Grey Gardens offers fertile ground for imagination, again

The irony of “Big Edie” and “Little Edie” Beale as cultural stalwarts continues to reach new heights, or perhaps depths.

The eccentric aunt and cousin to Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, immortalized in the 1975 documentary “Grey Gardens” by David and Albert Maysles while holed up in their disintegrating East Hampton estate, never became the celebrated entertainers they aspired to be—aside from their performances in the documentary, that is. Only posthumously (Big Edie died in 1977, Little Edie in 2002) did the Beale characters garner the critical acclaim on Broadway and, now, in Hollywood, that they fantasized about.

A new film about the Beales, “Grey Gardens,” directed by Michael Sucsy, starring Jessica Lange and Drew Barrymore, premieres on HBO April 18 at 8 p.m. Spanning 40 years, the film covers ground that the documentary couldn’t, charting the Beales’ slide from high society to squalor. It’s the latest creative work inspired by the intriguing riches-to-rags story—but not by much and not for long.

Last month, a cabaret act, “After the Garden: Edith Beale Live at Reno Sweeney,” premiered in Washington, D.C., a reenactment of Little Edie’s memorable 1978 New York nightclub performance, starring Jeffrey Johnson in drag as Little Edie and created by Gerald Duval, who produced Little Edie’s act. (A run in New York is being discussed.) And next month, Albert Maysles will release a new book about the Beales, with illustrations, photographs, film stills, documentary production notes, interview transcripts and a 60-minute audio CD of singing, poetry and casual conversation, including previously unreleased recordings.

All of this comes after the lauded 2006 Broadway musical adaptation of “Grey Gardens” starring Christine Ebersole, and the Maysles’ own sequel to the documentary, “The Beales of Grey Gardens,” released the same year, composed of outtakes from the original footage shot in 1973.

Songs. Paintings. Websites. Spreads in fashion magazines. Over the past decade, the Beales have become the most unlikely of multimedia muses.

“I could probably make a whole other movie based on this right now,” Mr. Sucsy, who also co-wrote the script for the HBO film, said recently during a telephone interview, reflecting on the spate of “Grey Gardens” derivative works. “These are really enduring characters, and people love to watch them in action.”

Mr. Sucsy’s film has more than just the obvious connection to the East End. His parents have owned a home here since before he was born, first in Hampton Bays and later in Quogue, and Mr. Sucsy credits Suzanne Prior and her Quogue Junior Theater Troupe for developing his dramatic sensibilities as a child. Some of the musical interludes and dancing in “Grey Gardens” was inspired by his memory of showstoppers and soft-shoe numbers from summers past. “It’s all Quogue, Quogue, Quogue,” The QJTT, he continued, “was kind of my Maidstone Club,” referring to the East Hampton mainstay which the Beales so adored.

Mr. Sucsy started writing the script for “Grey Gardens” in 2003 as a vehicle for directorial debut in feature films. He had directed commercials after earning an MFA from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, and while he had worked low-level crew jobs on major Hollywood movies (including “Deep Impact” and “The Siege”), he had never been in charge of a set himself.

What drew him to the material was the complexity of the women’s loving, if emotionally abusive, relationship. The Beales also reminded Mr. Sucsy of his spirited grandmother, whom he describes as “a born entertainer, like they were.” But mostly, he was captivated by all of the unanswered questions raised by the documentary.

Whereas the musical adaptation sought to add a new interpretation of the relationship between the Beales, primarily by having Ms. Ebersole play Big Edie in 1941 in the first act and then Little Edie in 1973 in the second act, Mr. Sucsy’s film concerns itself more with connecting the historical dots to explain the transformation of the women as recluses.

During the writing process, Mr. Sucsy pored over the Beales’ private journals, letters, photographs and belongings and interviewed relatives and acquaintances of the Beales, picking up facts and anecdotes that inspired almost every single scene in the film. “We take liberties, but minor liberties,” Mr. Sucsy explained of the plot. “We went out of our way to not make things up.”

Little Edie actually did run out on her own debutante ball in New York, for example. She did have an affair with Secretary of the Interior Julius “Cap” Krug (played by Daniel Baldwin). She claimed, at least, to have auditioned for Max Gordon, inspiring one of the funniest scenes of the film. And she did keep her mother’s wedding jewels, even when the pair was penniless, until her death.

From the start, Ms. Lange topped Mr. Sucsy’s wish list to play Big Edie. The casting of Ms. Barrymore was a suggestion from a producer, and one to which the director was initially resistant. “But she blew me away,” Mr. Sucsy recalled. “She was really impressive in our first meeting. She had a great understanding of the character and passion for the story. She won the role. I remember I said to the producer when she left, ‘I think we just found Little Edie.’”

Both actresses worked extensively with dialect coaches and wore heavy prosthetic makeup in their efforts to breathe new life into the characters.

Originally, Mr. Sucsy’s script did not address the documentary; he didn’t have the money to option the rights. “And I knew there was no point in re-creating the documentary,” he said.

But advisors to Mr. Sucsy convinced him to buy the rights and obtain the blessing of Albert Maysles, which he did. (David Maysles died in 1987 at the age of 54.) The final script includes the Maysles as characters and a number of famous moments meticulously reenacted from the documentary.

Mr. Sucsy found a way to use the documentary as a structural device while simultaneously putting it in context. Although some critics dismissed the 1975 film as exploitative of the women, the same way others accused Diane Arbus of taking advantage of her photographic subjects, Mr. Sucsy portrays the Beales as opportunistic—using the Maysles brothers’ film as a vehicle for personal gain.

Fans of the documentary will inevitably find some of Mr. Sucsy’s directorial decisions inspired and others regrettable. The character of Jerry Torres, a boy who spent time at the dilapidated Grey Gardens and whom Little Edie refers to lovingly as “the Marble Faun” in the documentary, is missing from the HBO film, for instance.

Why? Jerry had been in the first draft of the script, Mr. Sucsy explained, but he soon realized that he didn’t need the character to tell his story, and eventually cut the part for simplicity and length. “There’s no conspiracy,” he said, sounding weary of justifying his omissions and additions. “People on the internet are saying ‘Michael hates Jerry.’ That’s ridiculous. I’ve never met Jerry.”

Mr. Sucsy knew the comparisons were coming. He said he’s accepted the fact that he can’t please everyone. “I’m very pleased with the final product.”

Mr. Maysles is currently shooting a new documentary and was unreachable for comment last week. He did release a statement, included in HBO press materials: “What’s interesting about the film is that it takes you back so you get a peek at what their life was.”

He added: “What would Edie and her mother think of it? I think they would like it.”