By RAY KELLY
While Orson Welles fans eagerly await completion of The Other Side of the Wind, a new book chronicles the making, unraveling and failed attempts to finish Hollywood’s most famous unseen movie.
Josh Karp, who teaches journalism at Northwestern, began work on Orson Welles’s Last Movie: The Making of The Other Side of the Wind nearly four years ago. He tracked down scripts, interviewed more than 80 people connected with the film and screened about 90 minutes or so of unseen footage starring John Huston as Jake Hannaford, an aging director attempting to make his comeback film with no shortage of difficulty.
Welles’ genius and foibles are laid bare in a lively book, which is both entertaining to read and rich in detail. It has received kudos from The Hollywood Reporter, Kirkus Reviews, and noted Welles biographer Simon Callow.
In addition to informative and often amusing stories about the filming of The Other Side of the Wind in the early 1970s, Karp casts a spotlight on the repeated failed attempts to complete the film in the decades following Welles’ death. Cameraman Gary Graver proved to be fiercely loyal to Welles until the end of his own life. Readers also learn that Welles’ companion, Oja Kodar, effectively sank a Showtime deal to complete the film a few years back when she sought more money from the cable network.
Karp, who has graciously fielded questions from Wellesnet about his research since 2011, talked about Orson Welles’s Last Movie, which arrives in stores today.
When you began this book four years ago, the chances of The Other Side of the Wind being completed seemed remote. It now appears to be lurching toward completion. What changes took place to make this happen?
I think the right people started working on it for the right reasons at the right time. Filip (Jan Rymsza), Jens (Koethner Kaul) and Frank Marshall all came to the project for the reasons that people who were on the crew came to the project and stayed. Not to get rich, or famous or for any purpose other than to help Orson Welles make a movie – which those most involved with OSOTW considered to be an important thing to do. Because of this, they were willing to put their own egos and their own needs aside to help Welles make the film. Here you have people who seem to simply want to get this movie out in the world because it’s also important. For whatever reason, that seems to really be the proper motivation when you’re involved with OSOTW.
Also, I think that approach was what enabled them to secure the rights from (producer) Astrophore and to make deals with Oja and Beatrice (Welles). Time was also a factor there, as some lot of the drama – it seems – had been drained from the situation over the years. And finally, I think these guys have been really patient and stuck with what remains a very difficult project to complete on every level – financially, in terms of bringing parties together and creatively. It’s not for the weak of heart and it takes a lot of diplomacy and diligence. My hat is off to anyone that can do what they’ve done so far.
At the recent Sedona International Film Festival, many of the crew member you assembled for a panel discussion were brimming with stories to tell. Is that what it was like for you as a researcher?
I think that – even for people who’ve gone on to big careers – working with Welles on this film was a remarkable, once in a lifetime experience. Even someone like (CBS CEO) Les Moonves, who was only there for a few days, wanted to talk about it. It’s something that everyone keeps on their resume. It’s been in the obituaries of everyone who ever worked on the picture.
So, yes, the stories were remarkable and just about everyone who was there had incredible stories to tell, because Welles was one of those people who could just sweep you up into his orbit and everything that happened once you were there had this kind of epic quality, whether it was the meal you ate with him, the joke he told you, the tantrum he threw or the extraordinary artistry he demonstrated. On top of that, there was so much chaos and pathos involved in the making of the film, that anyone who was there experienced at least one – and often many – things that they would remember as long as they lived. I was very fortunate to work on a project that effected people that way because it never got boring and people never ran out of great stories to tell.
You have interviewed 83 people connected with The Other Side of the Wind. Is there anyone living who declined to be interviewed?
I spoke to Oja Kodar but did not interview her. She was willing, but on terms that I respected, but to which I couldn’t agree. I really would have liked to get her perspective on all of this, but you never get to talk to everybody. I experienced the same thing on my first book, where someone equally significant to the story wouldn’t talk. So, at least it was less daunting the second time around.
You came to this project with little background on Welles. Now, you are featured speaker at several centennial events. How have you been welcomed into the ranks of Welles scholars?
It’s a little scary, because I’m not a Welles scholar. I’m a writer who took an interest in an incredible story featuring the greatest single real life character you could ever hope to write about. I always have admired Welles, understood his place in history and loved his films. But, there are so many people who have dedicated careers to studying his work that can talk in great depth about any number of things that I just am not equally well-versed in.
In terms of writing the book it was great, because people like Joe McBride and the many other Welles experts educated me – either directly, or through their books and articles. I love to learn about people like Welles and how they did what they did – and there is no end to what you can learn about him. I understand why he takes on such a fascination for so many people. And everyone that I’ve encountered has been very willing to share their time and expertise.
Few people have seen the footage you have. What is your impression of The Other Side of the Wind?
When I first began watching the footage I was unsure of how I was going to feel. And it took me a little while to settle into the visual style and the way Welles had chosen to tell the story. But, I realized that pretty quickly I settled into the rhythm of the film and was transfixed. There were many extraordinary things in the footage, but what really got me were the performances Welles got out of John Huston and Peter Bogdanovich. They are extraordinary in the film and there is such unexpected depth to their performances that really made the story work. That’s what really sticks with me.
That said, I don’t think you can really know what it all adds up to until you’ve seen it put together as a whole film. I’m very hopeful that is going to happen after all these years because I’m as curious as anyone to see the final result.
While Welles maintained the film was not autobiographical, what similarities did you find between Welles and Jake Hannaford?
Both men are famous directors returning to Hollywood after a long absence looking to make a comeback movie. Both are having money problems and experiencing some significant difficulties in completing a film that’s very important to them. I think that Welles built in some very clear differences – particularly by making Hannaford such an archetypal man’s man and having him played by Huston, to whom he was similar in an incredible number of ways but whose persona was quite the opposite of Orson’s.
That said, I think there was a lot of Orson in the story and in the character. It’s not pure autobiography, but it has a remarkable intersection with his life, his career and his relationships. Which makes it very Wellesian, every time you look it at as one thing you can see the opposite and vice versa. No easy answers.
***
Josh Karp is the author of A Futile and Stupid Gesture: How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever and Straight Down the Middle: Shivas Irons, Bagger Vance and How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love My Golf Swing. Check out previous Wellesnet interviews with Josh Karp conducted in October 2011 and December 2012.
________
Post your comments on the Wellesnet Message Board.