Beatles manager brought back to 'Life'

Producer acquires script about Brian Epstein

By MICHAEL FLEMING

Brian Epstein managed the Beatles from 1961 until his death in 1967.

Producer David Permut has acquired "A Life in the Day," a Tony Gittelson script about the life of Brian Epstein, who discovered and managed the Beatles from 1961 through 1967, when he died of a drug overdose at 32.

Permut will produce and Steve Longi and Chris Mangano will be co-producers.

Deal comes at a time when the popularity of the Beatles is soaring with album reissues due next month as well as the launch of "The Beatles: Rock Band" vidgame. Disney and Robert Zemeckis are negotiating to remake "Yellow Submarine" in 3-D performance capture animation.

Permut said he will try to secure certain Beatles songs, but the movie really is about the formation of the band. Epstein, who sold records from his father's appliance store in Liverpool, heard the Beatles on his lunch break at the Cavern Club and became relentless in his pursuit of a record deal for the quartet. "Everybody turned down the band, even though Brian promised they would become bigger than Elvis, and he finally got George Martin at EMI to change his mind and give them an audition," said Permut.

Permut just produced the Sigourney Weaver starrer "Prayers for Bobby" for Lifetime and "Youth in Revolt," the upcoming Dimension Films comedy that stars Michael Cera. Latter premieres at Deauville and then Toronto, and he's producing biopics on John DeLorean and Sam Kinison.