'60 Minutes' Feature on the Real Life 'Soloist'

On 60 Minutes this weekend, there was a feature about Nathaniel Ayers and Steve Lopez, the subjects of the upcoming film, The Soloist. Their story is so uniquely cinematic, that's it's difficult to believe that it's actually true. Ayers (played by Jamie Foxx) in the film, was a supremely gifted musician, a Julliard student, and tragically, a paranoid schizophrenic. His sickness not only kept him from realizing his full potential, it also led him to a life on the streets of Los Angeles. He lived in an underpass tunnel. Robert Downey, Jr. will play Lopez in the film, a Los Angeles Times writer working against a deadline who happens to hear a homeless musician playing remarkable music. Approaching Ayers that day, Lopez developed not just one article but a series of them, and he and the troubled cellist become fast friends, and that friendship leads them to the famed Walt Disney Concert Hall and down the dark alleys of mental illness. The movie will be released on April 24th, but to get more background on the friendship and to hear how wonderfully talented and unfortunately afflicted Ayers truly is, check out the great 60 Minutes story anchored by Morely Safer.

Comments

[Emo]

Wow...I hope the movie can capture how real this is. That's amazing. From what little I've seen, Jamie Foxx's performance might scare me...there are times it looks like he's "going retard" (to steal from the famous Robert Downey movie) instead of paranoid schizophrenic.

[Unknown]

Let us not overlook the true beauty of this story. What a difference we can make in the lives of others...by just taking time to notice their existence. By being their friend. We may not be able to fix someone, or their situation, but we can care for them and love them.

[BV]

Why can I not pull this video up again?

[jack george]

The feature on 60 minutes was so good. He is definitely such an amazing talent. The movie was also so very good. You have to see it.
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