ENTERTAINMENT
Neil Shulman's medical
adventures are the inspiration
for the film "Doc Hollywood,"
starring Michael J. Fox.
DAVID STORY
Special to The Jewish News
A
t first glance, Neil
Shulman, M.D., ap-
pears modest and
retiring. But upon closer re-
flection, the Atlanta author,
physician and researcher be-
lies this initial impression,
as his keen wit and self-
deprecating humor surfaces.
"I've always been inter-
ested in humor," said Dr.
Shulman, whose 1979 novel
What? Dead Again? in-
spired the Warner Brothers
film "Doc Hollywood," a
summer release starring
Michael J. Fox. "My
grandmother has been my
inspiration, a funny charac-
ter about whom I started a
novel which evolved into my
first book, Finally I'm a
Doctor, in 1976."
Even after she died, his
grandmother was making
people laugh. She wrote her
own eulogy, Dr. Shulman
said, "It was like a stand-up
comedy routine."
Dr. Shulman's paternal
grandmother, a Russian
immigrant named Anna, ran
a Hebrew sheltering home in
Washington, D.C., and yet
found the spare time to play
matchmaker, as when she
found a wife for Dr.
Shulman's brother at a bus
stop in the nation's capital.
"I've actually done stand-
up comedy intermittently,"
explained Dr. Shulman.
According to the 45-year-
old physician, his self-
deprecating brand of humor
is based upon real life expe-
riences in the entertainment
field, as well as the medical
world.
As Dr. Shulman's alter-
ego in "Doc Hollywood,"
David Story is a freelance
writer in Atlanta.
Michael J. Fox plays a
would-be plastic surgeon en
route to Beverly Hills, who
gets waylaid in rural Grady,
Ala., a town desperately in
need of a doctor. Random
House issued What? Dead
Again? in paperback this past
summer, retitled Doc Holly-
wood, as a tie-in with the mo-
tion picture.
"Working with screen-
writers and producers is
time consuming," said Dr.
Shulman, who was associate
producer on the movie dur-
ing filming in Micanopy,
Fla.
"It's a different medium
and I learned a lot. It's a dif-
ferent process too, and im-
practical to have a script
turn out as an exact dupli-
cate of a book," said Dr.
Shulman, conceding that
changes were made and ma-
terial added to his original
plot.
Dr. Shulman noted that
producing was something
that he'd wanted to do more
of, since his involvement
earlier with the CBS televi-
sion movie "Dreams of
Gold," for which he was also
associate producer. The film,
starring veteran actor Cliff
Robertson, chronicled the
adventures of treasure hunter
Mel Fischer.
Dr. Shulman and Letitia
Sweitzer, author of When
Dreams Come True, have
just completed a screenplay,
"High Tech Hearts." The
romantic comedy is in the
pre-production stage and is
to be directed by Dr.
Shulman.
"It all works together,"
stressed Dr. Shulman, in-
sisting that there is no con-
flict between the worlds of
medicine and the big screen.
Dr. Neil Shulman: Physician and author.
Patrolman Cotton (Tom Lacy) listens to Benjamin Stone
(Michael J. Fox) explain how he happened to drive
through a fence in Grady, Ala., en route to Beverly Hills.
Hollywood Nights
The sunny days and
breezy nights of
Micanoby, Fla., were dis-
rupted last winter by the
hustle and bustle of
Hollywood movie mak-
ing. And folks who live
and work around
Cholokka Boulevard may
never be the same.
In the motion picture
version of Dr. Neil
Shulman's autobiographi-
cal novel What? Dead
Again?, Michael J. Fox
plays a city slickin'
surgeon held captive by
the affections of a small
southern town.
Mr. Fox is reputed to
have prepared for the role
by donning medical garb
and visiting the emergen-
cy room of Columbia
Presbyterian Hospital in
New York City. The ac-
tor's real life counterpart
is an attending physician
at Grady Hospital in
Atlanta, Ga.
According to producer
Susan Solt, Mr. Fox's
leading lady is Julie
Warner (Lou), making her
film debut. "Cheers"
Woody Harrelson por-
trays Mr. Fox's rival for
the affections of Lou.
Then there's Bridget
Fonda (niece of Jane), as
Nancy Lee, the coquett-
ish daughter of the may-
or, who goes after Mr.
Fox.
But as it turns out,
Nancy's not in love with
the young doctor, she just
wants to hitch a ride to
California in his Porsche.
The screenplay was the
collaboration of several
screenwriters, including
Jeff Price (Who Framed
RogerRabbit).
Veteran actor Bernard
Hughes ("The Cavan-
aughs") almost steals the
show as the grouchy Doc
Hogue, sharing the spot-
light with Frances Stern-
hagen ("Bright Lights, Big
City") as Miss Lillian,
who runs the local cafe.
"Doc Hollywood" is a
Warner Brothers release.
— David Story
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
67