HBO Developing Show Based On Life of Anthony Kiedis

BY Brock ThiessenPublished Nov 12, 2008

Red Hot Chili Peppers front-man Anthony Kiedis is reportedly getting his very own HBO drama, which will be based on his unconventional, rock’n’roll childhood. Partnering with Catapult 360 producers Marc Abrams and Michael Benson, the series will largely centre on Kiedis’ life in L.A. and West Hollywood during the early ’70s and follow the singer’s relationship with his father Spider, who was a Sunset Strip drug dealer aspiring for stardom.

"He introduced me to the arts, to a more culturally magnificent life," Kiedis said of his father in an interview with Daily Variety. "But some of it was this heavy, adult matter that I wasn't quite capable of digesting. ... It was a very rich but kind of challenging period of my life. I was thrust into this adult mentality by age 11."

The producers at Catapult 360 contacted Kiedis after reading his autobiography Scar Tissue, which is also the tentative title of the HBO series. However, the show will not be based on the book, which focused more on Kiedis’ life as a RHCP, and instead delve more into the L.A. rock scene in the ’70s and Kiedis growing up with his drug-dealing father, who, according to L.A. lore, had a client list that included such bands as the Who and Led Zeppelin.

"I love mulling over all this raw material,” Kiedis said. "[My father is] into it too. He sees it as our last great hurrah. For us to be reconnecting to construct these memories — the women and the rock bands and the doormen of these clubs — is exciting."

Scar Tissue is still shopping for a script writer and playing with the idea of Kiedis narrating the show and possibly making cameo appearances.

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