Daily Dialogue — September 24, 2019

“It’s four thirty. Time for milking.”

— Witness (1985), screenplay by Earl W. Wallace & William Kelley, story by William Kelley and Pamela Wallace & Earl W. Wallace

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Farm. Today’s suggestion by @pauldecesare41.

Trivia: When producer Edward S. Feldman, who had a first-look development deal with 20th Century Fox, first received the script, it ran to 182 pages, which is the equivalent of three hours screen time. Feldman was really enthusiastic about the screenplay, even though he felt that there was too much concentration on the Amish and their traditions. He offered William Kelley and Earl W. Wallace $25,000 for a one-year option, and a re-write, plus an additional $250,000 if the film ever got made. Kelley and Wallace submitted their revised screenplay within six weeks, and Feldman promptly submitted it to Fox and its studio head, Joe Wizan, who immediately rejected the script with the statement that Fox didn’t do “rural movies”.

Dialogue On Dialogue: One the charms of the movie is the FOOW (Fish Out Of Water) dynamic experienced by John Book (Harrison Ford). Such as having to wake up before dawn to milk some cows.