Chameleon Street movie synopsis. William Douglas Street is bored with his life. Working for his father is getting to him, his wife wants more money, and he’s had enough. His solution is to re-invent himself. He becomes a chameleon, taking on whatever role suits the situation. From reporter to doctor to lawyer, he impersonates anyone he sees a need for and he can earn money being. The movie is based on the real people, William Douglas Street, Jr., and Erik Dupin.
Chameleon Street is a 1989 independent film written by, directed by and starring Wendell B. Harris, Jr.. It tells the story of a social chameleon who impersonates reporters, doctors and lawyers in order to make money. The film is a satire based on the life of Detroit con artist and high-school drop-out William Douglas Street, Jr., who successfully impersonated professional reporters, lawyers, athletes, extortionists, and surgeons, going so far as to perform more than 36 successful hysterectomies. A Sundance Film Festival press release in 2008 described it as “one of the first films to examine how mellifluously race, class, and role-playing morph into the social fabric of America.” Chameleon Street won the Grand Jury Prize at the 1990 Sundance Film Festival.
Chameleon Street (1989)
Directed by: Wendell B. Harris Jr.
Starring: Wendell B. Harris Jr., Timothy Alvaro, Dave Barber, Marti Bowling, Alfred Bruce Bradley, Mano Breckenridge, Amina Fakir, Anthony Ennis, Anita Gordon
Screenplay by: Wendell B. Harris Jr.
Cinematography by: Daniel S. Noga
Film Editing by: Matthew Mallinson
Art Department: K.C. Bartos, Bill Siemers
Art Direction by: Timothy Alvaro
Music by: Peter S. Moore
Distributed by: Northern Arts Entertainment
Release Date: April 24, 1990
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