Sam Wasson

Sam Wasson is an American author and publisher, who often writes about the history of cinema in Hollywood. His works include the biography Fosse, the history books Improv Nation: How We Made a Great American Art and The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood and the co-authored Hollywood: The Oral History.

Sam Wasson
Born	Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation	Author, publisher
Notable works	Fosse Improv Nation The Big Goodbye Hollywood: The Oral History
Website
www.samwasson.com

Early life and education

Wasson was born in Los Angeles. His maternal grandfather was former Variety executive, Hal “Lew” Scott.^[1][2] Wasson attended Wesleyan University, and USC School of Cinematic Arts.^{[citation needed]}

Career

During the writing of a biography about Bob Fosse (titled Fosse) researcher Jane Klein and Wasson unearthed lost footage of Fosse's 1961 ABC television show "Seasons of Youth”.^[3] In 2014, Fosse was one of six books shortlisted for the $10,000 Marfield Prize^[4] and received the Special Jury Prize at the George Freedley Memorial Award.^[5] Production rights for a limited television series based on the book were purchased by television channel FX in 2018.^[6]

In 2020, Wasson published a book about the making of the 1974 movie Chinatown, titled The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood.^[7] Later that year, a film adaptation of The Big Goodbye was announced, with Lorne Michaels attached as producer and Ben Affleck as director.^[8][9] Also in 2020, Wasson co-founded a publishing house with producer Brandon Millan.^[10]

Wasson was a visiting professor at Wesleyan University^[11] and Emerson College.^[12]

In 2021, Wasson and William Rempel filed a lawsuit to unseal a 2010 deposition transcript of Roger Gunson, a former deputy district attorney, in relation to the Roman Polanski sexual abuse case.^[13] In July 2022, the court ruled for the transcripts to be unsealed.^{[14][15][16][17]}

In 2022, Wasson and Jeanine Basinger wrote an oral history book titled Hollywood: The Oral History.^[18][19]

Bibliography

Books

• A Splurch in the Kisser: The Movies of Blake Edwards. Wesleyan University Press. 2006. ISBN 978-0-8195-6977-6.
• Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman. HarperCollins. 2010. ISBN 978-0-0620-0013-2.^[20]
• Paul on Mazursky. Wesleyan University Press. 2011. ISBN 978-0-8195-7144-1.^[21]
• Fosse. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2013. ISBN 978-0-5475-5329-0.^[22]
• Improv Nation: How We Made a Great American Art. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2017. ISBN 978-0-5445-5720-8.^[23]
• The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood. Flatiron Books. 2019. ISBN 978-1-2502-6629-3.^[24]
• Hollywood: The Oral History. HarperCollins. 2022. ISBN 978-0-0630-5696-1.^[25]

References

1. Staff (April 12, 1996). "The Silver Fox". Variety.
2. Staff (April 12, 1996). "Obituary". The Hollywood Reporter.
3. Ginsberg, Merle & Gary Baum (November 7, 2013). "Bob Fosse Biographer Unearths Lost 1961 ABC Special". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
4. Ron Charles (March 11, 2014). "Terry Teachout among finalists for $10,000 Marfield Prize for arts writing". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
5. "Freedley Award Winners, 1969-Present". Theatre Library Association. September 12, 2022. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
6. Otterson, Joe (July 24, 2018). "FX Orders Bob Fosse Limited Series Starring Sam Rockwell, Michelle Williams With Lin-Manuel Miranda Producing". Variety. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
7. Maslin, Janet (February 4, 2020). "It's 'Chinatown,' Jake. On Second Thought, Don't Forget It". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
8. Kroll, Justin (April 7, 2020). "Ben Affleck To Direct Adaptation of 'Big Goodbye' For Paramount; Behind-The-Scenes Story Of The Making of 'Chinatown'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
9. Kiefer, Halle (2020-08-07). "Ben Affleck to Remind You It's Chinatown With His Adaptation of Making-Of Book The Big Goodbye". Vulture. Retrieved 2023-01-29.
10. Hudson, David (August 17, 2022). "August Books". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
11. Simon, Scott (November 2, 2013). "Fosse's Genius: Working Even As He Was Dying". NPR. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
12. John, John (October 6, 2021). "Sam Wasson gives Chinatown The Big Goodbye". Writers on Film. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
13. Cieply, Michael (November 28, 2021). "On Monday, A New Twist On The Quest For Sealed Testimony In The Polanski Case". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
14. "Wasson et al. v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County et al". Unicourt. April 14, 2022. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
15. Qeally, James (July 13, 2022). "Roman Polanski criminal case transcripts must be unsealed, court rules". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
16. Maddaus, Gene (July 13, 2022). "Appeals Court Orders Release of Roman Polanski Transcript". Variety. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
17. Cieply, Michael (July 18, 2022). "Roger Gunson's Unsealed Polanski Testimony Offers Not Bombshells, But Details And A Path Through The Thicket". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
18. Rich, Katie (October 5, 2019). "Hollywood, in Its Own Words". Vanity Fair. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
19. Yogerst, Chris (December 5, 2022). "Hollywood on Hollywood: On Jeanine Basinger and Sam Wasson's Oral History "Hollywood"". Los Angeles Review of Books. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
20. Reviews of Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman:
    • Staff (June 22, 2020). "As infectious as Mancini's score, and sure to please lovers of classic American cinema". Kirkus Reviews.
21. Reviews of Paul on Mazursky:
    • Leonard Maltin (September 2, 2011). "Book Review – Paul on Mazursky". LeonardMaltin.com.
22. Reviews of Fosse:
    • Janet Maslin (November 6, 2013). "A Showman Whose Dazzle Hid Darkness". The New York Times.
    • Mondello, Bob (November 7, 2013). "Biography Of Director Bob Fosse Razzles, Dazzles And Delights". NPR. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
    • Phillips, Michael (November 3, 2013). "Review: 'Fosse' by Sam Wasson". Chicago Tribune. Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
23. Reviews of Improv Nation: How We Made a Great American Art:
    • Justin, Neal (December 1, 2017). "Review: 'Improv Nation,' by Sam Wasson". Star Tribune. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
    • Canfield, David (December 1, 2017). "Improv Nation masterfully tells a new history of American comedy: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
    • Staff (December 5, 2017). "An entertaining book, recommended for aspiring comedians who want to historicize their practice". Kirkus Reviews.
24. Reviews of The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood:
    • Biskind, Peter (January 31, 2020). "Review: Sam Wasson takes a deep dive into 'Chinatown'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
    • Maslin, Janet (February 4, 2020). "It's 'Chinatown,' Jake. On Second Thought, Don't Forget It". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
    • Staff (February 4, 2020). "If you love Chinatown, then you'll love The Big Goodbye—and it's good reading for any American cinema buff". Kirkus Reviews.
25. Reviews of Hollywood: The Oral History:
    • Staff (November 8, 2022). "Fun firsthand accounts from 100 years of Hollywood history". Kirkus Reviews.
    • Schwarzbaum, Lisa (2022-12-09). "That's Entertainment! Here's a Dishy History of Hollywood". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
    • "Review: Oral history of Hollywood is fascinating, contradictory and only partly true". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
    • "Hollywood: The Oral History by Jeanine Basinger and Sam Wasson review – dinner with the stars". The Guardian. 2022-11-05. Retrieved 2022-12-31.

External links

• Official website
• Sam Wasson at IMDb