#wolf mankowitz

[ozu-teapot]

A Kid for Two Farthings | Carol Reed | 1955

The book of the film of the book

[mariocki]

The Two Faces Of Dr. Jekyll (Jekyll's Inferno, 1960)

"Your friend talked to me like a common whore!"

"In all fairness, he never implied that you were common."

[grindhousecellar]

[cinephiliabeyond]

One of the most interesting cultural personas of the British fifties and sixties, the versatile writer Wolf Mankowitz made a name for himself in the spheres of literature, film industry and theater. As a child of two Russian Jewish immigrants, he lived in poverty but unexpectedly got the opportunity to turn the tables around when he received a scholarship for Cambridge, where he went to study English and soon dedicate himself to writing. In 1952 he published his first novel 'Make Me an Offer,' which was soon turned into a film and a successful West End musical. The very next year his biggest literary success came out: 'A Kid for Two Farthings' was translated into many languages and ultimately ended up as a Carol Reed film. In 1960 he wrote the script for Anthony Asquith's The Millionairess, an adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's play with Sofia Loren and Peter Sellers in leading roles, and his musical Expresso Bongo, a fine satire of the music industry, blossomed as a successful movie with Cliff Richard and Laurence Harvey. Interestingly enough, one of Mankowitz's biggest contributions to the world of cinema came surprisingly from a project he didn't even want his name on. Mankowitz introduced his friend Albert 'Cubby' Broccoli to Harry Saltzman, the man who held the film rights to James Bond. This partnership instigated one of the biggest franchises in the history of film business starting with Dr. No, but Mankowitz, fearing the movie would be a huge flop that could potentially seriously damage his reputation, asked that his name be removed from the credits, even though he worked on the script. Mankowitz would later, however, write the screenplay for the 1967 Bond movie Casino Royale.

Mankowitz continued to write all the way until 1991, when he anounced he suffered from cancer and stepped away from the spotlight. Some MI5 files released in 2010 revealed that the famous screenwriter and playwright had been seen as a security risk by the secret service for roughly a decade after the Second World War due to his Russian roots, connections and the fact that his wife was once a member of the Communist Party, a suspicion that caused Mankowitz to unsuccessfully apply for several BBC positions during the fifties. He was ultimately allowed to join BBC on a three-week contract to translate and dub Anton Chekhov's The Bear for television, but not before BBC consulted the secret service first, concluding that translating Chekhov, despite Mankowitz's obviously controversial background, failed to present any serious security risks for the country.

Today we bring you a precious interview with Mr. Mankowitz published in the February, 1974 edition of the great Filmmakers Newsletter. The esteemed novelist and screenwriter talks about the differences between writing for the stage, film and literary audiences, about his greatest professional successes, the problems he faced throughout his career, the role of the writer both as someone who tries to illuminate and to entertain, and much more. It's a wonderful and educational read we wholeheartedly recommend, especially if you want to learn more about the craft from the mouth of one of Britain's best.

Screenwriting Lessons from One of Britain's Best: A Rare Interview with Wolf Mankowitz

[brianjonesoftherollingstones]

Timewarp to 1965 & the Immediate Records Launch Party

1965 Through The Past Darkly - Part III Timewarp to 1965 & the Immediate Records Launch Party "On the evening of 20 August, the Immediate launch party was held at Wolf Mankowitz's upmarket Pickwick club tucked away off Charing Cross Road in Soho. Wolf was the father of new Rolling Stones photographer Gered Mankowitz.... Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page mixed it up with new US act the Byrds.....Marianne Faithfull and Oldham's latest discovery, ice queen Nico lent the party a different layer of exoticness. Faithfull and Nico, along with Oldham's wife Shelia and Keith Richard's girlfriend, Linda Keith, passed around marijuana. (Tony) Calder was there with a young Steve Marriot, who was hitting on Mick Jagger's girl Chrissie Shrimpton. The Who's managers, Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp, who kept offices in the same apartment block as Immediate, were all ears on how to retaliate against the music business and make their own millions. Their fresh faced charge, Pete Townshend partied for five minutes but was a little in awe of Keith Richards and had taken too much speed to enjoy the lush surrounds. Of the Rolling stones, Charlie was dapper, Bill was on the pull and Brian shook his blond hair a lot and grinned his leary grin. The party happily coincided with the release of the Rolling Stones' 'Satisfaction' in the UK. The track had already been released in the US and was a massive hit there; a first US number one for the band. Everyone at the party was blown away by "Satisfaction' and it required little hype from Oldham...." --from pages 18-20 of "Immediate+ Labels Unlimited" by Simon Spence

[mynameisbondjamesbond]

BBC says MI5 suspected 007 screenwriter of being a Communist agent

Wolf Mankowitz has only one official 007 screenwriting credit but his influence extends beyond that. Anyway, the writer was monitored by the U.K.’s MI5, which suspected Mankowitz of being a Commnist agent, the BBC reported this week, citing newly released government records.

You can read the full story BY CLICKING HERE. Here’s a brief excerpt:

Born in London’s East End, Mr Mankowitz attended the University of Cambridge where he joined the university’s Socialist Society and met his wife Ann, a Communist Party member.

MI5 first became interested in Mr Mankowitz in 1944, when the couple were living in Newcastle.

Mankowitz is one of the credited screewriters of producer Charles K. Feldman’s 1967 spoof version of Casino Royale. But a few years earlier, he introduced Harry Saltzman, who held an option on Ian Fleming’s 007 novels that was running out, with Albert R. Broccoli. That fateful meeting resulted in the 1961 formation of Eon Productions, the company that produces the official Bond film series.

Mankowitz worked on the new company’s first project, Dr. No, along with Richard Maibaum but, according to the documentary Inside Dr. No, pulled out, fearing the project would be a disaster.

Also, according to film historian Adrian Turner’s 1998 book on Goldfinger, Mankowitz sold Saltzman an idea that was incorporated in to that 1964 film. Turner quotes Mankowitz as saying he came up with the idea of having a Mafia chief put into the trunk of a car that would be run a car crushing machine. The price: 500 British pounds.

Also, here’s a shoutout to Jeremy Duns, author of the spy novel Free Country, from whom we learned of the BBC story on Mankowitz.

by The HMSS Editors