There were a few writers I revered as a young lad with my pens and spiral notebook. William Goldman, Robert Towne, John Steinbeck, Ray Bradbury, Agatha Christie, Rod Serling and Paddy Chayefsky. Words were scalpels. To heal or destroy. Chayefsky is still revered by actors and filmmakers today.
Paddy Chayefsky died 45 years ago. That’s an eternity in our contemporary times. While his stage plays and television work are difficult to find, his films are more easily located and stand the test of time.
If the film is not based on a comic or superhero or a modern version of a literary classic, it’s not likely to get made. Films about ideas and smart dialogue only survive because of art houses. Chayefsky wrote for 1950s television and the stage where Americans were hungry for contemporary issues and a social consciousness. He won three Academy Awards and two Golden Globes for his writing.
Paddy Chayefsky: Collector of Words (2025) is a documentary now on HBOMax. The film is directed by Matthew Miele and produced by Anne Chertoff Tavelin. Miele has directed other documentaries about Vincent Price, Bob Mackie and Alan J. Pakula.
Collector of Words focuses only on his work, stated upfront, is that statement that it will not include personal or private information. That aspect was disappointing, because our history and private side influence our work and our views. Chayefsky spoke through his work, there was a dark humor in his stories, to better understand how his views were shaped would have been helpful. Chayefsky died at a relatively young age, so to have a fuller picture of how he lived would have been appreciated. Chayefsky had a reputation for being inflexible and difficult during the process of bringing his projects to fruition. He wanted his vision realized, which is true of all writers.
Those interviewed for the documentary include: Oliver Stone, Phil Alden Robinson, Alan Zweibel, Mel Brooks, Aaron Sorkin, James L. Brooks, Robert Klein, David Steinberg, Dustin Hoffman, Rob Lowe and Jeff Daniels. Their insights into Chayefsky’s work were enlightening, especially Sorkin and Brooks, two gifted writers/producers.
Paddy Chayefsky’s most famous film is Network, which uncannily predicted some of the media problems we deal with today. The film is a biting satire of how a news organization of a network is polluted by pandering for ratings and being placed under the entertainment branch of the network’s corporate umbrella.
This film could have been better, but if you want a glimpse into the work of a very successful screenwriter writer, check out this documentary.
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