Claim: Joseph Merrick's was the subject of a historical drama.
Evidence: Meanwhile , in 1979 , Bernard Pomerance 's play about Merrick called The Elephant Man debuted , and David Lynch 's film , also called The Elephant Man , was released in 1980.
The Elephant Man is a 1980 American historical drama film about Joseph Merrick -LRB- whom the script calls John Merrick -RRB- , a severely deformed man in late 19th century London.