It seems to me that, given the wealth of material written both by and about the man, a first-rate modern novelist could do a slam-bang job on a novel about Mark Twain and his obsession with building a better printing press. Or rather, paying someone else to build one. The man lost a fortune in investments. Surely some genius could wrangle a half-million dollar advance for a brilliant postmodern examination on a prolific author’s drive to improve the physical production of words, a traveling lecturer’s interest in the rapid the dissemination of ideas, a wealthy man’s need to be even more wealthy set against his quest to see his dream succeed. Anyone? Anyone?
Literary Opportunity
March 12, 2008 by at 6:17 am
I bet Tim Powers could come up with quite a story using him.
I hope this doesn’t give the hubby any ideas, as he has quite the Twain fetish.
I’m sensing a film adaptation already…
Chris Cooper in looooads of make-up, what do you say?
Or Tommy Lee Jones?
Tommy Lee is a better choice, now that you mention it. The build is more believable.
The hubby says, over my shoulder, “There is only one man to play Twain in a biopic—ME! I will write, direct, and star. It will illustrate his obsession like The Aviator did, but be much scarier. I might let the Coen brothers be involved…”
Yikes.
See what you started.
Well, I liked his work on the graveyard movie. Maybe there’s some ridiculously wealthy Twain aficionado who will bankroll the thing?
His love of Joan of Arc would give you the Catholic underdog angle.