you cannot capture a man's entire life
in two hours all you can hope is to
leave the impression of one
welcome to watch mojo and today we're
counting down our picks for the top 10
things
mank got factually right and wrong
handling sponsored my family's entry
into this country he's responsible for
us getting safely out of germany legally
and financially
her husband is one of our bold lads in
the raf flies
what is it rita spitfire hurricane how
come he shares credit
well that my friend is the magic of the
movies
for this list we're looking at what's
fact and what's fiction in this netflix
biopic about screenwriter herman j
mankowitz
how do you think mank measured up to
citizen kane let us know in the comments
number 10 one of welles's outbursts
inspired a scene
right towards the film's conclusion
orson welles is infuriated to learn that
mankowitz wants credit for co-writing
citizen kane
despite their previous agreement you may
never work in this town again max
awesome although wells ultimately
relents
he's prompted to angrily throw a box
across the room
no doubt you'll get your credit but ask
yourself who's producing this picture
directing it
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this in turn inspires mankowitz to
contribute a scene where susan alexander
leaves charles foster kane
and he starts tearing her bedroom apart
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while that sounds too dramatically
convenient to be true this crucial scene
did indeed stem from welles's short
temper
although not under the same
circumstances seen here
according to jon houseman who
collaborated with wells on several
projects
the scene was inspired by a
confrontation where wells threw flaming
sterno cans at him
despite the change you can see why wells
was tailored to play kane
maybe
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number nine manx election bet wrong
you really will bet on anything
keep your money mankowitz was notorious
for making outrageous bets
which we'll discuss in greater detail
later so it wouldn't be that far-fetched
to think that he actually bet louis b
mayer and irving thalberg that
democratic party nominee upton sinclair
would upset incumbent frank mariam in
the race for governor of california
making the wager even more extravagant
mankowitz doubles a debt that had been
forgiven
putting twenty four thousand dollars on
the line i'll take that bet
okay man you're on 24 grand or nothing
while this sounds on brand for mankowitz
there's no evidence showing that he
placed this bet
or that he even supported sinclair
nevertheless the scene does capture
hollywood's political climate in 1934
and the general enmity towards the
former
thanks it also touches upon mankowitz's
outspoken nature
and his difficult yet enduring marriage
to poor sarah
excuse me i'm going to throw up
number eight mank saved his
housekeeper's village from fascism
wrong mankowitz's nurse housekeeper
freylenfrieda
explains that she puts up with her
employer's excessive drinking because he
got her village
her family and herself out of germany
hemlang sponsored my family's entry into
this country he's responsible for us
getting safely out of germany legally
and financially
she claims that mankowitz saved nearly
100 people from nazi tyranny
which is true and false mankowitz didn't
sponsor his nurse's village as the movie
suggests
however mankowitz himself the son of
german jewish immigrants
did help jewish refugees escape from
europe and find work in the u.s
he also wrote an unfilmed 1933 script
entitled the mad dog of europe
warning of hitler's inevitable actions
according to the biography
mink the wit world and life of hermann
menkowitz
quote herrmann became the official
sponsor for hundreds of german refugees
and took responsibility for total
strangers fleeing to american
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addictions right as mentioned before
mankowitz was a compulsive gambler
all right double on that thing and this
time you evangelized son of a
while the filmmakers took liberties with
the election bet
mankowitz did lose a significant sum
over a coin toss
one thousand dollars to be precise what
the filmmakers and gary oldman really
get down however
is mankowitz's alcoholism
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what's everyone else having in addition
to taking a toll on his marriage
friendships and professional life the
bottle would sadly lead to his ultimate
demise
i'm washed up joe
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i haven't been for years mankowitz's
years of heavy drinking caught up to him
on march 5th
1953 about 12 years after citizen kane
was released
the famed screenwriter died from uremic
poisoning at the age of 55.
according to biographer scott eiman
mankowitz compared himself to quote a
rat in a trap of his own construction
a decade before succumbing to his
alcoholism number six
bank's contract and screen credit right
you're not going to like this
awesome
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i want credit while the film takes a
clear stance
it still debated who was mainly
responsible for writing the
oscar-winning screenplay for citizen
kane
had mankowitz given an acceptance speech
he claims he would have remarked quote
i am very happy to accept this award in
mr wells's absence
because the script was written in mr
wells's absence how's that
how come he shares credit
well that my friend is the magic of the
movies
wells who didn't attend the oscars
either stated quote
i used what i wanted of manx and rightly
or wrongly
kept what i liked of my own in any case
three things
are for sure mankowitz initially signed
a contract for going credit
mankowitz later decided that he wanted
credit leading to an argument with wells
then you forced me to remind you we have
a contract that you understood and
agreed to
mankowitz won the argument but was still
largely overshadowed by the film's
director
star producer and co-screenwriter number
five
marion davey's portrayal right no you
well what's at stake here the film's
depiction of marion davies is mostly
dead on
as is amanda seifert's witty performance
the longtime mistress of william
randolph hearst
davies did form a friendship with
mankowitz although it's debatable
exactly how close they were
the scene where she tries to persuade
him not to release citizen kane for
example
is purely fictional am i persuading you
at all
i hope if this gets made
you'll forgive me and i hope
if it doesn't you'll forgive me
like mankowitz though davies also
struggled with alcoholism
which created a mutual bond whether
intentional or not
it's widely believed that davey served
as the inspiration for susan alexander
kane
i see it's you that this is being done
too
it's not me at all whereas susan had
little to no talent however
davies was an accomplished actress
comedian writer and producer
davies might have achieved even more had
she been cast as marie antoinette
a role that ultimately went to irving
thalberg's wife
norma shearer miriam would have made it
her own
marion would have been perfection
an internet it was irving's picture it
takes kind of a match
number four mank's condition while
writing citizen kane
right throughout the film mankowitz is
seen in bed with a broken leg and a
looming deadline to finish his first
draft
you've only written 90 pages 91 and in
my expert opinion
you're hardly out of the first act i
mean how do you hope to be done in 14
13 days this framing device paints an
accurate portrait of mankowitz's
conditions as he devised his greatest
work
in september 1939 mankowitz shattered
his leg in a car accident
you read it i see what i mean
recouping in the hospital bankowitz was
paid a visit from wells
who offered him a gig writing for the
campbell playhouse i think it's time we
talked
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the two eventually decided to
collaborate on the project that would
become
citizen kane in 1940 bankowitz started
working on the screenplay at a ranch in
victorville california
where alcohol was not permitted swim you
may tote those lovely highland beauties
to the kitchen
twilight for either empty of the mickey
since their contents
during this period mankowitz was aided
by producer john houseman
and secretary rita alexander who
inspired susan alexander's name
number three manx drunken pitch
everyone better late than ever
in a powerhouse scene a drunken
mankowitz goes on a tirade at william
randolph hearst's castle
taking shots at hearst louis b mayer and
the other guests
mankowitz essentially pitches the idea
for citizen kane
it's a modern-day version of kiyoti
it's true that mankowitz was a regular
at hearst's parties hearst liked
listening to mankowitz's witticisms
although he was no longer welcome after
attempting to get davies drunk
it's also true that mankowitz once
vomited at a dinner party prompting his
white wine and fish remark
although this happened at producer
arthur hornblow jr's residence
don't worry folks
as for mankowitz's impassioned don
quixote speech seen in the film
it certainly provides an oscar-worthy
acting showcase for old men
but there's no record of this incident
actually happening
number two upton sinclair inspired mank
wrong
politics might have played a key role in
citizen kane
but upton sinclair wasn't a major source
of inspiration as mank suggests
while fallberg was behind a smear
campaign against sinclair
mankowitz's comments didn't
inadvertently inspire these bogus
newsreels
you don't think anyone old enough to
vote is going to buy this
only the ones who believe king kong is
10 stories tall or
mary pickford a virgin not 40. therefore
mankowitz never approached davies about
getting the newsreels pulled
the timing here is also off as davies
wouldn't make her exit from
mgm until after the election it's true
that mankowitz donated to miriam's
campaign
although he wasn't necessarily pressured
into doing so
mankowitz's friend shelley metcalf who
makes propaganda films for marion
despite supporting sinclair
is fictional as well look at what we did
we can't unring this spell this
character is loosely inspired by
director felix
e feist although he didn't suffer from
parkinson's disease
or take his own life first you get the
tremors
and your muscles begin to fail
pretty soon you can't get out of the
chair before we unveil our top pick
here are some honorable mentions mgm cut
salaries right not even the hollywood
elite were safe from the great
depression
i am asking everyone in the mgm family
to take a painful step i am asking
to roll back salaries rita alexander's
husband was an raf pilot
wrong her husband was a european refugee
who had recently arrived in the u.s
her husband is one of our bold lads in
the raf flies
what is it rita spitfires hurricanes my
sympathy and prayers
makes animosity towards the wizard of oz
right
mankowitz was a writer on the 1939
classic although he wasn't credited the
wizard of oz is gonna sync that studio
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number one william randolph hearst
equals charles foster kane
right while joseph pulitzer samuel
insult
and harold mccormick also served as
inspiration william randolph hearst
shared the most parallels with mr kane
there's a golden age coming
and all the world will be a stage and
you perhaps there's shakespeare
both men were newspaper publishers whose
wealth was only matched by their power
and influence
thus when hearst caught wind of citizen
kane he used
all of the tools at his disposal to bury
the film
oh he or she looks into the mirror
of his youth and decides to break
this glass the maddening reminder of who
he once was
not only did he ban any mention of the
film from his papers
but members of his inner circle also
targeted wells
louis b mayer and a few other bigwigs
unsuccessfully tried paying rko pictures
to destroy the film
and every time i do decide to dance
every time
he must play despite hearst's efforts
citizen kane was a modest box office
success won an oscar
and is today recognized by many outlets
as the greatest film
of all time
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you