I Wrote A Screenplay. The Heroine is Inspired by Haley.

[rmd1064]

So, Haliens, I wrote a screenplay.  And the main character/heroine, Emma Hart, is inspired by Haley.   I have received good feedback from several sources recently and would love to hear from the very smart folks on this board.  You can access the screenplay in PDF to view or download at:  https://www.inktip.com/tmp/scriptuploads...script.pdf

So what is the screenplay about?  The story is about the worst flood in US History, the May 31 1889 Johnstown PA Flood.  The dam on Lake Conemaugh broke that day and 20 million tons of water burst into a valley of towns, including Johnstown.  The flood waters reached 70 feet high and traveled at over 40 MPH in some places.  Over 2,200 people died and the valley was in ruins for years.  

How did this happen? The story starts with the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club.  This exclusive club located on scenic Lake Conemaugh was a sporting organization founded by some of the richest men in America including  Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, Andrew Mellon, Henry Phipps, and Durbin Horne.  These titans of industry loved this quiet retreat and would travel there during the summer to escape the humid heat, the dirty rivers, and the smoky brown air of Pittsburgh.  

But the dam on the lake was old, over 50 years old, and the management team of the Club was informed about the dangers of the dam failing.   And did nothing. Would there be justice for those that died?

So, I wanted to mix some fictional characters with historical figures.  So, young Emma Hart (fictional/Haley) works at the Cambria Iron Company in Johnstown, but is also a popular singer in town.  She was thrilled to find out that she would be performing at the very exclusive South Fork clubhouse at the lake for the big bosses.

Handsome 24 year old Jay Phipps (historical), whose father is millionaire steel magnate Henry Phipps, sees Emma for the first time singing at the clubhouse and is struck by Cupid’s arrow.  Jay is so taken with the luminous Emma that he surprises her with his first visit the next day in Johnstown.  The story continues with Jay and Emma’s relationship and also includes another character Jay Heiser (historical) who is also smitten with Emma.  Then the disastrous flood tears apart all their worlds.

I would love any feedback from the folks on this board.  For history buffs, at the very least, you will learn a lot about the most disastrous flood in US History.  The screenplay has been registered with the Writers Guild of America.  Feedback would be so much appreciated and you can use the email address on the title page. Thanks…

[Miguel]

This sounds interesting, and I want to read the screenplay. I'm preoccupied at the moment trying to complete a few commercial writing assignments by Friday. One of them is presently kicking my ass.

Your description of Emma working "at the Cambria Iron Company in Johnstown" caught my attention. I did a quick search and found a document apparently written in 1876 that says, "Males only are employed in the mines and iron and steel mills, but the woolen mills of the Johnstown Manufacturing Company, operated by Wood, Morrell & Co., at Woodvale, give work to a large number of women and girls."

https://archive.org/stream/cambriaironco...b_djvu.txt

[rmd1064]

Thanks so much Miguel and I look forward to your feedback.  In my screenplay, Emma is a secretary to a manager at Cambria and the year is 1889, so a little later than 1876.  Thanks for that link as that explains some things about Cambria I was not aware of, and I can update a few things in there--for example, I did not know that the Cambria HQ was in Philadelphia.  By the way, Cambria Iron in Johnstown was the largest steelworks in the country before the Civil War, bigger than any works in Pittsburgh.  Hard to believe but true.