Dead" to read about this.
Another great story is about the whaleing ship Exeter. The real story of Moby Dick, The Exeter was wrecked after being rammed by a whale. The crew, set adrift in lifeboats, reverted to canabalism to survive. Read the book "Eating Owen" for this one. Owen Coffin was one of the unfortunate to be eaten.
http://www.amazon.com/Child-Blair-House-Laura-Marvel/dp/1403356548