Norman Wexler
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Norman Wexler
Biography
Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Norman Wexler was not necessarily prolific, but he was responsible for the screenplays for some very popular films. Wexler began his professional career as a journalist, after having earned a degree from Harvard University. His film career began with Joe, which earned him his first Oscar nomination. From there, he added Serpico and Saturday Night Fever to his impressive resumé, the first of which earned him a second Academy Award nomination. He also managed to earn a cinematographer credit for the film The Kids Are Alright. Later in life, however, his professional career suffered due to his manic depression. To further exacerbate matters, in 1972 he was arrested by the FBI after announcing his plans to assassinate President Richard M. Nixon. He died from a heart attack in August 1999, at the age of 73. ~ Ryan Shriver, RoviFilmography:
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Norman Wexler
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Norman Wexler
| Norman Wexler | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 16, 1926 New Bedford, Massachusetts, United States |
| Died | August 23, 1999 (aged 73) Washington, D.C., United States |
| Occupation | Writer |
Norman Wexler (6 August 1926–23 August 1999) was a screenwriter whose work included such films as Saturday Night Fever, Serpico and Joe, for which he received an Oscar nomination in 1971. A Detroit native and 1944 Central High School graduate, Wexler attended Harvard University before moving to New York in 1951.[1]
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Career
Wexler penned the screenplays for several hit films, most notably Joe, Serpico, Mandingo and Saturday Night Fever. He received Oscar nominations for both Joe and Serpico.
He wrote Saturday Night Fever, which generated earnings in excess of $1.2B in today's dollars when both movie and record album sales are counted, more than double U.S. sales of top box office hit Titanic — which had a huge budget and costly special effects.
According to Bob Zmuda, Saturday Night Fever made Wexler a wealthy man. He was a much sought-after script doctor, reworking the scripts for Lipstick and The Fan.
Wexler was a sometime playwright. His play The Rope was produced at Cafe La MaMa (NY) in 1965.
Health, personal life, and character inspirations
He was reported to have suffered from severe mental illness, reportedly bipolar disorder, and was arrested in 1972 for threatening to shoot President Richard Nixon.
In the book Andy Kaufman Revealed, Bob Zmuda, Kaufman's friend and writer, relates his experiences working as an assistant for an extremely eccentric, Academy Award winning screenwriter, prone to pulling stunts that ranged from the bizarre to the profane. Zmuda refers to the man by the alias Mr X. Mr X's wild antics and boorish behavior are said to have been a major influence in creating Andy Kaufman's iconic alter-ego, the obnoxious lounge lizard Tony Clifton. Though Zmuda does not confirm Mr. X's identity in the book, he did confirm long-standing rumor that it was Wexler on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast.[2]
His last manic episode November 1998-February 1999 took a toll on his health. Early in the morning of August 23, 1999, Wexler died of a heart attack at age 73.
Screenplays
- Joe (1969)
- Serpico (with Waldo Salt) (1973)
- Mandingo (1975)
- Drum (1976)
- Saturday Night Fever (1977)
- Staying Alive (with Sylvester Stallone) (1983)
- Raw Deal (with Gary DeVore) (1986)
References
- ^ Independent.co.uk
- ^ Marc Maron (26 April 2012). "Episode 274 - Bob Zmuda" (Podcast). Event occurs at 0:38:00. http://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episodes/episode_274_-_bob_zmuda. Retrieved 26 April 2012.
External links
See also
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