Scenario for The Last Joan

In 1947 actor Burgess Meredith commissioned his friend, author John Steinbeck, to adapt the tragic story of Joan of Arc for the stage. Steinbeck, in the midst of personal turmoil and unsatisfied with his work, is believed to have destroyed all copies of the resulting script. But a full narrative version, likely created for a proposed film adaptation, survives in unpublished form. Only a few copies of the scenario (shown here) remain extant. In this modern retelling, protagonist Joan Archer falls in love with a dying soldier. After his death, she believes she hears his voice through the radio and is driven to share his message of disarmament with American political leaders. Members of Congress attack Joan for her treasonous views, and she is hospitalized for paranoia. She attempts an escape, is returned to the hospital, and dies by a drug administered by her doctor.