According to Wikipedia, Mario Puzo "was the original screenwriter [for the film The Cotton Club] and was eventually replaced by William Kennedy who wrote a rehearsal script in eight days which the cast used for three weeks prior to shooting."
Earlier, Wikipedia states that "Inspired to make The Cotton Club by a picture–book history of the nightclub by James Haskins, Robert Evans was the film's original producer and also wanted to direct. He hired William Kennedy and Francis Ford Coppola to re–write Mario Puzo's story and screenplay."
In other words, the film was "inspired" by a picture–book on this subject by James Haskins. Mario Puzo never wrote a book about the Cotton Club (a real–life New York night–club), and he didn't even write the screenplay that was actually used in the film.
James Haskins was a prolific African-American author, who wrote for both children and adults. He died in 2005, aged 63.
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