We all know that a picture is worth 1,000 words, but can a movie capture 304 pages?
It’s been done before, but for University of Tampa professor John Capouya and screenwriter John Posey, it’s a serious question, and one they mean to answer.
Last Monday, Posey and Capouya presented their work in Reeves Theater.
Posey came from Cali. to work with Capouya on transforming his book, Gorgeous George, into a feature-length film.
When a writer selects a subject for his book, the standards are generally high.
Why write a book if no one will find it interesting?
Is there anyone but yourself who truly admires this person?
As it turns out, Capouya shares his interest with Bob Dylan, Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali), James Brown and John Waters.
Gorgeous George is the true story of American “baby-face” (good guy) wrestler George Wagner, who tried desperately to earn a living for he and his wife, Betty, during the Depression.
After recovering from a broken leg, Betty dyed George’s dark hair platinum blonde, and he took on the effeminate, gender-bending “heel” (bad guy) persona of “Gorgeous George” to attract viewers and earn more money.
For years he portrayed himself as a boisterous, pompous wrestler (to the point of recruiting a butler spray the ring with perfume before entering).
After a short life of fame and alcohol he died in 1963.
Capouya showed true admiration for Gorgeous George, a man who changed American pop-culture and whose story, Capouya says, is about “rejecting what your fate seems to be.”
Capouya’s success goes beyond his publication – he is co-producing a film (modified from his book) and a documentary about Gorgeous George, the former of which is being written by writer and actor John Posey.
“There’s so much color in this guy,” said Posey, who found Gorgeous George both captivating and moving.
Taking the podium, he described the cautious process of turning a great book into an equally great screenplay.
Posey discussed the tentative job of searching for those key points in a narrative that he could pull from the text.
“What are these moments that I can wrap everything around?” he asked.
Pressing a 304 page book into one hour and 55 minutes without losing the integral essence of the story is difficult and time-consuming.
Posey cautions, “You have to keep your page count down. By page 16 they have to be married or I’m in trouble!”
All of the information about George comes from history and first or second-hand accounts, like his 94 year-old ex-wife, Betty.
As such, the writing (of both Capouya and Posey) also bears the essential task of understanding someone who has been dead for nearly 50 years, and understanding why and how he did what he did.
“It was his spectacular ability to understand audience psychology and get people to really hate him and to pay to see him,” said Posey on George’s claim to fame.
For those of us who want to know ourselves, the book Gorgeous George by professor Capouya is already out.
The (slightly fictionalized) movie is hopefully on the way, with Posey working steadily on the screenplay.