The Shawshank Redemption Revealed:
How One Story Keeps Hope Alive
A 25th anniversary history and celebration of The Shawshank Redemption, one of the most cherished American films of the late twentieth century and one of the finest movies made from a Stephen King story.
By Mark Dawidziak
(Forthcoming from Lyons Press)

A 25th anniversary history and celebration of The Shawshank Redemption, one of the most cherished American films of the late twentieth century and one of the finest movies made from a Stephen King story. The movie not only boasts a great story, it has a great backstory, starting with the dollar deal that eventually led King and co-stars Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman to put their trust in a largely untested director making his first feature film.

It’s a story of faith, therefore, but it’s also a story about the power of hope.  Although the film received mostly positive reviews on its release in September 1994, the box office was disappointing and it failed to win many awards. But as Andy tells Red in the film, “no good thing ever dies.” The movie found new life, reaching an ever-growing audience on cable and home video (through word of mouth, it became one of the top-rented movies of 1995). Each year, The Shawshank Redemption rises in polls asking film fans to name their favorite movies. It has become nothing less than this generation’s The Grapes of Wrath, an inspiring story about keeping hope alive in bleak times and under the most horrendous conditions. And as economic and social conditions become more troubling, the film only becomes more timely, relevant, and resonant to more people.

Length: 100,000 words
Illustrations: In addition to stills, posters, and promotional material collected by the author, the book will feature archival and current pictures taken at sites used during filming in Mansfield, Ohio. The author is making several trips to Mansfield with a photographer, interviewing local residents involved with filming, in front of the camera and behind it.

A little about Mark Dawidziak:  The television critic at the Cleveland Plain Dealer since 1999, Mark Dawidziak is the author of many books, including the 1994 horror novel Grave Secrets and two histories of landmark TV series: The Columbo Phile: A Casebook (1989) and The Night Stalker Companion (1997). A recognized Mark Twain scholar, his acclaimed books on the author include Mark My Words: Mark Twain on Writing (1996) and Horton Foote’s The Shape of the River: The Lost Teleplay About Mark Twain (2003). Recently, Dawidziak’s Everything I Need to Know I Learned in The Twilight Zone( St. Martin’s Press) has been enjoying excellent sales as well as critical accolades.  He teaches in the film department at Kent State and he is also a playwright, director and actor in Northeast Ohio, where he lives with his wife, Sara, and daughter, Becky.

Agent’s Note:  Mark delivers manuscripts in spades.  He is fast, smart, funny, diverse, beyond knowledgeable and exceedingly creative.  What else do you need?