A few years ago, I was asked to help with a documentary film about Hunter S. Thompson. There was a long telephone call about his life and work. Then I was asked to read the proposal, which didn't mention me. I said I usually received an honorarium to evaluate works-in-progress, including ones I helped conceptualize. Crickets after that.
The film was never made, and today I learned the back story from a podcast called The Failed Pitch. It features doc ideas this fellow never got across the finish line. The HST episode consists of him and an all-purpose historian mixing facts and errors (not really fiction) for 43 minutes.
My favorite part is when the doc guy says he wanted the result to resemble ESPN's 30 for 30. Seems he didn't know there already was a 30 for 30 episode about HST at the Kentucky Derby.
Cheap is one thing, lazy is another. The combination should ensure that "The Failed Pitch" has plenty of fresh material.
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