Top 100 Greatest Film Screenwriters of All Time

1. Woody Allen

Woody Allen was born on November 30, 1935, as Allen Konigsberg, in The Bronx, NY, the son of Martin Konigsberg and Nettie Konigsberg. He has one younger sister, Letty Aronson. As a young boy, he became intrigued with magic tricks and playing the clarinet, two hobbies that he continues today.

Allen ...

2. Billy Wilder

Writer | The Apartment

Originally planning to become a lawyer, Billy Wilder abandoned that career in favor of working as a reporter for a Viennese newspaper, using this experience to move to Berlin, where he worked for the city's largest tabloid. He broke into films as a screenwriter in 1929 and wrote scripts for many ...

3. Charles Brackett

Writer | Sunset Blvd.

Charles Brackett, born in Saratoga Springs, New York, of Scottish ancestry, followed in his attorney-father's footsteps and graduated with a law degree from Harvard University in 1920. He practised law for several years, before commencing work as drama critic for The New Yorker (1925-29), in ...

4. Francis Ford Coppola

Producer | Apocalypse Now

Francis Ford Coppola was born in 1939 in Detroit, Michigan, but grew up in a New York suburb in a creative, supportive Italian-American family. His father, Carmine Coppola, was a composer and musician. His mother, Italia Coppola (née Pennino), had been an actress. Francis Ford Coppola graduated ...

5. Ethan Coen

Producer | The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The younger brother of Joel, Ethan Coen is an Academy Award and Golden Globe winning writer, producer and director coming from small independent films to big profile Hollywood films. He was born on September 21, 1957 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In some films of the brothers- Ethan & Joel wrote, Joel...

6. Joel Coen

Producer | The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Joel Daniel Coen is an American filmmaker who regularly collaborates with his younger brother Ethan. They made Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, True Grit, O Brother Where Art Thou?, Burn After Reading, A Serious Man, Inside Llewyn Davis, Hail Caesar and other projects. Joel ...

7. Paddy Chayefsky

Writer | Marty

Author, producer, and composer who earned a Bachelor of Science degree from CCNY, then a Purple Heart during World War II while serving in the US Army. Joining ASCAP in 1955, his chief musical collaborators included George Bassman and Harry Warren. His popular-song compositions include "Marty" and ...

8. John Huston

Director | The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

An eccentric rebel of epic proportions, this Hollywood titan reigned supreme as director, screenwriter and character actor in a career that endured over five decades. The ten-time Oscar-nominated legend was born John Marcellus Huston in Nevada, Missouri, on August 5, 1906. His ancestry was English,...

9. Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writer | All About Eve

Born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, on February 11, 1909, Joseph Leo Mankiewicz first worked for the movies as a translator of intertitles, employed by Paramount in Berlin, the UFA's American distributor at the time (1928). He became a dialoguist, then a screenwriter on numerous Paramount ...

10. Michael Wilson

Writer | Lawrence of Arabia

Michael Wilson was born on July 1, 1914 in McAlester, Oklahoma, USA. He was a writer, known for Lawrence of Arabia (1962), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and 5 Fingers (1952). He was married to Zelma Wilson. He died on April 9, 1978 in Los Angeles County, California, USA.

11. Robert Benton

Writer | Kramer vs. Kramer

Robert Douglas Benton is an American screenwriter and filmmaker from Waxahachie, Texas who is known for screenwriting Bonnie & Clyde, Kramer vs. Kramer and Superman. He won two Academy Awards for writing and directing Kramer vs. Kramer. He directed other feature films including Twilight, Bad ...

12. George Seaton

Writer | Miracle on 34th Street

Working his way up from general factotum and gag writer to highly versatile writer/director, George Seaton was involved in many aspects of the entertainment industry along the way.

He was born George Stenius of Swedish parentage (his family hailed from Stockholm) in South Bend, IN, and grew up in ...

13. Quentin Tarantino

Writer | Reservoir Dogs

Quentin Jerome Tarantino was born in Knoxville, Tennessee. His father, Tony Tarantino, is an Italian-American actor and musician from New York, and his mother, Connie (McHugh), is a nurse from Tennessee. Quentin moved with his mother to Torrance, California, when he was four years old.

In January of...

14. Carl Foreman

Writer | The Guns of Navarone

Carl Foreman was born on July 23, 1914 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for The Guns of Navarone (1961), High Noon (1952) and The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957). He was married to Estelle Barr and Evelyn Smith. He died on June 26, 1984 in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, ...

15. Oliver Stone

Director | JFK

Oliver Stone has become known as a master of controversial subjects and a legendary film maker. His films are filled with a variety of film angles and styles, he pushes his actors to give Oscar-worthy performances, and despite his failures, has always returned to success.

William Oliver Stone was ...

16. Eric Roth

Writer | Dune

Mr. Roth won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Forrest Gump & has been nominated for his screenplays of The Insider, Munich, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, A Star is Born, & Dune. He wrote Mr. Kurosawa's Rhapsody in August, The Horse Whisperer, Ali, & Best Picture Nominee, Extremely ...

17. Federico Fellini

Writer | Le notti di Cabiria

The women who both attracted and frightened him and an Italy dominated in his youth by Mussolini and Pope Pius XII - inspired the dreams that Fellini started recording in notebooks in the 1960s. Life and dreams were raw material for his films. His native Rimini and characters like Saraghina (the ...

18. Alan Jay Lerner

Writer | An American in Paris

Playwright/lyricist Alan Jay Lerner was born into a wealthy New York City retailing family. His professional association with Frederick Loewe started in 1942 when they teamed up to write "Life of the Party". Their first Broadway success was the 1947 musical fantasy "Brigadoon." Lerner adapted work ...

19. Robert Bolt

Writer | Lawrence of Arabia

Son of a small shopkeeper, he attended Manchester Grammar School. He later said that he made poor uses of his opportunities there. He went to work in an insurance office, but later entered Manchester University, taking a degree in History. A post-graduate year at Exeter University led to a ...

20. Waldo Salt

Writer | Midnight Cowboy

Waldo Salt was one of the many people blacklisted in Hollywood during the Red Scare, but unlike others, Salt recovered triumphantly. He wrote his first scripts in the late 1930s (MGM contract writer, 1936-42) and also served as a civilian consultant to the Office of War Information from 1942- 1945 ...

21. Alvin Sargent

Writer | Spider-Man 2

Alvin Sargent was an American screenwriter who wrote Ordinary People and the Marvel screenplays for Sony: Spider-Man 2, Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man. His writing for Spider-Man 2 got widespread acclaim. He also wrote a few episodes of Paper Moon. He was married to film producer Laura ...

22. Horton Foote

Writer | To Kill a Mockingbird

Horton Foote, the Pulitzer Prize-winning dramatist and Oscar-winning screenwriter, was born on March 14, 1916, in Wharton, Texas. He says at the age of ten, he had a "calling" to become an actor, and when he was 16 he convinced his parents to allow him to go to acting school. With their blessing he...

23. Bo Goldman

Writer | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

There are but a few select screenwriters who are spoken of with the kind of reverence usually reserved for film directors - Robert Towne, Alvin Sargent and Bo Goldman. Goldman is a screenwriter's screenwriter, and one of the most honored in motion picture history. The recipient of two Academy ...

24. Ruth Prawer Jhabvala

Writer | Howards End

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala was born on May 7, 1927 in Cologne, Germany. She was a writer, known for Howards End (1992), A Room with a View (1985) and The Remains of the Day (1993). She was married to Cyrus Jhabvala. She died on April 3, 2013 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.

25. Alexander Payne

Director | Nebraska

Director, producer and screenwriter Alexander Payne was born in Omaha, Nebraska. His parents, Peggy (Constantine) and George Payne, ran a Greek restaurant. His father is of Greek and German ancestry, and his mother is of Greek descent; the family name was originally Papadopoulos. He is the youngest...

26. Christopher Hampton

Writer | The Father

Christopher Hampton was born on January 26, 1946 in Faial, Açores, Portugal. He is a writer and producer, known for The Father (2020), Dangerous Liaisons (1988) and Atonement (2007). He has been married to Laura de Holesch since 1971. They have two children.

27. Richard Brooks

Writer | In Cold Blood

Richard Brooks was an Academy Award-winning film writer who also earned six Oscar nominations and achieved success as a film director and producer.

He was born Reuben Sax on May 18, 1912, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His parents were Russian-Jewish immigrants. He graduated from West Philadelphia ...

28. Steven Zaillian

Writer | Searching for Bobby Fischer

Steven Zaillian was born on January 30, 1953 in Fresno, California, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) and A Civil Action (1998). He is married to Elizabeth Zaillian. They have two children.

29. Ring Lardner Jr.

Writer | MASH

The Oscar-winning screenwriter, Ring Lardner, Jr., will always be known for one of two things: that he was the son of one of the greatest humorists American literature has produced, and he was one of the Hollywood 10, the ten film-makers who refused to cooperate with the House Un-American ...

30. William Goldman

Writer | Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Screenwriter, novelist, playwright, non-fiction author. Born in Highland Park, Illinois, USA, began his career as a novelist in 1957. Started writing screenplays in 1965 with "Masquerade". A two-time Academy Award Winner, he is one of the most successful screenwriters and script doctors in ...

31. Mario Puzo

Writer | The Godfather

Mario Puzo was born October 15, 1920, in "Hell's Kitchen" on Manhattan's (NY) West Side and, following military service in World War II, attended New York's New School for Social Research and Columbia University. His best-known novel, "The Godfather," was preceded by two critically acclaimed novels...

32. Robert Riskin

Writer | It Happened One Night

Robert Riskin was born on March 30, 1897 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for It Happened One Night (1934), You Can't Take It with You (1938) and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936). He was married to Fay Wray. He died on September 20, 1955 in Beverly Hills, Los ...

33. Sidney Buchman

Writer | Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

The son of a Russian émigré clothing merchant, Sidney Buchman was born in Duluth, Minnesota, on March 27 1902. He initially attended the University of Minnesota. After his family moved to New York, he continued his studies at Columbia University, graduating in 1923. The following year, he travelled...

34. Dudley Nichols

Writer | Sister Kenny

Dudley Nichols was born on April 6, 1895 in Wapakoneta, Ohio, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Sister Kenny (1946), The Informer (1935) and Stagecoach (1939). He was married to Esther "Esta" Varez. He died on January 4, 1960 in Hollywood, California, USA.

35. Julius J. Epstein

Writer | Casablanca

Julius J. Epstein was born on August 22, 1909 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Casablanca (1942), Reuben, Reuben (1983) and Pete 'n' Tillie (1972). He was married to Frances Sage and Ann Margot Laszlo. He died on December 30, 2000 in Los Angeles, California, ...

36. Stanley Shapiro

Writer | That Touch of Mink

Stanley Shapiro was born on July 16, 1925 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for That Touch of Mink (1962), Pillow Talk (1959) and Lover Come Back (1961). He was married to Willi Koopman. He died on July 21, 1990 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

37. William Rose

Writer | Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

William Rose was born on August 31, 1918 in Jefferson City, Missouri, USA. He was a writer, known for Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), The Ladykillers (1955) and It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963). He was married to Tania Rose. He died on February 10, 1987 in Jersey, Channel Islands, UK.

38. James Poe

Writer | Around the World in Eighty Days

James Poe was born on October 4, 1921 in Dobbs Ferry, New York, USA. He was a writer, known for Around the World in 80 Days (1956), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) and Lilies of the Field (1963). He was married to Barbara Steele. He died on January 24, 1980 in Los Angeles County, California, USA.

39. Robert Towne

Writer | Chinatown

Writer, director, producer, actor. Born in Los Angeles, California, USA, and raised in the seaport town of San Pedro. Got his start acting and writing for legendary exploitation director/producer Roger Corman. Came into his own during the 1970s when he was regarded as one of the finest ...

40. Aaron Sorkin

Writer | The West Wing

Aaron Sorkin grew up in Scarsdale, a suburb of New York City where he was very involved in his high school drama and theater club. After graduating from Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater, Sorkin intended to pursue a career in acting. It took him only a short time to ...

41. Sidney Howard

Writer | Gone with the Wind

Sidney Howard was born on June 26, 1891 in Oakland, California, USA. He was a writer, known for Gone with the Wind (1939), Dodsworth (1936) and Arrowsmith (1931). He was married to Leopoldine Blaine Damrosch and Clare Eames. He died on August 23, 1939 in Tyringham, Massachusetts, USA.

42. Claudine West

Writer | Mrs. Miniver

Claudine West was born on January 16, 1890 in Nottingham, England, UK. She was a writer, known for Mrs. Miniver (1942), Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) and Random Harvest (1942). She died on April 11, 1943 in Beverly Hills, California, USA.

43. Frank Butler

Writer | Going My Way

Frank Butler was born on December 28, 1890 in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for Going My Way (1944), Wake Island (1942) and Whispering Smith (1948). He was married to Ethel Virginia Chapman. He died on June 10, 1967 in Oceanside, Long Island, New York, USA.

44. Preston Sturges

Writer | Sullivan's Travels

Preston Sturges' own life is as unlikely as some of the plots of his best work. He was born into a wealthy family. As a boy he helped out on stage productions for his mother's friend, Isadora Duncan (the scarf that strangled her was made by his mother's company, Maison Desti). He served in the U.S....

45. Walter Reisch

Writer | Gaslight

After completing studies in literature at the University of Vienna, Walter Reisch began his screen career as an extra and title writer in 1918. He eventually made the acquaintance of Stephan Lorant, a refuge from the Horty regime in Hungary, who, within a single year, had made a name for himself in...

46. T.E.B. Clarke

Writer | The Lavender Hill Mob

T.E.B. 'Tibby' Clarke graduated with a law degree from Cambridge University, but decided that writing was more his forte. He started on that career path first as writer for a magazine in Australia, than back in London freelancing as a journalist. He also had jobs on Fleet Street, worked in ...

47. Richard L. Breen

Writer | Titanic

Richard L. Breen was born on June 26, 1918 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was a writer and director, known for Titanic (1953), A Foreign Affair (1948) and State Fair (1962). He died on February 1, 1967 in Los Angeles County, California, USA.

48. I.A.L. Diamond

Writer | The Apartment

I.A.L. Diamond was born on June 27, 1920 in Ungheni, Romania [now Moldova]. He was a writer and producer, known for The Apartment (1960), Some Like It Hot (1959) and The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970). He was married to Barbara Diamond. He died on April 21, 1988 in Beverly Hills, California...

49. Frank Pierson

Writer | Dog Day Afternoon

Frank Pierson was born on May 12, 1925 in Chappaqua, New York, USA. He was a producer and writer, known for Dog Day Afternoon (1975), Presumed Innocent (1990) and Cool Hand Luke (1967). He was married to Helene Szamet, Dori Pierson and Polly Stokes. He died on July 22, 2012 in Los Angeles, ...

50. James L. Brooks

Writer | Broadcast News

James L. Brooks was born on May 9, 1940 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Broadcast News (1987), As Good as It Gets (1997) and Terms of Endearment (1983). He was previously married to Holly Holmberg Brooks and Marianne Catherine Morrissey.

51. Ronald Harwood

Writer | The Pianist

Born in Cape Town, Union of South Africa in 1934, Ronald Harwood moved to London in 1951 to pursue a career in the theatre. After attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, he joined the Shakespeare Company of Sir Donald Wolfit, one of the last 'actor-manager' of Great-Britain. From 1953 to 1958...

52. Fran Walsh

Writer | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Fran Walsh is a New Zealand writer and wife of New Zealand film director Peter Jackson. She co-wrote The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, which is seen by many as Jackson's magnum opus and one of the most significant film series ever made. She also wrote The Hobbit trilogy, a prequel to Jackson's ...

53. Peter Jackson

Producer | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Sir Peter Jackson made history with The Lord of the Rings trilogy, becoming the first person to direct three major feature films simultaneously. The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King were nominated for and collected a slew of awards from around the globe, with The ...

54. Charlie Kaufman

Writer | I'm Thinking of Ending Things

Avid reader Charlie Kaufman wrote plays and made short films as a young student. He moved from Massapequa, New York to West Hartford, Connecticut in 1972 where he attended high school. As a comedic actor, he performed in school plays and, after graduation, he enrolled at Boston University but soon ...

55. Paul Haggis

Writer | Crash

Paul Haggis established himself over twenty years with an extensive career in television, before his big break into features arrived when he became the first screenwriter to garner two Best Film Academy Awards back-to-back for his scripts: "Million Dollar Baby" (2004) directed by Clint Eastwood, ...

56. Simon Beaufoy

Writer | Slumdog Millionaire

Born in Keighley, Bradford, West Yorkshire. He attended Malsis School in Cross Hills Ermysted's Grammar School at Skipton, later he attended Sedbergh School in Cumbria.

He has read English at St Peter's College, Oxford and graduated from the Arts Institute at Bournemouth.

In 2009 he won an Academy ...

57. Kenneth Lonergan

Writer | Manchester by the Sea

Kenneth Lonergan is a playwright, screenwriter and director. His film, You Can Count on Me (2000), which he wrote and directed, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Screenplay, won the Sundance 2000 Grand Jury Prize and the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, the NY Film Critics Circle, LA Film ...

58. Adam McKay

Producer | The Other Guys

Adam McKay (born April 17, 1968) is an American screenwriter, director, comedian, and actor. McKay has a comedy partnership with Will Ferrell, with whom he co-wrote the films Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and The Other Guys. Ferrell and McKay also founded their comedy website Funny or Die through ...

59. Ingmar Bergman

Writer | Smultronstället

Ernst Ingmar Bergman was born July 14, 1918, the son of a priest. The film and T.V. series, The Best Intentions (1992) is biographical and shows the early marriage of his parents. The film Sunday's Children (1992) depicts a bicycle journey with his father. In the miniseries Private Confessions (...

60. Stanley Kubrick

Director | 2001: A Space Odyssey

Stanley Kubrick was born in Manhattan, New York City, to Sadie Gertrude (Perveler) and Jacob Leonard Kubrick, a physician. His family were Jewish immigrants (from Austria, Romania, and Russia). Stanley was considered intelligent, despite poor grades at school. Hoping that a change of scenery would ...

61. Mike Leigh

Director | Secrets & Lies

Mike Leigh is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Design and the London School of Film Technique. He began his career as a theatre ...

62. Paul Thomas Anderson

Director | Punch-Drunk Love

Anderson was born in 1970. He was one of the first of the "video store" generation of film-makers. His father was the first man on his block to own a V.C.R., and from a very early age Anderson had an infinite number of titles available to him. While film-makers like Spielberg cut their teeth making...

63. Hanns Kräly

Writer | The Patriot

Hanns Kräly was born on January 16, 1884 in Hamburg, Germany. He was a writer and actor, known for The Patriot (1928), One Hundred Men and a Girl (1937) and Broadway Gondolier (1935). He died on November 11, 1950 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

64. Howard Estabrook

Writer | Cimarron

Detroit-born Howard Estabrook entered show business as a stage actor in New York in 1904. He appeared in several films starting in 1914 and even directed a few in 1917. He left films for a career in the business world, but returned in 1921 in executive positions with various studios, then began ...

65. Seton I. Miller

Writer | The Adventures of Robin Hood

Seton I. Miller was one of Hollywood's most accomplished writers of action and adventure films in the 1930's and 40's. A graduate of Yale University, he initially entered the film industry with MGM as an actor and 'technical advisor' on Brown of Harvard (1926), a collegiate romance first filmed at ...

66. Ian Dalrymple

Writer | The Citadel

British writer-producer, educated at Rugby and at Trinity College, Cambridge. 'Dal', as he came to be known, began in the industry as a cutter and assistant director under Michael Balcon. He was promoted to supervising editor, in which capacity he worked at Gaumont-British and Gainsborough from the...

67. Heinz Herald

Writer | The Life of Emile Zola

Heinz Herald was born on October 24, 1890 in Birnbaum, Germany [now Miedzychód, Wielkopolskie, Poland]. He was a writer and director, known for The Life of Emile Zola (1937), Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet (1940) and The Great Flamarion (1945). He died on July 22, 1964 in Kreuth, Bavaria, Germany.

68. Herman J. Mankiewicz

Writer | Citizen Kane

Herman J. Mankiewicz, now known primarily as the man who co-wrote Citizen Kane (1941) with Hollywood's greatest wunderkind, Orson Welles, was one of the highest-paid screenwriters in Hollywood and the head of Paramount's screen-writing department in the late 1920s and early '30s. He reached the ...

69. Arthur Wimperis

Writer | Mrs. Miniver

Arthur Wimperis was born on December 3, 1874 in London, England, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for Mrs. Miniver (1942), Random Harvest (1942) and Knight Without Armor (1937). He died on October 14, 1953 in Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, UK.

70. George Froeschel

Writer | Mrs. Miniver

George Froeschel was born on March 9, 1891 in Vienna, Austria-Hungary [now Austria]. He was a writer, known for Mrs. Miniver (1942), Command Decision (1948) and Me and the Colonel (1958). He died on November 22, 1979 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

71. Howard Koch

Writer | Casablanca

Playwright and author of sophisticated screenplays, a graduate of Bard College and Columbia University Law School. Howard Koch started out as a practicing lawyer in Hartsdale, New Jersey, but soon found himself dissatisfied with his career choice and began to write plays on the side. His first two ...

72. Norman Krasna

Writer | White Christmas

Humorist, playwright and screenwriter Norman Krasna went to great lengths planning for a career in law. He attended New York University, Columbia University and St. John's University law school but then abruptly changed his plans and started work as a copy boy at a New York newspaper. He had a ...

73. Robert E. Sherwood

Writer | The Best Years of Our Lives

Robert E. Sherwood, a brilliant multifaceted writer, was born to Arthur Murray and Rosina Emmet Sherwood, educated at the Milton Academy (Massachusetts) and Harvard, and was wounded while serving with the Canadian Black Watch in WWI. His literary career started with jobs as movie critic at Vanity ...

74. Sonya Levien

Writer | Interrupted Melody

Sonya, a graduate with a law degree from New York University, briefly practiced law before becoming a magazine editor and fiction writer. After several of her stories were adapted to the screen, she became a screenwriter. Levien wrote several screenplays for Will Rogers films and for Fox studios ...

75. Richard Schweizer

Writer | The Search

Richard Schweizer was born on December 23, 1899 in Zurich, Switzerland. He was a writer and director, known for The Search (1948), Marie-Louise (1944) and Kleine Scheidegg (1937). He was married to Ruth Margaret Langnese. He died on March 30, 1965 in Zurich, Switzerland.

76. Michael Kanin

Writer | Woman of the Year

The older brother of writer/producer/director Garson Kanin, Michael Kanin was a fine talent in his own right. After serving a creative apprenticeship writing and acting in Catskill resort shows with his brother, Kanin worked as a commercial artist and musician. In 1939 he was signed to a ...

77. Robert Pirosh

Writer | Battleground

Robert Pirosh enjoyed a lengthy Hollywood career, which began when he was signed by MGM, along with fellow newcomer George Seaton , as a contributing writer in 1934. His most notable success was garnering the Academy Award for his screenplay of Battleground (1949), a film based on the Second World ...

78. Clarence Greene

Producer | The Well

Clarence Greene was born on August 10, 1913 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a producer and writer, known for The Well (1951), Pillow Talk (1959) and The Thief (1952). He died on June 17, 1995 in California, USA.

79. Russell Rouse

Writer | The Well

Russell Rouse was born on November 20, 1913 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for The Well (1951), The Thief (1952) and Pillow Talk (1959). He was married to Beverly Michaels and Ethel Frank. He died on October 2, 1987 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

80. Harold Jacob Smith

Writer | The Defiant Ones

Harold Jacob Smith was born on July 2, 1912 in New York, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for The Defiant Ones (1958), Inherit the Wind (1960) and Enchanted Island (1958). He died on December 28, 1970 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

81. Nedrick Young

Writer | The Defiant Ones

Nedrick Young was born on March 23, 1914 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for The Defiant Ones (1958), Inherit the Wind (1960) and Gun Crazy (1950). He was married to Elizabeth MacRae and Frances Sage. He died on September 16, 1968 in Los Angeles, California, ...

82. Abby Mann

Writer | Judgment at Nuremberg

Abby Mann was born on December 1, 1927 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), Kojak (1973) and Skag (1980). He was married to Myra Mann. He died on March 25, 2008 in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.

83. Frederic Raphael

Writer | Eyes Wide Shut

Frederic Raphael was born on August 14, 1931 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is a writer and actor, known for Eyes Wide Shut (1999), Two for the Road (1967) and Darling (1965). He has been married to Sylvia Betty Glatt since January 17, 1955.

84. Claude Lelouch

Director | Un homme et une femme

He started off by making short films for television on which he was producer,screenwriter and cameraman. This was interrupted by military service in the army but only partly as he was put into the army film unit where he made over 100 films. Demobbed in 1960 he used family money for his first ...

85. Pierre Uytterhoeven

Writer | Un homme et une femme

Pierre Uytterhoeven is known for A Man and a Woman (1966), And Now My Love (1974) and Life Love Death (1969).

86. Mel Brooks

Actor | Spaceballs

Mel Brooks was born Melvin Kaminsky on June 28, 1926 in Brooklyn, New York. He served in WWII, and afterwards got a job playing the drums at nightclubs in the Catskills. Brooks eventually started a comedy act and also worked in radio and as Master Entertainer at Grossinger's Resort before going to ...

87. Costa-Gavras

Director | Z

Costa-Gavras was born on February 12, 1933 in Loutra-Iraias, Greece. He is a director and writer, known for Z (1969), Missing (1982) and Amen. (2002). He has been married to Michèle Ray-Gavras since 1968. They have two children.

88. Marshall Brickman

Writer | Annie Hall

Marshall Brickman was born on August 25, 1939 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He is a writer and producer, known for Annie Hall (1977), Sleeper (1973) and Manhattan (1979). He has been married to Nina Feinberg since 1973. They have two children.

89. Bernardo Bertolucci

Writer | Il conformista

Bernardo Bertolucci, the Italian director whose films were known for their colorful visual style, was born in Parma, Italy. He attended Rome University and became famous as a poet. He served as assistant director for Pier Paolo Pasolini in the film Accattone (1961) and directed The Grim Reaper (...

90. Peter Shaffer

Writer | Amadeus

Peter Shaffer was born on May 15, 1926 in Liverpool, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Amadeus (1984), Equus (1977) and The Public Eye (1972). He died on June 6, 2016 in County Cork, Ireland.

91. David S. Ward

Writer | The Sting

David S. Ward was born on October 25, 1945 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. He is a writer and director, known for The Sting (1973), Major League II (1994) and Sleepless in Seattle (1993). He is married to Marie-Louis White. He was previously married to Christine Atwood and Rosanna DeSoto.

92. Kurt Luedtke

Writer | Out of Africa

Kurt Luedtke was born on September 28, 1939 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. He was a writer, known for Out of Africa (1985), Absence of Malice (1981) and Random Hearts (1999). He was married to Eleanor Anna Kruglinski . He died on August 9, 2020 in Royal Oak, Michigan, USA.

93. Larry McMurtry

Writer | Brokeback Mountain

Larry McMurtry was born on June 3, 1936 in Archer City, Texas, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Brokeback Mountain (2005), The Last Picture Show (1971) and Streets of Laredo (1995). He was married to Faye Kesey and Josephine Ballard. He died on March 25, 2021 in Archer City, Texas, USA.

94. Tom Stoppard

Writer | Shakespeare in Love

Tom Stoppard was born on July 3, 1937 in Zlín, Czechoslovakia [now in Czech Republic]. He is a writer and producer, known for Shakespeare in Love (1998), Brazil (1985) and Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990). He has been married to Sabrina Guinness since 2014. He was previously married ...

95. John Patrick Shanley

Writer | Moonstruck

John Patrick Shanley was born on October 3, 1950 in The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA. He is a writer and director, known for Moonstruck (1987), Doubt (2008) and Congo (1995).

96. Cameron Crowe

Writer | Almost Famous

Certainly idiosyncratic as a writer, Cameron Crowe has created a series of scripts that, while liked by the critics, were considered offbeat and difficult to market.

Cameron Bruce Crowe was born in Palm Springs, California, to Alice Marie Crowe (née George), a teacher and activist, and James A. ...

97. Bill Condon

Director | Dreamgirls

Bill Condon was born on October 22, 1955 in New York City, New York, USA. He is a director and writer, known for Dreamgirls (2006), Gods and Monsters (1998) and Kinsey (2004).

98. Brian Helgeland

Writer | Finestkind

Brian Helgeland was born in Providence, Rhode Island and raised in New Bedford Massachusetts. A born worker, Helgeland has endeavored to achieve in the following fields: snow shoveler, scrap newspaper collector, dishwasher, nursing home janitor, drug store clerk and unreliable nightshift gas ...

99. Jim Taylor

Writer | Election

Jim Taylor was born in 1962 in Bellevue, Washington, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Election (1999), Sideways (2004) and About Schmidt (2002). He has been married to Tamara Jenkins since 2002. They have one child.

100. Philippa Boyens

Writer | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Philippa Boyens is a New Zealand writer and producer who has co-written several of Peter Jackson's films. She co-wrote the Academy Award winning Lord of the Rings trilogy, the Hobbit trilogy which is a prequel to the Lord of the Rings films, The Lovely Bones, Mortal Engines, and the 2005 remake of ...