White Hunter Black Heart Eastwood, is based on real-life director John Huston. Jeff Fahey plays Pete Verrill, a character based on Viertel. George Dzundza's character is based on "African Queen" producer Sam Spiegel. Marisa Berenson's character Kay Gibson and Richard Vanstone's character Phil Duncan, are based on Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, respectively. This was the last film that James Bridges worked on writing down a screenplay before dying in 1993. In the early 1950s, world-renowned film-maker John Wilson travels to Africa for his next film bringing with him a young writer chum named Pete Verrill. Part of his travel plans include hunting elephants
Clint Eastwood in the 1960s According to Riesner, Eastwood's "face went white and gave me one of those Clint looks". The two soon reconciled their differences and worked on the script, with Eastwood having considerable input. Don Stroud was cast as the psychopathic criminal Coogan was chasing, Lee J. Cobb as the disagreeable New York City Police Department lieutenant, Susan Clark as a probation officer who falls for Coogan, and Tisha Sterling played the drug-addicted lover of Don Stroud's character. Filming began in November 1967, even before the full script had been finalized. The film was controversial for its portrayal of violence, but it launched