Behind the Shades?

Curious if anyone has any info on Nolan's book: release date? is it already out? what about the movie? I'm anxious with anticipation. There are certain personalities in this life that have such a compelling mix of eccentricity, genius, passion, and pain that they command our attention and respect with utter awe. I guess there is no doubt that Stu was one of these people. Any certain information, far-flung rumor, or out-and-out lie about the book/movie would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[baggins]

Its already been released. go check your Barnes & Noble for it. you may have to special order. i already have my copy.

also, Dalla is doing a nationwide book signing tour (probably coinciding with places that have legal poker nearby...) i plan on heading out when he comes through chicago.

this is obviously a boldfaced lie, but you said you didn't mind those, so...

You have to measure a man's life in its totality. Stu was a junkie who burned a lot of people in his life. This makes it a wash for me as far as holding him in "utter awe" amd having respect for him. Just like having personal problems and demons doesnt make him a total piece of crap, neither does his outstanding abilties as a cardplayer make him a person who should be held and viewed with "utter awe" and respect. As I said, its a wash for me. "Any man can be a genius at 25, at 50 it takes some doing".--Big Al--

[PokerBabe(aka)]

BTW- your very own PokerBabe is an extra in the movie "Stuey". If you want to read about the experience, check out Babe Goes Hollywood on this forum. LGPG, Babe

I saw Nolan had posted on a different topic a few months ago and asked him about the book. His reply follows, it is long but good. I can't wait for the book.

Dan:

Thank you for the question, and for your interest.

This gives me an opportunity to bring readers up to date on this important project, which I have been working on and off for three years.

When I initially envisioned the book, it was to be Stuey's autobiography. I was going to ghostwrite it for Stu Ungar (with credit). Stuey was going to tell me his story over several interview sessions and I'd make it as legible as possible and let readers draw their own conclusions about the most enigmatic man in gambling history.

Stuey and I completed several months of work together, but oftentimes Stuey was not in the best of shape -- mentally or physically. In fact, some of our seesions together created more questions than answers. Regretfully, Stuey's death left a hige void in terms of his background and personal life. more like gaping holes. That meant I had to do a lot of extra work to fill in the gaps post-mortem. Even after talking to and interviewing nearly 100 people -- including tracking his sister down in Peurto Rico, talking to his step-brother (a professor in Ohio), his daughter, and many of his closest freinds including many gamblers, even after spending a week in the Library of Congress looking over every archived record of anything ever written on Unger, even after spending time in New York getting a feel for the Lower East Side where Stuey grew up and visting his school, even after all the weeks and months in Las Vegas, even after searching police and court records in Clark County, even after searching the archives of Ellis Island to track his realtives back to the previous century, I still find there are some bits and pieces of the story that are incomplete.

Right now, this book is about 600 pages long and if I may say so -- it is a riveting story. I think once this comes out it is going to be a book that will be difficult to put down. But keep in mind this is more than just the story of a gambler, or a poker player. It's the story of a man. A very troubled man. A very gifted man. A funny man. A sad man. A man with capacity for both greatness and disappointment. A man to be admired and pityed.

Right now, I still have two key people to interview and then once I do another re-edit the book should THEN be ready for publication. I would give a release date, but I can't do that at this time.

Writing this book, I am reminded of the research done by one of my favorite writers and historians -- Robert A. Caro (no relation to Mike). He initially started writing a biogrpahy of late President, Lyndon B. Johnson. He started his research way back in 1978. He anticipated it would take 3-4 years to do a complete life story of LBJ. Well, six years later, Caro released a masterpiece -- THE PATH TO POWER (perhaps the best political biogrpahy of the 20th Cnetury). He won the Pulitzer Prize tht year for non-fiction. Incredibly, that master work only included Johnson's life up to WW 2, or about the age of 32. Caro's subsequent books have been on Johnson's life as a Congressman and as a Senator in the 1950s. Currrently, Robert Caro's third installment is at the TOP of the Best Seller list. What's remarkable -- he hasn't even reached the Vice Presidency or the Presidency! So, Caro has done 24 years of research and written 4,000 pages in three books and has not yet reached the pinnacle of LBJ's life. Nevetheless, his material is absolutely unmatched for historical accuracy and excellence.

What Caro realized was -- after he started his research many years ago, he learned HOW MUCH MORE there was to this man's life. Well, if I can borrow that phrase, that's much the same thing I see here. I see a man that deserves having his life told in a way that will be both memorable -- and accurate. I could cut corners to make this process easier, but this is something I'd like Stuey to be proud of. I guess there is a sacred sense of responsibility I feel about doing the best job I can.

So, let's just say that I promise it will not take 24 years. Stu Ungar is not LBJ, of course, but you'd be surprised how much tangetory material there is which is incredibly interesting.

On a personal note, I am not a fast writer. I can bang out a magazine article pretty fast, but when it comes to research-oriented writing, I need more time than most writers. Also, since I support myself (financially) mainly through sports gambling now -- that takes up most of my "workday" doing research and things related to that I am writing this book without an advance and without any constrictions so I can be in complete control. That's just the way I prefer it.

Finally, to your question about the movie they are supposedly going to film called "Stuey"....I do not want to rush to judgment. It might be a good movie, I have no idea. But based on my limited knowledge and some reports I have read so far, it's going to be a Hollywood-ized work of total fiction. In the Las Vegas Review Journal last month, they had an open casting call for (get this) a "large black woman and an Asian high roller" to be cast in Stuey's life story. In my three years of research of Stu Ungar life, I have NEVER heard of any character in Stuey background who even remotely resembles these two characters. In addition, no gambler or poker player that I have talked to has ever been contacted by any screenwriter, so whoever did this project must have had to invent a lot of material. Again, I could be wrong about this, but the early reports make it appear this is going to be a farce.

That's a shame, because Stuey deserves better.

Much better.

Nolan Dalla