David James Duncan

“Several Decembers ago I was invited, in my capacity as a novelist and freelance writing teacher, to a little Christian college extension built out of a converted logging camp in tiny Lincoln, Oregon.  I’m not too big on Christianizing efforts, generally speaking, but if there is anything on earth I like seeing converted it’s logging camps…”

So begins “Wonder; Yogi; Gladly,” an essay written by David James Duncan after his first visit to The Oregon Extension in the 1990s.  You can find the rest of this essay in Duncan’s most recent collection of nonfiction, God Laughs & Plays: Churchless Sermons in Response to the Preachments of the Fundamentalist Right (2006).  And you can find Duncan himself at The O.E. this fall, spending a few days with us at Lincoln.

We’ve loved Duncan’s books here at the O.E. for a long time.  His bestselling novels, The River Why (1983) and The Brothers K (1992), have held spots among our core books nearly ever year for over a decade, and this year The Brothers K will once again be our summer reading.  Duncan’s essay-and-story collection, River Teeth (1996), and his memoir, My Story as Told by Water (2001), generally circulate as favorites among student cabins as well.

So what’s the big deal about this writer?  What is it about his baseball and fly-fishing narratives that gets us so excited?  That’s hard to say.  If you invite an O.E. alum out to coffee and pitch him or her that question, you’re bound to get an earful.  It could be the deep spiritual issues that Duncan explores with humor and honesty in his stories.  It could be the mess and beauty of the families that people his books.  It could be the unique variety of mysticism that shows up in his pages, wearing waders and casting a fly rod and singing a gut-wrenched love song to wild salmon and to Montana’s Blackfoot River.  It could be all of the above.  Or something else altogether, something impossible to pinpoint and impossible to forget.

David Duncan is currently hard at work finishing his new novel.  We’re grateful for his willingness to carve out some time to come and chat with us at Lincoln.  We welcome him heartily, and we welcome you, incoming students.  We look forward to the conversation.

OE Group Photo, Fall 1997

Today I was doing random searches on some of my favorite books. The River Why, by David James Duncan, is among those favorite books. And I learned that a film is/has been made, and that the author is suing the producers and the Sierra Club, asserting that, hello, he owns the rights to the book, characters, etc. I hope he wins. This is kinda old news, but I just found out about it, so it’s news to me! Reading the web and the documents on courthousenews.com, the thing that struck me was that Sierra Club, which first published the book in the early 1980s, did not ‘protect’ one of their own – the author. Instead, it seems, they sold the rights to his book without his approval through a series of expired options and misrepresentations. And now, a film is being produced, without the involvement of the author of the book on which the film is based. Perhaps this is all legal and nothing personal, I don’ t know. But I have to wonder what Duncan thinks of the Sierra Club and their actions to put this film project on the road without his approval, if that is what happened. The Sierra Club has appeared to act very ‘big corporate’like in doing whatever they want with someone else’s property. If Duncan was not a man, but a river, would this have happened? No, because rivers can’t type and there would be no book. Seriously, it looks like a large organization thought it could do what it wants with someone else’s property – a book – and whether you’re a do-good non-profit organization or a greedy corporation, that is wrong.

Now, there won’t be a huge army of book nerds upset about this film, drawing up petitions, like there was for Interview With the Vampire, Lord of the Rings, or Bridges of Madison County (remember that one? Dirty Harry Clint Eastwood directing and taking the lead role with Miss Super Actress Meryl Streep in a romantic film? Sweet Jesus! Everyone was sure the End Times were soon upon us over that one).

But there should be. Especially if the author of the book had the rights ‘misappropriated’ to other parties. You can’t unring a bell, and it’s very difficult to unmake a film and keep it locked up forever, because it’s such a large investment of money and Hollywood usually finds a way to release their products.

From what I read, David James Duncan is not necessarily opposed to any film being made, and he and others have a team of talented folks in mind to make a film based on his work. Fair enough. I’m not sure I want to see The River Why made into a film because the book is so much more than a 2 hour fishing movie. The apparently unauthorized film has a tagline on it’s website:

A fish love story you can believe in…

Gag. Maybe they should retitle their film Gus & Eddy’s Infinite Playlist, or The Notebook 2, The River Years. It’s been years since I’ve read the book and much of what I remember involves the main character in solitude, fishing, and the occasional interactions with his wildly amusing family and, yeah, some gal. It wasn’t Dawson’s Creek, though. It was about life, rivers, fish, family, religion/philosophy, love, sadness, etc…

Another thing – I’m a little disappointed in the actors who have signed on to this. It tells me that many of them probably aren’t aware of the book’s subtle greatness. Who would sign on to a film that has such questionable legal authority to be made (if that’s even the right way to put it ). Did any of them think to wonder why the author of this, his first book, wasn’t involved? Yes, actors have to eat and make a buck, but when you knowingly take rides in a stolen car all summer long, you should feel a little sleazy. That goes for William Hurt, Zach Gilford, William Devane, and Kathleen Quinlan, and so on. All of them may have been fed lies by the production team about the author and ownership, but still, kinda disappointing.

Oh, and I’m not even a trout fisherman. I haven’t fished since I was a kid. I can’t imagine what true trout fisherman and others more acquainted with this book and type of living and environmental activism think of the film. There’s too few of them to make waves about it (pun intended). Who knows ? Maybe Duncan and the defendants will settle and the film will go forward with his blessing.

Disclosure: I am a fan of David James Duncan’s books, even going as far as shipping my books to him for autographs, which he did without hesitation. I am also a fan of John Irving’s, and remember the plain awful movie Simon Birch, ‘based’ on Irving’s novel “A Prayer for Owen Meaney” – I’d hate for that type of well-intentioned, but poorly made effort, be applied to Duncan’s first novel (and don’t even think about touching his follow up novel “Brothers K”).

The River Why (My 1983 Copy)

Ok, normally, I am just too mentally abusive of the notion of hanging out around a movie ’set’ (like it is a frequent occurrence). Recently, my son, Tony clued me in that the production staff for the movie, The River Why had approached the fly shop, Northwest Flyfishing Outfitters in Portland, Oregon, to see if the shop could be used for a portion of the movie’s production. Cool, I thought. My son said he would be there to sit back and watch. Have fun, I thought. But as this last Thursday approached I thought maybe I would drive by on my way home from work. Just to see the rigs and equipment and give a wave, I thought. As I drove home, I did approach the shop and my pickup, with a mind of its’ own, was soon parked at the curb. 

I was quickly motioned to to ‘come over here’. Cool I thought, they are inviting me in to witness the process. No, actually you have parked adjacent to the filming about to take place and if you are about to exit your vehicle could you quickly move your sorry ass over here out of line with the imminent filming? Well, of course, I would be delighted to do just that! I spent the next hour or so watching the start-stop process of filming that soon makes it apparent how tedious and mentally demanding it is for the dozens of production staff and actors to stay on task and deal with all manner of adjustments.

I was struck by the youthfulness of the crew. I am not familiar with the company filming, but maybe they are as an industry young and always have been, but these were for the most part kids in their 20’s and early 30’s and operating in what seemed to be a well coordinated team. Communications in use to stay in sync and little scene by little scene they worked away. This was one of their last days filming in Oregon and they as a group looked tired this day. Course, I have nothing to compare to. It was muggy by Oregon standards this day as a front was pushing in against mid 80’s temps so humidity was a bit up.

Zach Gilford (Gus)

I had the good fortune to be in the shop when the star of the movie, Zach Gilford, took a break from the filming and just sat down amongst us. He was tired, yet congenial.  He graciously answered gentle, probing questions about his career path and general background. He exhibited zero ego (unlike a couple extra’s with bit parts). Zach described how mentally demanding it is when you are the center of the story line. My son, Tony, got to spend time with the movie’s producer and they worked on tying up an ant pattern that might be in the movie…a pattern concocted without the typical tying tools (in the movie the fly is made from a piece of heavy thread from a garment.

I toured the old school bus parked nearby where every conceivable treat was stored and managed by a young lady. The numerous trucks had loads of equipment. Extra’s stood by and waited their turn. The proverbial ‘Quiet’ and ‘Action’ were yelled out. So many people hovering around the every move of the young star, Gilford. I did not get to see the beautiful Amber Heard, although Tony brought his Maxim magazine (she graces the cover) for an autograph.

Tony & Zach

Of interest, I recently read Borger’s blog (he is the technical advisor~I would have selected a NW flyfisher for advice, not a Midwest guy), where he waxed on about the greeness of the project. I will say, greeness aside and people’s devout need to kneel at the altar of their new eco religion, there were rumblings of absurd lengths required to satisfy greenies during the production so snails and the like were not distressed or earthworms harmed or stream studs worn that might disturb the substrate, etc. (*Please read the Commnets Section for a response to my remarks, by the movie’s Producer, Kristi, to better understand their personal commitment to balancing production needs and leaving minimal damange behind) 

So, that rant aside, it was a very fun experience. As I drove away (having received clearance to walk to my rig) I felt a bit foolish, like how I have imagined I would behave if a star were seated at a nearby table; trying to act nonchalant, but feeling a little bit giddy. Hell, I have been known to look at a People Magazine while waiting in a doctor’s office. My son was invited to attend the after shoot party tonight. I wasn’t invited. Maybe he will snap a shot of him and Amber that I can share.  (Update: Party cancelled as they continue to shoot river footage…update later if invite still good).

Tony & Zach

 

I read this book many years ago (1983) and it is a classic with colorful characters set in Oregon. They have filmed on the Wilson R. and the Clack.    

Summary of Book, I found: The protagonist –Gus to his mother and Augustine to his father– is raised by a pair of dysfunctional parents. His father, a fly fisherman, writes fishing stories for magazines; his mother, a live bait fisherwoman who rules with a shotgun, disagrees with her husband on just about everything. Upon graduating from high school, Gus rents a secluded cabin on the River Why, and becomes the consummate fisherman. Along the way he meets Eddy, the true love of his life, and slowly begins to discover the spiritual side to life and learns the answers to “why.”

As a disclaimer, it is important to note that neither Tony nor I are deriving any financial or other advantage by posting the story or pictures. The privilege of being allowed to watch and associate with the entire production staff, to include Zach, was a special experience.   

Do UOL:

O ator William Hurt estará em “The River Why”, adaptação cinematográfica do romance homônimo de David James Duncan, de 1983, ao lado de Zach Gilford e Amber Heard.

O filme do diretor Matt Leutwyler, com lançamento previsto para 2009, vai narrar a história do jovem Gus Orviston, interpretado por Gilford, que, ao se lançar numa jornada em busca de um peixe raríssimo junto com seu pai, interpretado por Hurt, acaba conhecendo a si mesmo.

Hurt, 58 anos, atualmente pode ser visto nos cinemas no filme “O Incrível Hulk”, ao lado de Edward Norton e Liv Tyler, também está no elenco do filme “The Countess”, de Julie Delpy, que entrará em exibição em breve.

A matéria foi encontrada neste link.

Good news – flyfishing is to get another dose of Hollywood big-time, thanks to the imminent movie version of David James Duncan’s 1983 novel The River Why. Fishing magazine sales do rather well whenever our sport hits the silver screen: if you see me going all weak-kneed whenever Brad Pitt’s name slips into the conversation, it’s a purely commercial reaction.

Bad news - the film will have William Hurt in it.

Ever since I fought against the counsel of a thousand screaming inner voices and somehow sat through all 121 minutes of The Accidental Tourist, I have regarded Hurt as the dullest character in Tinseltown and nothing I’ve seen of him since has changed my mind.

I say ‘character’ because, for all I know, he could be the party animal par excellence in real life but let’s hope he and the scriptwriter are sat down by the director at an early date in this latest project and ordered to entertain at all costs.

If not, those who see angling as the preserve of earnest, tortured deadbeats may soon be presented with the ideal man for the job.

I have a tendency to read multiple books at once. Right now I am in the process of reading five books. Two are collections of short stories, two are non-fiction and one is a giant of a Russian love story.

I think just as I have music in my blood I have words too. I come from a long line of word loving people. It’s impossible to me to not be reading something all the time. Since moving to New York I’ve gained a reading place that I’d never had before. The subway.

My subway book right now is called River Teeth. It is a collection of stories and writings by one of my favorite authors, David James Duncan. He is the author of The River Why, an epic and heartwarming tale about fly-fishing in the northwest.

On Friday during my morning commute I opened River Teeth to the next story in line and found myself at “My One Conversation with Colin Walcott”. It is a tale of a night of magical music making and impossible bonds formed with little conversation and the help of the mystical beauty of the Oregon coast.

The story is knowingly self-conscious and awe filled and as Duncan states it is about something inexplicable as most things that are worth explaining are. It is a story about music and how it can bring people together, create communities out of crowds of strangers and cause magical things to happen.

“Music is the food whose peculiarity it is to enter us through the ears.

Music is an inexpressible from outside us touching an inexpressible

within, causing the frenetic persona that normally wedges itself between

outside and inside, creating twoness, to vanish.”

For a man of words he does a beautiful job of describing his inability to actually convey the beauty of what he experienced. His story is lyrical and musical and worth the small amount you’d pay for the book to share the experience with the author.

It was the first written piece that ever made me want to sing. Now that is beautiful prose, soundless but full of vibrations.

David James Duncan – http://books.google.com/books?as_auth=David+James+Duncan&sa=X&oi=print&ct=title&cad=author-navigational&hl=en

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