Story of the original ‘American Pimp’ coming to theaters

Entourage executive producer Rob Weiss, along with producers Mitch Davis, Ryan Drexler and Andrew Left, have nabbed feature film rights to Robert “Iceberg Slim” Beck’s autobiography Pimp: The Story of My Life, according to THR.

Beck, who was born into poverty, had an I.Q. of 175 and studied at The Tuskegee Institute, before leaving school and becoming a pimp at the age of 18 and rising to kingpin status in the Chicago underworld. Over the years, he served several stints in prison, making one escape, then retired from the life and became an insecticide salesman in Los Angeles. According to the report, during a call to a college professor, Beck mentioned his past, and the professor encouraged him to write the book. Three months later, he wrote Pimp, which has sold over 5 million copies since its release and is the second best-selling book written by a black man, after Alex Haley’s Roots.

The producing team is seeking talent before pitching the project to a studio.