James Dalessandro

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James Dalessandro is a novelist and screenwriter. He currently resides in San Francisco.

He is best know for his novel 1906 (Chronicle Books, 2004, 2005), a story based on the events surrounding the great San Francisco earthquake and fire of 1906.

A film adaptation of 1906 is in development, being co-produced by Warner Bros. and Pixar Animation Studios, in asscociation with Walt Disney Pictures. [1]

[edit] Biography

James Dalessandro was born in Cleveland, Ohio on September 3, 1948, and attended Valley Forge High School. He was educated at Ohio University, in Athens, Ohio, and studied film and screenwriting at UCLA. He worked as a writer in the trailer/marketing department at Columbia Pictures, working on dozens of films.

From 1973-77, he was co-founder of The Santa Cruz Poetry Festival, with Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and served as its director for four years. The nation's largest annual literary festival, it brought Charles Bukowski, William Burroughs, Ken Kesey, Gary Snyder, Allen Ginsberg, Michael McClure, and musicians like Charles Lloyd and Anthony Braxton to the seaside town of Santa Cruz, setting attendance records (2,000 plus per night) at the Civic Auditorium, ushering in what Lawrence Ferlinghetti called "a new birth of American Poetry."

He was also the writer of "The House of Blues Radio Hour" hosted by Dan Aykroyd (as Elwood Blues), and writer/creator of "Rock On" with Doors' keyboardist Ray Manzarek, both for Ben Manilla Productions of San Francisco.

James Dalessandro has published four books, Canary In A Coal Mine (poetry), Bohemian Heart (detective fiction), Citizen Jane (true crime) and 1906 (historical fiction). He is also the writer/director of the award winning documentary film, The Damnedest, Finest Ruins.

[edit] Current status

He teaches screenwriting at the Academy of Arts University in San Francisco, and "Screenwriting as a Pro" at Fort Mason Art Center, and lectures at Cinequest Film Festival and L.A. Screenwriting Expo.

He is married, since 1988, to the former Katie Callies of Edgar, Wisconsin. They have an adopted son, Chris Katevas.

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