Desperate Living

A Screenplay

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by John Waters

Type

Screenplays

Subject

One Film > Desperate Living

Keywords

John Waters, screenplay

Publishing date

2025 (May 27, 2025)

Publisher

Picador

Language

English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Paperback • 96 pages
5 x 7 ½ inches (12.5 x 19 cm)

ISBN

978-1-250-37123-2

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Book Presentation:
A grotesque and hilarious satire about the American dream, suburban living, and the corrupting influence of power, set in a world that could only have sprung from the unhinged and brilliant mind of John Waters.

On the verge of a suburban mental health crisis, frazzled and wildly unstable housewife Peggy (immortalized by Mink Stole on-screen) runs away from home with her maid and partner in crime, Grizelda (played with spectacular gumption by the sizzling Jean Hill), only to end up in Mortville, a shantytown filled with society’s rejects. Mortville is run by the evil Queen Carlotta, who parades through the cardboard streets taunting and terrorizing her subjects.

John Waters’ wild and visionary fable lampoons everything from the staid conservatism of the American dream to race and class relations. The New York Times ranked Desperate Living at “the highest peak atop [John Waters’] trash heap of a filmography.” High praise indeed!

About the Author:
John Waters is a writer, a film director, an actor, and a visual artist best known for his films, including Hairspray, Pink Flamingos, and Serial Mom. He is the author of the national bestsellers Role Models, Carsick and Mr. Know-It-All. His spoken-word shows This Filthy World, False Negative, and A John Waters Christmas continue to be performed around the world. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland.

See the publisher website: Picador

See Desperate Living (1977) on IMDB ...