ABC Greenlights Miniseries Based on Novel A SLAVE IN THE WHITE HOUSE

According to Indiewire, ABC has greenlit a 12-hour miniseries based on A Slave In The White House. Elizabeth Dowling Taylor's non-fiction novel is a well-researched account Paul Jennings' life and slavery in the 19th century.

Paul Jennings was born into slavery on the plantation of James and Dolley Madison in Virginia, later becoming part of the Madison household staff at the White House. Once finally emancipated by Senator Daniel Webster later in life, he would give an aged and impoverished Dolley Madison, his former owner, money from his own pocket, write the first White House memoir, and see his sons fight with the Union Army in the Civil War. He died a free man in northwest Washington at 75.

"Sheldon Candis (who made his feature film debut with LUV, starring Common), and Justin Wilson (who co-wrote the screenplay for LUV with Candis) will write and co-executive produce the miniseries for ABC, with Deborah Speraand Maria Grasso's One-Two Punch Prods executive producing. Candis will also direct."

This project comes at a particularly poignant time for Justin Wilson, who agreed to the deal with ABC on the day his father suddenly passed away while they were hiking the Inca Trail together in Peru. "Gerard Wilson developed complications from the altitude and tragically died of a pulmonary edema. "

Justin Wilson commented on the bittersweet timing, saying, "Since A Slave In The White House is a father and son story at heart, it carries even more resonance for me now. I'll be dedicating the show to my dad. I'm just grateful that he was able to share in a little bit of the joy of this success that he'd always desired for me as a writer."