At the end of the big night for “Oppenheimer” at Sunday night’s Academy Awards, Charles Roven thanked Clairton native J. David Wargo and his friend, actor James Woods, for bringing the book “American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer” to him. Wargo had obtained the rights in 2015 to that biography, written by Kai Bird and the late Martin Sherwin, and Christopher Nolan — the film’s producer along with his wife, Emma Thomas, and Roven — wrote the screenplay from it. “Oppenheimer” won seven awards, including best picture, the most of any of the nominated films. Wargo and Woods were executive producers on the film, and Woods thanked Roven in return in a tweet after the ceremony concluded Sunday night.
The Pittsburgh Union Progress wrote about Wargo’s obtaining the rights to the book and his efforts to turn it into a movie. He and his wife, Mary, attended the Academy Awards and other events around the ceremony in Los Angeles. Wargo is president of Wargo & Co. Inc., a private investment company based in New York City.
Helen is a copy editor at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but she's currently on strike. Contact her at hfallon@unionprogress.com.