You probably know George RR Martin as the mind behind some of the biggest books and TV shows in history: game of Thrones. But what you might not know is that he also self-financed four short films based on the stories of a close friend.
In the early 1960s, 15-year-old Martin in Bayonne, New Jersey, was looking for a very rare DC comic. “brave and bold #28 is very important,” said the literary giant hollywood reporter. “Because this is the first appearance of the Justice League of America.”
The author managed to find and purchase the comic from a teenage boy in Arlington, Texas, for a quarter of the price. The boy’s name was Howard Wardrop, and this was the beginning of a lifelong friendship. “I love this guy. I still miss him,” Martin said. “He’s definitely my oldest friend in the world of science fiction and fantasy.”
Waldrop was an American science fiction writer who wrote mainly short stories. He spent most of his life in Austin, Texas, and often incorporated elements of alternative history, pop culture, the American South, old movies, or classical mythology into his writing. His work has been celebrated to some degree—in 2021, he was awarded the World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award. Wardrop is generally regarded as a more cult figure than his peer Martin, who went on to achieve great mainstream success.
Martin and Wardrop remained friends until January this year, when Wardrop died of a stroke on the 14th.
“We started writing letters to each other, real letters — that’s what we did back then,” Martin said of buying comics. “We just hit it off long distance. We were both aspiring writers. That was our first interaction. It was 1963, and there was a guy named John Kennedy in the White House. [But] It wasn’t until 1972 that I actually met Howard in person.
Now, Martin has created a short film based on one of Wardrop’s short stories to pay homage to his old friend—one that he hopes will become an Oscar contender: ugly chickenMartin produces, Michael Cassut writes, and Mark Russo directs. The half-hour film is adapted from Waldrop’s short film of the same name (which won him a 1980 Nebula Award).
When HBO acquired the television rights to “Martin,” Martin became famous, and Martin and Wardrop’s relationship went through stormy waters. game of Thrones In 2008, Wardrop didn’t have the same success. “Howard is not a business person,” Martin said. “I wrote a lot of short stories and sold them, but eventually I started writing novels and series because you can’t live off short stories. They didn’t pay much.
That’s not to say that Wardrop didn’t have talent – quite the contrary, Martin said: “He was a fantastic writer. There was no one like Howard. Wardrop’s career was not without critical acclaim. But including Martin in His peers were concerned about his finances and health in his later years, thanks to which Martin achieved financial success. game of Throneshe wanted to strike a deal to turn some of Wardrop’s stories into short films, but it wasn’t easy.
“It’s hard to get anyone to fund a short film,” Martin said THR. “Cinemas don’t want to show short films. I own a cinema myself, so I know that. And it’s hard to get the big studios to make them. I tried for years… and finally I gave up.
Then the author decided to break “a cardinal rule of Hollywood.”
As Waldrop’s health continued to decline, Martin was determined to honor his friend by bringing his work to the big screen. “The cardinal rule of Hollywood is: never use your own money. I broke that. I [thought]”Hell, I’m going to use my own money,” he added. “So we put these films into production – three of them are now complete. Two more are in post-production.
ugly chickenstarring Felicia Day (supernatural, guild), filmed alongside an adaptation of Wardrop’s short story mary margaret grader and Kut night. These films are now playing on the film festival circuit, chicken The film has been nominated for Best Short Film at the HollyShorts Film Festival, an Oscar-qualifying short film festival in Los Angeles, and received a Special Mention at the DuHok Film Festival in Iraq.
ugly chicken It follows a professor named Paula Linberl who, after learning that the supposedly extinct dodo bird may still exist, embarks on a cross-country expedition to solve the mystery. “I think what you’re focusing on is environmentalism,” Martin said of the story’s appeal. “But the story is interesting. When you read Howard’s story, you’ll learn a lot more about the dodo than you ever thought possible. [Laughs.]
Before his death, Martin showed a rough cut of the film to his friends. “I’m glad he enjoyed it so much,” he said. “I said, ‘Okay, we’re almost done. We still have some post-production work to do, but we’ll show you. But of course, that never happened. He died six days after seeing the rough cut. .
Felicia Day in “Ugly Chicken.”
Wardrop’s original production had one change: changing the protagonist from “Paul” to “Paula.” Martin said gender didn’t matter, but hinted at changes in the adaptation of his own book – something he’s been outspoken about before. “Maybe I’m one of the few people in Hollywood who still believes that when you adapt a work of art, a novel, a short story, you should adapt it faithfully,” he said. “[It] It annoys me so much because they change things but I don’t think they usually improve things.
Is it fair to say that Martin is using his career to give Wardrop the recognition he never achieved? “I guess you could say that,” Martin replied. “I hope these movies will bring him a wider audience because he has a lot of books and a lot of short stories. If these little 30-minute shorts do well enough, if they make at least some money, then we’ll More will be made. Howard has at least 100 stories, but they are all wonderful and unique in their own way.
Of course, in a conversation with George R.R. Martin, it would be remiss not to ask him how he balances these projects with his long-awaited sixth and final book. winter windin his A Song of Ice and Fire series. “Unfortunately, I’m 13 years too late,” he said. “Every time I say that, I [like]”How could I be 13 years late?” I don’t know, this kind of thing happens every day.
He continued: “But it’s still a priority. A lot of people are already writing my obituary. [They’re saying] “Oh, he’ll never finish.” Maybe they’re right. I have no idea. I’m still alive now! I look very energetic! He added that he would never retire – he was “not a golfer”.
For now, Martin is focused on his love for Wardrop. In many ways, this adaptation of his short story is an ode to a 61-year friendship that all began with Justice League of America . “That comic book is probably worth $10,000 today,” Martin said brave and bold #28. “But Howard never cared about that. We would laugh together. I’m lucky to have friends like that.
