The Fact-to-Film

Frenzy Producers and agents are moving faster than ever to turn sensational news stories into TV movies

One week after the bloody federal assault on cult leader David Koresh's fortress in Waco, Texas, Hollywood came calling at the Bethesda Boys Ranch in Mounds, Oklahoma. A set man from Patchett Kaufman Entertainment, a TV production company, drove by to scout out the 160-acre ranch as a possible location. Three days later, a deal was struck, and last week workmen were at the ranch constructing a replica of Koresh's peach-colored compound. Soon federal agents will be surrounding the fortress again, staging another ill- fated assault, retreating once more for a long waiting game -- this time for the TV-movie cameras.

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