Johnny Depp to hide out in Wisconsin?
Word is that director and University of Wisconsin alum Michael Mann is preparing to bring a film crew to Wisconsin next year. The Baraboo New Republic broke the story yesterday and it has since been picked up by the Associated Press. According to the story Mann is scouting nearly 20 locations in Wisconsin as potential backdrops for his American gangsters flick about the 1933-34 crime wave of John Dillinger, "Baby Face" Nelson, and "Pretty Boy" Floyd. That crime wave has been accredited with forcing the FBI to essentially reboot and move in a new direction. Early reports have Johnny Depp cast as Dillinger for the film which will start production in Chicago on March 10 (hmmm...right around the time of the 2008 Wisconsin Film Festival. Could we possibly see a surprise appearance from the actors or director?)
It should be noted that any deals are not yet final, but from what we hear a pen is hovering very close to a dotted line.
The screenplay is based on a book by Bryan Burroughs titled, Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34. Burroughs also wrote the critically acclaimed Barbarians at the Gate.
Wisconsin can thank the new tax breaks for filmmakers that will go into effect in Wisconsin starting with the new year for helping coax Hollywood to use the state. Lt. Governor Barbara Lawton heavily lobbied for the tax breaks earlier this year as she saw it as an opportunity "to inject new, substantial revenue into our state's economy." To find out what else is coming to Wisconsin check out the "Film Wisconsin" website.
Another reason Wisconsin is appropriate is that Dillinger has a history with our state. You can visit one of his hideouts, the Little Bohemia Lodge, up in Manitowish Waters. According to Wikipedia:
In April, the gang settled at a lodge hideout called Little Bohemia owned by Emil Wanatka, in the northern Wisconsin town of Manitowish Waters. The gang assured the owners that they would give no trouble, but the gang monitored the owners whenever they left or spoke on the phone. Emil's wife Nan and her brother managed to evade Baby Face Nelson, who was tailing them, and mailed a letter of warning to a U.S. Attorney's office in Chicago, which later contacted the FBI. Days later, a score of FBI agents led by Hugh Clegg and Melvin Purvis approached the lodge in the early morning hours. Two barking watchdogs announced their arrival, but the gang was so used to Nan Wanatka's dogs that they did not bother to inspect the disturbance. It was only after the FBI mistakenly gunned down a local resident and two innocent Civilian Conservation Corps workers (as they were about to drive away in a car) that the Dillinger gang were alerted to the presence of the FBI. Gunfire between the groups lasted only momentarily, but the whole gang managed to escape in various ways despite the FBI's efforts to surround and storm the lodge. Agent W. Carter Baum was shot dead by "Baby Face" Nelson during the gun battle. Barney G. Louis Boeding accompanied him during the robberies.
Mann is a UW alum
Mann is a UW alum and the Com Arts department has been trying to get him here forever.
Re: Mann is a UW alum
Thanks for that information Sean. I added it to the story. You need to send me a list of UW alums working in Hollywood.