Description
Book SynopsisFinalist, 2021 Wall Award (Formerly the Theatre Library Association Award)
The untold story behind one of America’s greatest dramas.
In early 1957, a low-budget black-and-white movie opened across the United States. Consisting of little more than a dozen men arguing in a dingy room, it was a failure at the box office and soon faded from view.
Today, 12 Angry Men is acclaimed as a movie classic, revered by the critics, beloved by the public, and widely performed as a stage play, touching audiences around the world. It is also a favorite of the legal profession for its portrayal of ordinary citizens reaching a just verdict and widely taught for its depiction of group dynamics and human relations. Few twentieth-century American dramatic works have had the acclaim and impact of 12 Angry Men.
Rosenzweig’s 12 Angry Men tells two stories: the life of a great writer and the journey of his most famous work, one that ultimately outshined its author. More than any writer in the Golden Age of Television, Reginald Rose took up vital social issues of the day—from racial prejudice to juvenile delinquency to civil liberties—and made them accessible to a wide audience. His 1960s series, The Defenders, was the finest drama of its age and set the standard for legal dramas. This book brings Reginald Rose’s long and successful career, its origins and accomplishments, into view at long last.
By placing 12 Angry Men in its historical and social context—the rise of television, the blacklist, and the struggle for civil rights—Rosenzweig traces the story of this brilliant courtroom drama, beginning with the chance experience that inspired Rose, to its performance on CBS’s Westinghouse Studio One in 1954, to the feature film with Henry Fonda. The book describes Sidney Lumet’s casting, the sudden death of one actor, and the contribution of cinematographer Boris Kaufman. It explores various drafts of the drama, with Rose settling on the shattering climax only days before filming began.
Drawing on extensive research and brimming with insight, this book casts new light on one of America’s great dramas—and about its author, a man of immense talent and courage.
Author royalties will be donated equally to the Feerick Center for Social Justice at Fordham Law School and the Justice John Paul Stevens Jury Center at Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Table of ContentsIntroduction | 1
Part I: Origins
1. Dreams of a Writer | 11
2. Getting Started (1952 to Summer 1953) | 23
3. Two Programs, Two Movies (1952 to 1954) | 34
4. Original Dramas for Studio One (Summer 1953 to Spring 1954) | 46
Part II: The Television Program
5. A Visit to Foley Square (Spring 1954) | 57
6. “Twelve Angry Men” (Summer 1954) | 71
7. Gaining Momentum (Fall 1954 to Spring 1955) | 81
Part III: The Movie
8. Henry Fonda and the Deal for 12 Angry Men (Spring and Summer 1955) | 95
9. Developing the Screenplay (Fall 1955 to Spring 1956) | 103
10. Assembling the Team (Spring 1956) | 113
11. Six Weeks of Work (Summer 1956) | 122
12. Release and Reviews (Fall 1956 to Spring 1958) | 133
Part IV: The Defenders
13. New Directions (1957 to 1960) | 145
14. The Defenders (1960 to Spring 1962) | 155
15. The Defenders (Fall 1962 to 1965) | 166
16. After The Defenders | 179
Part V: The Journey of 12 Angry Men
17. A Life on Stage | 193
18. A Lesson in the Law | 208
19. A Masterclass in Human Behavior | 220
20. New Versions, New Meanings | 230
Epilogue | 239
Appendix: “Twelve Angry Men” (TV Featurette) | 245
Acknowledgments | 251
Notes | 257
Selected Bibliography | 291
Index | 297
Photographs follow pages 102 and 198
