So leave it to the enigmatic Mystery Man on Film to end the year with a mind-boggling bang. First, he uncovers a cool website: Subterranean Cinema, basically home to rare movies on DVD. But also, as it turns out, rare unproduced screenplays including “Noble Rot“:

If you have ever read WIRED, Bob Woodward’s
compelling (and very controversial) biography of
John Belushi, then you are no doubt aware of the
final screenplay that Belushi was attempting to write
with Don Novello (most famous for his Saturday
Night Live portrayal of “Father Guido Sarducci”).

By early 1982, Belushi’s notorious drug habits had worsened
significantly – to the point where, even in the carefree era of
recreational usage, there was no denying he was out of control.
Feeling his career had already peaked and there was nowhere to
go but down, Belushi decided to take his next film into his own
hands. Despite the fact that he was no writer, he teamed up with
Novello to reconfigure an existing movie script called SWEET
DECEPTION (written by former “Mary Tyler Moore” writer/produ-
cer Jay Sandrich) into NOBLE ROT, a comedy about winemaking.
Togeher with Novello, Belushi spent nearly a year tweaking the plot.

And “The Tony Clifton Story“:

Here it is, Andy Kaufman fans!
The screenplay that we’ve all been dying to read!

Rumored to be a comic masterpiece for decades!
(and, I might add, those rumors are, for the most part, TRUE)

The story of Andy’s caustic relationship
with his brash alter-ego, Tony Clifton.

You can hit the above links to download each script. But wouldn’t it be great if someone would read the scripts and provide some, you know, expert analysis?

Enter MYSTERY MAN! MM has posted his reactions to Noble Rot and The Tony Clifton Story online at Scriptmag.com.

So my recommendation for New Year’s Day, when you wake up hungover and tired? Grab what remains of your champagne (be sure to flick that cigarette butt out of the glass before you pour), hunker down with both scripts and MM’s analysis, and bid farewell to a crazy, freaking decade with some mind-altering reading.