Thanks to Mark Dawidziak for providing this information from an
interview with Horton Foote.

Barb

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Dear Barb,

This is Mark Dawidziak at the Akron Beacon Journal. You can share this
with the rest of the Forum folks if you like.

I interviewed Horton Foote at length in December for the Knight-Ridder
wire. We talked a great deal about Mark Twain, one of his heroes. If
this Twain drama was ever published, Foote is not aware of it. He isn't
even sure a copy exists in his records. He has asked several institutions
to track down a video copy in any condition, but so far, no luck. If
anyone finds it, he would like to be notified immediately. I have several
Twain friends, including fellow-Mark Twain Circle member David Bianculli
(TV critic at the New York Daily News), on the lookout.

When I asked Foote if "The Shape of the River" was published anywhere,
he replied, "Not that I know of. It's terrible, but it's one of those
things you don't pay attention to at the time. I don't even know if a
kinny (kinescope) exists. Isn't that awful? Franchot Tone played Twain
and he was quite remarkable. My archives would love to have a copy. Not
even the Museum of Broadcasting has a copy. At the time, I remember being
tremendously moved by Tone's performance."

Foote added that Tone was surprisingly good as Twain, bringing a sad yet
proud quality to his portrayal that may have mirrored conditions in his
own life.

I hope some of this helps.

Best,
Mark