Jake Gittes prequel TV series reportedly in development

Robert Towne

Deadline has reported that Netflix has closed deals with Robert Towne and David Fincher to pen a pilot script for a TV series that would be a prequel to Chinatown, covering the early days of private investigator Jake Gittes.

Towne, Fincher and Josh Donen have been announced as executive producers. Deadline states that "The hope is that Fincher might direct the pilot, but that is not part of the deal which at this point covers a pilot script."

David Fincher

Netflix is yet to make any comment regarding this project.

No further details have been revealed, beyond the involvement of Chinatown's own creator Robert Towne, Chinatown superfan David Fincher (director of Se7en and Fight Club, and passionate co-commentator on Chinatown's DVD commentary with Towne) and Josh Donen (producer, House of Cards), and that the series is intended as a prequel to the 1974 film.

More news as it comes in.

R.I.P. Robert Evans 1930 - 2019

Chinatown's producer, the legendary, notorious and iconic Robert Evans, passed away on Saturday, October 26 at his Woodland home in Los Angeles. He was 89.

The Two Jakes: Poster Concepts

Found a couple of very informative posts on artist Robert Rodriguez's blog regarding the development of the poster for The Two Jakes, which also include some of the early concept sketches by Steven Chorney.

The Third Film

In the period allowed for questions, a young woman asked Robert Towne whether there was any chance for the completion of the 'trilogy' that had been begun with Chinatown.
'No,' he told the questioner. 'No chance.'
- David Thomson, The Whole Equation, 2004

Few things pique the curiosity of film buffs more than those films it seems they'll never get to see. There are those that were lost or destroyed - Orson Welles' original cut of The Magnificent Ambersons, Eric von Stroheim's eight-hour version of Greed. There are those that remain unreleased or unfinished - Jerry Lewis' notorious The Day the Clown Cried and various Orson Welles projects, most notably The Other Side of the Wind ⁱ.

Then there are those that were planned, but never made - Stanley Kubrick's Napoleon, Alejandro Jodorowsky's Dune, and further episodes of successful film series.

The Two Jakes: Take 2

"Paramount will make this movie," said one observer. "But only when the movie makers get their act together."
- Los Angeles Times, May 9, 1985

Following the very public collapse of the initial production of The Two Jakes in May of 1985, the sets were dismantled, a number of claims were filed by crew members regarding unpaid work, and the production faced lawsuits from Laird International Studios, Kodak and others. Paramount announced that the production had been postponed indefinitely, although Frank Mancuso, the executive producer, did state that he hadn't given up hope of resurrecting it.

Fun Stuff section

Made a couple of additions to the Fun Stuff page - head on over there for vintage Chinatown parodies by MAD Magazine and Cracked, plus some pics and videos.

Chinatown: The Expanded Score

Chinatown's classic soundtrack has finally received an official expanded treatment, courtesy of Intrada Records:

Intrada presents an expanded edition of Chinatown, with the first 12 tracks presenting the original 1974 album, remastered from the stereo masters for a more suitable natural sound of the ensemble (previous CD releases altered the dynamic range and overall levels considerably). The remaining tracks offer the entire score for the first time in the intended picture sequence. These precious recordings have been mastered from what may be the only surviving session elements in existence: a pair of aging 1/4˝ seven-and-a-half IPS full-track (mono) rolls retained by the composer and transferred to DAT some three decades ago.

http://www.intrada.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=7090