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Paul D. Zimmerman (July 3, 1938 in New York City, New York – March 2, 1993 in Princeton, New Jersey) was a screenwriter, film critic and activist.
Paul D. Zimmerman was born on 3 July 1938 in New York, New York, USA. Paul D. was a writer, known for The King of Comedy (1982), Lovers and Liars (1979) and Consuming Passions (1988). Paul D. was married to Barbara.
- Writer
- July 3, 1938
- Paul D. Zimmerman
- March 2, 1993
Paul D. Zimmerman was born on July 3, 1938 in New York, New York, USA. Paul D. was a writer, known for The King of Comedy (1982), Lovers and Liars (1979) and Consuming Passions (1988). Paul D. was married to Barbara. Paul D. died on March 2, 1993 in Princeton, New Jersey, USA.
- July 3, 1938
- March 2, 1993
Mar 8, 1993 · Paul D. Zimmerman, critic, screenwriter, political activist, born 3 July 1938, married 1965 Barbara Jacobson (one son, one daughter), died New York City 2 March 1993.
- The King of Comedy Was Inspired by An Actual Obsessive Fan.
- Martin Scorsese Wasn’T The First Director attached.
- Martin Scorsese Didn’T Want to Do It at first.
- Johnny Carson Was The First Choice For Jerry Langford.
- Johnny Carson Wasn’T The only Potential Jerry Langford.
- Rupert Pupkin’S Look Came from A Mannequin.
- Jerry Lewis Renamed His character.
- Martin Scorsese Hated Making The King of Comedy.
- Jerry Lewis Directed One Scene himself.
- Improvisation Played A Key Role in The Film.
Though it didn’t make its way to the screen until 1983, The King of Comedy actually has its origins in the early 1970s, when Paul D. Zimmerman—then a writer for Newsweek—began thinking about the nature of fame and fandom after reading a story about a man who was obsessed with Johnny Carson. Zimmerman was directly inspired by "an article in Esquire ...
With the seed of a fan obsessed with a talk show host firmly planted in his hand, Zimmerman began working with a famous director on a screenplay for what would become The King of Comedy, but that director wasn’t Martin Scorsese. According to Zimmerman, he was initially developing the film with Milos Forman (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest), and the...
The King of Comedy arrived in Martin Scorsese’s hands through Robert De Niro, who’d come across the screenplay and brought it to Scorsese in 1974. Scorsese, who knew Zimmerman as a journalist, liked the screenplay, but found it hard to “get excited” about it. Years later, while Scorsese was finishing Raging Bull, De Niro brought him the screenplay ...
With Scorsese onboard as director and De Niro committed to playing the leading role of Rupert Pupkin, the duo turned their attention to finding the right actor for the talk show host at the center of the film, Jerry Langford. Of course, De Niro and Scorsese went to the obvious choice first, and asked Johnny Carson—whose obsessive fans were an inspi...
When Carson said no to playing Jerry Langford, Scorsese and De Niro looked at a number of other famous showmen who might be able to carry the role, but none of them worked out. Among the other potential Jerryswere Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Orson Welles, and Dick Cavett. As Scorsese began to look at various Las Vegas acts for possible inspirat...
With pre-production underway, De Niro began to dive into the character of Rupert Pupkin with Scorsese. The actor took his director everywhere from comedy clubs to the homes of autograph hunters in a search for inspiration. But perhaps the most serendipitous piece of the Rupert Pupkin puzzle arrived when De Niro took Scorsese and costume designer Ri...
Jerry Lewis brought plenty of his own style and working method to the film, and it all began with the name of the character. According to Lewis, the character’s name in the script was actually Robert, not Jerry, but he persuaded Scorsese to change it for the reactions he’d get while acting on the streets of New York City. "I said, 'Marty! We're goi...
The King of Comedy brought a number of logistical difficulties with it. Scorsese had to move up the production start date to avoid a directors’ strike, and shooting on the streets of New York City often proved to be a headache. To make matters worse, Scorsese had pushed himself so hard to finish Raging Bull that by the time The King of Comedyrolled...
Lewis’s comedic timing and attention to detail were a key asset in front of the camera, but while shooting The King of Comedy, Scorsese also found them to be important behind the camera as well. At one point, Lewis told Scorsese a story about a woman who’d stopped him while he was walking down the street and she was at a pay phone. It wasn’t in the...
In order to add a sense of immediacy and explosive tension to the scenes, as well as more than a little awkwardness, Scorsese encouraged the cast to improvise, particularly Sandra Bernhard, who’d been chosenfor the role of Masha in part because of her ability to perform spontaneously onstage. The scene in which Masha ties Jerry up and attempts to s...
Mar 5, 1993 · Paul D. Zimmerman, 54, screenwriter and author who wrote the 1983 award-winning film “The King of Comedy.” Zimmerman spent more than a decade as a writer and critic for Newsweek,...
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Mar 11, 1993 · ON HIS working trips to Hollywood, Paul Zimmerman would stay at one de luxe hotel or another, on the studio's ticket, writes David Freeman (further to the obituary by Paul Schuman and Michael...
