If it weren’t for a chance encounter, the story of a 21-year-old margarine heir who pledged to give away his $25 million inheritance to anyone in need may have remained packed up in boxes forever.
Fifty years after Michael Brody Jr.’s announcement triggered an avalanche of letters from around the world, Melissa Robyn Glassman discovered the letters — unopened — in a Los Angeles storage unit belonging to the filmmaker Edward R. Pressman.
This trove of letters – approximately 30,000 in total – became the basis of the documentary “Dear Mr. Brody,” which is currently available on VOD and playing in select theaters.
Writer-director Keith Maitland said he was “immediately” drawn to the story, which unfolded over ten days in January 1970, when he began reading the letters.
“You’d open up these little novellas where people just unloaded their life and told you all about their family members and their wants and desires,” he told TheWrap.
Fifty years after Michael Brody Jr.’s announcement triggered an avalanche of letters from around the world, Melissa Robyn Glassman discovered the letters — unopened — in a Los Angeles storage unit belonging to the filmmaker Edward R. Pressman.
This trove of letters – approximately 30,000 in total – became the basis of the documentary “Dear Mr. Brody,” which is currently available on VOD and playing in select theaters.
Writer-director Keith Maitland said he was “immediately” drawn to the story, which unfolded over ten days in January 1970, when he began reading the letters.
“You’d open up these little novellas where people just unloaded their life and told you all about their family members and their wants and desires,” he told TheWrap.
- 3/9/2022
- by Harper Lambert
- The Wrap
Ed Pressman’s five decades of producing credits include everything from Terrence Malick’s “Badlands” to “Wall Street,” “The Crow,” Abel Ferrara’s “Bad Lieutenant” and the reimagining of the same title in another version directed by Werner Herzog. But nothing in his roster has been as singular as the story of the hippie billionaire at the center of “Dear Mr. Brody,” which opens this week, and its existence speaks to the long-tail success of a producer whose assets have accrued unique value with time.
In the ‘70s, Pressman came into possession of material that he knew would make a good movie: Tentatively called “The Last Flower Child” with Richard Dreyfuss in talks to star, the project would recount the bizarre saga of Michael Brody Jr., the 21-year-old heir to the Oleomargarine fortune who announced that he would give $25 million to anyone who asked. In the process of acquiring the rights to the project,...
In the ‘70s, Pressman came into possession of material that he knew would make a good movie: Tentatively called “The Last Flower Child” with Richard Dreyfuss in talks to star, the project would recount the bizarre saga of Michael Brody Jr., the 21-year-old heir to the Oleomargarine fortune who announced that he would give $25 million to anyone who asked. In the process of acquiring the rights to the project,...
- 3/3/2022
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Not in fact a documentary about one of our most erudite film critics, Dear Mr. Brody uncovers the peculiar true tale of a hippie millionaire who wanted to give back. In January 1970, Michael Brody Jr., the 21-year-old heir to a margarine fortune, announced to the world that he would personally usher in a new era of peace and love by giving away his $25-million inheritance to anyone in need. Tower director Keith Maitland now captures the story in his latest documentary, which arrives in NY and LA theaters on March 4, followed by a Discovery+ debut.
John Fink said in his SXSW review, “Keith Maitland, who brought to animated life the University of Texas Tower shooting with the documentary Tower, brings the same immediacy to the moment in a film that simultaneously tells Brody’s story through archival materials and new interviews while tracking down a few of those who were seeking his help.
John Fink said in his SXSW review, “Keith Maitland, who brought to animated life the University of Texas Tower shooting with the documentary Tower, brings the same immediacy to the moment in a film that simultaneously tells Brody’s story through archival materials and new interviews while tracking down a few of those who were seeking his help.
- 2/23/2022
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Exclusive: Discovery+ is ramping up its feature doc slate with a range of new titles including a documentary about Michael Brody Jr., a hippie-millionaire and heir to a margarine fortune who publicly offered his $25-million inheritance to anyone in need in 1970.
The streamer has acquired the rights to Dear Mr. Brody, which is directed by Keith Maitland (Tower) and was an official selection at the Telluride Film Festival, as well as screening at SXSW and Tribeca Festival.
It has also picked up feature docs Set!, Dead Man’s Switch and Keep Sweet.
Dear Mr. Brody, which will be released theatrically by Greenwich Entertainment ahead of its streaming bow, will launch in winter 2022. It follows the complex story of Brody, who announced that he would be giving away his fortune in 1970. He and his wife became instant celebrities and they were mobbed by the public, scrutinized by the press, and overwhelmed...
The streamer has acquired the rights to Dear Mr. Brody, which is directed by Keith Maitland (Tower) and was an official selection at the Telluride Film Festival, as well as screening at SXSW and Tribeca Festival.
It has also picked up feature docs Set!, Dead Man’s Switch and Keep Sweet.
Dear Mr. Brody, which will be released theatrically by Greenwich Entertainment ahead of its streaming bow, will launch in winter 2022. It follows the complex story of Brody, who announced that he would be giving away his fortune in 1970. He and his wife became instant celebrities and they were mobbed by the public, scrutinized by the press, and overwhelmed...
- 10/1/2021
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
“Dear Mr. Brody” isn’t as formally daring as writer-director Keith Maitland’s documentary debut, “Tower,” but it nonetheless boasts plenty of nonfiction flourishes — most notably, dramatic recreations of some of the thousands of unopened letters that were sent to Michael Brody Jr. in 1970 after the 21-year-old promised that he’d give away $25 million to anyone and everyone who asked. Brody’s wild Warholian 15 minutes of fame are the nominal center of attention of this fascinating doc, which has gotten considerable documentary exposure in a pandemic year. Yet its most fascinating focus are those typed and handwritten correspondences, which allow for
The heir to the Jelke margarine empire, Brody made headlines when — after marrying his wife Renee in whirlwind fashion, and chartering a 747 to return them home from their Hawaii honeymoon — he began making public pledges to donate his entire fortune. Brody claimed that his generosity sprang from a desire...
The heir to the Jelke margarine empire, Brody made headlines when — after marrying his wife Renee in whirlwind fashion, and chartering a 747 to return them home from their Hawaii honeymoon — he began making public pledges to donate his entire fortune. Brody claimed that his generosity sprang from a desire...
- 6/11/2021
- by Nick Schager
- Variety Film + TV
Long before the days of going viral with a scam to share wealth with whomever retweets a comment, there was Michael J. Brody Jr., an Oleomargarine heir and alleged hippie millionaire who pledged to give away his wealth without thinking through an orderly process. Surrounding himself by “yes” men, he becomes a subject of fascination on news programs in the New York City area, eventually capturing the attention of producer Ed Pressman, who takes ownership of the letters as research for a future narrative film about Brody.
Keith Maitland, who brought to animated life the University of Texas Tower shooting with the documentary Tower, brings the same immediacy to the moment in a film that simultaneously tells Brody’s story through archival materials and new interviews while tracking down a few of those who were seeking his help. Melissa Robyn Glassman, former assistant to Ed Pressman, has the task of...
Keith Maitland, who brought to animated life the University of Texas Tower shooting with the documentary Tower, brings the same immediacy to the moment in a film that simultaneously tells Brody’s story through archival materials and new interviews while tracking down a few of those who were seeking his help. Melissa Robyn Glassman, former assistant to Ed Pressman, has the task of...
- 3/28/2021
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
Michael James Brody Jr.’s legacy is not widely known today, in part because it’s so tough to parse. In 1970, the shaggy-haired 21-year-old heir to the Jelke oleomargarine fortune publicly declared his intention to give away his millions to anyone who asked, inviting a flood of letters and impassioned pleas from around the country. Three years later, he was dead by his own hand.
Brody was a hippie millionaire devoted to saving the world, but he was also a mentally ill drug addict with a Messiah complex. That conflict remains a messy tangle of questions 50 years later, but director Keith Maitland’s enlightening documentary “Dear Mr. Brody” works through the paradox, suggesting that the tragedy of Brody’s fate is matched by the window into the American dream catalyzed by his offer.
Brody’s story has many layers, and Maitland sometimes struggles to unite the disparate pieces. The heir...
Brody was a hippie millionaire devoted to saving the world, but he was also a mentally ill drug addict with a Messiah complex. That conflict remains a messy tangle of questions 50 years later, but director Keith Maitland’s enlightening documentary “Dear Mr. Brody” works through the paradox, suggesting that the tragedy of Brody’s fate is matched by the window into the American dream catalyzed by his offer.
Brody’s story has many layers, and Maitland sometimes struggles to unite the disparate pieces. The heir...
- 9/1/2020
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Exclusive: The Telluride Film Festival was expected to start next week on September 3 and play, as usual, all through the Labor Day weekend. Sadly, the coronavirus pandemic curtailed those plans and the festival was forced to cancel this year’s edition. However, Telluride did put out the schedule of films that had been selected, and on September 11 will host a “drive-in” screening at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena of the new Fox Searchlight film, Nomadland starring Frances McDormand directed by Chloe Zhao. And they actively hope that some of the other films on their list find an audience, and in some cases even distribution in order to find that audience.
I caught one of those films, the fascinating new documentary Dear Mr. Brody, which was to have had its world premiere at Telluride and was planning to use that showcase to entice buyers. Cinetic is selling it and is just...
I caught one of those films, the fascinating new documentary Dear Mr. Brody, which was to have had its world premiere at Telluride and was planning to use that showcase to entice buyers. Cinetic is selling it and is just...
- 8/27/2020
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.