by Marc Eliot
15 “the wildest house in Hollywood …” Douglas Brode, The Films of Jack Nicholson, p. 18.
16 “Whenever I think of Jack …” Harry Dean Stanton, quoted ibid.
17 “I had met this other …” Roger Corman, interview by author.
18 “I think in all my movies …” Ibid.
19 “very wry … but very cynical …” Monte Hellman, quoted by Mary Blume, Los Angeles Times, April 4, 1971.
20 “Jack already had a reputation …” Monte Hellman, interview by author.
21 “It was actually shot in two days …” Roger Corman, interview by author.
22 “The reason I got it …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Neal Weaver, After Dark, October 1969.
23 “All of your conceptual reality …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Playboy, April 1972.
24 “While the ceremony …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Newsweek, December 9, 2002.
25 “I said, look, Roger …” Jack Nicholson, Corman’s World DVD, A&E IndieFilms, 2011.
26 “as [the magnificent sets …” Boris Karloff, quoted by Douglas Brode, The Films of Jack Nicholson, p. 52.
CHAPTER 4
1 “I never dug [being in Corman’s films]…” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Douglas Brode, The Films of Jack Nicholson, pp. 42–43.
2 “in those days …” Monte Hellman, interview by author.
3 “Three weeks for one …” Ibid.
4 “McLuhan mystery …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Neal Weaver, After Dark, October 1969.
5 “lots of tomahawks and ketchup …” Roger Corman, quoted by Dennis McDougal, Five Easy Decades, p. 57.
6 “I agreed to let them …” Roger Corman, interview by author.
7 “existential western …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Neal Weaver, After Dark, October 1969.
8 “a horror picture …” Monte Hellman, interview by author.
9 “As a young Turk …” Jack Nicholson, to Gene Siskel, Chicago Tribune, June 16, 1985.
10 “That was the first time …” Jack Nicholson, to Peter Bogdanovich, Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, 2006.
11 “That year was the most …” Monte Hellman, interview by author.
12 “Monte was a real talent …” Mike Medavoy, interview by author.
13 “The Hells Angels …” Roger Corman, interview by author.
14 “She fell in love with God and Jack couldn’t compete …” Helena Kallianiotes, quoted by Dennis McDougal, Five Easy Decades, p. 70.
15 “My marriage broke up …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Playboy, April 1972.
16 “Bruce was one of my favorite actors …” Roger Corman, interview by author.
17 “By now, Roger and I …” Jack Nicholson, speaking in the documentary film. Corman’s World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel, directed by Alex Stapleton, DVD, A&E IndieFilms, 2011.
18 “I had known Jack and Peter …” Dennis Hopper, to Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter, January 19, 1999.
19 “Our eyes met …” Karen Black, interview by author.
20 “I was with her …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Jacoba Atlas and Marni Butterfield, Show Magazine, May 1971.
21 “I always sort of stunk on television …” Jack Nicholson, to Martin Torgoff, Interview, August 1984.
CHAPTER 5
1 “Being stoned …” Jack Nicholson, to Robert Crane and Christopher Fryer, Genesis, February 1975.
2 “I want to make …” Bert Schneider, quoted by Peter Biskind, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, p. 57.
3 “When I liked a picture …” Bob Rafelson, to Louise France, The Times, (London), May 15, 1998.
4 “I’m a New Wave baby …” Jack Nicholson, to Julian Schnabel, Interview, April 2003.
5 “We all agreed …” Micky Dolenz, interview by author.
6 “I can write any movie about anything …” Jack Nicholson, to Peter Bogdanovich, Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, 2006.
7 “Jack used to act out all the parts …” Bob Rafelson, to Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter, January 19, 1999.
8 “He just started hanging …” Micky Dolenz, interview by author.
9 “Bob knew me …” Toni Basil, interview by author.
10 “They were looking to deconstruct …” Micky Dolenz, interview by author.
11 “I hope nobody ever likes it …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Neal Weaver, After Dark, October 1969.
12 “I was sure …” Roger Corman, interview by author.
13 “How’s your bike movie coming?…” Bob Rafelson, quoted by Peter Biskind, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, p. 61.
14 “We were all …” Karen Black, interview by author.
15 “In the first scene …” Toni Basil, interview by author.
16 “I’ll wait for you in the street …” Rip Torn, quoted by Peter Biskind, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls.
17 “Almost everyone wanted me out of acting …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Ross, Movie Digest, January 1972.
18 “There hasn’t been a motorcycle picture …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Les Wedman, Los Angeles Times, January 11, 1970.
19 “That long scene …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Neal Weaver, After Dark, October 1969.
20 “I set up a meeting …” Bob Evans, “Advertising and Film.”
21 “I don’t know a movie …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Harry Clein, Entertainment World, November 7, 1969.
22 “I feel Dennis …” Karen Black, interview by author.
23 “[Schneider] told me …” Henry Jaglom, to Nicholas Freud Jones, BBC2, 1995. Reissued on DVD as part of a five-disc 2010 retrospective of BBS, America Lost and Found: The BBS Story.
24 “I edited …” Dennis Hopper, to Nicholas Freud Jones, BBC2, 1995.
25 “His movie …” Peter Fonda, to Nicholas Freud Jones BBC2, 1995.
26 Jane Fonda and Bruce Dern anecdote … With minor edits here, this anecdote appears in Peter Biskind, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, p. 73.
27 “I had just become …” Peter Guber, interview by author.
28 “John Wayne of biker films …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Playboy, April 1972.
CHAPTER 6
1 “Since my overnight stardom …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Playboy, April 1972.
2 “We were two maniacs.…” Mimi Machu, quoted in Dennis McDougal, Five Easy Decades, p. 122.
3 “I’m interested in sex …” Jack Nicholson, to Chris Chase, Cosmopolitan, February 1983.
4 “Nobody ever noticed him …” Rex Reed, “The Man Who Walked Off with Easy Rider,” New York Times, March 1, 1970.
5 “Any man who insists …” Henry Fonda, quoted by Mason Wiley and Damien Bona, Inside Oscar, p. 440.
6 “I’ve always wanted to be a movie actor …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Deac Rossell, Philadelphia After Dark, September 24, 1969.
7 “I liked the part …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Mary Blume, Los Angeles Times, April 4, 1971.
8 “I had the address …” This and the rest of the anecdote, including Brando and the roses, and the Légèrs leaning against the wall, are from Peter Guber, interview by author.
9 “I’ve taken all the drugs …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Newsweek.
10 “Jack started the scene …” Helen Kallianotes, interview by author.
11 “My character was written …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Gene Siskel, Chicago Tribune, quoted by Douglas Brode, The Films of Jack Nicholson, p. 117.
12 “On the Road gone wrong …” Douglas Brinkley, quoted in Newsweek, reprinted in Show Magazine, May 1971.
13 “ecstasy …” Karen Black, interview by author.
14 “I was so happy …” Karen Black, interview by author.
15 “the most important actor since Brando …” Mike Nichols, quoted by Robert Sellers, Hollywood Hellraisers.
16 “a cheerleader and a supporter …” Peter Guber, interview by author.
17 The casting couch anecdote is from “Happy Jack: Nicholson Is the Easiest Rider of Them All,” Life, March 1970.
19 “If you suck a tit …” Jack Nicholson, to David Sheff, Playboy, January 2004.
20 “We were enthusiastic …” Peter Guber, interview by author.
21 “almost incoherent …” Harry Dean Stanton, quoted by Leo Janos, Cosmopolitan, December 1976.
22 “The production was disorganized …” Karen Black, interview by author.
23 “I personally had …” Henry Jaglom, interview by author.
24 “Pick yourself a bedroom …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Jay Cocks, Time, August 12, 1974.
25 “you can tell …” Harry Gittes, quoted by Leo Janos, Cosmopolitan, December 1976.
26 “Chicks dig it sexually …” Playboy, 1972.
27 “I went to every studio …” George Lucas, quoted in George Stevens, Conversations at the American Film Institute, p. 302.
28 “He had a lot …” Jack Nicholson, to Peter Bogdanovich, Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, 2006.
29 “The film was written …” For obvious reasons, the source of this quote insists on anonymity.
30 “The same year …” Jack Nicholson, to Peter Bogdanovich, Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, 2006.
31 “I liked the project …” Jack Nicholson, to Aljean Harmetz, Los Angeles Times, March 31, 1974.
32 “I could kill myself …” Jack Nicholson, to Rosemary Kent, “Andy Warhol’s Interview,” Interview, April 1974.
CHAPTER 7
1 “I’m a fairly common man …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Tag Gallagher, Village Voice, June 7, 1975.
2 “a very big player …” Robert Evans, People, July 8, 1985.
3 “I’ve been at parties …” Robert Evans, to Paul Attanasio, Washington Post, June 14, 1985.
4 Jack’s choice of albums for his trip to the East Coast was described in Playboy, April 1972.
5 “The character was sort of …” Jack Nicholson, to Robert Crane and Christopher Fryer, Genesis, February 1975.
6 “stupid Irish Mick …” Michelle Phillips, quoted by Dennis McDougal, Five Easy Decades, p. 141.
7 “Jack always has the same dynamic …” Harry Gittes, quoted by Peter Biskind, Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, p. 195.
8 “[Michelle]’s the only one …” The unnamed source is quoted by Dennis McDougal, Five Easy Decades, p. 150.
9 “I usually don’t think critics …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Roger Shales, Los Angeles Times, March 1, 1973.
10 “I was totally involved …” Peter Guber, interview by author.
11 “The project broke down several times …” Ibid.
12 “I had to fly to Canada …” Ibid.
13 “Jack was a force of nature …” Ibid.
14 “I loved the clothes …” Anjelica Huston, quoted in People, August 1985.
15 “I was invited …” Anjelica Huston, to Bob Flynn, Mail Online, April 20, 2012.
16 “When I was working in New York …” Anjelica Huston, to Rosemary Kent, “Andy Warhol’s Interview,” Interview, April 1974.
17 “a feeling like when you had a good time with your dad …” Anjelica Huston, to Gene Siskel, Chicago Tribune, June 16, 1985.
CHAPTER 8
1 “Cocaine is in now …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Playboy, April 1972.
2 “Toots …” Jack Nicholson told columnist Earl Wilson that his nickname for Anjelica was Toots. He also referred to her as “the Moan” when he thought she complained too much. Earl Wilson, syndicated column, February 7, 1974. Guy Flately, in a profile on Jack for the New York Times, quoted the nickname as “Tootie.” Guy Flately, New York Times, February 10, 1974.
3 “Since we’ve been together …” Jack, to the British press upon his arrival in London.
4 “Can you imagine …” Observer Review (London), January 19, 2003.
5 “Maria has a fantastic screen personality …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Elle, British edition, September 1992.
6 “Maria and I …” Jack Nicholson, to Guy Flately, New York Times, February 10, 1974.
7 “There are movies that you do …” Jack Nicholson, to Peter Bogdanovich, Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, 2006.
8 “[Antonioni was] like a father …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in the movie blog Dispatches from Zembla.
9 “Having heard of the upcoming publication …” Robert Crane and Christopher Fryer, Jack Nicholson: The Early Years, pp. 6–7.
10 “devastated and shocked …” Unnamed friends, quoted by Bernard Weinraub, “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Book Editor,” New York Times, June 12, 1994.
11 “a deep hurt inside …” Peter Fonda, to Robert Sellers, Hollywood Hellraisers, p. 15.
12 “The [possible publication of] the news was horrible …” Michelle Phillips, to Sheila Weller, Vanity Fair, December 2007.
13 “Who wants to sit …” Jack Nicholson, to Bill Davidson, “The Conquering Antihero,” New York Times Magazine, October 12, 1975.
14 “I like the idea of winning at Cannes …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Mason Wiley and Damien Bona, Inside Oscar, p. 493.
CHAPTER 9
1 “I don’t know why a guy goes to a hooker …” Jack Nicholson, to Nancy Collins, Vanity Fair, April 1994.
2 “The one place …” The dinner conversation took place at Dominick’s, a popular L.A. restaurant, and is recounted by Peter Biskind in Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, p. 160.
3 “ran into my dressing room …” Jack Nicholson, to Deborah Caulfield, Los Angeles Times, June 16, 1985.
4 “I have done radio …” Jack Nicholson, to Roberr Crane and Christopher Fryer, Genesis, February 1975.
5 “I think secrecy …” Jack Nicholson, to Michael Ventura, L.A. Weekly, July 4, 1985.
6 “I was grateful …” Jack Nicholson, to Peter Bogdanovich, Suddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, 2006.
CHAPTER 10
1 “To succeed—in order to become a Brando …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Viva, September 1975.
2 “Why don’t you let me …” Michael Douglas, to Tim Cahill, “Knocking Round the Nest,” Rolling Stone, December 4, 1975.
3 “My saga began …” Michael Douglas, ibid.
4 “I don’t think Jack …” Anjelica Huston, to Bob Flynn, Mail Online, April 20, 2012.
5 The anecdote about “What’s a five-and-ten-cent store?” is from James Bacon, Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, September 4, 1975.
6 “Jack was more than of his time …” Henry Jaglom, interview by author.
7 “almost incomprehensible …” Kirk Douglas, The Ragman’s Son, p. 401.
8 “He told me …” Jack Nicholson, relating an encounter with one of the patients to Tag Gallagher, Village Voice, June 9, 1975.
9 “They tell me …” Jack Nicholson, to Bob Lardine, “Close Look: Jack Nicholson’s Getting Crazier Every Day,” In the Know, August 1975.
10 “the classical music of sports …” Jack Nicholson, to Martin Torgoff, Interview, August 1984.
11 “It is really smashing …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, February 28, 1975.
12 “for more than four months …” Jack Nicholson, in Newsday, quoted by Dennis McDougal, Five Easy Decades.
13 “a nice place …” and “What saved the day …” are from Time, April 21, 1975.
14 “The secret to Cuckoo’s Nest…” Jack Nicholson, to Ron Rosenbaum, New York Times Magazine, July 13, 1986.
15 “Poor Nicholson” and “I was very hurt” are from Leo Janos, Cosmopolitan, December 1976.
16 “Marlon’s still the greatest …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Bill Davidson, New York Times Magazine October 12, 1975.
17 “I’m the first friendly Communist …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Interview, December 1976.
18 “The Italian interviews …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Army Archerd, Variety, March 9, 1976.
19 “Oh no …” People, May 22, 1976.
20 “With my sunglasses …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Hello, Janu
ary 22, 2009.
21 “I don’t want to be mentioned …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in Women’s Wear Daily, March 24, 1976.
22 “I told you …” Jack Nicholson, quoted by Michael Douglas, Playboy, February 1984.
23 “The people who vote …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in People, March 1, 1976.
24 “Oscar night should have been …” Ken Kesey, quoted by Mason Wiley and Damien Bona, in Inside Oscar, p. 522.
CHAPTER 11
1 “I’m from that late ’50s …” Jack Nicholson, to Lucy Kaylin, GQ, January 1996.
2 “my little red house …” Jack Nicholson, to Brad Darrach, Life, September 1990.
3 “basically alone …” Jack Nicholson, to Chris Chase, Cosmopolitan, February 1983.
4 “the feral energy lurking …” Alan Warren, Film Buff, January 1976.
5 “I didn’t have much confidence …” Anjelica Huston, to Crystal G. Martin, Oprah, March 12, 2012.
6 “Living with Jack …” Anjelica Huston, to Bob Flynn, Mail Online, April 20, 2012.
7 “quiet, ingenuous aura …” This and other details of the casting of Mary Steenburgen are from Fiona Lewis, “Nicholson: Both Sides of the Camera,” Los Angeles Times, November 6, 1977.
8 “I did a screen test …” Mary Steenburgen, to Chris Chase, Cosmopolitan, February 1983.
9 “All we can hope for …” Harry Gittes, to Fiona Lewis, “Nicholson: Both Sides of the Camera,” Los Angeles Times, November 6, 1977.
10 “actually, I was trying to do a kind of Clark Gable spin on the character …” Jack Nicholson, to Deborah Caulfield, Los Angeles Times, June 16, 1985.
11 The report of Kubrick shooting up to one hundred takes is from an article by R. Mann that appeared in the Los Angeles Times, on October 3, 1978.
12 “I’ve got to get …” and “Well, you have no choice …” Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson, quoted by Peter Biskind, Star, p. 264.
13 “I get such a bang …” Jack Nicholson, quoted in “Calendar,” Los Angeles Times, March 15, 1981.
