It was a fight worthy of the character Smith was playing. He told producers he was “emotionally incapable” of making the film without Jayden in the role. When the studio asked for a 10th audition, the film’s director, Gabriele Muccino, put his foot down. To compensate for the conflict of interest, Jayden, who was six-years-old at the time, had to audition nine times. But Smith had to fight for Jayden to be cast, due to concerns of nepotism by executives involved in the movie. The pair’s natural love and care shines through the screen. It’s hard to imagine Smith acting opposite anyone other than his real-life son, Jayden. Part of the attraction to Gardner’s story was the American Dream, combined with his unwavering care for his son, his desire to never give up. It felt to me that the reason that America has been successful in this world is based on the idea that Gardner is possible.” There was a look in his eyes, a confidence, and a strength, after having traveled that journey. “I saw the 20-20 piece on Chris’ life, and the power of the story blew me away. In an interview with AALBC, Smith explained his reasons for choosing the role:  Coincidentally, these portrayals earned Smith his only two Oscar nominations, both for Best Actor, in 20.  Five years later, in 2006, he was playing Chris Gardner. In 2001 he played the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. Will Smith has only starred in two biographies. After 30 years in the finance industry, a heartbreaking loss led him to take his own advice - to pursue his own version of happiness. Years after the film’s conclusion, Gardner turned away from riches, and away the successful business he’d developed. And the man behind the story is Chris Gardner.ĭespite his rags to riches tale, money isn’t everything for Gardner. Does the story sound familiar? The movie is The Pursuit of Happyness. A Ferrari once owned by sporting legend Michael Jordan.īefore the wealth and success, though, the salesman spent a year homeless on the streets of San Francisco, with his toddler son, moving between homeless shelters, park benches, and public toilets. Instinctually the salesman approached the man with two questions: “ What do you do, and how do you do it?” Those two questions sparked a chain of events that led to the salesman’s rapid rise in fortune, a bestselling memoir, a Hollywood film about his life, millions in the bank, and his own Ferrari. Stirred by what he saw, he decided to approach the car’s owner, who was dressed to impress in a tailor-fit suit. As the salesman was walking by, the car pulled up to the curb. It was a red Ferrari that mesmerized a 27-year-old struggling salesman one day in the early 80s, in a parking lot outside of San Francisco General Hospital.

The real chris gardner from pursuit of happiness

Let's just say there's a reason they call Lovecraft the master of horror, because although slow-paced at times, the stories are really terrifying when they get to the punch. Although I haven't read as many of Lovecraft's works as your typical hardcore fan, I am still a fan of him, and if it's not obvious, The Call of Cthulhu holds the top spot. Seuss' style, in terms of both writing and illustration. In this case, the two things one would never expect to go together are, well, 'The Call of Cthulhu,' and Dr. Do it now!Įver had a mashup of two things that you would never expect to go together, that actually ends up being something awesome? That's my thoughts on this book here. And if you know a child into the weird, scary, and peculiar, you will be the world's greatest uncle/aunt/friend if you buy them this book.Īnd if you have not listened to Dread Zeppelin, it is not too late. If you like weird fiction and have read The Call of Cthulhu, you owe it to yourself to buy this book. I think small children will enjoy it a lot, but just imagine what they will think when they, later in life, read Lovecraft's story. The only defects, if it is a defect, is that the book will be incredibly funny to anyone who has read the original story. I said perfect before, but this book, more than a decade in the making, could not be a better marriage of these two artists. Even the size and shape of the book are perfect for a Dr. Seuss' instantly recognizable illustrations and verse. Ivankovic has transformed Lovecraft's tale of horror into an eerily perfect imitation of Dr.   Lovecraft's iconic story, but it is actually better than the original story. What Dread Zeppelin does for Led Zeppelin, Elvis, and reggae, this book does for H.P. This is a great book and I am happy to place it on my bookshelves - the question is will we be seeing more adaptations? But for me this is a great way of re-introducing the story to new readers while at the same time raising a wry smile the established ones. Sure there will be some scholarly purists out there who hate this book. Sure the book has considerably condensed the material but the feel and style of the book is still miraculously conveyed. Yes it is the 're-telling' of Call of Cthulhu in the style of Dr Seuss, from the prose right down to the artwork it has it perfectly represented and its great fun. So when I say that in this book you have H P Lovecraft meets Dr Seuss you pretty much have the idea of this book in one. If I said Dr Seuss I would think just about everyone who frequents this site would recognise the name. So I can honestly say I have no idea what brought about this project but I must admit its great fun. I have lost count of the number of copies I have of Call of Cthulhu since after all it is a short story, however upon learning of this 'new' edition I had to see for myself what it was all about.

Author of just so stories