Michael Halperin

ALL STEPS NECESSARY

World Premiere April 2006
Produced by Inkwell Theater
90-minute One Act
“History forgotten is history repeated, and "All Steps Necessary," Michael Halperin's cautionary tale about the post-Kristallnacht doings at Field Marshal Hermann Goering's house in 1938, leaves no trenchant chill untilled.” 
- David Nichols, Los Angeles Times

WRITING THE SECOND ACT
​​Writers Digest Book Club Selection

Publisher: MWP
Every screenplay needs an attention-grabbing beginning and a satisfying ending, but those elements are nothing without a strong, well-crafted middle.  The second act is where most of the action is: where your characters grow, change, and overcome the obstacles that will bring them to the resolution at the end of the story. It's also the hardest act to write, and where most screenplays tend to lose momentum and focus.
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Watch Michael's YouTube interview on this book

WRITING THE KILLER TREATMENT

Publisher: MWP

​A treatment reveals your story’s structure, introduces your characters and hooks, and is often your first and only opportunity to pitch your project. This is the only book that takes you through the complete process of creating treatments that sell.
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Watch Michael's YouTube interview on this book​

FREEDOM, TEXAS​​​​​​

​Full length Comedy 

A kid from Los Angeles in 1953 ventures to small town Texas with dreams of becoming a radio star and discovers reality smacking him in the face.

​DRIVING JAMES DEAN
Full length Comedy 
1955. An aspiring writer breaks writers block through an unexpected encounter with the iconic actor James Dean leading to a moment that changes his life.

PURPLE HEART

90 minute Comedy ​​

A lie blossoms out of control leading to a comedy of errors, a love story, and family secrets revealed. 

​

The Merchant of Amsterdam

​Full length Drama

Promenade Playhouse, Santa Monica
“Love, deceit, betrayal and political corruption are all themes coursing through the veins of the heart-racing play, "The Merchant of Amsterdam." A sister's revenge can be brutal. Throw in a lover's deception and a teacher's betrayal to the historic 24-year-old Baruch Spinoza's trial for heresy in 1656 -- carried out by the Jewish community in Amsterdam -- and you've got one blisteringly dramatic play. An eclectic cast will rile your deepest emotions ...inspired by a true story.”
- Jewish Journal of Los Angeles

Books, plays, dvds

"Throughout history, the Jewish attitude toward conversion has been ambiguous and complex. Schulweis, an eminent California rabbi, brilliantly analyzes the ambivalence toward conversion, citing the continuing Israeli argument about the Law of Return with respect to converts. He clearly explores the positive and negative attitudes toward the convert. The book consists primarily of first-person stories told by 57 men and women who became “Jews by choice.” By and large, they are individuals whose decision to embrace Judaism resulted from a personal spiritual quest rather than marriage. Following the personal narratives, there are eight brief essays, primarily by rabbis, in which they describe their experiences in connection with conversion. The book also includes five poems by Schulweis, an afterword by editor Michael Halperin, and a glossary. For Jews, this is a helpful exploration of conversion and a useful guide to the attitude that should be embraced. For non-Jews, it is a valuable introduction to the elements in Judaism that cause some of their friends and even members of their own families to choose to become Jews."

                                                                                                Publishers Weekly

DANCING WITH WILLIAM BLAKE

​Full length Drama

After fifty years of marriage, the death of his wife forces William to

reflect on compromises he made.  Now, late in life, he struggles to recapture a lost moment from his youth as he moves from the present to the past and back again.

AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN PLAYWRITING: ATHE (ASSN. FOR THEATRE IN HIGHER EDUCATION.

​JUDAISM: EMBRACING THE SEEKER

Publisher: KTAV

ISBN 978-1-60280-141-7

​Harold Schulweis. Michael Halperin, Editor. Addressed to Jews and non-Jews, affiliated or unaffiliated, who seek to understand the distinctive character of Jewish faith and identification. It seeks to dispel the whispered rumors that Judaism looks askance at those of other faiths who seek or have adopted a Jewish way of life. 57 men and women who have chosen to join the Jewish community of faith and destiny are asked the motivation for their choice, the reaction of their family and friends, and their aspirations for their renewed lives. Prominent synagogue rabbis, of all Jewish schools, of thought share their dialogues with the seekers.​

Plays

WRITING GREAT CHARACTERS

Publisher: Lone Eagle

​Writers Digest Book Club Selection

“The lessons inherent in Halperin’s book are essential to all beginning writers and should serve as a review course for experienced writers who need to renew their knowledge of the basics of good screenwriting.”
                                                                        Creative Screenwriting Magazine​

​
"Halperin provides tremendous insight into effective ‘character

development’ in order to create great characters for screenplays." 
Frederick S. Pierce | CEO Frederick S. Pierce Co., former president, ABC-TV, past chair American Film Institute
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JACOB’S RESCUE: A HOLOCAUST STORY

Publisher: Random House

​American Bookseller’s Association, Best Book of 1993
Teachers’ Choice International Reading Association
Notable Children’s Trade Book
Children’s Book Council & National Council for Social Studies

Based on the true story of children rescued from the horror of the Holocaust by a Polish Catholic family and kept safe for four and a half years under Nazi occupation.

“Characters are well developed and multidimensional, and the story is a poignant one.”  School Library Journal

" What gives the story authenticity is not only the harsh physical danger, but also the candid characterization, the honesty about how fear made people act.“  

Booklist

 “[an] evocation of...terror and courage.”  Publisher’s Weekly
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BLACK WHEELS

​National Education Association African American Booklist 2005-2020
Read Across America Program
Inspired by a true story.
"A perfect book for teens 13-19.  Inspired by a true story.  In 1896 a fifteen year-old African American farm boy joins the 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps on a searing 1900-mile bicycle trek across the American heartland to prove the bicycle as a weapon of war.  During the journey the boy learns about bigotry, comradeship and love."

                                                                        National Education Association 

                                          
"Inspired by a true story. Fifteen-year-old African-American Nat Fowler, raised on his family farm in predominately white Missouri in the late 1800s, runs away from home and joins the army when accused of murdering a white man. He ends up at Fort Missoula, Montana immersed for the first time in his life in all-black culture with the 25th Infantry. A white officer, Lt. James Moss, convinces the War Department to test the modern bicycle as a replacement for the horse. Nat, an avid bicycle rider, joins the Bicycle Corps as the Department of War orders Moss and 19 black soldiers to prove his theory. They must complete a journey of 1900 miles in forty days from Missoula, Montana to St. Louis, Missouri over the most rugged territory in the United States.  During the journey he falls in love, discovers bigotry and hatred, finds friends, betrayal and comrades but also grows up as the 20th century approaches."

                                                                                                 Publishers Weekly

"...This novel is a gem....There are nuggets of irony throughout...this book will become popular." --- Susan Allen, VOYA Magazine
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