I don't think it's right to say that "The Beatles" are experiencing a resurgence or even a rise in their popularity because it's impossible for "The Beatles" to be any greater.  John Lennon's famous quote "We're more popular than Jesus now," isn't the craziest thing I've ever heard.  But I'll concede that recently "The Beatles" are getting more popular licensing than they've had in recent years. "The Beatles: Rock Band"  is hitting stores on September 9th and last week we reported about a possible 3D remake of "Yellow Submarine" by Robert Zemeckis which I don't oppose as long as it makes me feel like I'm tripping balls.

But who worked to make The Beatles known as The Greatest Band of All Time?  It was a man named Brian Epstein and he's about to get his story told.  Hit the jump to discover The Beatles before they had out-sized any deity.

According to Variety, producer David Permut has acquired "A Life in the Day," a Tony Gittelson script about the life of Brian Epstein, who discover and then managed the Beatles from 1961 to 1967.  He then died of a drug overdose at 32, serving as a cautionary tale for the Fab Four who never did drugs ever again.

Permut is obviously trying to secure particular Beatles songs but the story notes how this story is about the formation of the band so the music is only important up to a certain point.  Since Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono, and Olivia Harrison have creative control over all the Beatles music (and will always have control of it, so don't worry), they can allow the filmmakers to use the music provided they approve of the way the music is used.  Publishing rights are a different matter.

Epstein's story is fascinating not because he lived fast and died young but because he was relentless about finding success for the band.  He wasn't a music producer, he didn't have an "in".  He sold records from his father's appliance store in Liverpool and everybody turned down the band which is partly amusing and partly depressing.

But if this project gets off the ground, the question won't be who's playing Epstein.  It will be who's playing John, Paul, George, and Ringo.