- 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 ofChicago , Byrum studied atNew York University in the late 1960s. His instructors includedHaig P. Manoogian and graduate studentMartin Scorsese ,and classmatesOliver Stone and Eric Jenkins. At NYU he co-wrote "Item 72-D, The Adventures of Spa and Fon " with directorEdward Summer .As a student, Byrum interned with
Jim Henson on early appearances ofThe Muppets and was eventually hired by Henson as one of the original writers ofSesame 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 mentorsDon Devlin ,Tony Bill , andHarry GIttes . After that script was sold for a record-breaking amount, Byrum was hired to wite theDiana 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 producerBerry Gordy of Motown fame. Berry took over directing chores and it is said that the true drama ofMahogany was the behind-the-camera relationships betweenBerry Gordy andDiana Ross . Byrum directed his first feature film "Inserts" with starsRichard Dreyfuss ,Jessica Harper ,Veronica Cartwright ,Stephen Davies , andBob Hoskins . Among Byrum's other produced films that he wrote and directed are his paen to 50's-era Beat love story "Heart Beat " starringNick Nolte , John Heard, andSissy Spacek , and the 1984 film based on theW. Somerset Maugham novel "The Razor's Edge " starringBill Murray ,Catherine Hicks ,Theresa Russell , andJames Keach . After the box office failure of "The Razor's Edge ", financially-strapped Byrum directed the goofy comedy "The Whoopee Boys " starringMichael O'Keefe andPaul Rodriguez , as well as a cameo part by former wifeLinda Fiorentino . Byrum created, wrote and produced several television series including "Middle Ages " starringPeter Riegert ,Michael O'Keefe ,Amy Brenneman , andWilliam Russ , and "South of Sunset " starringGlenn Frey ofThe Eagles fame, and "Winnetka Road " starringEd Begley, Jr. ,Meg Tilly , andJosh Brolin . Byrum's television movie "Murder in High Places " starred "Ted Levine " as aHunter Thompson -like character who is elected mayor of a Colorado ski resort. Co-stars included "Jamey Sheridan ", Judith Hoag,Adam Baldwin , and newcomerLisa Kudrow . Byrum was scheduled to direct his original script of (karaoke road trip dramedy) "Duets " when he was felled by a serious case ofLyme Disease that had gone long undiagnosed. Byrum showed his script to his friendBruce Paltrow who wanted to direct "Duets " with his daughterGwyneth 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 withScott Speedman in the role originally chosen by Pitt, along withPaul Giamatti ,Maria Bello ,Andre Braugher , andHuey Lewis . John Byrum resides in California and Connecticut with his wife Karin Reznack.
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