Deadpan

Deadpan follows the misadventures of a vaguely anti-semitic West Virginia Buick dealer who wakes up one day transformed into the world’s most popular Jewish comedian. Steeped in magical realism, the narrative confronts pivotal issues of our day: identity, intolerance, tribalism and the redemptive force of humor.

The story is set during the world-wide oil crises of the 1970s, alternating among locations in West Virginia, Las Vegas, Washington, Tehran, and Sinai, and featuring characters as diverse as Sarah Palin, Mel Brooks, and the Shah of Iran. This phantasmagorical tour-de-force not only constitutes a satirical takedown of antisemitism (and bigotry in general), it is also a dazzling display of human dignity, resilience, and humor.

Richard Walter is an author of best-selling fiction and nonfiction, celebrated storytelling educator, screenwriter, script consultant, lecturer and retired professor who led the screenwriting program in the film school at UCLA for several decades.