John Byrum

John Byrum

John Byrum is an American film director and writer known for "The Razor's Edge", "Heart Beat", "Duets" and "Inserts".

Raised in Winnetka, Illinois, on the North Shore of Chicago, Byrum studied at New York University in the late 1960s. His instructors included Haig P. Manoogian and graduate student Martin Scorsese,and classmates Oliver Stone and Eric Jenkins. At NYU he co-wrote "Item 72-D, The Adventures of Spa and Fon" with director Edward Summer.

As a student, Byrum interned with Jim Henson on early appearances of The Muppets and was eventually hired by Henson as one of the original writers of Sesame Street. Henson took an interest in Byrum's talent and hired him to write a full-length motion picture and helped him find an agent in Hollywood. Hollywood took notice of Byrum's original script Inserts and he was tapped to write the script "Harry & Walter Go To New York" by producers and mentors Don Devlin, Tony Bill, and Harry GIttes. After that script was sold for a record-breaking amount, Byrum was hired to wite the Diana Ross vehicle "Mohogany", passing on the chance to write the script for "Jaws" in order to work on "Mahogany" with one of his idols, director "Tony Richardson", only to have Richardson leave the film mid-production after clashing with producer Berry Gordy of Motown fame. Berry took over directing chores and it is said that the true drama of Mahogany was the behind-the-camera relationships between Berry Gordy and Diana Ross. Byrum directed his first feature film "Inserts" with stars Richard Dreyfuss, Jessica Harper, Veronica Cartwright, Stephen Davies, and Bob Hoskins. Among Byrum's other produced films that he wrote and directed are his paen to 50's-era Beat love story "Heart Beat" starring Nick Nolte, John Heard, and Sissy Spacek, and the 1984 film based on the W. Somerset Maugham novel "The Razor's Edge" starring Bill Murray, Catherine Hicks, Theresa Russell, and James Keach. After the box office failure of "The Razor's Edge", financially-strapped Byrum directed the goofy comedy "The Whoopee Boys" starring Michael O'Keefe and Paul Rodriguez, as well as a cameo part by former wife Linda Fiorentino. Byrum created, wrote and produced several television series including "Middle Ages" starring Peter Riegert, Michael O'Keefe, Amy Brenneman, and William Russ, and "South of Sunset" starring Glenn Frey of The Eagles fame, and "Winnetka Road" starring Ed Begley, Jr., Meg Tilly, and Josh Brolin. Byrum's television movie "Murder in High Places" starred "Ted Levine" as a Hunter Thompson-like character who is elected mayor of a Colorado ski resort. Co-stars included "Jamey Sheridan", Judith Hoag, Adam Baldwin, and newcomer Lisa Kudrow. Byrum was scheduled to direct his original script of (karaoke road trip dramedy) "Duets" when he was felled by a serious case of Lyme Disease that had gone long undiagnosed. Byrum showed his script to his friend Bruce Paltrow who wanted to direct "Duets" with his daughter Gwyneth Paltrow as one of the six ensemble characters. Brad Pitt was attached to co-star with Paltrow, his fiancee at the time, but when their engagement ended, the film's financing faltered once again. "Duets" was filmed several years later with Scott Speedman in the role originally chosen by Pitt, along with Paul Giamatti, Maria Bello, Andre Braugher, and Huey Lewis. John Byrum resides in California and Connecticut with his wife Karin Reznack.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • John Byrum — (* 14. März 1947 in Winnetka, Illinois) ist ein US amerikanischer Regisseur und Drehbuchautor. Der Junge aus dem Mittelwesten ging nach New York und studierte dort an der Filmschule. Dort konnte Byrum als Assistent von Jim Henson an The Muppets… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Byrum — refers to:surname* Curt Byrum, professional golfer * Dianne Byrum, politician * Dion Byrum, cornerback * John Byrum, director * Tom Byrum, professional golfergiven name* Byrum Fred Saam, Jr., known as By Saam, sportscasterother meanings* United… …   Wikipedia

  • Byrum — steht für: Byrum (Læsø), den Hauptort der dänischen Insel Læsø Byrum (Öland), ein Dorf auf Öland Byrums raukar, ein Rauksteingebiet auf Öland Byrum ist der Name folgender Personen: Curt Byrum, Profigolfer Dianne Byrum, Politikerin Dion Byrum,… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • John Deere Classic — Tournament information Location Silvis, Illinois, U.S. Established 1971 Course(s) TPC at Deere Run Par 71 Length 7,257 yards …   Wikipedia

  • John Deere Classic — Informations sur le tournoi Lieu Silvis (Illinois) Fondation 1971 Parcours TPC at Deere Run Par 71 Longueur 7 257 yd …   Wikipédia en Français

  • The Razor's Edge (1984 film) — Infobox Film name = The Razor s Edge caption = Theatrical release poster director = John Byrum producer = Rob Cohen writer = John Byrum Bill Murray W. Somerset Maugham (novel) starring = Bill Murray Theresa Russell Denholm Elliott Catherine Hicks …   Wikipedia

  • Duets — For other uses, see Duets (disambiguation). Duets Theatrical release poster Directed by Bruce Paltrow …   Wikipedia

  • Duets — Filmdaten Deutscher Titel: Traumpaare Originaltitel: Duets Produktionsland: USA Erscheinungsjahr: 2000 Länge: 112 Minuten Originalsprache: Englisch …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Linda Fiorentino — Infobox actor birthname = Clorinda Fiorentino birthdate = birth date and age|1958|3|9cite web |url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/40/Linda Fiorentino.html |title=Linda Fiorentino Biography |work=filmreference.com] birthplace = Dallas, Texas… …   Wikipedia

  • Inserts (film) — Infobox Film name = Inserts caption = Film poster director = John Byrum producer = Davina Belling Harry Benn Clive Parsons writer = John Byrum starring = Richard Dreyfuss Veronica Cartwright Jessica Harper Bob Hoskins Stephen Davies… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”