The true story of the characters from the movie “Green Book”

This year, the work of director Peter Farrelly, Green Book: The Guide, based on true events, won the Oscar for best picture. The main characters were played by Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali, who won the statuette for Best Supporting Actor. The work is causing a sensation around the world and has grossed millions of dollars at the box office.

O awesome.club decided to delve into the story of the protagonists in real life and explain why the film is titled Green Book.

The film is based on a story that took place in the United States in the early 1970s. A gifted pianist, African-American Don Shirley, embarks on a tour of the southern states. To avoid problems along the way, he hired Italian nightclub security guard “Tony Lip” Vallelonga to be his driver and bodyguard.

“The Negro Motorist Green Book”, or simply “Green Book”, is a guide that lists restaurants, gas stations, hotels and other establishments where people of African American origin could stay and hire services. In fact, this reference book helped not only travelers, but also businessmen who, in this way, could promote their business.

The guide was prepared by a postal worker, Victor Hugo Green, and first published in 1936 in New York. The “Green Book” was sold at gas stations across the country and updated annually.

In 1964, the Civil Rights Act was enacted and segregation was lifted for all public places.

The true story of this famous musician was not easy either. Don was born in Florida to a Jamaican emigrant family. At the age of 2 he began to study piano and, at 3, he performed on some stages. As a child he was invited to study at the Leningrad Conservatory (USSR at the time), but his parents were afraid to let a child go alone to a foreign country.

At age 18, Don Shirley performed Tchaikovsky’s concerto with the famous Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the following year he took the stage to play his own composition with the London Symphony Orchestra.

After that, Don began to travel the world, but despite his success, his agent decided that Americans were not yet ready to see a black pianist perform classical works. Shirley was disappointed and, for a time, abandoned his career as a pianist, devoted himself to studying psychology, and even began acting as a psychologist in Chicago.

It is true that he would soon return to the music business, starting to play in clubs and even inventing his own musical style: a mixture of classical, jazz and pop music. That’s how the trio came about: Don Shirley, a bassist and a cellist.

At the height of his career, the pianist performed over 100 concerts a year around the world, but in the early 1980s he had to stop playing due to an inflammation in his right hand. Shirley disappeared from the eyes of her fans for over 20 years. Only in 2001 did he decide to release an album, which he recorded with the support of his students.

Don Shirley died in 2013, aged 86. According to some information, he held a PhD in Music, Psychology and Liturgical Art. There are certain people who believe that these could just be honorary titles. Shirley spoke 8 languages ​​fluently and also had a great talent for drawing.

Frank Anthony Vallelonga, better known as Tony Lip, was born in New York. In school he was nicknamed Lip (lip), or “good talker”, because he had the uncanny ability to persuade almost anyone to do what he wanted.

He worked as a maître d’ at the nightclub “Copacabana” and made many useful contacts there. It was at this time that the events that formed the basis of the film’s plot took place. Green Book🇧🇷

However, the most interesting thing in Tony Lip’s fate would occur soon after: in the nightclub, he met the famous director Francis Ford Coppola and got an extra role in the legendary film. The Godfather🇧🇷 His career as an actor started unexpectedly.

He played mobsters in the movies Donnie Brasco and Two Nice Guysin addition to participating in the television series Soprano family🇧🇷

In 2005, Tony Lip wrote the book “Shut Up and Eat!” (“Shut up and eat!”), in which he compiled recipes for favorite dishes from famous actors he met while filming.

Tony Vallelonga passed away in 2013, aged 82, having left two children, Nick Vallelonga and Frank Vallelonga Jr. Nick also became an actor and rose to fame as a co-author and producer of Green Book🇧🇷

The film is based on the book by Nick Vallelonga. As such, the events that are shown are guided by her father’s memories. It is quite appropriate now to recall the nickname given to Vallelonga, “good talkative”. Of course, there’s no doubt that Don and Tony met and went on tour together, but many other things were very different in reality.

What happened just before this tour was really sad: several years earlier, another black pianist toured the southern United States, but during a concert, members of the Ku Klux Klan burst into the room and beat him severely. That’s why, before his trip in 1962, Don Shirley decided to hire not only a good driver, but also a bodyguard. To find him, the musician went to the “Copacabana” nightclub, where he met “good talker” Tony, who worked as a security guard.

As for the friendship between Don and Tony, the musician’s brother Maurice claims that they were never friends and talked exclusively as an employee and employer. Don Shirley’s nephews also confirm this version. Tony was uncomfortable with having to put on a driver’s uniform and carry luggage, but Don insisted on maintaining the chain of command. The “good talker” worked with Don Shirley more than other drivers, but in the end he was fired. After that, the two didn’t communicate anymore and didn’t maintain any friendships.

According to Maurice, other facts were also distorted in the film. For example, Don Shirley didn’t have a turquoise Cadillac, his car was actually a black limousine. Another point was that Tony couldn’t sleep in the backseat while Don drove him home because he didn’t know how to drive. In addition, Shirley did not separate from her culture, she maintained relationships with Martin Luther King and other activists. Finally, in the film, Don is shown to be lonely and not very connected to his family. “That was very unpleasant,” says his nephew. “And 100% wrong.”

He himself said that Nick Vallelonga suggested to Don that they make a film about the trip 30 years ago, but the musician immediately refused. Of course, Nick claims that Don Shirley allowed him to make the film, but on the condition that it was only after his death.

After the film’s premiere, the musician’s relatives accused the screenwriters of lying. and the actor who played the role of Don Shirley, Mahershala Ali, apologized, saying he hadn’t had the opportunity to speak to the pianist’s relatives before.

Anyway, no one can deny the fact that the movie is very good. Perhaps, some inaccuracies and discrepancies with real-life characters even benefited him, giving him more contrast and brightness.

Furthermore, the film was not intended to be a historical documentary, but a work of art. The writers’ task was to create an interesting film and not an exact copy of the events.

Have you seen this movie or do you want to see it? What other films based on true events impressed you the most?