Great book, though out of print: MAKING OF KUBRICK'S 2001 by
Jerome Agel, originally published by New American Library (Signet).
Filled with reviews of the film, letters to Kubrick, behind-the-scenes
info, photos, and a whole lot more.
GEDULD, CAROLYN. Filmguide to 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, Bloomington: In-
diana University Press, 1973. According to one USENET reader,
somewhat off-the-mark.
KUBRICK: A FILM ARTIST'S MAZE by Thomas Nelson. In-depth commentary
film-by-film, with a brilliant analysis of DR. STRANGELOVE & 2001. May
be too scholarly for some.
KUBRICK by Michael Ciment. Lots of photos and great insights, with
interviews by Kubrick. A must.
THE LOST WORLDS OF 2001 by Arthur C. Clarke. New York: Signet, 1972.
If you're interested in early drafts of 2001, you must find a copy of
Arthur C. Clarke's book THE LOST WORLDS OF 2001. It contains much of the
material that Kubrick & Clarke (who really co-wrote the novel, even
though only Clarke's name appears on the novel) wrote and then
discarded, all of which was at one time or another intended for the
film. (For those who don't know, although Kubrick was inspired by
Clarke's "The Sentinel" to do 2001, they wrote the 2001 novel
concurrently with the screenplay, as far as I know the only time this
has ever been done.) Clarke intersplices the material with essays on
working with Kubrick, and how they arrived at the script as we know it.
I'm not sure whether the book is still in print, but I see it quite
often in used bookstores. There's a lot of background information on the
characters in 2001, as well as several alternate versions of Bowman
meeting the aliens behind the monolith at the film's end, which was
their original intention before Kubrick opted for a more open
conclusion.
(J.M.)
2001: FILMING THE FUTURE by Piers Bizony (Aurum Press: 1994).
Includes some neat stuff, including what appears to be the typed
pages for the orginal press release, what appears to be the entire
screenplay in novel-dialogue form, shots from 2001 that were cut,
and some fine essays. Another must. And it's in print!
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