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CLEVELAND (CNS) -- The Gospel of Luke's prodigal son has nothing on Joe Eszterhas. A self-described "Hollywood animal," Eszterhas is best known for writing such adult-themed thrillers as "Basic Instinct" and "Jagged Edge." He is a guy who seemed to live his earlier life as if the seven deadly sins were a personal to-do list. But then Eszterhas found God. Or as Eszterhas writes in his latest memoir, "Crossbearer," God found him. Today, the man who once was the center of attention at exclusive Hollywood restaurants, enjoys the easygoing community spirit of sharing a meal with his wife, Naomi, and...

Joe Eszterhas' latest book is a shocker, but not the kind that made him rich and famous. The upcoming release from the man who penned dark thrillers such as Basic Instinct and Jagged Edge tells the story of his spiritual conversion and his newfound devotion to God and family. In Crossbearer: A Memoir of Faith, to be published Sept. 2 by St. Martin's Press, Mr. Eszterhas describes how his life got turned around during the summer of 2001. He and his second wife, Naomi, had just moved from Malibu to a suburb of Cleveland - where he had grown up;...

"I was the schlub, the leper, the maggot, the nigger," Joe Eszterhas writes in his new book, Hollywood Animal, "… the screenwriter for Christ's sake as star!" That bon mot sums up everything you need to know about Eszterhas, the man who wrote Basic Instinct, Showgirls, and other crucial additions to American cinema. Hollywood Animal is the Basic Instinct of autobiographies: a few titillating episodes buried under piles and piles of bilious nonsense. In Slate's continuing effort to save you from reading big, long books of questionable merit, we have assembled a guide to Eszterhas' juiciest bits. Begin Hollywood Animal...

The Incomplete EpiphanyBy Tammy Bruce FrontPageMagazine.com | August 13, 2002 Joe Eszterhas is a powerful Hollywood screenwriter. He has written 14 films, his most famous being “Basic Instinct,” which made Sharon Stone a star. The film revolved around two women, both at least bi-sexual, who were crazy and/or cold-blooded ice-pick wielding killers. Surprisingly, this Hollywood powerhouse has written an opinion piece for the New York Times confessing his guilt about the content of his films. Of what exactly has he finally realized his culpability? His portrayal of Sharon Stone as a psychotic lesbian ice-picktress? Or Stone as a stalked...

NEW YORK (AP) - "Basic Instinct" screenwriter Joe Eszterhas has throat cancer after a lifetime of smoking, and is urging Hollywood to stop glamorizing cigarette use the way he says he did. Eszterhas writes in an op-ed piece in Friday's New York Times that he was diagnosed with the disease 18 months ago. Much of his larynx is gone, he says, and he has difficulty speaking and being understood. "Smoking was an integral part of many of my screenplays because I was a militant smoker. It was part of a bad boy image I'd cultivated for a long time —...