Forgoing Myths of Earlier Films, Clint Eastwood Directs [Mostly] True Story of ’96 Olympic Hero

When the film “Richard Jewell” opens at theatres next month, audiences may enter the experience informed by the Warner Bros. tag line: The World Will Know His Name And The Truth.

When moviegoers exit the two-hour-nine-minute drama—stylishly directed by Clint Eastwood—ticket holders will be mulling over a mostly factual version of the Centennial Olympic Park security guard’s life before, during and after the ’96 Games of Atlanta. 

Jewell gets a fair treatment in this portrayal sure to aptly tilt the narrative to the ‘hero’ end of the opinion spectrum. He saved countless lives July 27, 1996, and deserves this history-correcting dramatization for a humble Georgia do-gooder whom heroically "done good."

“Richard Jewell” is a great film, built upon a solid foundation of heavily researched source material and adorned with many merits. 

Its solid cast and acting, strong writing, impactful scenes with attention to detail (though not always historically accurate), and a soothing albeit minimalist soundtrack combine for an entertaining photoplay sure to get folks talking.

Screenwriter Billy Ray relied heavily on Marie Brenner’s Vanity Fair 1997 article on Jewell, which will soon be reappear in a Simon & Schuster-published collection of the reporter's works timed for release with the film. 

Ray also pulled countless details from the new Abrams Press book “The Suspect” by Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen (reviewed here).

With these and other factually rich and thoroughly vetted sources in Ray’s reach, it is curious, but not entirely surprising, the screenwriter embellished some facts and rearranged the timeline “for dramatic effect” in his creative process. More about that later in this review, and in this “Richard Jewell: Fact vs. Fiction” summary (beware of spoilers in both posts).

Accuracy debates aside, is “Richard Jewell” destined for awards nominations? Absolutely.

Will it win a bevy of these honors? Maybe.

Leonardo DiCaprio, an executive producer on “Richard Jewell” originally envisioned for the attorney role later filled by Sam Rockwell, may prove a topsy-turvy awards rival via “One Upon A Time … In Hollywood.” 

I cannot help but think 2019 blockbusters “Us” or “The Joker” and “Ad Astra” would sideline this five-ringed film in several categories, but Eastwood could be a home run candidate for “Best Director.” With that stated, even the film "Booksmart" (directed by Olivia Wilde, a star in "Richard Jewell") may outsmart Eastwood as the awards season unfolds. 

When compared with Clint’s other directorial works, “Richard Jewell” deserves placement in the top ten, maybe even the top five, but not as the crown of his long list of his many achievements. 

“Richard Jewell” does mark a return to Eastwood greatness not seen since “Million Dollar Baby” and “Mystic River,” but still plays loose with facts (as mentioned above), including some Olympic details, as in his more recent “American Sniper.”

Regardless of its rank in the Eastwood cannon, I enjoyed “Richard Jewell” and found it a powerful film, providing a thick and flavorful steak for audiences to dissect and savor. The film proves informative for all ticket holders, whether they were part of the Atlanta Games or learning about the park-related events for the first time.

On some fronts, “Richard Jewell” is a thriller, but like other Eastwood-directed films, inclusive of slow burns punctuated by occasional moments of intensity, which I think will resonate with a wide audience.

In the title role, Paul Walter Hauser vividly and effectively portrays the anti-machismo of Jewell, whose idiosyncrasies may one day resonate like the title character of “The Outlaw Josey Wales" or any one of the Western’s quirkier roles. It is fun to see Hauser in the lead on the heels of his cameo in “BlacKkKlansman.”

Perhaps prophetically for Hauser, a Jay Leno one-liner about the real guard-turned-suspect proved predictive about the actor. In 1996, the comedian joked that Jewell resembled Nancy Kerrigan’s fumbling attacker, a role Hauser brought to life as Shawn Eckhardt in “I, TONYA.” “What is it about the Olympic Games that brings out big, fat, stupid guys?” quipped Leno. 

Hauser plays it big and smart. 

Another key “Richard Jewell” strength is the film’s very authentic recreation of Centennial Olympic Park as it appeared during Games time. Little touches, like kids playing in the Olympic Rings fountain and huddled around a bag of lapel pins for trading, made me smile.

On a more somber note, the countdown to the explosion is one of the best scenes in any Clint Eastwood film, or any recent action film period. The arresting detonation feels real and the Dolby surround-sound and visuals left my heart pounding while my breath involuntarily joined the audible gasp filling the packed theatre. The blast had a way of making the audience jump as they did when Anne Archer uncapped a boiling pot of water in “Fatal Attraction.”

I liked that in lieu of gore, Eastwood and editors showed the injured bombing victims, and emergency workers tending to them, in a tasteful and artistic manner. There’s a personal moment with the mortally wounded Alice Hawthorne, the bomb’s lone fatality, but no mention of a Turkish camera operator who died of a heart attack on the scene.

Pooling blood, oozed into engraved names on Olympic park bricks, leaves no doubt how much worse the attack could have been if not for Jewell and other guards’ brave and swift response.  

Moments earlier, audiences are introduced to an FBI agent (Jon Hamm), as well as the tough-as-nails chain-smoking crime reporter for the hometown Atlanta-Journal Constitution, Kathy Scruggs (Wilde), who has all the moxie of Margot Kidder’s Lois Lane with blond hair, a taste for bourbon and a head-turning frankness that rubbed many the wrong way.

Sidebar: In “The Suspect,” colleagues and family share a more balanced view of Scruggs, taken at times to a crass extreme on screen, perhaps the Achilles’ heel of this otherwise great film.

From the morning after the explosion, the film quickly unleashes the fury of the FBI and media attention that overtook the Jewell household—Richard lived with his mother, Bobi (Kathy Bates)—after Scruggs got the Olympic-sized scoop from a source naming Richard the prime suspect.

Controversial and heavy-handed maneuvers by federal investigators, and the world’s media, foreshadow the worst versions of social media hurricanes to which the world’s grown accustomed.  

On the lighter side, the film also offers many subtle and surprise laughs, and the portrayal of Nadya (Nina Arianda), the Russian-born assistant to one of Jewell's attorneys, and their flirtatious banter got the loudest chuckles (unexpected fun, yes / неожиданное веселье, да). 

Some may wonder whether Mars, Inc., payed for product placement of Snickers candy bars, which often provided comic relief that satisfies. Perhaps the best line arrives as a reference to, or later resolution of, the film's own version of a quid pro quo.

There are tender moments of Jewell the individual and of Jewell with his mother, or his attorney (Sam Rockwell, performing a mash up of multiple real-life attorneys blended by Ray). I don’t think these are Oscar-level performance for Bates or Rockwell, but both play it strong, lending depth to what Eastwood described as “the perfect cast” during his remarks before the lights dimmed at the world premiere (more about the scene at AFI Fest in this post).

This is not the first Eastwood film in which the screenwriter took liberties with facts, inserting some five-ringed fiction during the creative writing process. For "American Sniper" there was no 'Olympic shooter from Syria' (a fact verified in writing, debunking Eastwood and screenwriter Jason Hall, creating the most popular topic in 10 years of writing this blog).

“Richard Jewell” plays it loose with its timeline, but mostly about Scruggs. For instance, according to scenes in "The Suspect" Jewell and his lawyers only met the reporter in years-later legal proceedings, never through impromptu visits to the newsroom, obviously added for dramatic embellishment.

The film is loosest when portraying tactics Scruggs used for reporting and getting 'the scoop' involving Jewell. Did she trade sex for the source of a suspect in real life? Probably not. 

Regardless, a steamy bar scene for Wilde and Hamm likely (and unfairly) will lead many to that conclusion.

I am eager to screen “Richard Jewell” again soon (for this critic, an eagerness to quickly repeat a screening is the fifth tenet of a great film after acting, writing, impact and soundtrack) to see if the world premiere version included the complete score composed by Arturo Sandoval, who previously collaborated with Eastwood for "The Mule."

Unlike other music-rich Eastwood releases, the Nov. 20 version of “Richard Jewell,” which may have been only hours old from a near final edit, had such a sparse soundtrack, I cannot help but wonder if more score will be added before the Dec. 13 worldwide release.

With all due respect to Kenny Rogers and Los del Río, whose respective hits “The Gambler” and “Macarena” appear in early Centennial Olympic Park scenes, the soundtrack is otherwise so minimalist the Sandoval music seemed barely there until the final credits.

Some lucky Atlantans will get an advance peek at "Richard Jewell" when its local premiere takes place Dec. 10. 

For everyone else looking for a great film, mark calendars for Dec. 13, when the world will at last enjoy a (re-)introduction to an unsung Olympic hero. 

First image via Avcesar.com from their trailer screen grab via Warner Bros. All other images from various websites which enjoyed access I don't have to the media log-in pages of Warner Bros. (in spite of multiple requests via their press office pages). 

Upended Lives at Olympics Provide Drama and Richard Jewell Revelations in "The Suspect"

In the next few weeks, Atlantans and media will be buzzing about the new nonfiction book "The Suspect: An Olympic Bombing, The FBI, The Media, And Richard Jewell, The Man Caught In The Middle" by Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen.

This page-turning volume, a triumphant feat of journalism, research and writing 23 years in the making, encapsulates thorough, at times revealing, details about Jewell, the hero security guard who moved hundreds of concertgoers out of harm's way before a hidden bomb he found detonated at the Atlanta Olympic Games. If contributors from Jewell's inner circle achieve their goal, folks everywhere will at last proclaim the praises of Atlanta's least celebrated hero.

The book also puts a magnifying glass on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporting team, notably Kathy Scruggs, as well as a specific FBI agent, Don Johnson and his colleagues, whose work in their respective fields forever impacted Jewell's and his mother Bobi's lives.

Monday afternoon a review copy finally landed on my Midtown front porch, and I delighted in devouring its 368 pages that are equal parts crime drama and unflinching critique of Federal investigations and investigative journalism.

An enclosed press release affirmed my hunch the book was optioned by Warner Bros. for the upcoming Clint Eastwood film "Richard Jewell" set for a world premiere at AFI Fest in Los Angeles on Nov. 20 (with Dec. 13 as the national release day).

One "reveal" of Alexander and Salwen's work is that the film's screenplay, at least in the movie trailer, is close to verbatim from their research of the FBI's interrogation of Jewell.

Juxtaposed with this fact, the book also reveals that Eastwood's screenwriter Billy Ray took at least one major liberty in the script: Jewell's attorneys aptly never allowed the hero guard to record the bomber's 9-1-1 call script, "There's a bomb in Centennial Park ... you have thirty minutes!" (I've previously taken Eastwood and his screenwriter for "American Sniper" to task for playing fast an loose with Olympic facts, the all-time most-read posts of this website).

"The Suspect" is a great read with relevance for anyone passionate about or in law enforcement, news media, Olympic organization, historians (of Atlanta, the USA, true crime or the Games) and the millions of people who experienced or have interest in the Centennial Olympics of 1996.

Make that a must read.

All of the one-time Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) staff and volunteers will appreciate and remember scores of long-forgotten Games-time intricacies.

Between the book's end pages -- noticeably featuring a hand-drawn bomb site map by Jewell and a Miranda rights form he reluctantly signed during his sideways interrogation (cue the "Richard Jewell" film trailer with John Hamm's stern voiceover) -- readers may be mesmerized about "The Suspect" by the numbers.

Following their 1996 roles that introduced them to their subjects, Alexander and Salwen spent more than five recent years pouring over "tens of thousands" of legal documents, 170,000 ACOG archive pages and reports, thousands of photos, dozens of cases of personal effects, 1,200+ news articles and hundreds of video clips.

They also conducted "187 original-source interviews" and read dozens of books or other materials, initially logging 2,139 footnote entries later converted to narrative source notes on their ABRAMS Books editor's suggestion. The years-long FBI investigation of Jewell and other dead-end leads exponentially adds to the mind-bending facets of the research.

The book project unfolded at a venue the authors dubbed "the cottage," which I envision resembled a "war room" like those seen on any crime drama investigation.

Notable details uncovered and documented include:

• How Jewell's parents named him after auto racing legend Richard Petty, while nicknames the FBI adopted for too-blurry images of the actual bomber included "Blob Man" and "Goatee Man" (only one of them proved to be the man, Eric Rudolph). Beer-chugging witnesses earned the sobriquet "Speedo Boys"

• Richard Jewell's secret lasagna recipe he cooked and served to a law enforcement peer from Centennial Olympic Park, only to later learn his invited dinner guest was wearing a wire for federal investigators

• Which national TV reporters initially proclaimed Jewell a hero then later apologized in months-later follow-up interviews intended to rightfully exonerate him in the public eye (I had no idea Jay Leno apologized after his initial monologue quips comparing the guard to Nancy Kerrigan's attacker)

• The Atlanta Magazine reporter who agreed to a date with Richard, only to later embarrass a crestfallen Jewell with an unflattering cover story

• Which local radio station paid a $50,000 settlement after using Jewell's likeness in an unsanctioned outdoor billboard campaign around the song "Freebird"

• Summaries of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Games-time "Peach Buzz" columns including the time Donald Trump lost his wallet at The Cheesecake Factory in Buckhead, and AJC non-Olympic reporters including Scruggs, who proudly reported on "distinctively non-sports coverage areas of Security, Neighborhoods and Olympic Transportation" in their "SNOT Pod" newsroom space

• The downward spiral Scruggs endured years after her Games reporting, including shocking outdoor incidents involving a taxi she commandeered in the buff. 

Several Olympians provided interviews for the authors, including Michael Johnson, who recalled a hospital visit to injured bomb survivors before competing in second gold medal sprint.

Gold medalist Janet Evans, who witnessed the bomb explosion during an in-park TV interview, also garnered frequent mentions in the text (though it is not clear yet that she was interviewed for this book).

Personal revelations for this reader included notes on how Jewell attended the same Olympic baseball game (Cuba vs. Nicaragua) for which I held a ticket and cheered with friends. A day later, some of the federal agents of "The Suspect" watched over the India vs. Pakistan Olympic field hockey game at which I helped Pakistan fans hold aloft a giant green and white flag (my Minnesota State University-Mankato junior-year roommate spotted me on TV while watching at home with his family ... in Lahore).

I learned the most from the chapters about Rudolph -- his capture, prosecution and revelations about his post-Games movements were not on my radar in the early 2000s, though Rudolph's two other despicable attacks in Atlanta were. The book brought to mind vivid memories from news coverage of both events. The bomb he detonated in Birmingham was not "new" to me, but the authors' framing of the scene inspired chills.

Much of the Jewell narrative (until the final chapters) felt more like a fleshed-out version of previously seen reports, like a Titanic-sized version of Marie Brenner's extensive Vanity Fair article after she shadowed Jewell's legal team for months.

But I appreciated the details that at once revealed Jewell's relatable, jovial, every man nature while cracking me up, like this description from page one:

Hopping off the [MARTA] train, Jewell descended International Boulevard, the lime-green lanyard that held his credential swinging across his ample belly.

Been there, done that!

A much bigger revelation: the AJC assigned interns to interview Jewell or help report updates from his residence after Scruggs and colleagues broke their scoop under the screaming headline "FBI suspects 'hero' guard may have planted bomb."

I can't imagine receiving a federal subpoena to testify about either of my internships.

Readers also learn the less-reported aspects of the guard's later-career heroics, including touching stories of a CPR rescue and how he reflected on each anniversary of the night that changed his life. The love of his life provided some of the best heartfelt details, underscoring her own (and other Jewell inner circle members') "... hope that one day Richard Jewell would be remembered by all as a hero."

Writing of the book's biggest revelation -- which took my breath away -- would be an unforgivable spoiler (though I predict other book reviewers will not hold back).

It's fun to learn new vocabulary while reading, and the words bonhomie, putative, and lithe joined my lexicon thanks to Alexander and Salwen. And I was surprised that a book touted as a "gripping story of ... the advent of the 24/7 news cycle" did not include more mid-'90s context from the trials and tribulations of Tonya Harding and O.J. Simpson (especially the former's five-ringed connections).

Meanwhile, I found just two glaring errors and one minor one in "The Suspect."

First, the authors referred to the "seven-building Olympic Village complex" President Bill Clinton and the First Family visited. Come again?

In the "Blue Zone" of Georgia Tech's west campus -- where I was an ACOG-employed Village housing manager adjacent to the Olympic Aquatic Center -- we had more than 20 buildings including the dorms built to eventually house Team USA and delegations from Russia, Egypt, Indonesia, Germany, the U.K. and dozens of other national Olympic Committees including the heavily-fortified Israeli team quarters.

My sister worked in the distant "Red Zone" north of 10th Street, which had several buildings visited by Spain's Royal Family. And over in the "Green Zone" was my Games-time housing in a frat house (one of about 20 used by NOCs).

I don't recall what the brand new towers along the Downtown Connector were named ("Blue Zone?") but it was fun attending the opening press conference with ACOG in spring 1996.

Maybe the authors only considered the "International Zone" around Georgia Tech's Ferst Center for the Arts to be the "Village complex" they described. As Hillary Clinton has proven many times, forgiveness is key, and perhaps it takes a village to get these Georgia Tech and former Georgia State University towers counted. I forgave the miscount.

An even less intrusive-to-my-eyes flub was the writers' mention of a James Brown concert at a bar named "Tabernacle."

No doubt, they meant the festive church-turned-concert hall that's still rockin' and rollin' next to the Atlanta Ferris wheel installed years later.

I'm less forgiving and not forgetting the page on which the authors recounted memories of the host committee's COO, who famously slept in his office at The INFORUM, the ACOG headquarters building which overlooks Centennial Olympic Park, some nights of the Games.

According to Alexander's and Salwen's interviews, when the bomb exploded just after the A.D. Frazier conked out in his office,

He leapt from bed ... [and] ran to his balcony barefoot and stared at the chaos and emergency lights below. Bodies were strewn across the bricks of the park. His mind flashed to the movie Saving Private Ryan, with its vivid, brutal scenes of battle. Rattled, Frazier spun and hurried back inside his darkened office, switched on the desk lamp and dialed Payne. 'Billy, we've got a problem.

I know Frazier to be wicked smart, but not clairvoyant nor one who could predict future film scripts -- the problem with this recollection, as documented in "The Suspect," is that Steven Spielberg's epic war picture did not debut until 1998.

Sidebar: I also know A.D. did not sleep on the couch by his office 24 hours after the bomb, because I tearfully fell asleep on that sofa during my own visit to overlook the park in the early hours of July 28, 1996. The sodas in his mini-fridge provided comfort as well.

Atlantans have the opportunity to meet "The Suspect" authors at the Atlanta History Center on Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m.

They'll be joined on stage by former AJC Senior Managing Editor Bert Roughton, a book source who wrote this Sunday AJC opinion piece about his colleague Scruggs, as well as event moderator John Pruitt, formerly of WSB-TV. Tickets are $5 for members and $10 for non-members. For more information visit this link.

On the invitation of the ABRAMS Books publicist, I delivered questions tailored for each author and will follow-up this post with their Q&A responses. What questions do you have for this remarkable writing duo? Please post them in comments and I will try to ask at the AHC event.

Book and author images via ABRAMS. Book cover photo via Bobi Jewell with jacket design by Devin Grosz. Author photo by Allison Shirreffs. Other photos via Associated Press, DP/AFP/Getty, ESPN and GeorgiaEncyclopedia.org. 

Clint Eastwood Crew Films Family Jewell In Atlanta

Olympic park/Eastwood mash up image via JoBlo.com

For film buffs and Atlanta residents, summer headlines about Warner Bros. casting a new feature based on Richard Jewell may be old news.

For those further afield, the following roundup includes updates and photos from the set of the upcoming movie centered on the hero of the July 1996 Olympic Park bombing.

Hopefully a detail or two may also serve as informative updates for local readers.

I enjoy Clint Eastwood, a longtime favorite of this writer, equally for his behind-the-camera work and for original characters he created as an actor.

His film career spanning seven decades seldom includes five-ringed themes, but that's quickly changing with Eastwood directing a new picture based on the 1997 Vanity Fair article by Marie Brenner titled "American Nightmare: The Ballad of Richard Jewell," about which I first posted details in 2015.

At that time, Jonah Hill and Leonardo DiCaprio were set to star as the 1996 Olympic park security guard hero-turned-bombing suspect and one of his attorneys, respectively.

Consider me anxious -- for nearly four years and counting -- to experience this film.

For context: Getty Images photo of bomb investigation site taken July 27, 1996

Thanks to an online post by a fellow writer, earlier this month while my girlfriend visited from Russia, we enjoyed an extended peek at one of the Atlanta sets created for the film. For almost a week, Centennial Olympic Park's north end served as a closed set for Eastwood's team.

We snapped two night photos and several daytime images, sprinkled about this post (though not one is worth a thousand words in this case).

The image at right, for instance, offers a little taste of the set designers' take on Atlanta's "look of the Games" complete with an original Olympic torch logo created for the film.

More on what we learned around the site, where one overnight sequence involved detonating noisy pyrotechnics, follows later in this post, but first a bit more recent background.

During spring 2019, online sources said Eastwood reconfirmed involvement with the project in May, a cast was locked in within weeks, and shooting began in July. As of two weeks ago filming remained underway at multiple locations across Atlanta, with reported sightings of cast and crew both downtown and the city's upscale Buckhead district.

Paul Walter Hauser landed the title role. Some may recall his Olympic-tethered scenes in "I, Tonya" with pivotal action (sans Nancy Kerrigan knee-bashing gear) set inside Decatur's local favorite Asian restaurant, The Golden Buddha.

Paul Walter Hauser in "I, Tonya"

There's definitely a Hauser resemblance to Richard Jewell in other "I, Tonya" scenes as well.

Richard isn't the only Jewell family member who'll appear in Eastwood's project. Misery loves company as Kathy Bates signed on in (what I guess to be) a supporting role as Bobi Jewell, the security guard's mother with whom he resided, and endured throngs of media staked out at their apartment, when their lives were upended.

The film also stars Olivia Wilde as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter whose cover story about the bombing investigation put Jewell in a global spotlight, while Jon Hamm will don, er, drape the shoes and uniform of Tom Shaw, possibly a pseudonym for Georgia Bureau of Investigation officer Tom Davis, who helped Jewell to relocate bystanders before Eric Rudolph's pipe bomb detonated.

Sam Rockwell stars as Richard's criminal attorney Watson Bryant. It remains unclear whether Jewell's libel attorney, who made a name for himself by representing pariah clients, will be portrayed.

Now back to the local sets for the film.

In Centennial Olympic Park, Eastwood's crew built a replica of the AT&T stage, sound/lighting tower and concert area that operated in the summer of 1996. As a one-time Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games employee who watched the stage's original construction from the lunch room balcony of The INFORUM (ACOG's headquarters), no matter the angle the modern rebuild looked authentic.

From our western-edge vantage to view filming, we noted some of the finer details of the set, such as the mock Atlanta Olympic banners donning many stage elements.

In the rain, when some extras retreated to a staff tent and others stopped along the fence line to visit with non-cast friends, we noted their costumes included Olympic-branded gear with logos that matched the banners (both are of mock logos, not the actual AGOG trademarks and rings).

Nice touches, right down to the security guard pith helmets and baseball caps.

According to the Vanity Fair article, on the evening of July 26, 1996, a band named Jack Mack and the Heart Attack was playing just before the bomb exploded. We neither saw nor heard any music, as the evening of our scouting they were already filming post-explosion emergency response.











We also saw no EMT vehicles in scenes being filmed at night, but the following afternoon we spotted ambulances and police cruisers circa 1996 (or at least dressed to resemble the era) parked on the set as well. The blue pickup truck has a resemblance to Richard Jewell's personal vehicle, and the FBI investigations van (see photo) also looked "real" in broad daylight.

The centerpiece of the set was a recreation of the sound tower including a park bench like the one under which the original Jewell discovered Rudolph's backpack.

The set designers really nailed it (no pun intended) with "the look" of the damaged tower as it appeared during the 1996 investigation and as the park reopened with Ambassador Andrew Young leading the ceremony all those years ago.

A security guard hired for the film set informed us that the mock bombing, which took place in the middle of the night, brought at least one disgruntled hotel guest to the set to express her frustration for getting jarred out of bed without warning.

I am really curious who created the Olympic sport pictograms that decorated the set, and would love to know who was involved with the fictional XXVI Games banners. The color schemes are this close to authentic. Too bad, but the costume designer did not resurrect the brown skorts donned by summer of '96 female volunteers ... well, not "too bad," actually (they were terrible).

Our study of the set gave me hope Eastwood is committed to creating an authentic audience experience.

Reflecting on "The Ballad of Richard Jewell" article and its conversion for the screen, taken on by Billy Ray of "The Hunger Games" and "Flightplan" fame, I admit to biting my nails about the screenwriter taking liberties with Olympic facts as did the scribe for an earlier Eastwood film.

In 2014, Eastwood and Jason Hall -- screenwriter for "American Sniper" -- played fast and loose with five-ringed details, inspiring the most-read post on this blog (and the second-most read) in which the facts about an "Olympic sniper from Syria" are verified by the Arab state's national Olympic committee (there was no such character in real life).

For the Jewell feature, it's been reported the 2019 AT&T stage set included an actor portraying Kenny Rogers, the Georgia-based singer who did perform in the park in 1996 but, according to the Vanity Fair article, appeared in concert earlier in the week (not the bombing eve).

One wonders: when the final cut hits theatres, will Rogers show up in place of Jack Mack and the Heart Attack during the climactic bombing scene Eastwood & Co. recreated?

I am eager to see how and whether other International Olympic Committee, ACOG or USOPC (then USOC) players may show up in Eastwood's picture. For instance, an archived joint press conference hosted by the IOC, ACOG and FBI includes officials who are potentially quotable in Ray's screenplay, but only the FBI official is listed in IMDB.

Olympian Janet Evans appeared in explosion footage during a live interview that took place on the fateful night -- no listing for her portrayal in Eastwood's film, however.

And though the recreated AT&T stage includes several NBC affiliate studio spaces branded on the set, there are no IMDB-listed credits for cast members portraying NBC, CNN nor other national network reporters who covered the bombing and investigation.

As of this post, the only exception found in IMBD is a cast listing for an actor portraying Bryant Gumbel, who interviewed Jewell in the latter months of 1996, according to Vanity Fair.

It's my understanding "The Ballad of Richard Jewell" filming remains underway in Atlanta. I'll be on the lookout for signs with the production code "KIKI" and post updates as additional details emerge (please share via comments if you have them -- would love to hear from the extras selected for the film).

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver and Valentian Kucheriavenko except the movie still of Hauser from "I, Tonya" via Neon; top image of Eastwood via this site; Getty Images photo of bombing investigation at sunrise 7/27/1996 via this CNN archive link. 

Kind Words For 'Race'

Movie buffs and Olympic fans are getting treated to several new five-ringed films this year, and next to hit the big screen is the Jesse Owens biopic "Race."

Focus Features hosted a star-studded Atlanta premiere earlier this month, and there are plenty of good reasons to experience this portrayal of an American and worldwide Olympic hero, and those forming his inner and outer circles of influence, on the road and boat to the Berlin 1936 Olympiad.

Ambassador Andrew Young, Chris Bridges (a.k.a. Ludacris), Regina Belle, Anthony David and Kim Fields were among the honored guests on site.

Rising track star and Rio Olympic hopeful Candace Hill also attended to enjoy what she called her first real red carpet experience. I was hoping to spot other Georgia Olympians, or the team from the upcoming documentary "Olympic Pride, American Prejudice" (a work in progress also featuring Owens) during the festivities.

Addressing the audience before the special screening, the actor in the title role, Stephan James, explained how he drew inspiration from the Olympic champion.

"Jesse Owens was a humanitarian," said James. "Of all things I learned about him, nothing [compared] to that aspect of his life."

James described Owens' courage to travel to Berlin as one of the first black Team USA Olympians also running against strong headwinds of Nazism in Germany and racism at home in the USA.

"I took it as a responsibility to bring a level of humanity to him and bring that to the screen," said James. "I hope [audiences] enjoy the film and they learn something from it, but most importantly I hope [they're] inspired the same way I was."

Through a red carpet interview informed by an Atlanta Journal-Constitution report, I asked James about his training for the film on the tracks at Georgia Tech during his time away from filming "Selma" (in which he portrayed a young Congressman John Lewis).

While responding, James also described how his study of "Olympia" -- the original Olympic film and award winning documentary by Leni Riefenstahl -- factored into his Owens performance. James seemed humbled by the opportunity to portray the gold medalist, and the actor's responses may be viewed here:

I liked "Race" not only for its attention to small Olympic details but also its script directly addressing race relations, leaving no doubt about the title's double entendre while subtly proving the premise of the "Avenue Q" song "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist Sometimes." Just about all of key characters in "Race" had strong though inappropriate words about their fellow man. 

Prepare to wriggle in your seat if you're uncomfortable with epithets like coon, cracker, darkie, eight ball, Kraut, the n-word or peckerwood. They're all in there, though not in succession as in the dugout confrontation of "42."

Some of the most honest conversations in "Race" are between Owens and his coach Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis). As the arc of their relationship evolves from coach:athlete to mentor:mentee then close friendship, their "tell it like it is" comfort levels increase, eventually shining as they defend each other to narrow-minded peers. This crescendos with the film's most direct statement on race (for a spoiler, see 1:35 to 1:45 of the trailer).

I think both characters grew from their open and direct conversations, and perhaps moviegoers may also. And, by the way, the second nod to a previous sports film comes through a few Sudeikis coaching scenes akin to Ian Holm in "Chariots of Fire."

If a goal of "Race" is to get audiences talking frankly about the topic race, the filmmakers succeeded -- the diverse premiere audience definitely shared conversations upon exiting the theatre. This writer sort of anticipated mention of Richard Pryor's response to Chevy Chase on "SNL" to creep into the post-screening banter.

I spoke with Ambassador Young, Fields and Belle about their observations.

Young described "Race" as "probably his favorite" Olympic movie because it took him back to his first lessons in race relations at age four. Conversing with me as the credits rolled, Young said his boyhood home street included some pre-WWII German neighbors who publicly saluted Hitler, and early newsreels of Jesse Owens' victory provided fodder for some father-son conversations.

"It taught me 'don't get mad, get smart!" said Young, who added that he never met Owens or his family members, but he did serve in Congress with Owens' teammate/Olympic gold medalist Ralph Metcalfe.

Fields, who was emcee for a brief in-theatre presentation for James, said she enjoyed the film. The "Facts of Life" star who now resides in Atlanta thought it would be an inspiration for many, as did Belle, who answered a few questions on camera, specifically citing one of the film's best lines about freedom and sport relevant to anyone's chosen passion.

Returning to attention to detail in "Race," a few other finer points are notable.

For the second or third time in recent film history (following "Unbroken" and "Berlin 36"), the German Olympiastadion is vividly brought to life through rich, modern animation.

An over-the-shoulder lens follows Owens through the vomitory and onto the field with 100,000 seated fans. This long take seamlessly presents an on-screen Owens transformation from national track star to international icon. This I liked, and many in the audience gasped at the stadium views inclusive of the 1936 Olympic cauldron.

I also enjoyed how everything from Riefenstahl's camera angles and lipstick to the long jump judges' correct Olympic pin and ribbon colors really popped. Earlier, during the opening scenes, there's an homage to "Rocky" with Owens taking a training run through depression era Cleveland. Everyone's got the right pinstripe suit, hat and rumble seat sedan, proving the costume and set decoration teams did their homework.

They even put an Olympic oak seedling in Jesse's hands during his medal ceremony, accurately depicting the special takeaway gift presented to each winner of gold, silver and bronze (the fate of many Olympic oaks was documented by an International Association of Olympic Historians member, with at least one Owens oak still possibly alive at his his high school or college alma mater, Ohio State University).

The hand-held seedlings got a lot of surprised responses from the audience: "A tree?!?" and "What's Jesse going to do with a tree?"

Where I took issue with "Race" is through the broad and purely fictional liberties taken by the writers to showcase the politicking of Team USA and Third Reich. If the filmmakers went out of their way to get the right lapel pins on the actors, why create such preposterous scenes on other Olympic fronts?

The most outlandish set up features multiple conversations during which Riefenstahl, the documentary filmmaker, personally translates conversations between Joseph Goebbels and Avery Brundage, the German propaganda minister and the U.S. Olympic Committee delegate, respectively. Ridiculous!

These scenes seemed false on a level akin to another purely fictional Olympic film character, the so-called "Olympic shooter from Syria" written into "American Sniper" for distracting-to-this-blogger dramatic effect (more on that fiction here). More forgivable but perhaps just as fictional are post-race scenes during which Hitler snubbed Owens (facts still debated my many historians).

Two casting choices -- specifically regarding Jeremy Irons and William Hurt -- struck me funny as well.

While Irons' CV is chock-full of douche bag villain roles (his love to hate them characters in "Lolita," "Reversal of Fortune," "Damage" and "Margin Call" among my favorites), and I get it that Irons as Brundage is a new addition to the list, it seemed to me the balding William Hurt, who also played some jerks (see "Broadcast News," "Mr. Brooks" and "A History of Violence") had a better hair line match to Brundage.

Instead, Irons dons the spectacles and Hurt carries his tail between his legs as Jeremiah Mahoney, the U.S. athletics official who -- at least in the script for "Race" -- failed to sway votes for a 1936 Olympic boycott (more creative writing liberties, I suspect -- though the boycott vote did take place it's doubtful such speeches were uttered by those in attendance).

Two German performers shine as Riefenstahl and Goebbels, who share some verbal fencing just as directy as Owens and Snyder.

Barnaby Metschurat filled his S.S. costume with stern angst, and Carise van Houten dished out some clever schadenfreude for Hitler's closest minion.

"This is my Olympics," said Goebbels, to which Riefenstahl aptly retorted, "This is my film; without it, your Olympics will be forgotten in one year!"

Other brief notes: Though the exact duration of the film is not yet published, audiences may wish to pace themselves for a marathon not a sprint to the finish.

Also, the soundtrack to "Race" leaves a bit to be desired -- seemed like a missed opportunity for the filmmakers to engage Vangelis, John Williams or one of several talented African American composers for a stronger score (the team at Back Lot Music just didn't come through on this one).

I was very impressed by Stefan James filling some big Olympian shoes** in "Race." This was his second five-ringed film (he previously appeared in the made for television movie "The Gabby Douglas Story") and it hopefully will be the first of many major roles for James' career.

One key scene in the rain, during which Owens stares with optimism at the woman he hopes to marry, resembled the Pulitzer Prize winning photo of President Obama gazing into a challenging future, and down the road I think James could fill the shoes of our commander-in-chief on film.

Might also be fun to see James again in the eventual "Carl Lewis Story" or "Bolt -- Usain's Journey" down the road. Until then, my suggestion is to run, don't walk, to see "Race."

Premiere event photos and videos by Nicholas Wolaver. Hurt-Brundage-Irons images via IMDB. Stills and posters from "Race" via Focus Features.

**A pair of Jesse Owens' shoes may be on view in the upcoming High Museum of Art exhibition "Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture" opening June 11; the exhibition catalog features images of a pair of Owens' spikes. "Race" includes a curious reference to these shoes via Coach Snyder clumsily trying to locate Adidas founder one night in Berlin -- another fictionalized, albeit interesting, Olympic trivia element in the film.

Jewell Film May Rile

During Christmas of 1996, I could not resist changing the lyrics to the popular holiday tune "Good King Wenceslas" thanks to a Georgia name that grabbed a lot of headlines during the Centennial Olympic Games held in Atlanta.

Good King Wenceslas looked out,

on the Feast of Stephen,

When the snow lay round about, 

deep and crisp and even;

Brightly shone the moon that night, 

tho' the frost was cruel,

When a poor man came in sight ...

is that Richard Jewell?

Nearly 20 years later, Richard Jewell -- the hero security guard of the 1996 Games -- still comes to mind each caroling season. For those in need pf a refresher on his story, the ESPN 30 for 30 short "Judging Jewell" provides a good recap. 

During winter/spring 2015, I got another reminder of Jewell in the form of a dateline Hollywood news article. 

Not quite Christmas in July, but noteworthy for Olympic film fans.

Turns out Jewell, who died at 44 in 2007, will get his own silver screen feature with the working title "The Ballad of Richard Jewell." 

According to published reports, Jonah Hill and Leonardo DiCaprio will play Jewell and his attorney, respectively, in a big budget release set for 2016, possibly in time for the Rio Olympics. 

The title comes from the headline to the famous Vanity Fair article by Marie Brenner, who landed one of the biggest 1x1 interviews of 1996 when Jewell agreed to his first media conversation before his acquittal for the Centennial Olympic Park bombing. Brenner is also known for in-depth writing that inspired the award-winning film "The Insider."

In Brenner's extensive post-Olympic "American Nightmare" article, Jewell unloaded months of pent--up rage and anxiety caused after his "right place at the right time" heroics earned scrutiny of the world's media (and just about everyone else) thanks to some loose-lipped law enforcement officials and an overzealous reporting team. 

Anxious for a global news scoop hours after the bombing, and imbued by "official sources," reporters at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution led with coverage of Jewell that -- like the Bee Gees lyrics to "I Started A Joke" -- started the whole world crying the security guard's name with specious accusations. 

Details for the new Hill/DiCaprio project remain sparse, but according to one report, Clint Eastwood was initially considered to direct the film. This turned out to be wishful thinking during all the attention for "American Sniper," however, as Eastwood put the kibosh on project speculation during a public Q&A. 

Just as well since Eastwood has a record of skewing Olympic facts, as reported here. 

With no Eastwood option, this writer hopes Martin Scorsese might direct Hill/DiCaprio again on the heels of their shared success for "The Wolf of Wall Street." 

Screenwriter Billy Ray -- working with Scorsese on his adaptation of "Devil In The White City" (starring DiCaprio) -- is confirmed to write the screenplay for "The Ballad of Richard Jewell" so maybe a Scorsese-Ray-Hill-DiCaprio combo pack for the Jewell bio may work (though not likely in time for Rio 2016, methinks).

No matter the director, I can hardly wait to see if the screenplay recreates the "Saturday Night Live" 1997 season opener scene during which beleaguered FBI Director Janet Reno -- masterfully portrayed by Will Ferrell -- absorbs a gut-busting punch by the real Richard Jewell, who followed the hit with a great one-liner: "Same time next week?" 

Later in the same SNL episode, Jewell sat in the guest chair for a funny "Weekend Update" interview with Norm MacDonald. 

I am also curious how the Atlanta Journal-Constitution marketing department and editorial staff will report on "The Ballad of Richard Jewell." The newspaper that "Covers Dixie Like the Dew" unfortunately stepped in poo through the whole Jewell episode, and its likely the AJC will gets its due -- in the form of unflattering publicity for a free press outlet gone awry at great expense to a private citizen -- when the film project gains steam. 

This copy of court documents related to Jewell's legal action against the AJC offers a peek at both sides of their cases which became moot upon Jewell's death.

When the film starts shooting, here's hoping Centennial Olympic Park may finally get some screen time as well. 

Photos via Hollywood Reporter, AJC.com, Associated Press, Hulu and Howard Berger blog.

In case Billy Ray is reading, here's my contribution to "The Ballad of Richard Jewell" screenplay drafts: 

INT. JEWELL FAMILY APARTMENT - SUMMER AFTERNOON

RICHARD enters from bedroom as his mother places home-cooked meal on small dining table by window facing suburban apartment complex parking lot. He is wearing an Olympic security uniform and ball cap. She adjusts the volume on small TV screen to soften Tom Brokaw's NBC evening report on monitor. 

RICHARD

(while sitting at table and scooping food onto his plate)

Looks good, momma. 

Glad to eat quick before heading downtown. 

This beats that fast food from last night

that upset my stomach.

MOTHER

You eat your veggies. 

I don't want you getting 

hungry on your late shift.

(BROKAW on monitor talking about the first week of the Atlanta Olympics reaching the weekend, highlights from the day's competition, and live shots of crowds at Centennial Olympic Park -- audible volume but part of background while RICHARD and MOTHER meal conversation continues)

MOTHER (CONT'D)

(looking at screen while talking with cheek full of food)

Looks like it'll be a busy night for you down there.

RICHARD

Should be. 

I'm glad for the peace 

and quiet here at home. 

It gets noisy there. 

(RICHARD and MOTHER continue eating and chatting inaudibly as camera pans back to show relative calm of tree-lined apartment parking lot out the window).

MOTHER

(cheerfully)

I just love Tom Brokaw. 

He is so handsome. 

He's always been one of my favorites.

The film advances through the evening of the bombing, Richard's heroic actions, and initial interviews with investigators. The film later resumes in the same apartment during breakfast a couple of days later. 

INT. JEWELL FAMILY APARTMENT - MORNING LIGHT OBSCURED BY WINDOW BLINDS

RICHARD enters from bedroom in boxer shorts and T-shirt, rubbing eyes after a near-sleepless night as his mother places scrambled eggs and bacon on dining table by window. The TV is off.

(Audible muttering heard from outside window)

MOTHER

Come get something to eat. It's been so noisy outside. 

They must finally be getting around to painting things. 

I keep hearing the painting crew yelling at each other 

but I didn't open the blinds since I'm in my robe. 

I didn't even go out to get the paper yet. 

RICHARD

Oh, I'll get the paper. 

I want to see the latest reports 

from the other night.

RICHARD opens door to reach down for paper on welcome mat. 

(Off-screen REPORTER yelling "There he is!" as flashbulbs pop reflected in apartment entryway)

RICHARD quickly shuts door and steps back slowly, startled and bewildered. Holding newspaper, he turns attention to table as MOTHER reaches for the window blind string to draw up the blinds. Camera across room facing table and window shows RICHARD and MOTHER from behind and their view as the raised blinds reveal a sea of hundreds of television news cameras, reporters, photographers and bystanders -- some in the threes or atop news trucks -- peering at the Jewell breakfast scene. 

MOTHER

(gasps from shock of the scene, quickly lowers blinds for concealment)

Oh, my God! What in the world?!

As if to distract herself, MOTHER quickly turns on the television which is still tuned to NBC. On screen, Tom Brokaw is speaking about the Olympic Park bombing from earlier evening. RICHARD and MOTHER watch intently as camera zooms in on BROKAW on screen.

BROKAW

(with photo of RICHARD on screen)

They probably have enough to arrest him right now, probably enough to prosecute him, but you always want to have enough to convict him as well. There are still holes in this case.

MOTHER

(lips quivering) 

What is he talking about? 

(she starts to cry as RICHARD looks down, somberly shaking his head as he unfolds the newspaper to reveal his photo on the cover and an accusatory headline above the fold)

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