The next year saw the first of many celluloid takes on The Call of the Wild, this one by future Birth director D.W. The first known adaptation of London’s work was 1907’s The Sea Wolf, with at least three more versions following during the silent era alone. In yet another take on The Call of the Wild, a big Hollywood hybrid of live action and computer animation is reportedly budgeted in the realm of $100 million, and Martin Eden, a daring Italian adaptation of London’s autobiographical novel, has won prizes on the festival circuit. This year will bring two high-profile adaptations of London’s work-both very different from anything he could have imagined. By then, the media-savvy writer had appeared on-screen several times, and movie versions of his stories were already ubiquitous. The Birth of a Nation was released in 1915, greatly advancing “flickers” as both an art form and a political lightning rod. Yet he proved to be a very modern celebrity, using every tool available-including film-to expand his brand.ĭuring the last half of his life, motion pictures outgrew their initial identity as a presumedly short-term novelty. The most popular American writer of his too-brief heyday, Jack London died just over a century ago at the age of 40, his health seriously deteriorated by the long-term wear of alcohol, tropical maladies, and other ails.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |