John Carter of Mars comes to the Big Screen!

[Desdichado]

Wombat: too true. I really like the first books of all of ERB's series, but as the series drag on, and the formula becomes tired, they become much more difficult to keep up with. ERB's greatest strength was the sense of wonder, and the weird setting info he came up with.

And the formula itself wasn't bad, before it got old and tired.

 

[mmadsen]

I remember reading a quote from him where he said something to the effect of, "I only have one plot. Boy meets girl. Boy loses girl through social gaff. Boy fights to regain girl. Repeat."

Love it!

That reminds me of The Lester Dent Pulp Paper Master Fiction Plot. An excerpt:

Here's how it starts:

1. A DIFFERENT MURDER METHOD FOR VILLAIN TO USE
2. A DIFFERENT THING FOR VILLAIN TO BE SEEKING
3. A DIFFERENT LOCALE
4. A MENACE WHICH IS TO HANG LIKE A CLOUD OVER HERO

One of these DIFFERENT things would be nice, two better, three swell. It
may help if they are fully in mind before tackling the rest.

(Lester Dent wrote the Doc Savage novels.)

 

[Hand of Evil]

Wombat: too true. I really like the first books of all of ERB's series, but as the series drag on, and the formula becomes tired, they become much more difficult to keep up with. ERB's greatest strength was the sense of wonder, and the weird setting info he came up with.

And the formula itself wasn't bad, before it got old and tired.

So true but the times had so much to do with them being dragged out, WW1, the depression, radio, WW2, the demand was there. Pulp mags feed the need of the times unlike any other moment.

 

[mmadsen]

Paramount Pictures sees green in the red planet, inking a deal for $ 300,000 against $ 2 million for Edgar Rice Burroughs' 11-volume "John Carter of Mars" literary series.

Deal Terminology: What's 'Against' Mean? explains some of the terminology:

When you see a mention in the trades (Hollywood Reporter, Daily Variety) saying a script has been optioned $100,000 against $300,000, that means (roughly) that the writer receives $100,000 now -- but that 'now' usually includes a rewrite and another rewrite that they will call a 'polish' (per WGA rules) -- and then on the FIRST DAY OF PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY (the very first day they start shooting the movie with the main actors), the writer receives the rest of the money ($200,000).