Looking for Creative Screenwriting May/June 2008 issue w/ D. Koepp's interview

Dreuki

New member
Hi guys,

I'm a French Indiana Jones fan currently working on Harrison Ford's bio and in that regard I'm trying to get a copy of the May/June 2008 issue of Creative Screenwriting. It has been mentioned numerous times on these boards as the source of a David Koepp quote saying that Lawrence Kasdan was the one who wrote the "they weren't you, honey" line in KOTCS. I want to make sure that this quote is in the article but I can't find it on online stores nor in its digital form so I'm turning to the community to see if a Raven member still has a copy of the article and would be kind enough to share it! I've contacted the current Creative Screenwriting team but unfortunately they didn't keep any copy.

See the latest quote on the boards mentioning it below as well as the issue's cover.

TheLastCrusader said:
Simple. A few well-directed sequences can be credited to Steven Spielberg;
The one good line in the film ("they weren't you, honey") is Kasdan's, his one and only contribution to the film.
And, well, the story and script can be credited to Mr. Lucas and David Koepp, respectively. Clear-cut case to me.

cs_mag%20cover.jpg
 

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
Welcome Dreuki! I remember that discussed here.

A great way to search is to use a quote if you have it from somewhere in the article. Or take the Wayback Machine to 2008.
Matinee Magic: David Koepp and Indiana Jones Enter the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

BY PETER N. CHUMO II

When Steven Spielberg, who directed Raiders of the Lost Ark as well as the two follow-up adventures in the series, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), called Koepp two years ago about writing a fourth installment, he had "to think and decide carefully." Not many screenwriters, after all, receive the opportunity to pen a chapter in a series whose first film inspired them to become a screenwriter in the first place. As Koepp succinctly puts it, "That kind of symmetry and circularity doesn't come along often in life, and I really didn't want to screw it up." Ultimately the offer was too tempting to pass up, especially since he and Spielberg had already successfully collaborated on Jurassic Park (1997) and War of the Worlds (2005). Because "we brought good stuff out of each other," Koepp concluded that he would "be crazy not to do this."

Embarking on this project meant reading material from 15 years of development and five writers—Jeb Stuart, Jeffrey Boam, Frank Darabont, Jeff Nathanson and George Lucas. Lucas, of course, conceived of the protagonist more than 30 years ago, and, along with Spielberg, has shepherded each adventure to screen. Koepp is modest about his achievement and does not think that everyone before him failed. Rather, he asserts that other writers all made important contributions to the development of the script. "You can learn more sometimes from a draft that misses wildly than from a draft that got really close," Koepp says. And, on a humorous but philosophical note, he adds, "Sometimes some poor bastard has to go down a road that will bear no fruit so that future generations don't." Koepp believes that he had "a combination of timing and a confluence of personalities" working in his favor. Building on their already solid working relationship, he and Spielberg were quickly "throwing ideas at each other that were sparking ideas in the other person."
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Don't have the article, but this thread has some of the discussion regarding Kasdan's involvement. Relevant discussion starting at post #27, which contains the link Moedred links to above. I think it's possible that an idea developed here about that particular line being written by Kasdan because of the knowledge that Kasdan consulted on the "love dialogue.'

Astonishing that the magazine didn't keep any copies; perhaps they're just not interested in helping. I have managed to track down (concurrent with Moedred) the tidbit that the interview was conducted by Peter Chumo, also rendered as Peter N. Chumo II. The title of the piece was "Matinee Magic: David Koepp and Indiana Jones Enter the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."

Also, it's a 4 page article. Here's how it's rendered in an annual film studies bibliography from 2008:

545. Chumo, Peter N, II. "Matinee Magic: David Koepp and Indiana Jones Enter the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." CS 15.3 (2008): 20-23. On writing the fourth entry in the Indiana Jones franchise.
 
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Dreuki

New member
Wow, thanks for your quick and helpful answers! I did know about the Wayback machine "trick" but I didn't think of it this time, silly of me.

I've checked in French libraries specialized in cinema studies and they don't have this issue either. But now that I've got the writer/interviewer's name I will try to reach him directly, I think it's my best best.

Thanks also for the thread mentioning this interview, it was actually one of my sources but I can't use the Kasdan anecdote unless I'm 100% sure that this specific quote was from him, and as you saw in the thread, it sounds more like some interpretation than an actual quote.
 

Z dweller

Well-known member
Dreuki said:
Wow, thanks for your quick and helpful answers! I did know about the Wayback machine "trick" but I didn't think of it this time, silly of me.

I've checked in French libraries specialized in cinema studies and they don't have this issue either. But now that I've got the writer/interviewer's name I will try to reach him directly, I think it's my best best.

Thanks also for the thread mentioning this interview, it was actually one of my sources but I can't use the Kasdan anecdote unless I'm 100% sure that this specific quote was from him, and as you saw in the thread, it sounds more like some interpretation than an actual quote.
Hi Dreuki, just out of curiosity: are you aiming for your Ford bio to be published?

The question about the paternity of that KOTCS line seems to be rather tangential to Ford's life - unless you are in the process of also compiling a really extensive account of the man's work as an actor.
 

Dreuki

New member
Z dweller said:
Hi Dreuki, just out of curiosity: are you aiming for your Ford bio to be published?

The question about the paternity of that KOTCS line seems to be rather tangential to Ford's life - unless you are in the process of also compiling a really extensive account of the man's work as an actor.

It will indeed be published in 2017. As for the bio's content, I should be more precise : the book aims to give a complete look at Harrison Ford's movie career. Obviously, it also includes elements of his childhood, college years and such, since it's part of his life, but the focus is on his filmography, including Indiana Jones. This quote story is a detail in the large scheme but I intend to write a complete part on KOTCS since it's such an important movie in his career arc.
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Dreuki said:
Thanks also for the thread mentioning this interview, it was actually one of my sources but I can't use the Kasdan anecdote unless I'm 100% sure that this specific quote was from him, and as you saw in the thread, it sounds more like some interpretation than an actual quote.

Oh, of course. I was actually positing the opposite, that you very likely can't cite the line as being Kasdan's since the idea of that line being his arose here.
 

Z dweller

Well-known member
Dreuki said:
It will indeed be published in 2017. As for the bio's content, I should be more precise : the book aims to give a complete look at Harrison Ford's movie career. Obviously, it also includes elements of his childhood, college years and such, since it's part of his life, but the focus is on his filmography, including Indiana Jones. This quote story is a detail in the large scheme but I intend to write a complete part on KOTCS since it's such an important movie in his career arc.
Interesting, thanks.

A quick google search shows two existing bios in English, the most recent of which published in 2000.
https://www.amazon.com/Harrison-Ford-Biography-Robert-Sellers/dp/0709048289
https://www.amazon.com/Harrison-Ford-Imperfect-Garry-Jenkins/dp/0735100896

I haven't read either, but they sound more like traditional bios, unlike your project.

Will your book be published in France only, may I ask?
 

Dreuki

New member
Attila the Professor said:
Oh, of course. I was actually positing the opposite, that you very likely can't cite the line as being Kasdan's since the idea of that line being his arose here.

Yes, I'll stick to the only reliable info (that Koepp asked Kasdan for help regarding the love dialogue) if I can't find the interview. If I do happen to find it though I'll make sure to share the answer here!

Z dweller said:
Interesting, thanks.

A quick google search shows two existing bios in English, the most recent of which published in 2000.
https://www.amazon.com/Harrison-Ford-Biography-Robert-Sellers/dp/0709048289
https://www.amazon.com/Harrison-Ford-Imperfect-Garry-Jenkins/dp/0735100896

I haven't read either, but they sound more like traditional bios, unlike your project.

Will your book be published in France only, may I ask?

Yes, the book will only be published in France but previous English books have taken the "movies only" road, such as Lee Pfeiffer and Michael Lewis in "The films of Harrison Ford". I'd be happy to share news about the book as we come closer to its release but we're still far away so I don't want to share too many details yet (and get even more off topic).:p
 

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
Some confusion on the article's title:
Watch the Skies: David Koepp on War of the Worlds
or...?
Steven Spielberg on David Koepp's War

I remember a 2005 DVD exclusive booklet "War of the Worlds: The Shooting Script" which included a Koepp Q&A with Rob Feld. Nothing Indy but always a fascinating interviewee. Some other interviews:

The Shadow: Screenwriter David Koepp
Altman, Mark A.
Cinefantastique 25(4): 23. August 1994.

Writer of Rampages
Warren, Bill/Shapiro, Marc
Starlog 242: 70-73. September 1997.

David Koepp
Sobczynski, Peter
Cinefantastique 31(4): 45. April 1999.
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Moedred said:
Some confusion on the article's title:
Watch the Skies: David Koepp on War of the Worlds
or...?
Steven Spielberg on David Koepp's War

Those both seem to exist, running one after another on pages 50-52 and pages 53-55 in the May/June 2005 issue of the magazine, as seen here.

Perhaps Indy's too far afield for the 2008 article to fit into their Sci-Fi & Fantasy collection?
 
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