Lardner Jr., Ring (1915-2000) — Rocking the Cradle" . First-Draft Screenplay Written by Ring Lardner Jr. Unpublished.

Los Angeles: ICM/Josephson. 1984. 4to. 22 x 28cm. 3 holes with metal clasps. 100 leaves with text on rectos.. Very rare unpublished screenplay.. Ring Lardner Jr. (1915-2000) was an Oscar-winning American screenwriter and a member of the "Hollywood Ten" who was blacklisted during the Red Scare. He won Academy Awards for Woman of the Year (1942) and MASH* (1970)... "Rocking the Cradle" is an unproduced first-draft screenplay written by Ring Lardner Jr. repped by ICM for producer Michael Fitzgerald, focusing on the dramatic 1937 staging of Marc Blitzstein's opera The Cradle Will Rock by Orson Welles.Background and DevelopmentCommissioned by producer Michael Fitzgerald in 1984 as a feature project detailing the chaotic true-life events of Orson Welles and John Houseman mounting the politically charged Federal Theatre Project production..... Distributed through International Creative Management (ICM) as an undated/early script draft.Shown to Orson Welles in June 1984, who agreed to direct the project before choosing to completely discard Lardner's draft and write his own version titled The Cradle Will Rock. Welles's planned film ultimately collapsed due to missing financing. As noted by Jonathan Rosenbaum. "Fitzgerald then showed this script to Welles in June 1984 for his approval, and over the course of their ensuing discussions, invited Welles to direct the film himself."If you want, let me know if you are looking for specific archival repository holdings, comparisons to Orson Welles's later rewrite, or details on the Hollywood Blacklist context for Ring Lardner Jr. .