American screenwriter
Wendell Mayes
Mayes in 1955
Born July 21, 1919 Died March 28, 1992 (aged 72) Occupation
screenwriter Years active 1955–1992 Spouse Phyllis Manning (m 1949–1992; his death)
Wendell Curran Mayes (July 21, 1919 – March 28, 1992) was a Hollywood
screenwriter .
Background
Wendell Curran Mayes was born on July 21, 1919, in
Hayti, Missouri . His father, Von Mayes, was a lawyer, and his mother, Irene (née Haynes), was a teacher. Wendell attended primary school in
Caruthersville, Missouri ;
Battle Ground Academy in Franklin, Tennessee;
[1] and
Central College in
Fayette, Missouri .
[2] He had one year of law school at
Cumberland University in
Lebanon, Tennessee .
Career
Mayes moved to
Washington, D.C. , to work as a filing clerk in the
Agricultural Adjustment Administration , then to New York, where he worked in the theater. Subsequently, he was an exterminator and gold prospector in
Arizona , a truck driver in
Texas . During
World War II he worked as a welder in a
Baltimore shipyard, and joined the
Navy as a petty officer shipbuilder. In 1945 he was discharged from the Navy and moved back to New York.
[3]
Screenwriter
Mayes began as an actor, then turned to writing.
[4] An episode No Riders that he wrote for
Pond's Theater received a good review in a
Los Angeles newspaper and
Billy Wilder hired him to work on the script to the film
The Spirit of St. Louis .
[5]
For
Anatomy of a Murder , Mayes received a
New York Film Critics Circle Award for best screenplay in 1959 and an
Oscar nomination in 1960. It is claimed to be one of the best
trial movies of all time.
Personal life and death
Wendell Mayes died of cancer aged 72 on March 28, 1992, in
Santa Monica, California .
[6] His last script was Criminal Behavior which starred
Farrah Fawcett .
[7]
[8]
Works
Screenwriting credits include:
The Spirit of St. Louis (with
Billy Wilder and
Charles Lederer ), Warner Brothers, 1957
The Enemy Below , Twentieth Century-Fox, 1957
The Way to the Gold , Twentieth Century-Fox, 1957
From Hell to Texas (also known as Manhunt ) (with
Robert Buckner ), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1958
The Hunters , Twentieth Century-Fox, 1958
The Hanging Tree (with Halsted Welles), Warner Brothers, 1959
Anatomy of a Murder , Columbia, 1959
North to Alaska (with
John Lee Mahin , Martin Rackin, and
Claude Binyon ), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1960
Advise and Consent , Columbia, 1962
Von Ryan's Express (with Joseph Landon), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1965
In Harm's Way , Paramount, 1965
Hotel , Warner Brothers, 1967
The Stalking Moon (with
Alvin Sargent ), National General Pictures,1968
The Revengers , National General Pictures, 1972
The Poseidon Adventure (with
Stirling Silliphant ), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1972
Death Wish , Paramount, 1974
Bank Shot , United Artists, 1974
Go Tell the Spartans , Avco-Embassy, 1978
Love and Bullets (with John Melson), Associated Film Distribution,1979
Monsignor , Twentieth Century-Fox, 1982
References
^ The Democrat-Argus. Caruthersville, Missouri. Friday, March 25, 1932 - Page 4
^ The Democrat-Argus. Caruthersville, Missouri. Tuesday, September 13, 1932 - Page 5
^ From Bootheel to Hollywood via TV. Wendell Mayes, welder-turned-TV writer, now working on Spirit of St Louis film script. St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri) · Fri, Jun 17, 1955 · Page 45
^ John Crosby. Silence booms as video trend. Oakland Tribune. 28 Jan 1957
^
Wendell Mayes: The Jobs Poured over Me. Interview by Rui Nogueira. Backstory 3. UC Press E-Books Collection, 1982-2004
^ Author of Anatomy of a Murder screenplay. Chicago Tribune 5 April 1992
^ Tampa Bay Times 3 April 1992
^
Wendell Mayes, 72, Film and TV Writer, New York Times 2 April 1992
External links
1956–1975 1976–2000 2001–present
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