The term man-crush would not be out of place.
Its a reaction thats not limited to journalists and fans.
At Sundance in 2013, I interviewed Nichols aboutMud.
Credit: Everett Collection; Inset: C Flanigan/FilmMagic
That conversation was the first thing I thought of this morning when I heard the sad news.
Thats Sam Shepard Pulitzer Prize winning writer Sam Shepard!
And he was awesome.
Hed just seenTake Shelterand really loved it.
We just had this really great initial conversation.
We talked about music, we talked about books.
I felt like we were just kinda fast friends which you dont expect from Sam Shepard.
I had to pinch myself every once and awhile.
There was this one day, in particular.
Sam wasnt working that day.
And he walks up and he goes, Hey Jeff, can I sit with you?
And I was like, Yes.
Yes you’re able to.
And he sat down and we talked a little bit about Andrew Dominik, fromThe Assassination of Jesse James.
And we talked a little about Jorge Luis Borges, who wroteThe Book of Imaginary Beings.
We talked about books for a little bit.
He had just showed up because he liked being on an island in the middle of the Mississippi River.
And he liked us, and he just wanted to be around.
I called my wife that night and said Ill never be cooler than this day.
And I think hes really great in the part.
Talk about a slow-hand scene.
I was very flattered that he liked the material so much.
Rest in peace, Sam Shepard.
