Upcoming Book A MURDER IN HOLLYWOOD Based on the Murder of Lana Turner's Boyfriend Getting a Series Adaptation
The upcoming true crime thriller novel A Murder In Hollywood, from author Casey Sherman, is set to be made into a series upon its release. Based on the true story of Academy Award-nominated actress Lana Turner (Peyton Place), and her mobster boyfriend Johnny Stompanato, who was allegedly stabbed to death in her house by her daughter Cheryl Crane in 1958.
Jake Crane, no relation, who wrote the screenplay for the Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell-fronted Korean War feature Devotion, has optioned the rights to the book and will adapt.
A Murder in Hollywood chronicles the fatal stabbing of screen legend Turner’s gangster boyfriend Stompanato inside her Beverly Hills mansion in the late 1950s. Crane was exonerated after a coroner’s inquest ruled that the homicide was deemed justifiable as a result of physical abuse within the family. Stompanato was affiliated with the Cohen crime family and started dating Turner after The Lady Takes A Flyer.
The book will be published by Sourcebooks later this year. It will take a fresh look at the killing and explores how Turner was targeted for extortion by Stompanato and his boss Mickey Cohen. It will also explore the theory that Turner, in fact, killed Stompanato.
This is a fascinating story to turn into a series. I have heard it told on an episode of my favorite podcast, My Favorite Murder, which you can listen to here if you’d like.
via: Deadline