Denis R. O'neill
Author, Screenwriter & Producer
The Author’s New Book
The Author’s Last Book
The Author’s Fourth Book
The Author’s Third Book
The Author’s Second Book
Screenplay Steamer Trunk
Author’s Note
All screenwriters have a steamer trunk of unmade screenplays, even the “father of modern film,” Jean Renoir, a friend of my father. I know this because when Pop died, I found a screenplay he had co-written with Renoir that never became a film… in a “steamer trunk” file in Pop’s Turkey Hill office. (I subsequently donated it to the Writers Guild; they were delighted to have it). There is no shame in having this steamer trunk; it reflects the reality of how hard it is to get any movie made. I’ve been lucky to have two made so far – with sole writing credit – a major studio picture (Universal) called The River Wild, and an independent film called A Shot at Glory.
I have written more than thirty screenplays, probably two thirds of them commissioned or subsequently bought, though never made. Some of them have fun Hollywood bits & pieces. James Coburn loved and optioned one, Murder Among Friends, a title that Kurt Vonnegut saw in my friend (and his son) Mark Vonnegut’s hands one day in East Hampton and thought was a great title. I had more than a few joyful drink meetings with Coburn at Moon Shadows restaurant on Pacific Coast Highway.
I have had tough luck with dying directors. Tony Richardson, with only a few months left to live, read and admired Spy Hotel…. A script set in Peshawar, Pakistan the granddaughter of screenwriter Julius Epstein thought reminded her of Casablanca. Tony told me to go to Morocco and make it for 5 million bucks. John Frankenheimer was attached to direct a script of mine called The Fourth Codex. He went in for back surgery and died on the operating table.
Being a fisherman, as well as a writer, I remain undaunted. A major truth I discovered about fishing, that applies to the film business and life in general, is this: No matter what anybody tells you about where to fish, how to fish, or what to fish with, the singular truth about fishing is that you won’t catch anything if your bait is not on the water. Here is some bait (screenplays) from my steamer trunk, that has had a few refusals over the years… but might yet make it to the big or small screen. I cast it upon these internet waters. What follows are thumbnail sketches of eight film projects. They are chosen for various reasons including quality of the script, notoriety of the story, and genre diversity.
Ruined (Dirty Water)
Genre: Historic drama/thriller
A Boston-based saga that starts in the 1960’s, in the era of Whitey Bulger and massive FBI corruption, and ends with a landmark legal settlement in 2007. It’s the true story of a WWII hero wrongfully (and shamefully) convicted of murder on the uncorroborated testimony of hitman and FBI informant Joe “The Animal” Barboza (first member of the Witness Protection Program)…. and the heroic East Boston lawyer, John Cavicchi, who fought the mob, the government and the Mafia-paranoid times to win Louis Greco posthumous honor, and a 25- million dollar judgement.
Million Dollar Bass
Genre: Romantic Comedy / Family Entertainment
A father and son comedy drama, set in Texas, with a romantic subplot. On the order of Blind Side. Strong middle America entertainment which incorporates three of the four pillars of Southern culture: NASCAR, Country Music, Bass fishing (college football being the fourth).
Strong country soundtrack potential, as well as some country star stunt casting.
Hindenburg
Genre: Historic Drama / Disaster Thriller. Tentpole
A gripping, reality-based reimagining of a travel disaster as famous as Titanic. (The last film version of the Hindenburg’s fateful flight was released in 1975. It starred George C. Scott and Anne Bancroft; the production was critically panned). Great casting and directing opportunity, as well as a strong candidate for international financing and worldwide commercial success.
Wild Train
Genre: Historic Drama / Thriller
Based on my father Charles O’Neill’s Random House novel. Wild Train is a Civil War drama that marries the action, heroism and suspense of The Dirty Dozen and The Great Escape with the audacious overlay of a more contemporary war film, Inglorious Basterds. It is the story of an American patriot, James Andrews, who was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to keep the Union intact. Of historic significance, for their efforts President Lincoln awarded six of the Andrews Raiders the first Congressional Medals of Honor given to soldiers.
Two prior versions of this story have been made. Buster Keaton’s silent (1920’s) movie The General was based on one element of the raid, as was the Disney Studio picture The Great Locomotive Chase in the 1950’s starring Fess Parker. The true, full story my father’s book captures in print has never been told on film. Thirty-two year-old Andrews, the leader, is a sensationally charismatic figure and sure shot Best Actor bait.
Murder Among Friends
Genre: Thriller
Set in and around Albuquerque, New Mexico, and featuring a weary (about to retire) newspaper photo editor. This dark and twisty tale (In the vein of The Usual Suspects) depicts two murders, thirty years apart… one to protect the other… played out against the final weeks of a heated Gubernatorial campaign. Great starring role for an older (60’s) actor. The late, James Coburn optioned the script and wanted to play the lead role of George.
Spy Hotel
Genre: International Thriller
A romantic, espionage thriller set against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in 1990. The story is inspired by the real-life exploits of James Nachtwey, the most celebrated war photographer of the past forty years (and co-“story by” writer). The “spy hotel” depicted is based on legendary Green’s Hotel in Peshawar, a gathering place for journalists, local characters, adventurers and international spies. Director Tony Richardson called it “Brilliant.”
Snippets from ICM coverage:
“The story is a finely woven, complex tale that never takes a misleading step, yet it is briskly paced and while hinting at its secret does not reveal it until the very end. This keeps the level of suspense up and holds our attention as the story unfolds….
…The main characters are well formed and evenly matched. The settings and locals, as well as the war, add to the sense of urgency, intrigue and excitement….
…SPY HOTEL is a well conceived and finely written espionage story. Taking place in exotic locales and filled with excitement, the project should do well at the box office. The project offers several fine acting vehicles and a solid directing opportunity.”
South From Bluie West
Genre: Historic Drama/Thriller
Commissioned by Ted Turner at TNT. An ultimately uplifting, true, crash & survival saga set in Greenland during the cold war – a story that was on the front pages of the New York Times for three weeks running and was featured in a Life Magazine article. I was privileged to hear the story first-hand from crash survivor Ed Thomson, who was navigator for the 1948 flight.
Ensemble cast with a star turn (Supporting Actor) opportunity for a young actor.
Screenplay Coverage:
Log line: Air Force flyers crash on a frozen tundra in 1948 and survive incredible hardship and failed rescue efforts, before a maverick officer pulls off an almost impossible air rescue.
“…Neither heroism or the military gets much play anymore, without the inclusion of sex, violence, or both. Nature and technical limitations are really the violent perpetrators here, and sex and romance are out of their element. Yet, uplifting and well-written stories are seemingly timeless, and this is such. Well-directed, perked even further with engrossing and entertaining dialogue, few would not enjoy this story. RECOMMEND.”
Humanzee
Genre: Horror
The only horror script in the steamer trunk. A blood & bikini horror saga involving six college graduates on a fateful Caribbean charter boat cruise that lands them on an island previously commandeered by the CIA and a secret project involving the torture of chimpanzees to help perfect terrorist interrogation techniques. Inexpensive to make; 90% one island location.
Series potential (Blood in the Water).
Steamer Trunk Bonus ~ TV Series Projects
All of these projects are outlined in full treatments. Some have pilot scripts.
MARIE
Genre: Law Enforcement / Dramatic Thriller
A law enforcement series, featuring the real-life exploits of former U.S. Fish & Wildlife special agent, Marie Palladini. Marie was a pioneer in performing dangerous undercover work in the company of notorious poachers. Her exploits were featured in Mark Reisner’s book GAME WARS, which Paramount Studio optioned and hired me to turn into a screenplay. (Marie kept her rights). Nina Tassler, head of programming for CBS, subsequently hired me to write a pilot script for a series based on Marie. Third time lucky: a starring role for an actress, in the reliable world of law enforcement, focused on protecting the environment. With a backpack of stories that could keep the series running for ten seasons.
DEEDS OF WAR
Genre: Historic Drama / Photojournalism
A limited, seven-part series featuring the exploits of legendary war photographer James Nachtwey. Jim’s career began in 1981 in Northern Ireland, covering the Bobby Sands funeral. Last March he photographed the atrocities committed by Russian soldiers in Bucha, Ukraine. The New Yorker ran those images, among the first to document the horrors of the Russian invasion. Jim has won the Robert Capa Gold Medal five times, more than any other photographer. He has been named “Magazine Photographer of the Year” eight times. Swiss director Christian Frei made a long form documentary about him called “War Photographer” that was nominated for an Academy Award in 1994, long form documentary division.
Our series uses the harrowing events of 9-11 as a fulcrum for the seven episodes. Jim was on scene for that tragedy, nearly buried alive when the second Trade Tower came down. Time Magazine ran a special of his photographs of that momentous day… including numerous “double-truck” images. From 9-11 we explore Jim’s career in war zones that include Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Uganda, Chechnya, and Ukraine.
The “business side” of photojournalism gets equal time in our series… revealing how decisions are made as to when, how, and how extensively to run photographs… or kill them outright. Our home office is based on Time… for whom Jim worked as a contract photographer for 30 years. Anderson Cooper taped a profile of Jim for Sixty Minutes in the autumn of 2022; release date uncertain.
THE SPECIALIST
Genre: Drama
Betrayal, greed, fine art, romance, raunch, crime, high society, intrigue, forgery, ambition, wealth, collusion, suspense, rivalry, divorce, death, deception. Welcome to the world of the art auction business – the world of The Specialist. Set in a fictional L.A. based art auction house (Willoughby’s) – and modeled on the world according to Christie’s and Sotheby’s – this one hour, closed-end drama offers a cast of characters (Specialists) whose collective experience provides a window into the colorful and seductive business of buying and selling art.
Series consultant Deborah McLeod was for twelve years Vice President of (and Specialist) for Post War and Contemporary Art at Christie’s. For the past fifteen years she has been director of Gagosian Gallery in Beverly Hills.
Pilot script exists.
VIDAL
Genre: Historic Celebrity Biography
Perhaps best known for his iconic marketing slogan, “If you don’t look good, we don’t look good,” English hairstylist & philanthropist Vidal Sassoon knew his fellow freedom fighter in the Sinai desert in 1948 didn’t look or feel good after taking an incoming round during the fighting that led to the founding of Israel. This rags to riches limited series describes the journey taken by my dear friend Vidal, from an orphanage in South London, to fighting Oswald Mosley and his Fascists in the streets of London during WW II, to the Sinai desert and back to London where his career began by sweeping up hair from the floors of various salons… to becoming the most famous “crimper” in London… and the world… with a pack of acting buddies that included Terrence Stamp, Peter O’Toole, Sean Connery, Michael Caine and Albert Finney… all of whom had breakthroughs in their film careers around the same time Vidal invented the “angular bob cut.” His breakthrough creation was an international sensation that boosted women’s new feelings of personal freedom. In doing so, he changed the craft of hairstyling forever.
In 2008, Queen Elizabeth honored Vidal with a CBE (Commander of the British Empire). When she made the appointment, the Queen said to him, “My, we’ve been around for a long time, haven’t we?” “Yes, your majesty, we have.” Vidal replied.
BBC America was interested in the series when Vidal and I took it to them shortly before he died in 2012. I spoke briefly at Vidal’s memorial service in St. Paul’s Cathedral in. I have extensive personal stories Vidal told to me during our long friendship. He wrote two memoirs which the series can also draw on, as well as reminiscences from his son, Elan.
CAMPUS
Genre: Comedy/Drama
J.B. Biggers is a most harried man. As Vice President for Public Affairs to the President of a prestigious university, his job is to fall on, toss aside, or disable all the hand grenades that roll into the President’s office on any given day, from offended professors, disgruntled students, demanding civic leaders, local law enforcement, and large dollar alumni doners who want their son or nephew admitted to the incoming freshman class. There may be a hi falutin’ Latin motto above the entrance to the school quad, but behind the ivy walls it’s all bare knuckles and raging turf battles.
Co-creator & co-writer Alan Stone knows this world well. He served for five years as Vice President to the President of Columbia University, and for five years in the same role for the original bull-in-the-China-shop, Harvard President, Larry Summers. After Harvard, he advised Northeastern President Joseph Aoun.
Two separate pilot scripts exist for the series.
