I Am Spartacus!, Kirk Douglas
I Am Spartacus!, Kirk Douglas
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I Am Spartacus!
Making a Film, Breaking the Blacklist

Author: Kirk Douglas, George Clooney

Narrator: Michael Douglas

Unabridged: 5 hr 15 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/12/2012


Synopsis

From Kirk Douglas, Hollywood royalty and bestselling author of The Ragman’s Son and My Stroke of Luck, comes the candid story of the making of Spartacus, the blockbuster film that broke the blacklistOne of the world’s most iconic movie stars, Kirk Douglas has distinguished himself as a producer, philanthropist, and author of ten works of fiction and memoir. Now, more than fifty years after the release of his enduring epic Spartacus, Douglas reveals the riveting drama behind the making of the legendary gladiator film. Douglas began producing the movie in the midst of the politically charged era when Hollywood’s moguls refused to hire anyone accused of Communist sympathies. In a risky move, Douglas chose Dalton Trumbo, a blacklisted screenwriter, to write Spartacus. Trumbo was one of the “Unfriendly Ten,” men who had gone to prison rather than testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee about their political affiliations. Douglas’s source material was already a hot property, as the novel Spartacus was written by Howard Fast while he was in jail for defying HUAC.With the financial future of his young family at stake, Douglas plunged into a tumultuous production both on- and off-screen. As both producer and star of the film, he faced explosive moments with young director Stanley Kubrick, struggles with a leading lady, and negotiations with giant personalities, including Sir Laurence Olivier, Charles Laughton, Peter Ustinov, and Lew Wasserman. Writing from his heart and from his own meticulously researched archives, Kirk Douglas, at ninety-five, looks back at his audacious decisions. He made the most expensive film of its era—but more importantly, his moral courage in giving public credit to Trumbo effectively ended the notorious Hollywood blacklist.

About Kirk Douglas

Kirk Douglas is a renowned actor who appeared in over ninety movies before retiring from film acting in 2004. His work on and off the screen has been rewarded with three Academy Award nominations, an Oscar for Lifetime Achievement, and the Medal of Freedom. Through his production company, Bryna, he has produced acclaimed films such as The Vikings, Lonely Are the Brave, Paths of Glory, and Seven Days in May. A master storyteller, Douglas has also penned ten novels and memoirs. In 2009, he starred in an autobiographical one-man show called Before I Forget at the Center Theatre Group’s Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles. Douglas maintains an active life in Beverly Hills and Montecito, where he resides with his beloved wife Anne.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Olethros on January 18, 2021

-Un vistazo entre bambalinas.- Género. Biografía (pero sin ser eso, ni una crónica por más que use varias de sus herramientas). Lo que nos cuenta. El libro Yo soy Espartaco (publicación original: I Am Spartacus! Making a Film, Breaking the Blacklist, 2012), con el subtítulo Rodar una película, acabar......more

Goodreads review by María on May 09, 2020

Emocionantísimo......more

Goodreads review by Jim on September 25, 2015

This is a surprisingly good book about the difficulty of getting a great film made. And it was written by the man in charge, Actor and Producer Kirk Douglas. I Am Spartacus!: Making a Film, Breaking the Blacklist tells us not only about the making of the film, but also how this country of ours morph......more

Goodreads review by Paul on February 22, 2014

This was one of my monthly book club selections. I was eager to read it because it promised an insider's view of the Hollywood blacklist, when many notable figures were driven out of the film industry in a national frenzy of witch hunting. I was far less interested in Kirk Douglas himself, but my opi......more