John Frederick Milius (born April 11, 1944) is an American
screenwriterScreenwriters or scenarists or scriptwriters are people in a film crew who write/create the screenplays from which films and television programs are made....
,
directorA film director, or filmmaker is a person who directs the making or production of a film. Some also consider a film producer to be a filmmaker....
, and producer of motion pictures.
Milius was born in
St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. With an estimated population of 354,361 in 2008, it is the principal municipality of Greater St. Louis, population 2,866,517, the largest urban area in Missouri and sixteenth largest in the United States...
, the son of Elizabeth (
néeA married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage, and in speaking of the many cultures where the practice is traditional for women, the maiden name is the family name that the married name replaces....
Roe) and William Styx Milius, who was a shoe manufacturer. Milius attempted to join the Marine Corps in the late 1960's, but was rejected due to chronic
asthmaAsthma is a predisposition to chronic inflammation of the lungs in which the airways are reversibly narrowed. Asthma affects 7% of the population of the United States, and 300 million worldwide...
. He ascribes his fascination with guns and the military to this disappointment.
John Frederick Milius (born April 11, 1944) is an American
screenwriterScreenwriters or scenarists or scriptwriters are people in a film crew who write/create the screenplays from which films and television programs are made....
,
directorA film director, or filmmaker is a person who directs the making or production of a film. Some also consider a film producer to be a filmmaker....
, and producer of motion pictures.
Life
Milius was born in
St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. With an estimated population of 354,361 in 2008, it is the principal municipality of Greater St. Louis, population 2,866,517, the largest urban area in Missouri and sixteenth largest in the United States...
, the son of Elizabeth (
néeA married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage, and in speaking of the many cultures where the practice is traditional for women, the maiden name is the family name that the married name replaces....
Roe) and William Styx Milius, who was a shoe manufacturer. Milius attempted to join the Marine Corps in the late 1960's, but was rejected due to chronic
asthmaAsthma is a predisposition to chronic inflammation of the lungs in which the airways are reversibly narrowed. Asthma affects 7% of the population of the United States, and 300 million worldwide...
. He ascribes his fascination with guns and the military to this disappointment. He is also involved in a military think tank, the Centre for Creative Technology, as a consultant.
Milius is a member of the Board of Directors of the
National Rifle AssociationThe National Rifle Association of America, or NRA, is an American non-partisan, non-profit organization which lists as its goals the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the...
, is an avid firearms collector and authority on firearms, and is a vocal opponent of "overbearing" attempted gun control legislation. Milius, a very popular personality among gun hobbyists, can be routinely seen visiting local gun shops and shooting and socializing with the public at target ranges near his residence in Southern California when not at remote movie locations. His filmmaking idols are
John FordJohn Ford was an American film director of Irish heritage famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach and The Searchers and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
and
Akira Kurosawawas a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. In a career that spanned 50 years, Kurosawa directed 30 films. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in film history...
; he has also mentioned
Sam PeckinpahDavid Samuel "Sam" Peckinpah was an American filmmaker and screenwriter who achieved his status following the release of his 1969 Western epic The Wild Bunch...
,
Sergio LeoneSergio Leone was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter most associated with the "Spaghetti Western" genre.Leone's film making style includes juxtaposing extreme close-up shots with lengthy long shots...
,
David LeanSir David Lean was an English filmmaker, producer, screenwriter and editor, best remembered for big-screen epics such as Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai,Doctor Zhivago,...
, and his friend and mentor
John HustonJohn Marcellus Huston was an American filmmaker, screenwriter and actor. He was known for directing the films The Maltese Falcon , The Treasure of the Sierra Madre , Key Largo , The Asphalt Jungle , The African Queen , Moulin Rouge The Misfits , The Man Who Would Be...
as important influences as well. His favorite film is reportedly
David LeanSir David Lean was an English filmmaker, producer, screenwriter and editor, best remembered for big-screen epics such as Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai,Doctor Zhivago,...
's
The Bridge on the River KwaiThe Bridge on the River Kwai is a 1957 British World War II film by David Lean based on the novel The Bridge over the River Kwai by French writer Pierre Boulle. The film is a work of fiction but borrows the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942–43 for its historical setting...
, although he has also named
Seven Samurai,
The SearchersThe Searchers is a 1956 epic Western film directed by John Ford, based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May. It is the story of Ethan Edwards, a middle-aged Civil War veteran portrayed by John Wayne, who spends years looking for his abducted niece with Martin Pawley, his adoptive nephew, portrayed by...
, and
The Battle of AlgiersThe Battle of Algiers is a war film released in 1966. It is based on occurrences during the Algerian War against French colonial rule in North Africa...
as such in other interviews.
Milius has been married three times. His current marriage (since 1992) is to actress Elan Oberon (who appeared in his 1989 film
Farewell to the KingFarewell to the King is a 1989 film written and directed by John Milius. It stars Nigel Havers, Frank McRae, Gerry Lopez and Nick Nolte, and is based on the 1969 novel L'Adieu au Roi by Pierre Schoendoerffer. Longtime Milius collaborator Basil Poledouris composed the musical score...
and who is seen — and heard — singing
GarryowenGarryowen, also known as Garyowen, Garry Owen and Gary Owens, is an Irish tune for a quickstep dance. - History :The origins of Garryowen are unclear, but it emerged in the late eighteenth century, when it was a drinking song of rich young roisters in Limerick...
in
Rough RidersThe "Rough Riders" was the name bestowed on the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish-American War and the only one of the three to see action. The United States army was weakened and left with little manpower after the Civil War roughly 30...
). He has two children by his first wife, Renee Fabri.
Career
A former student at the
University of Southern CaliforniaThe University of Southern California is a private, nonsectarian, research university located in the University Park neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, USA...
School of Cinema-Television, Milius started his movie career in a student film contest in 1967, taking first prize for his entry
Marcello I'm Bored. Milius wrote, co-wrote or directed the popular and critically acclaimed films
Jeremiah JohnsonJeremiah Johnson is a 1972 western film, directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Robert Redford as the title character and Will Geer as "Bear Claw" Chris Lapp...
(with
Edward AnhaltAfter working as a journalist and documentary filmmaker for Pathe and CBS-TV, Edward Anhalt teamed with his second wife Edna Anhalt, during World War II to write pulp fiction...
),
Dirty HarryDirty Harry is a 1971 crime thriller film produced and directed by Don Siegel, the first in the Dirty Harry series. Clint Eastwood plays the title role, in his first outing as San Francisco Police Department Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan....
(uncredited),
Apocalypse NowApocalypse Now is a 1979 American epic war film set during the Vietnam War. The plot revolves around two US Army special operations officers, one of whom, Captain Benjamin L. Willard of MACV-SOG, is sent into the jungle to assassinate the other, the rogue and presumably insane Colonel Walter E....
,
DillingerDillinger is a 1973 gangster film which shows evidence of being strongly influenced by the films of Sam Peckinpah, as well as borrowing cinematically from the Warren Beatty vehicle, Bonnie and Clyde....
,
The Wind and the LionThe Wind and the Lion is a 1975 adventure film. It was directed by John Milius and starred Sean Connery, Candice Bergen, Brian Keith and John Huston...
, (the)
Rough RidersThe "Rough Riders" was the name bestowed on the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish-American War and the only one of the three to see action. The United States army was weakened and left with little manpower after the Civil War roughly 30...
,
Big WednesdayBig Wednesday is an American coming of age film directed by John Milius. Milius co-wrote Big Wednesday with Denny Aaberg, and it is loosely based on their own experiences at Malibu and a short story Aaberg had published in a 1974 Surfer Magazine entitled ‘No Pants Lance.’ The picture stars...
,
1941,
Conan the BarbarianConan the Barbarian is a 1982 film by director John Milius and is recognized as the acting breakthrough of Arnold Schwarzenegger who had previously been a famous bodybuilder....
,
Red DawnRed Dawn is a 1984 American war film directed and co-written by John Milius and written by Kevin Reynolds. The film is set in an alternate timeline during the mid-1980s, and deals with an invasion of the United States by the Soviet Union and its Central American allies. However, the onset of World...
,
Farewell to the KingFarewell to the King is a 1989 film written and directed by John Milius. It stars Nigel Havers, Frank McRae, Gerry Lopez and Nick Nolte, and is based on the 1969 novel L'Adieu au Roi by Pierre Schoendoerffer. Longtime Milius collaborator Basil Poledouris composed the musical score...
,
Flight of the IntruderFlight of the Intruder is a 1991 film directed by John Milius, which is based on the novel of the same name by A-6 Intruder pilot Stephen Coonts. The film stars Danny Glover as Commander Frank 'Dooke' Camparelli, Willem Dafoe as Lieutenant Commander Virgil 'Tiger' Cole, and Brad Johnson as...
, the TNT feature
Motorcycle Gang, contributing writing to the Film adaptations of Tom Clancey's Jack Ryan films
(the) Hunt for Red October,
Clear and Present DangerClear and Present Danger is a 1994 film directed by Phillip Noyce, based on the book of the same name by Tom Clancy. It is a 1994 sequel to the 1992 film Patriot Games and was followed by a 2002 sequel The Sum of All Fears....
,
Geronimo: An American LegendGeronimo: An American Legend is a 1993 film, starring Wes Studi as Geronimo, Jason Patric as 1st Lt. Charles B. Gatewood, Gene Hackman as Brig. Gen. George Crook, Robert Duvall as Chief of Scouts Al Sieber, and Matt Damon as 2nd Lt. Britton Davis. The film was directed by Walter Hill from a...
and the HBO television series
RomeRome is an American-British-Italian historical drama television series created by Bruno Heller, John Milius, and William J. MacDonald. The show's first season originally aired on HBO in the United States between August 28 and November 20, 2005, subsequently being broadcast on the United Kingdom's...
. Milius coined the famous "Charlie don't surf" and "I love the smell of napalm in the morning" lines from
Apocalypse NowApocalypse Now is a 1979 American epic war film set during the Vietnam War. The plot revolves around two US Army special operations officers, one of whom, Captain Benjamin L. Willard of MACV-SOG, is sent into the jungle to assassinate the other, the rogue and presumably insane Colonel Walter E....
. He is also responsible for the famous
USS IndianapolisThree ships of the United States Navy have been named Indianapolis: was a cargo ship commissioned 12 December 1918 and decommissioned 9 July 1919....
scene in the movie
JawsJaws may refer to the following:* Jaws, the two opposable structures of the mouth* Jaws , a novel by Peter Benchley* Jaws , the 1975 blockbuster thriller directed by Steven Spielberg based on this novel...
.
Through work on (The)
Rough RidersThe "Rough Riders" was the name bestowed on the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish-American War and the only one of the three to see action. The United States army was weakened and left with little manpower after the Civil War roughly 30...
(1997), he became an instrumental force in causing President Theodore Roosevelt to be awarded the
Medal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed on a member of the United States armed forces who distinguishes themselves "conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while...
(posthumously), for acts of conspicuous gallantry while in combat on San Juan Hill. Milius has made two films featuring Roosevelt:
The Wind and the LionThe Wind and the Lion is a 1975 adventure film. It was directed by John Milius and starred Sean Connery, Candice Bergen, Brian Keith and John Huston...
(where he was played by
Brian KeithBrian Keith was an American film, television, and stage actor, who in his four decade-long career gained recognition for his work in movies such as the 1961 Disney film, The Parent Trap, the 1966 movie, The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, and the 1975 movie, The Wind and the Lion...
) and the made-for-TV film
Rough RidersRough Riders is a 1997 three hour television miniseries about Theodore Roosevelt and the regiment . The series chronicles the major land battles of the Spanish-American War of 1898. It was released on DVD in 2006.-Cast:*Tom Berenger - Lt. Col. Theodore Roosevelt*Sam Elliott - Capt. Bucky O'Neill...
(where
Tom BerengerTom Berenger is an American actor known mainly for his roles in action films.-Early life:Berenger was born as Thomas Michael Moore in Chicago to an Irish Catholic family. Berenger's father was a printer for the Chicago Sun-Times. Berenger has a sister, Susan...
took the role). He considered himself too much in awe of Roosevelt to do a full-on biopic of him, but says he hopes to make a third film to complete a Roosevelt trilogy - though with
Martin ScorseseMartin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. He is the founder of the World Cinema Foundation, a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema and has won awards from the Oscars, Golden Globe,...
's upcoming adaptation of
The Rise of Theodore RooseveltThe Rise of Theodore Roosevelt is a Pulitzer Prize winning biography of President Theodore Roosevelt by Edmund Morris. It is the first in a planned trilogy with the second volume Theodore Rex published in 2001....
, that seems unlikely. Milius is writing and directing the movie
Journey of Death, a western starring
WWEWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is a publicly-traded, privately-controlled integrated media and sports entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
superstar
Triple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of his former ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
. He is a frequent guest on
The History ChannelHistory, formerly known as The History Channel, is an international satellite and cable TV channel that broadcasts programs regarding historical events and persons, as well as various metaphysical, pseudoscientific, and paranormal phenomena—-often with observations and explanations by noted...
's show
Modern MarvelsModern Marvels is a documentary television series that premiered on January 1, 1995 on History. The program features a run down on how technologies affect and are used in today's society....
.
A third Conan film, tentatively titled
Crown of Iron, was drafted in 2001 by Milius, and was to be produced by the Wachowski Brothers. There was talk of either having Arnold Schwarzenegger reprise his role, or it being filmed with the wrestling star Triple H.
Milius was also instrumental during the startup of the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) organization: it was his idea to use the octagon-shaped cage, and his association with UFC helped provide interest and investors to the startup UFC.
External links