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ONE-EYED JACKS, 1961
Pennebaker had spent almost as much money trying to develop a good script for a western as it had on the story about the United Nations, but none of the projects, including a western based on the plot of The Count Of Monte Cristo, worked out for various reasons. Then I heard about a novel by Charles Neider, The Authentic Death of Hendry Jones, which eventually became One-Eyed Jacks, one of my favourite pictures. It was the first and only picture I directed, although I didn't intend to. Stanley Kubrick was supposed to direct but he didn't like the screenplay. "Marlon" he said, "I've read the script and I just can't understand what this picture is about...So that was the end of it. I ran around, asked Sidney Lumet. Gadg [Kazan] and, I don't know, four or five people: nobody wanted to direct it. There wasn't anything for me to do except to direct it or go to the poorhouse. So I did.
I constantly improvised and rewrote between shots and setups, often hour by hour, sometimes minute by minute. Some scenes I shot over and over again from different angles with different dialogue and action because I didn't know what I was doing. I was making things up by the moment, not sure where the story was going... I don't want to do it again - a director has to get up too early in the morning - but it was entertaining to try to create reality, make a story interesting and to work with actors.
One-Eyed Jacks, 1961
Details
One-Eyed Jacks, 1961
A collection of early draft scripts for One-Eyed Jacks, including:
- a first draft script entitled A Burst Of Vermillion, dated 1 March, 1957, 194pp. of mimeographed typescript, with blue paper covers;
- a first draft script entitled Guns Up, the screenplay by Sam Peckinpah based on Charles Neider's The Authentic Death Of Hendry Jones, dated 11 November, 1957, 134pp. of mimeographed typescript;
- a draft script by Calder Willingham entitled Guns Up, dated 11 July, 1958, 156pp. of mimeographed typescript;
- a partial script by Calder Willingham entitled Guns Up, dated 17 June 1958, 52pp. of mimeographed typescript, with three pages annotated in Brando's hand with minor notes on the script;
- a preliminary script entitled One-Eyed Jacks, dated 24 November, 1958, 170pp. of mimeographed typescript;
- a book NEIDER, Charles The Authentic Death Of Hendry Jones, New York, 1956, with a typescript letter on Lewis Milestone headed stationery, dated 3 October, 1956, telling Brando I think the book I'm sending you merits your attention..., 1p.; and related material (6)
A collection of early draft scripts for One-Eyed Jacks, including:
- a first draft script entitled A Burst Of Vermillion, dated 1 March, 1957, 194pp. of mimeographed typescript, with blue paper covers;
- a first draft script entitled Guns Up, the screenplay by Sam Peckinpah based on Charles Neider's The Authentic Death Of Hendry Jones, dated 11 November, 1957, 134pp. of mimeographed typescript;
- a draft script by Calder Willingham entitled Guns Up, dated 11 July, 1958, 156pp. of mimeographed typescript;
- a partial script by Calder Willingham entitled Guns Up, dated 17 June 1958, 52pp. of mimeographed typescript, with three pages annotated in Brando's hand with minor notes on the script;
- a preliminary script entitled One-Eyed Jacks, dated 24 November, 1958, 170pp. of mimeographed typescript;
- a book NEIDER, Charles The Authentic Death Of Hendry Jones, New York, 1956, with a typescript letter on Lewis Milestone headed stationery, dated 3 October, 1956, telling Brando I think the book I'm sending you merits your attention..., 1p.; and related material (6)