S28
THE ENVELOPE LOS ANGELES TIMES TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2019
A
t one point
in “Dolemite
Is My Name,”
the screen-
writer insists
that his cre-
ative projects
have “to inform as well as enter-
tain.” This was also our personal
mission with our script for the
film. On the surface, it is a rowdy,
joke-filled love letter to low-
budget filmmaking. But it’s also
an in-depth look at segregation in
Hollywood.
Because they couldn’t get past
the gatekeepers, performers of
color were forced to create a
separate showbiz world. We
wanted to teach audiences about
this forgotten, recent history. But
it was a long journey to get here.
Sixteen years ago, we got a
message that Eddie Murphy
wanted to meet us. We were giddy,
since we were huge fans (and who
isn’t?). When we arrived at his
office, Eddie immediately started
performing dialogue from our film
“Ed Wood,” imitating Tor Johnson
and Bela Lugosi. Our minds were
blown. Then he smiled.
“Do you guys know who Rudy
Ray Moore is?” We both started
laughing — oh, yes, we knew. In
college in the ’80s, we were ob-
sessed with Rudy, watching his
VHS tapes and listening to his
albums. And now Eddie wanted
to play Rudy, which was perfect.
A legend playing a legend. We
always try to write movies we
want to see, and this was one we
would be first in line for.
Eddie waved his magic wand,
and days later we were in a room
with the real Rudy Ray Moore.
Yes, Rudy arrived as Dolemite,
loud and full of bluster. Rudy was
a larger-than-life persona, and he
saw his life as myth. He told us
his story and how it could trans-
late into film. But as he talked, he
softened. We could see the real
man underneath.
The years of struggle had
taken a toll on him. Dolemite
wasn’t who Rudy Ray Moore was
... he was a do-anything character
Rudy created in order to succeed.
And he still hadn’t given up.
That’s why we called the movie
“Dolemite Is My Name” — be-
cause it is about a vulnerable manliving with his heroic creation.
But, sadly, we couldn’t get a
studio to take the project. They
saw it as too fringe. The language
was too strong. They didn’t
understand how sweet we could
make it. Years went by. Rudy
passed away in 2008. We felt
terrible because we had promised
him we would tell his story. We
put together a tribute evening at
the American Cinematheque, and
Rudy’s screenwriter Jerry Jones,
cinematographer Nicholas von
Sternberg and “Dolemite” com-poser Ben Taylor participated. It
was beautiful.
More years passed. We heard
talk that other people wanted to
do Rudy’s story or remake
“Dolemite,” but it never hap-
pened. Then we created the
television miniseries “The People
v. O.J. Simpson.” That show
became a sensation, and we
realized we had a short opportu-
nity to maybe go sell a crazy
project. Through producers John
Davis and John Fox, we sent a
message to Eddie, asking if hewas still interested in doing
Rudy. Eddie immediately replied:
1000 percent!
Within weeks, the five of us
were pitching at Netflix, and for a
movie that started a lifetime
earlier, we had a home.
As we wrote the script, it was
important to us that it not just be
“Ed Wood, Part 2.” We researched
the underground album business
of the ’70s and the Chitlin Circuit
nightclubs. This grabbed our
attention — it was a world we had
never seen on film before. Weinterviewed actors Glynn Tur-
man and Hawthorne James, who
told us about the Inner City
Cultural Center, where black
performers, writers and directors
practiced their craft when they
weren’t getting jobs.
When we write stories set in
the past, it is important to us that
they also reflect upon the world
today. We felt “Dolemite Is My
Name” could actually be about the
importance of representation on
screen. When Rudy and his
friends watch big-budget studio
movies, they don’t see anyone
with whom they can relate. Even
someone who’s a star to them,
actor D’Urville Martin, is forced to
admit that in Hollywood movies,
he still has to play an elevator
operator.
So this group creates a DIY
film on their own. Nobody will
fund them, so entrepreneurial
Rudy uses every last cent he has.
He is warned that he will lose it
all — that you are not supposed to
make a film that appeals only to
the five square blocks of people
you know. Rudy shrewdly re-
sponds: “But every city in Ameri-
ca has those same five blocks.” He
is betting on himself and his
world. At the end, Lady Reed
thanks Rudy for including her,
because she’s never seen any-
body who looks like herself up on
that screen. This was the message
of our film.
Of course, we still wanted to
make an outrageously funny and
entertaining movie. A film that
brought together all the talent that
bursts from Eddie Murphy, from
stand-up comedy to music per-
formance to tender drama. And we
wanted to do it in a way that was
light and joyful. Our hope is that
people will see Rudy’s story — a
man who created his art and never
gave up, even after years of rejec-
tion — and be inspired to create
their own art. 8ON WRITING | SCOTT ALEXANDER & LARRY KARASZEWSKI
Risking it all
to be creative
It took 16 years to bring to the screen ‘Dolemite Is My Name,’
a story of persistence, inclusion and inspiration in Hollywood.
EDDIE MURPHY
is Rudy Ray Moore
in “Dolemite Is My
Name” — “a legend
playing a legend.”Francois DuhamelNetflix