A Confederacy of Dunces is one of my favorite books, and Slate has a fascinating article about how one producer has been trying for 26 years to make a film version. Apparently the movie is now slated to come out in 2007, with a fat-suited Will Ferrell in the lead (ok… maybe I could see it)—but filming hasn’t actually started yet, and the article goes on to talk about the “curse” of the project:

In addition to the tragic suicide of [author John Kennedy] Toole, a series of misfortunes have affected efforts to make the film. In 1982, John Belushi became the first actor cast in the role of Ignatius (Richard Pryor was also attached to this version, in the role of the visionary vagrant Burma Jones). Belushi was an inspired choice, possessing both the artistic range and the physical largesse to nail the character… But a day or so before Belushi was supposed to meet with executives at Universal to finalize his involvement, he died of a drug overdose at the Chateau Marmont. Five months later, the woman who led the Louisiana State Film Commission was murdered by her husband, which brought the efforts to shoot the film in New Orleans—and the production itself—to a halt. Other deaths tangentially linked to the project include those of actors John Candy and Chris Farley, both of whom were considered for the lead role before they died. And, for those so predisposed, the recent devastation that Hurricane Katrina wrought on New Orleans provides further amplification.

A Confederacy of Dunces causes hurricanes!
Read the full article here