Patti Smith's writing a screenplay of 'Just Kids'

By Sarah Sluis

I'll be the first to admit that Patti Smith was before my time. But I wouldn't hesitate to see an adaptation of her book Just Kids. Smith, the "godmother of punk" whose memoir won the 2011 National Book Award, plans to co-write the screenplay with John Logan. Logan, an Oscar nominee, has experience both in adaptations (Hugo, The Time Machine, Sweeney Todd) and in biopics (The Aviator, upcoming Lincoln). Though a number of high-profile producers wanted to acquire rights to the picture, Smith wants to develop the screenplay solo, presumably to keep creative control.

Just Kids was popular not only because it told the story of Smith's life, but also for her descriptions of New York City in the late 60s, when she moved there. Smith encounters a variety of luminaries in the book. Amazon mentions that while residing at the legendary Chelsea Hotel, she befriended William Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Johnny Winter--quite the bunch. Another excerpt from the book (page 213) describes her then-boyfriend Robert Mapplethorpe as moving to 24 Bond St, a "cobblestone side street" where "John Lennon and Yoko Ono had a place across the way." Smith appears to have known all the creative movers and shakers at the time.

While Smith's book can capture the feeling of a historic New York City and its menagerie of celebrities just fine, those will pose two of the greatest challenges in the adaptation. Casting will be incredibly difficult, since the filmmakers will have to find so many actors who can imitate specific celebrities. Making period films is something Hollywood has down pat, but where do you even find a gritty place in New York anymore? Also, the book's focus on Smith's relationship with the soon-to-be-controversial photographer Mapplethorpe, her lover turned gay friend, could limit the movie's mainstream potential. Perhaps that's why Smith wants to maintain creative control.