Leaving Las Vegas (novel)

Last updated

Leaving Las Vegas
Leaving Las Vegas.jpg
Cover of the first U.S. edition
Author John O'Brien
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
PublisherWatermark Press
Publication date
1990
Media typePrint
Pages189
ISBN 0-922820-12-0

Leaving Las Vegas is a semi-autobiographical 1990 novel by John O'Brien. The novel was adapted into a 1995 film of the same name, starring Nicolas Cage and Elisabeth Shue. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, winning Cage the Academy Award for Best Actor, and earning Shue a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and screenwriter/director Mike Figgis nominations for the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

O'Brien died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound within weeks of signing away the film rights to the novel. [1] [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicolas Cage</span> American actor (born 1964)

Nicolas Kim Coppola, known by his stage name Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for two BAFTA Awards. Known for his versatility as an actor, his participation in various film genres has gained him a cult following.

<i>Leaving Las Vegas</i> 1995 film by Mike Figgis

Leaving Las Vegas is a 1995 American drama film written and directed by Mike Figgis and based on the semi-autobiographical 1990 novel of the same name by John O'Brien. Nicolas Cage stars as a suicidal alcoholic in Los Angeles who, having lost his family and been recently fired, has decided to move to Las Vegas and drink himself to death. He loads a supply of liquor and beer into his BMW and gets drunk as he drives from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. Once there, he develops a romantic relationship with a prostitute played by Elisabeth Shue and the film shifts to include her narrative perspective. O'Brien died from suicide after signing away the film rights to the novel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elisabeth Shue</span> American actress (born 1963)

Elisabeth Shue is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in the films The Karate Kid (1984), Adventures in Babysitting (1987), Cocktail (1988), Back to the Future Part II (1989), Back to the Future Part III (1990), Soapdish (1991), The Saint (1997), Hollow Man (2000), Piranha 3D (2010), Battle of the Sexes (2017), Death Wish (2018) and Greyhound (2020). For her performance in Leaving Las Vegas (1995), Shue was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress as well as a BAFTA, Golden Globe and SAG Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Tesich</span> Serbian-American screenwriter, playwright and novelist (1942–1996)

Stojan Steve Tesich was a Serbian-American screenwriter, playwright, and novelist. He won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1979 for the film Breaking Away.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goya Awards</span> Annual film awards in Spain

The Goya Awards are Spain's main national annual film awards. They are presented by the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John O'Brien (novelist)</span> American novelist (1960–1994)

John O'Brien was an American author. His first novel, Leaving Las Vegas, was published in 1990 by Watermark Press and made into a film of the same name in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Ivory</span> American film director (born 1928)

James Francis Ivory is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Ivory along with Indian film producer Ismail Merchant, his domestic as well as professional partner, and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, were the principals in Merchant Ivory Productions. Together they made acclaimed film adaptations from the novels of E.M. Forster and Henry James. Their body of work is celebrated for its elegance, sophistication, literary fidelity, strong performances, as well as its complex themes and rich characters.

Leaving Las Vegas is a 1995 film starring Nicolas Cage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Figgis</span> 20th and 21st-century English composer, film director and screenwriter

Michael Figgis is an English film director, screenwriter, and composer. He was nominated for two Academy Awards for his work in Leaving Las Vegas (1995). Figgis was the founding patron of the independent filmmakers' online community Shooting People.

William Benedict Nicholson, OBE, FRSL is a British screenwriter, playwright, and novelist who has been nominated twice for an Oscar.

The 21st Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, honoring the best in film for 1995, were announced on 16 December 1995 and given on 15 January 1996.

The 67th National Board of Review Awards, honoring the best in filmmaking in 1995, were announced on 13 December 1995 and given on 26 February 1996.

The 8th Chicago Film Critics Association Awards honored the finest achievements in 1995 filmmaking.

The 61st New York Film Critics Circle Awards honored the best filmmaking of 1995. The winners were announced on 14 December 1995 and the awards were given on 7 January 1996.

The 2nd Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards, given in 1996, honored the best filmmaking of 1995.

Lucinda Jenney is an American actress.

The 30th National Society of Film Critics Awards, given on 3 January 1996, honored the best filmmaking of 1995.

Michael H. Weber is an American screenwriter and producer. He and his writing partner, Scott Neustadter, are best known for writing the screenplay for the romantic comedy film 500 Days of Summer. The film is based on two real relationships Neustadter had. They also wrote the screenplays for the film adaptations of the novels The Spectacular Now, The Fault in Our Stars, and Paper Towns.

References

  1. Peterson, Kristen (May 27, 2008). "Sister's story about 'Leaving Las Vegas' author John O'Brien". Las Vegas Sun . Retrieved July 15, 2017.
  2. Pirina, Garin (October 28, 2015). "Leaving Las Vegas and the Writer Who Didn't Live to See It". Esquire . Retrieved May 1, 2018.