Chariots of the Gods Screenwriter John Fasano, 52, Dies

Director/screenwriter/producer John Fasano, 52, died in his sleep on July 19, 2014, in Los Angeles. He was in the midst of adapting Erich Von Daniken's Chariots of the Gods into a major motion picture.

Fasano is shown writing Chariots of the Gods, in Austria, on December 22, 2010.

Fasano's interest in Chariots of the Gods goes back several years. The movie's production group consists of Media Invest Entertainment, Court Five, and Paradox Entertainment. Executive producers are Fredrik Malmberg (Conan), Alan Murphy, Mark Ordesky (Lord of the Rings trilogy, Exists, Quest), Norbert Reichart, and Dan Rosenfelt (Conan).

Statue from the late Jōmon period (1000 - 400 BC) in Japan, 

interpreted by Von Daniken as depicting an alien visitor.

John M. Fasano was born August 24, 1961. 

Fasano began his film career unofficially at the age of 8 when he was asked to take coffee to Ben Gazarra on the set of John Cassavettes' Husbands while it was shooting in his hometown of Port Washington, New York. Strongly bitten by the film making bug, Fasano immediately started making 8mm films using armatured clay and Aurora models.

After graduating SUNYCollege at Purchase in 1984, Fasano used his artistic talents art directing for magazines such as Muscle and Beauty, Race Car & Driver, Wrestling Power and OUI. He also found work painting the one sheet posters for Grindhouse films such as Tenement (Slaughter in the South Bronx) for legendary exploitation film producers Roberta Findlay and Walter Sear. Fasano rewrote and acted in their film Blood Sisters. His work impressed All in the Sex Family producer Jack Bravman, who contracted Fasano to write and work on the infamous Zombie Nightmare, starring Adam West and a young Tia Carerre. Fasano ended up also producing and assistant directing the film, as well as appearing in it as the character "William Washington."

John Fasano's film career then began in earnest with the producing and directing of the now Cult Classic horror films, Rock 'n Rock Nightmare and Black Rose (Synapse DVD).  He then moved to Los Angeles, where he wrote the hit films Another 48 Hours (for director Walter Hill, Paramount Pictures), Alien 3 (20th Century Fox), Universal Soldier: The Return and Darkness Falls (for Sony Pictures), and Shaolin (for Disney).  He was a producer on Rapid Fire (Fox), Ginostra (Canal Plus), Tombstone (Hollywood Pictures), and Sniper: Reloaded and Hostel: Part III (Sony). 

He also did television projects including F/X: The Series (Rysher), and Mean Streak and The Legend of Butch & Sundance (Showtime). He wrote The Hunley and WGA nominated teleplay for The Hunchback (TNT)

Fasano wrote Saving Jessica Lynch (NBC) and the Tom Selleck hit Stone Cold (CBS). Fasano directed the television movies Murder at the Presidio (USA) and A Family Lost (Lifetime). He directed ten episodes for the first and second seasons of the kid’s action show Kamen Rider: Dragon Knight (CW4Kids Network). Fasano has even made inroads into the New Media by creating and writing the Sony/Crackle Woke Up Dead series starring Jon Heder.

Fasano was a movie monster fan, made Halloween masks of his own (here's one from 2005), and had an impressive collection. 

John with Ray Harryhausen (June 29, 1920-May 7, 2013)

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Johnny and Zechria Sitchen (July 11, 1920-October 9, 2010), translator of the Enki Tablets.