Guide Note:Nathaniel Ayers is a violin prodigy and graduate of the Juilliard School of Music who plays on the streets of Los Angeles. Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez wrote about his relationship with Ayers, who suffers from schizophrenia, in a 12-part series of columns which has since been adapted into the bestselling book The Soloist: A Lost Dream, An Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music.

Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr. are playing Ayers and Lopez in the upcoming biopic, The Soloist, currently being shot in Cleveland, Ohio. Lisa Gay Hamilton, Catherine Keener, and Rachael Harris will also appear in the film. Fast Facts:

1. Lopez ran into Ayers near Pershing Square in Los Angeles and began trying to find him help
2. Ayers said he frequented Pershing Square because of the statue of Ludwig van Beethoven there
3. Ayers started out in junior high playing the bass, and then moved to the cello, but once he moved to the streets neither was practical for carrying around
4. His sister claimed the film A Beautiful Mind reminds her of her brother
5. Lopez writes that Ayers cares little about the money passersby drop in his case; Ayers refused money from Lopez
6. Lopez began writing about Ayers in 2005
7. Many readers began donating Ayers instruments after reading Lopez

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