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  • Gregg Allman Biopic: Worker Death Lawsuit Settled

    The Gregg Allman biopic, Midnight Rider, was filming along a bridge in February when a train plowed through the film crew, killing Sarah Jones. Jones was a 27-year-old camera assistant.

    Her parents, Richard and Elizabeth Jones of Columbia, South Carolina, sued Unclaimed Freight Productions, Inc., Rayonier Fibers, LLC, CSX railroad, and several others.

    That lawsuit was settled Wednesday, however the terms of the settlement have not been disclosed.

    Gregg Allman was originally named in the lawsuit, but it was determined that he had little to do with the film. He only licensed the rights to his memoir, My Cross To Bear.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsF9WhKHMKU

    Gregg Allman’s lawyer, David W. Long-Daniels, released a statement right after Allman was named in the suit back in May.

    He said, “While the lawsuit filed this week by the Jones family was expected, the inclusion of my client is unfortunate, unwarranted and without merit. Mr. Allman simply provided an option to acquire motion picture rights to his life story and his autobiography.”

    Gregg Allman’s attorney continued, “It is undisputed from the testimony at the recent court hearing that Mr. Allman and his representative did not have any knowledge that ‘live people [would be] on a live train track.’”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lrurd_Q0CZw

    The crew went onto the railroad bridge spanning the Altamaha River to shoot footage after CSX railroad denied them permission.

    After the tragic accident, Gregg Allman sent Midnight Rider director Randall Miller a letter insisting that, under the circumstances, filming be discontinued.

    He wrote, “While there may have been a possibility that the production might have resumed shortly after that, the reality of Sarah Jones’ tragic death, the loss suffered by the Jones family and injuries to the others involved has led me to realize that for you to continue production would be wrong.”

    Hopefully, the parents of Sarah Jones can now find some closure. What do you think? Did Gregg Allman do the right thing by asking that his biopic be canned?

  • Gregg Allman Named A Defendent In Death Lawsuit

    Gregg Allman is one of 10 defendents in a lawsuit brought by the parents of a camera assistant that was killed during filming of the biopic Midnight Rider, which is about the Allman Brothers Band founder himself.

    27-year-old Sarah Jones was killed and 6 others were injured when a freight train unexpectedly crossed a bridge that they were filming on over the Altamaha River in southeast Georgia.

    Others named in the suit include eight corporations including CSX Transportation, which owns the railway tracks where the crash occurred, and Rayonier Performance Fibres, a subsidiary of forest-products manufacturer Rayonier that owns the land surrounding the crash site for their individual responsibilities in the the crash that cut short the life of Sarah Jones.

    Her parents are devastated to say the least and want answers concerning what went down and how the film crew ended up on the bridge in the first place.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCBpldjtJB8

    According to their lawsuit against the above-named defendents, they suspect that those in charge ‘selected an unreasonably dangerous site for the filming location; failed to secure approval for filming from CSX; concealed their lack of approval from CSX from the cast and crew … and otherwise failed to take measures to protect the safety of the Midnight Rider cast and crew.’

    The suit also stated that ‘despite the fact that multiple CSX trains passed the Midnight Rider cast and crew on February 20, with those individuals in view of the trains’ operators, no warning was given to the subsequent train that ultimately caused Sarah’s death.’

    Such an unfortunate incident. Filming has been delayed indefinitely and the fate of the project is unknown. William Hurt, who was set to play Gregg Allman, quickly released a statement saying that he would no longer be involved in the movie. No one else has yet pulled out, but after such a tragedy filming is sure to be highly disrupted at the least.

    Image Via Wikimedia Commons

  • Gregg Allman Biopic Adds More Actors

    Charles Dutton, Aldis Hodge, and Kathy Baker have joined the cast of Midnight Rider, the Gregg Allman biopic. Unclaimed Freight Productions’ Randall Miller and Jody Savin are responsible for making the film.

    The movie will tell the story of Allman’s journey as a struggling musician to becoming the frontman of the Allman Brothers Band. The story will also reflect upon Allman’s later half of his life and his path to becoming clean for good.

    The legendary band will come to life with Tyson Ritter playing the role of young Gregg Allman. Ritter is also the lead singer of The All-American Rejects. Kurt Russell’s son, Wyatt Russell, is also part of the cast portraying the role of Duane Allman.

    Eliza Dushku, Bradley Whitford, Joel David Moore, Zoey Deutch, and Chad Lindberg are also already cast for Rider.

    The film will be using original Allman Brothers tracks in the film as well as re-recorded performances by the actors.

    Shooting will begin Feb. 24 in Savannah, Ga., at Meddin Studios with Miller behind the camera. Savin and Miller wrote the script and plan on producing the film as well.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtvmkkFD7aI

    Image Via YouTube

  • Elijah Blue Allman Talks About His Heroin Addiction

    Elijah Blue Allman, age 37, is the son of the legendary rocker Gregg Allman, of the Allman Brothers Band and Cher, who were married during the 70’s. In Gregg’s recent biography, “My Cross To Bear” he reveals his addiction to alcohol, heroin and other drugs. It was the catalyst to his break-up with Cher as she wasn’t willing to deal with his addiction.

    His son Elijah may have inadvertently followed in his footsteps, as evidenced when he stated, “I started using drugs at age 11.”

    What followed was a long battle with addiction, which led to some “close calls” with mortality, he revealed in a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight.

    He explains, “I started with drugs around the same time that we all did, around 11,” adding that he first experimented with weed and ecstasy. “I mean, it’s just what you did, it’s just what everybody did.”

    He didn’t stop there though, he moved onto the harder drugs.

    “I [was] just looking to escape all the things in my past and, that’s when you turn to those kind of drugs, you know heroin and opiates,” he said. “[Heroin] kind of saved me … If I didn’t have that at that point, I don’t know what I would have done …You may jump off a bridge. If you can only just go through that time period and live through it and then get help.”

    Sadly, just as so many heroin addicts have died, with the most recent being the actor Philip Seymour Hoffman whose death has brought the drug and its dangers into the light, Elijah admitted to nearly overdosing more than once:

    “I did have some close calls and some moments of really feeling at the edge of mortality … I always kind of kept it a little bit safe but you never can do that. Even though you think that in your mind, of course the wrong things can happen,” he said. “The wrong combination of things can happen and you can just slip into the abyss. I knew it was wrong and I knew that I was very unsatisfied with life at that point.”

    But it is certain that Elijah learned a lesson or two from his experiences, as he got sober and has stayed clean since 2008.

    Image via YouTube

  • Gregg Allman Biopic Cast Will Include William Hurt

    The cast for the Gregg Allman biopic Midnight Rider is coming together. In December, Tyson Ritter from the band All-American Rejects was cast to play the young version of Allman. Now, Oscar winning actor William Hurt is set to play the modern-day version of the legendary founder of the classic rock-southern blues band The Allman Brothers.

    The screenplay for the film is based upon Allman’s biography, My Cross to Bear. Shooting is set to begin in Savannah, Georgia this February. Randall Miller will direct. Several original Allman Brothers’ songs will be included in the film as well as re-recorded tracks from the actual musicians and actors.

    The 66-year-old singer-songwriter has certainly had his personal share of highs and lows. Allman battled serious drug and alcohol problems his whole life, his alcoholism was so severe that he needed a liver transplant in 2010. His big brother and Allman Brothers’ co-founder Duane was killed in a tragic motorcycle accident in 1971. There was also a highly publicized marriage and separation from Cher. However, Gregg Allman still continues to play and perform his music live on stage today.

    Last night, an impressive group of musicians, including Vince Gill and Jackson Browne, held a tribute concert for Allman in Atlanta. Allman was truly humbled by the outpouring of love and support. “I try not to think about it just directly. It’s kind of like we all came to the gig together. It’s pretty overwhelming but I’ve got the music to hang onto, to keep me on the ground. Otherwise they’d have to take me out of here on a string, like a balloon.”

    The Allman Brothers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Their biggest hits include Ramblin’ Man, Melissa, Whipping Post and of course Midnight Rider. Rolling Stone Magazine ranks the band as Number 53 on their 100 Greatest Artists ever list.

    Image via Wikipedia

  • Gregg Allman – A Remarkable Southern Rocker

    Gregg Allman – A Remarkable Southern Rocker

    Gregg Allman is best known for his 44 year love affair with the Allman Brothers Band that originally began with two brothers, and some special friends, who loved to play the blues.

    After decades of playing, recording and creating some of the most memorable music ever performed; the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012.

    Allman is not only one of the founders of the band, he is the unmistakable raspy but soothing voice that lures those who listen into a deep and “soulful” place that not many other artists can reach.

    In his recent biography, My Cross To Bear, he definitely bears his life, misgivings, marriages and everything else that a soulful southerner with unrelenting notoriety since the early 70’s might experience. This biography is set to be turned into a biopic titled “Midnight Rider” with William Hurt playing Gregg Allman.

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    His remarkability was honored in a recent concert in Atlanta, and after singing a few songs from his Hammond B3 – Allman was joined and applauded by not only fans, but also fellow artists.

    An all-star lineup of musicians celebrated Gregg Allman Friday night at a tribute concert heralding the southern rock luminary and the blues rock that influenced many artists to follow his band’s early 1970s success.

    Some of those famed artists included Vince Gill to Robert Randolph to Jackson Browne to Eric Church to John Hiatt. And they all played with Allman bringing the fans a treat they may never forget.

    And in typical humble appreciation, Allman simply stated: “I try not to think about it just directly. It’s kind of like we all came to the gig together. It’s pretty overwhelming but I’ve got the music to hang onto, to keep me on the ground. Otherwise they’d have to take me out of here on a string, like a balloon.”

    Taj Mahal said it was an easy decision when he was asked to join the tribute because the Allman Brothers Band is part of the fabric of American music.

    “Anybody who listens to American music is going to have to hear them,” Mahal said. “They just went with good music and stayed with good music.”

    Sadly the event had a purpose as the announcement came that two members, Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks are leaving the band at the end of 2014. Haynes joined the group in 1989, and Trucks became a member in 1999. Trucks’ uncle Butch Trucks was the drummer and one of the founding members of the Allman Brothers Band.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons 2