627 - Beatles: Ringo Starr Typed Letter Signed on Unrealized ‘WASP’ Film Project and ‘Breakfast of Champions’ (1973)

Beatles: Ringo Starr Typed Letter Signed on Unrealized ‘WASP’ Film Project and ‘Breakfast of Champions’ (1973) TLS signed “Ringo,” one page, 8.25 x 11.75, Apple Films Ltd. letterhead, August 21, 1973. Letter to MGM film producer Jerry Weintraub, in full: “It seems that nothing is going down, so would you please return the script of WASP to me. I still don't know why I was asked to read ‘Breakfast of Champions,’ as it seems impossible for us to get together to speak on the phone.” In fine condition. Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Tracks. This letter was written less than a month after Starr completed sessions for his self-titled album Ringo, recorded between March and July 1973 with producer Richard Perry and released that November. The album famously featured contributions from all four former Beatles, though they did not all record together, marking the closest thing to a musical reunion since the group’s dissolution. Starr was also pursuing an active film career, appearing that year as Teddy Boy Mike in That’ll Be the Day. The ‘WASP’ script Starr asks Weintraub to return was based on Eric Frank Russell’s 1957 science-fiction novel Wasp, a satirical story about a lone human agent sent to destabilize a hostile alien society. Apple Corps had acquired the motion-picture rights in 1970, with Starr signing the agreement on Apple’s behalf, but the proposed film was never produced. Three years later, Starr’s request that the script be returned because “nothing is going down” offers a revealing glimpse into the abandoned project. ‘Breakfast of Champions’ almost certainly refers to Kurt Vonnegut’s novel, published earlier in 1973, although Starr’s prospective involvement with the property remains unclear. Recipient Jerry Weintraub, then best known as a music manager and concert promoter who had worked with acts including Elvis Presley and Led Zeppelin, would soon establish himself as a major Hollywood producer.