Lana & Johnny Were Lovers: A Play in Two Acts (The Hollywood Legends) - Softcover

Lana Turner was one of the most glamorous and enduring stars of Hollywood’s Golden Era. From her brief debut in the controversial THEY WON’T FORGET to her star-making performance in ZIEGFELD GIRL and subsequent film classics like THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE, THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, PEYTON PLACE and IMITATION OF LIFE, she enchanted audiences around the world for five decades. Off-screen, with her nightclubbing, romantic dalliances and multiple marriages, the actress provided plenty of fodder for both Hollywood gossip columnists and scandal magazines, culminating on the night of April 4, 1958 when Johnny Stompanato, Lana’s mobster boy friend, was stabbed to death in her Beverly Hills home. Set in the mind and memory of Miss Turner, LANA & JOHNNY WERE LOVERS dramatizes the events leading up to that fateful night and its aftermath. 2 women; 2 men. Simple Open Set

Michael B. Druxman is a veteran Hollywood screenwriter whose credits include CHEYENNE WARRIOR with Kelly Preston; DILLINGER AND CAPONE starring Martin Sheen and F. Murray Abraham; and THE DOORWAY with Roy Scheider, which he also directed. He is also a prolific playwright, his one-person play, JOLSON, having had numerous productions around the country. Other produced stage credits include one-person plays about Clark Gable, Carole Lombard, Spencer Tracy and Orson Welles. Additionally, Mr. Druxman is the author of thirteen other published books, including several nonfiction works about Hollywood, its movies, and the people who make them (e.g., BASIL RATHBONE: His Life and His Films, MAKE IT AGAIN, SAM: A Survey of Movie Remakes, ONE GOOD FILM DESERVES ANOTHER: A Survey of Movie Sequels, MERV [Griffin] and THE MUSICAL: From Broadway to Hollywood). He has written three novels, NOBODY DROWNS IN MINERAL LAKE, SHADOW WATCHER and MURDER IN BABYLON, plus the humorous revisionist history, ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD: From the Secret Files of Harry Pennypacker, and FAMILY SECRET, a non-fiction book co-authored with Warren Hull, which reveals the true facts behind the 1947 murder of mobster “Bugsy” Siegel in Beverly Hills. An acknowledged Hollywood historian, he has also written television documentaries and has been interviewed for various retrospective featurettes that have accompanied DVD releases of classic films (e.g. THE MALTESE FALCON, etc.). Mr. Druxman is a former Hollywood publicist of 35 years experience who has represented many film and television stars, as well as noted directors, producers and composers. One of his Academy Award campaigns is often mentioned in books dealing with Oscar’s history. He has taught various dramatic writing and film appreciation courses in an adult university and is the author of How to Write a Story...Any Story: THE ART OF STORYTELLING, which has been used as a text in several colleges. A native of Seattle who graduated from Garfield High School and the University of Washington, Mr. Druxman moved with his wife, Sandy, from Los Angeles to Austin, TX in 2009. His two memoirs, MY FORTY-FIVE YEARS IN HOLLYWOOD AND HOW I ESCAPED ALIVE and LIFE, LIBERTY & THE PURSUIT OF HOLLYWOOD, are published by Bear Manor Media.