Screenwriter John Stansifer first learned of Father Emil Kapaun on April 11, 2013 watching Kapaun receive a posthumous Medal of Honor from President Obama live on TV. Chaplain Kapaun is the most decorated chaplain in US military history and on the path to Sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church.
After then completing the biopic Korean War original screenplay Father Kapaun's Valley in 2014. Mr Stansifer then embarked on a cross country research and interview mission to then write a 500 page biography about Kapaun entitled NO BULLET GOT ME YET: The Relentless Faith of Father Kapaun. The book and movie were going nowhere until an absolute miracle occurred when the Department of Defense announced that Chaplain Kapaun's remains had been positively identified through DNA analysis on March 2, 2021. He was returned home from Hawaii National Cemetery to his hometown of Pilsen and Wichita, Kansas in September 2021. His funeral with full military honors was live-streamed on EWTN and attended by thousands. He had been declared MIA for 70 years.
This news drew the attention of William Morris Endeavor literary agent Mel Berger who got Mr Stansifer's manuscript in a bidding war among publishers with Hanover Square Press (in imprint of HarperCollins) now publishing the book with a release date of March 12, 2024.
With the news of the book planned for global distribution, producer Alan Glazer announced director Stephen Campanelli on board to direct Father Kapaun's Valley for a production shooting in 2024.
