I want to express my appreciation to Dame Joan Plowright for suggesting Sir Anthony Hopkins record the lines originally spoken by her late husband, Lord Laurence Olivier, in order to restore the famously censored “snails and oysters” scene. The film is now much closer to the one we shot—and for that I am deeply grateful.
The film Spartacus reflects the efforts of so many people. It’s impossible to thank all of them, but I especially want to thank my producer, Eddie Lewis, who first brought me the book. There were many days when neither of us thought the movie would ever get made.
I am very grateful for the cooperation of Maxine Ducey and the staff at the Center for Film and Theater Research at the University of Wisconsin, where my papers are housed.
I am glad that my wife, Anne, and our long-time friend and assistant, Fifi, compiled everything during the three years it took to make Spartacus—resulting in a huge scrapbook containing hundreds of clippings from all over the world.
When you write a story about something that happened fifty or sixty years ago, you learn (and relearn) a lot about yourself. My research editor, David Bender, delved into all my files at the University of Wisconsin and Universal Studios, as well as my scrapbooks. I was delighted to discover how much fun it was working with him while I traveled back in time to write this book. His assistance was indispensable to me.
I want to thank my assistant, Grace Eboigbe, the only person capable of transmitting my spoken or written words. Thanks also to Jeff Conway, John Gavin, Lee Grant, Angel McConnell, and Sam Vinal for kindly helping to make this book happen.
I am grateful to my children—Michael and his wife, Catherine; Joel and his wife, JoAnn; and Peter and his wife, Lisa—for their love and support. I remember Eric every day.
To my grandchildren, Cameron, Kelsey, Tyler, Ryan, Jason, Carys, and Dylan—Pappy loves you all very much.
About the Author
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.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this book. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.
copyright © 2012 by the Bryna Company
cover design by Andrea C. Uva
Unless otherwise noted, all images courtesy of Universal Studios Licensing LLC, photos taken by Dick Miller and William Reed (Globe Photos)
ISBN: 978-1-4532-3937-7
Published in 2012 by Open Road Integrated Media
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Table of Contents
Title Page
Foreword
Introduction
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Epilogue
Image Gallery
In Front of the Camera
Behind the Scenes
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Copyright