Banhawy
Number of posts : 118
Age : 33
Registration date : 2007-03-02
 |  Subject: The Master of Thriller...John Grisham  Mon Mar 19, 2007 10:03 pm | |
| The international phenomenon that is John Grisham was born in Jonesboro, Arkansas, on February 8, 1955. He took up residence in Southaven, Mississippi, in 1967. He received an undergraduate degree in accounting from Mississippi State University in 1977 and then attended law school at the University of Mississippi, where he earned a law degree in 1981. That same year, he married Renee Jones. He established a law practice in Southaven, where he practiced both criminal and civil law. In 1983, he was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives. In 1989 he published his first novel, A Time to Kill. The book received some good reviews but sold only moderately well. His next book, however, would be a different story. Completed in 1988, The Firm would be his break-out hit. In 1990, before the novel was published, Paramount Pictures purchased the film rights for $600,000. That same year, he resigned from the House of Representatives and bought a farm near Oxford, Mississippi.
Since then, Grisham has gone on to be recognized as one of the world's bestselling novelists. In addition to A Time to Kill and The Firm, his titles include The Pelican Brief, The Client, The Chamber, and The Rainmaker, each of which has been scripted into immensely successful film versions. His most recent novels are The Partner (1997), The Street Lawyer (1998), The Testament (1999), and The Brethren (2000) .
In August 1994, he expanded his list of job titles to include publisher as well, when he rescued The Oxford American, a struggling magazine based in the town of its title, from financial destitution. In 2000, Grisham published A Painted House serially in the magazine. The novel, set in 1952 Arkansas, is, as Grisham readily admits, a departure from his usual style of novel. In a letter to readers, he writes, “A Painted House is not a legal thriller. In fact, there is not a single lawyer, dead or alive, in this story. Nor are there judges, trials, courtrooms, conspiracies or nagging social issues.” The novel was published as a single volume edition in 2001. Other departures from his legal thrillers include Skipping Christmas (2001), which was adapted into the motion picture Christmas with the Kranks (2004), and Bleachers (2004), a semi-autobiographical book about high school football.
In the spring of 2001, it was reported that Grisham had written the screenplay for the film Mickey, about the world of Little League baseball. Grisham also is serving as producer for the movie, which is being directed by Hugh Wilson and stars Harry Connick, Jr.
Grisham continues to write legal thrillers, the most recent of which are The Summons (2002), The King of Torts (2003), The Last Juror (2004), and most recently, The Broker (2005). He divides his time between a home in Charlottesville, Virginia, and Oxford, Mississippi.
Publications....
Fiction:
A Time to Kill. New York: Wynwood Press, 1989.
The Firm. New York: Doubleday, 1991.
The Pelican Brief. New York: Doubleday, 1992.
The Client. New York: Doubleday, 1993.
The Chamber. New York: Doubleday, 1994.
The Rainmaker. New York: Doubleday, 1995.
The Runaway Jury. New York: Doubleday, 1996.
The Partner. New York: Doubleday, 1997.
The Street Lawyer. New York: Doubleday, 1998.
The Testament. New York: Doubleday, 1999.
The Brethren. New York: Doubleday, 2000.
A Painted House. Oxford, Mississippi: The Oxford American (2000). New York: Doubleday, 2001.
Skipping Christmas. New York: Doubleday, 2001.
The Summons. New York: Doubleday, 2002.
The King of Torts. New York: Doubleday, 2003.
Bleachers. New York: Doubleday, 2003.
The Last Juror. New York: Doubleday, 2004.
The Broker. New York: Doubleday, 2005.
Media Adaptations
Motion Pictures:
The Firm. Dir. Sydney Pollack. Paramount Pictures, 1993. Based on the novel.
The Pelican Brief. Dir. Alan J. Pakula. Warner Bros., 1993. Based on the novel.
The Client. Dir. Joel Schumacher. Warner Bros., 1994. Based on the Novel.
The Chamber. Dir. James Foley. Universal Pictures, 1996. Based on the novel.
A Time to Kill. Dir. Joel Schumacher. Warner Bros., 1996. Based on the novel.
The Rainmaker. Dir. Francis Coppola. Constellation Films, 1997. Based on the novel.
The Gingerbread Man. Story by John Grisham. Dir. Robert Altman. Enchanter Entertainment, 1998.
A Painted House. Dir. Alfonso Arau. Hallmark Hall of Fame Productions and CBS-TV, 2003. Based on the novel.
Runaway Jury. Dir. Gary Fleder. New Regency Pictures, 2003. Based on the novel.
The Street Lawyer. Dir. Paris Barclay. Touchstone Television and ABC-TV, 2003.
Mickey. Dir. Hugh Wilson. Original screenplay by John Grisham. Mickey Productions, 2004.
Christmas with the Kranks. Dir. Joe Roth. Skipping Christmas Productions, 1492 Pictures, and Revolution Studios, 2004. Based on the novel Skipping Christmas.
Television Shows:
The Client. 1995-96. Based on the novel and movie. *This article is copied and edited | |
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