Lionel Richie Secures Rights for Curtis Mayfield Biopic

New American Idol judge Lionel Richie has been granted the rights to produce a feature based on the life of legendary songwriter and musician Curtis Mayfield. Richie, who acquired the rights from the Curtis Mayfield Estate, is mounting the project via his RichLion Productions.

"It's an honor for me to bring the life of one of my idols and friend to the screen," the former Commordores frontman said.

"I'm so grateful to be working closely with Altheida Mayfield, Cheaa Mayfield and the Curtis Mayfield Estate and couldn't be happier to be moving forward on this amazing project about a one-of-a-kind music genius."

"It's time to celebrate and re-evaluate Curtis' legacy," added Altheida Mayfield, the singer's widow. "For years, too many others have tried to claim what he alone did. He was a genius, always stood on his own."


John Legend, Get Lifted and Jesse Williams to Produce Doc on 1968 Olympic Gold Medalist Tommie Smith

Born in Chicago in 1942, Mayfield started writing songs at age 11 before joining Jerry Butler in the Impressions at age 14. Mayfield has written more than 1,900 songs including the Impressions' hits "People Get Ready" and "Keep on Pushin'" reflecting his awareness of political and social concerns among black people.

His group had a pair of top 10 pop hits — "It's All Right" and cover "Amen" — and six No. 1's on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. In addition, he scored various films such as the Gordon Parks, Jr.-directed blaxploitation drama Superfly, and Warner Bros' 1976 film Sparkle. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002; Richie received a special award from that group last year.


October 2, 2017 Declared Thurgood Marshall Day; Dozens of U.S. Cities Confirmed; Film MARSHALL Opens Following Week

In 1990, Curtis Mayfield was paralyzed from the neck down after stage lighting equipment fell on him during an outdoor concert in New York. Although he was unable to play instruments after the accident, Curtis continued to sing, compose music and record. After an acclaimed four-decade career, Mayfield died in 1999 at 57.

Press Release sent via Digney & Company based upon a story reported exclusively by Deadline Hollywood. 

Haute Tease

  • D’opposition en Instrumentalisation

    Le président Français Emmanuel Macron, face à des élections à venir, a refusé de trouver un équilibre avec le nombre toujours croissant d'anti-vaccins, même exigeants, afin de freiner l'escalade continue des cas confirmés de coronavirus au sein de la République.  

  • Academy Hosts Nicholl Fellowships Winners Live Read

    Actors Keiko Agena, Monica Barbaro, Lodric D. Collins and Dorian Missick will appear in a live reading of selected scenes from this year's five winning scripts at the 2022 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards and Live Read.  

  • Spectacular 17-Carat Diamond Solitaire Ring Achieves $1,447,500 At Bonhams New York

    An important diamond solitaire ring, weighing 17.97 carats realized $1,447,500 at the Fine Jewelry auction at Bonhams on Dec. 6 in New York, NY. The sale, which featured a strong group of sapphires and emeralds made a total of $6,381,000.00.

     
  • Money News: US Markets Rally, Asian Markets Struggle

    The three major U.S. Markets, Dow Jones Industrial Average, NASDAQ and S&P 500, rallied over the past week recovering slightly from the melt down felt in the ten top world markets over the past week, the Russell 2000 stubbornly refused to rally and closed slightly down.

     
  • NYFCC: Lady Gaga, Benedict Cumberbatch Take Acting Honors

    The New York Film Critics Circle voted today at Film at Lincoln Center for their 2021 awards winners. The awards will be handed out during their annual ceremony on Monday, January 10, 2022, at Tao Downtown. 

     
  • World News: Who Will Be Israel's Next Prime Minister? Benjamin or Benny?

    Everyone knows about Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu. Israel's 'invincible leader soon to be the longest-serving prime minister in history—except apparently Benny Gantz didn't get that memo since Benny has just pulled ahead of Netanyahu in the latest polls.

Arts / Culture