Bruce Wagner
Encyclopedia
Bruce Alan Wagner is an American novelist, actor, screenwriter, producer, and director based in Los Angeles
known for his acerbic view of the Hollywood entertainment industry.
, to Morton Wagner and Bernice Maletz. At the age of four, his family moved to San Francisco, then to Los Angeles four years later. He attended Beverly Vista Elementary School in Beverly Hills, CA. until the 8th grade. He attended Beverly Hills High School
but dropped out in his junior year. He worked in bookstores, drove an ambulance for Schaefer Ambulance Service, and drove a limousine at the Beverly Hills Hotel. In 1989, he married actress Rebecca De Mornay
. They later divorced. He married Laura Peterson in 2009.
but was never released. It was that experience that ultimately led him to write his modern take on F. Scott Fitzgerald
's "Pat Hobby" short stories (about an alcoholic screenwriter who never gets ahead).
Wagner self-published (with Caldecott Chubb) Force Majeure: The Bud Wiggins Stories in an edition of 1,000, which sold out at West Hollywood's famed Book Soup
. The book was well reviewed and led to a publishing deal with Random House
. He is currently published by Simon and Schuster.
He has written essays and op-ed pieces for The New Yorker, The New York Times, Art Forum and Vanity Fair, while his novel The Chrysanthemum Palace was a PEN/Faulkner finalist in 2006. He has also written essays and prefaces for books by photographers William Eggleston
and Manuel Alvarez Bravo
, painters Ed Ruscha and Richard Prince
.
Wagner and Oliver Stone co-executive produced Wild Palms, the mini-series Wagner created, based on a cartoon that he wrote for Details magazine. Wild Palms aired on ABC in 1993. He was the executive producer and co-writer (with Ullman) of Tracey Ullman's State of the Union
series on Showtime.
for Details magazine in 1994, Wagner became part of Castaneda's inner circle under the assumed name of Lorenzo Drake. He directed the first videos on Tensegrity
for Cleargreen
and married the mystic
Carol Tiggs
in 1995. Wagner continues to be close to the group since Castaneda's death in 1998. His first autobiographical piece about his experience with the shaman and author Castaneda appeared in the Fall 2007 issue of Tricycle magazine. After Wagner's novel Memorial was favorably reviewed in that magazine by a Buddhist monk, Wagner wrote its editor, James Shaheen, a letter of thanks, and Shaheen invited him to contribute an essay about Castaneda. More recently, Wagner studied with Indian guru Ramesh Balsekar
.
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
known for his acerbic view of the Hollywood entertainment industry.
Personal life
Wagner was born in Madison, WisconsinMadison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
, to Morton Wagner and Bernice Maletz. At the age of four, his family moved to San Francisco, then to Los Angeles four years later. He attended Beverly Vista Elementary School in Beverly Hills, CA. until the 8th grade. He attended Beverly Hills High School
Beverly Hills High School
Beverly Hills High School is the only major public high school in Beverly Hills, California. Beverly is part of the Beverly Hills Unified School District and located on on the west side of Beverly Hills, at the...
but dropped out in his junior year. He worked in bookstores, drove an ambulance for Schaefer Ambulance Service, and drove a limousine at the Beverly Hills Hotel. In 1989, he married actress Rebecca De Mornay
Rebecca De Mornay
Rebecca De Mornay is an American film and television actress. Her breakthrough film role came in 1983, when she played Lana in Risky Business opposite Tom Cruise...
. They later divorced. He married Laura Peterson in 2009.
Career
In his twenties, Wagner began writing articles for magazines, and writing scripts. His first screenplay, Young Lust, was produced by Robert StigwoodRobert Stigwood
Robert Stigwood is an impresario and entertainment entrepreneur who relocated to England in 1954...
but was never released. It was that experience that ultimately led him to write his modern take on F. Scott Fitzgerald
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
's "Pat Hobby" short stories (about an alcoholic screenwriter who never gets ahead).
Wagner self-published (with Caldecott Chubb) Force Majeure: The Bud Wiggins Stories in an edition of 1,000, which sold out at West Hollywood's famed Book Soup
Book Soup
Book Soup is an independent bookstore located at 8818 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, California, and is the largest general interest independent bookstore in Hollywood...
. The book was well reviewed and led to a publishing deal with Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
. He is currently published by Simon and Schuster.
He has written essays and op-ed pieces for The New Yorker, The New York Times, Art Forum and Vanity Fair, while his novel The Chrysanthemum Palace was a PEN/Faulkner finalist in 2006. He has also written essays and prefaces for books by photographers William Eggleston
William Eggleston
William Eggleston , is an American photographer. He is widely credited with increasing recognition for color photography as a legitimate artistic medium to display in art galleries—which, until the 1970s, often tended to privilege work by photographers making black-and-white prints.- Early years...
and Manuel Alvarez Bravo
Manuel Álvarez Bravo
Manuel Álvarez Bravo was a Mexican photographer.Álvarez Bravo was born in Mexico City on February 4, 1902. He came from a family of artists and writers, and met several other prominent artists who encouraged his work when he was young, including Tina Modotti and Diego Rivera...
, painters Ed Ruscha and Richard Prince
Richard Prince
Richard Prince is an American painter and photographer. Prince began appropriating photographs in 1975...
.
Wagner and Oliver Stone co-executive produced Wild Palms, the mini-series Wagner created, based on a cartoon that he wrote for Details magazine. Wild Palms aired on ABC in 1993. He was the executive producer and co-writer (with Ullman) of Tracey Ullman's State of the Union
Tracey Ullman's State of the Union
Tracey Ullman's State of the Union is an American sketch-comedy series starring comedian Tracey Ullman. The series is written by Ullman along with Hollywood satirist Bruce Wagner. Gail Parent and Craig DiGregorio acted as contributing writers to the series' first season. On May 17, 2010, it was...
series on Showtime.
Mysticism
After interviewing Carlos CastanedaCarlos Castaneda
Carlos Castaneda was a Peruvian-born American anthropologist and author....
for Details magazine in 1994, Wagner became part of Castaneda's inner circle under the assumed name of Lorenzo Drake. He directed the first videos on Tensegrity
Tensegrity (Castaneda)
Tensegrity was a term used by Carlos Castaneda to refer to some movements called magical passes that he said were developed by Native American shamans who lived in Mexico in times prior to the Spanish conquest.-Cleargreen Inc and Tensegrity:Castaneda and the other students of Don Juan created...
for Cleargreen
Cleargreen Incorporated
Cleargreen Incorporated is a for profit corporation founded by Carlos Castaneda in order to promote Tensegrity, a group of movements that he said had been passed down by 25 generations of Toltec shamans....
and married the mystic
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
Carol Tiggs
Carol Tiggs
Carol Tiggs, Elizabeth Austin, or Muni Alexander, born Kathleen Adair Pohlman , is one of the three women in the inner circle of guru Carlos Castaneda whom he referred to as "the Witches" and said were apprentices of Don Juan.Tiggs was the first child born to Harriet Witbeck Pohlman and Max Edward...
in 1995. Wagner continues to be close to the group since Castaneda's death in 1998. His first autobiographical piece about his experience with the shaman and author Castaneda appeared in the Fall 2007 issue of Tricycle magazine. After Wagner's novel Memorial was favorably reviewed in that magazine by a Buddhist monk, Wagner wrote its editor, James Shaheen, a letter of thanks, and Shaheen invited him to contribute an essay about Castaneda. More recently, Wagner studied with Indian guru Ramesh Balsekar
Ramesh Balsekar
Ramesh S. Balsekar was a disciple of the late Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, a renowned Advaita master. From early childhood, Balsekar was drawn to Advaita, a nondual teaching, particularly the teachings of Ramana Maharshi and Wei Wu Wei...
.
Novels
- Force Majeure (novel) (1991)
- I'm Losing YouI'm Losing YouI'm Losing You is a 1996 novel by the American novelist, screenwriter and director Bruce Wagner. Wagner adapted his novel for, and directed, a 1998 film of the same title, starring Frank Langella and Daniel von Bargen. The film adaption grossed $12,688 in limited release....
(1996) - I'll Let You Go (2002)
- Still Holding (2003)
- The Chrysanthemum Palace (2005)
- Memorial (2006)
Screenplays
- A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream WarriorsA Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream WarriorsA Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors is a 1987 slasher film and the third film in the Nightmare on Elm Street series. The film was directed by Chuck Russell and starred Heather Langenkamp, Craig Wasson, Robert Englund and Patricia Arquette in her first role.- Plot :Six years after the events...
(1987), "story by" credit, shared with Wes Craven - Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly HillsScenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly HillsScenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills is an American black comedy film released in 1989. Co-written and directed by Paul Bartel, Scenes re-unites Bartel with his Eating Raoul co-stars Mary Woronov and Robert Beltran...
(1989) - Wild PalmsWild PalmsWild Palms is a six-hour mini-series, which first aired in May 1993 on the ABC network in the United States. Written by Bruce Wagner, who was also the executive producer, Wild Palms was a sci-fi drama about the dangers of brainwashing through technology and drugs...
(1993) - White Dwarf (film) (1995)
- I'm Losing YouI'm Losing YouI'm Losing You is a 1996 novel by the American novelist, screenwriter and director Bruce Wagner. Wagner adapted his novel for, and directed, a 1998 film of the same title, starring Frank Langella and Daniel von Bargen. The film adaption grossed $12,688 in limited release....
(1998), also director - Women in Film (2001), also director
- Maps to the Stars (forthcoming)