Movieman, Wayne loved westerns, but he knew he had to vary the menu or people would get sick of the same meal. Hatari was for Hawks, so he would make it with a minimum of fuss, and Circus World was a big circus movie, a popular genre at the time. Rod Taylor tells a great story in the book about Wayn...

Mongo II, I suspect nothing happened between Wayne and Russell. Under ordinary circumstances, something would have happened, but Russell was obviously a bird with a broken wing, even though the full extent of the damage would take years to ascertain. I don't think Wayne wanted to make the situation ...

Miss Goddess, Sinatra and Wayne were united by being two guys on a very lonely mountain top - there were very few people on the same level they were.So they would have understood each other's pressures and problems in a way nobody else could. And they also would have shared a similar experience of n...

Mr. Regan,

I loved writing the Lubitsch book, I loved researching the Lubitsch book, especially the interviews. And I really loved watching all the Lubitsch movies. That's the great thing about artists - they leave their best selves behind in their work.

Miss Goddess, Not really. You could write a small book about Wayne's years in the B western wilderness, or a similar book about his activities as a producer with the Batjac organization. My intent was to write the book for one-stop shopping, the big-picture overview of a huge career. Like David Robi...

Hi Rita - I loved you in your pictures with Fred Astaire. 1. Merian Cooper thought Ford was a great director and he felt his job was to facilitate the making of Ford's pictures - find the money, get the actors Ford wanted, and so forth. He wasn't submissive at all, but he didn't intrude on Ford's ar...

Hi there. I haven't written a book about an actor since Mary Pickford. I think I shyed away from actors because they're primarily reactive, whereas directors and producers (usually) are the motivating forces behind the movies that get made. Frankly, if anyone else had written a smashing book about W...

A few more Ford Questions: 1.) Do you think that Ford exaggerated his connections to the Sinn Féin? 2.) How do you think the Irish in his time and now view his work? 3.) How much evidence did you unearth about John Ford's civilian role collecting info for the U.S. govenment during his travels on the...

Ten or so years later, stimulated by Kevin Brownlow's The Parade's Gone By, I started making trips to California to interview William Wellman, John Wayne, Jean Renoir and others. >> Mr Eyman, I wonder if Kevin Brownlow realizes how many of us he inspired with his book and the subsequent series Holly...

It certainly has been a pleasure and very enlightening having you join us, Mr. E. I'll bother you only with a couple more questions: 1) Was Jennifer Jones the original choice for Cluny Brown , or had Lubitsch anyone else in mind? 2) Were there ever plans for Lubitsch and Garbo to work together again...

]Unfortunately, I've been in the middle of several work crises, and haven't been able to get in much today. I do want to thank Mr. Eyman for coming. The idea of guest stars was an experiment on our part, and I hope it has been a successful one. I've learned something from the experience, and I hope ...

Mr. Eyman: First, thank you so much for being with us this week. If you should find time we hope you'll drop and join in with us in the future. Anyway, I appreciate your time and willingness to talk with us. This may be a pedestrian question but the silent era is not a strong suit of mine. Apart fro...

Hey, Mr Eyman, Thanks so much for answering my question concerning The Iron Horse . I really appreciate it, especially being from Nevada and all. I was wondering if you could talk a bit about The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance . It is one of my favorite Ford westerns and I love that the film is shot i...

Miss G, Mary was tough and funny. Yes, she came from Carolina - I think - aristocracy all the way back to the Revolution. And yes, since Ford was shanty Irish he had perhaps too great a respect for bloodlines. By profession she was a nurse, which probably came in handy - she was patient with his idi...

I've a couple of questions too: 1.) In "Mary Pickford, America's Sweetheart" you trace the way that the actress took her archetypal character of the sweet and vulnerable yet spunky girl as far as she could go on film, and contrasted that with her usually sound business sense off screen. Do...