The Ragman’s Son

"Darren Aronofsky: I read this one in the early ’90s when I first got out to Hollywood. My mentor Stuart Rosenberg, who directed Cool Hand Luke, suggested it. It’s basically Kirk Douglas’s story of coming from nothing—he was a ragman’s son—and achieving the American dream through the Hollywood movie system. Kirk was such a brave actor, but he’s also just a brave guy. He broke the blacklist by forcing the studio to put [screenwriter] Dalton Trumbo’s name on Spartacus . It was the first time a blacklisted writer had used his real name, and Douglas used all the power he had built for himself to do that, which was a great risk to his career. He is someone who made great movies, didn’t forget where he came from, was proud of where he came from, and represented where he came from his entire life."