CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A new documentary about a famed Chicago writer makes its debut this weekend.
Nelson Algren rose to prominence in 1950 when he won the first official National Book Award for the post-World War II drama, "The Man with the Golden Arm," about a man with a morphine addiction. Considered to be Algren’s greatest work, it was made into a 1955 film of the same name starring Frank Sinatra and Kim Novak.
Raised in Chicago, Algren drew inspiration from every corner of the city but especially the dark ones. He died in 1981, having grown rather notorious for being a stubborn outsider.
But Chicago-based independent filmmaker Michael Caplan said Algren's work is still relevant.
"What he wrote about was America from the bottom up, [which] is largely overlooked today and we wanted to rectify that," Caplan, who is also a film professor at Columbia College Chicago, told WBBM Newsradio.
Caplan directed a documentary about Algren's life and legacy.
The film, "Algren," has never-before-seen footage and audio recordings of Algren as well as interviews with his friends and literary experts. The film originally debuted at the 2014 Chicago International Film Festival and a revised version will be released in theaters, including at Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History on Oct. 9, and will be available to stream in the coming weeks.
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