Robert Riskin
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Robert Riskin
Biography
Screenwriter Robert Riskin entered the film business as a teenager, at a time (1914) when anyone with a glimmer of talent was allowed to work on what were then called scenarios. During the 1920's, Robertson kept busy on Broadway, penning such popular plays as Illicit and Bless You Sister. On the Columbia Pictures payroll in 1931, Riskin found himself adapting many of his own works for the screen -- including Bless You Sister, which ended up as the Frank Capra production The Miracle Woman. Riskin and Capra liked each other's work, and, as a result, Riskin contributed the wisecracking dialogue for Capra's Platinum Blonde (1931). Future Riskin/Capra collaborations included American Madness (1932), Lady for a Day (1933), It Happened One Night (1934) (which won Riskin an Oscar), Broadway Bill (1934), Mr. Deeds Goes To Town (1936), Lost Horizon (1937) and You Can't Take It With You (1938). Free of their Columbia contracts in 1941, Riskin and Capra formed their own production company to put together Meet John Doe. In later years, Capra would sometimes comment that he'd often have to tone down Riskin's Manhattan-bred cynicism; it's also likely that Riskin may have bristled at Capra's tendency to take all the credit for his collaborators' contributions. In 1937, Riskin ventured into directing for the first and last time with the Grace Moore musical When You're In Love (1937). In 1942, he married actress Fay Wray, who later put her own career on hold to nurse Riskin through a debilitating (and eventually fatal) neurological illness. ~ Hal Erickson, RoviFilmography:
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Robert Riskin
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Wikipedia on Answers.com:
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Robert Riskin
| Robert Riskin | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 30, 1897 New York City, New York |
| Died | September 20, 1955 (aged 58) Los Angeles, California |
| Spouse | Fay Wray (m. 1942-1955; his death) |
Robert Riskin (March 30, 1897 – September 20, 1955)[1] was an American screenwriter and playwright, best known for his collaborations with director-producer Frank Capra.[1]
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Career
Riskin began his career as a playwright, writing for many local New York City playhouses.[1] Two of his plays, Bless You, Sister and Many a Slip, managed to have successful runs on Broadway.[1] He moved to Hollywood in 1931 after Columbia Pictures bought the screen rights to several of his plays. His first collaboration with director Frank Capra came in 1931 with the Barbara Stanwyck vehicle The Miracle Woman.
Although Riskin wrote a number of other films for Columbia, it was his string of hit ventures with Capra that brought him acclaim. Riskin received Academy Award nominations for his screenplays for the Capra films Lady for a Day (1933), Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), You Can't Take It with You (1938), and Here Comes the Groom (1951). He was awarded the Oscar for his much-lauded screenplay for 1934's It Happened One Night.[1]
By 1941, when Capra directed Riskin's Meet John Doe,[2] the screenwriter had tired of Capra's knack for taking credit for Riskin's work. After several confrontations with the director while working on Meet John Doe, Riskin never willingly collaborated with Capra again. (According to Hollywood legend, he brandished a blank page in Capra's face and challenged: "Put the famous Capra touch on that!") In 1945, Riskin wrote the story for The Thin Man Goes Home[1] and had an uncredited collaboration on the 1946 film noir classic The Strange Love of Martha Ivers. The following year, he wrote and produced the minor James Stewart hit Magic Town. Directed by William Wellman, Magic Town has a similar flavor and tone to Riskin's Capra-directed films.
Just prior to World War II, Riskin became an associate producer for Samuel Goldwyn,[3] and in 1942 joined the Office of War Information (where he organized the OWI's overseas division).[1]
Riskin directed only one film, When You're in Love, a minor musical starring Grace Moore and Cary Grant. Unsuccessful at the box office, When You're in Love is now remembered (if at all) for an unusual publicity stunt: silent film-star Louise Brooks was given a chance at a comeback by appearing as a chorus girl in this movie.
Stroke and death
In 1950, Robert Riskin suffered a debilitating stroke that prevented him from writing additional scripts.[1] His last screenplays, still in the pipeline, were produced between 1950 and 1951. Ironically, Frank Capra was assigned to Riskin's last original story, Here Comes the Groom, which he directed in 1951. Years after Riskin's death in 1955, Capra directed a remake of the 1933 film "Lady for a Day," which Riskin had written from a short story by Damon Runyon and Capra had directed. The 1961 version, with a screenplay by Hal Kanter and Harry Tugend from the Riskin-Runyon material was titled "A Pocketful of Miracles". The film became Capra's last.
Upon his death on September 20, 1955, Riskin was in the 13th year of marriage to actress Fay Wray.[1][4] Riskin had two children and one adopted daughter with Wray, including Susan (born 1936, adopted 1942), Robert (born 1943), and Victoria (born 1946). Interment Inglewood Park Cemetery, Inglewood California.
A biography by Ian Scott, In Capra's Shadow: The Life and Career of Screenwriter Robert Riskin, was published in 2006 by the University Press of Kentucky.
Selected filmography
- The Miracle Woman (1931)
- Platinum Blonde (1931)
- American Madness (1933)
- It Happened One Night (1934)
- Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)
- When You're in Love (1937) also director
- Lost Horizon (1937)
- You Can't Take It with You (1938)
- Meet John Doe (1941)
- The Thin Man Goes Home (1945)
- Magic Town (1947) also producer
- Here Comes the Groom (1951)
- Half Angel (1951)
- Pocketful of Miracles (1961)
Awards
Academy Awards
Won:
Nominated:
- Best Writing, Adaptation (Lady for a Day, 1934)
- Best Writing, Screenplay (Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, 1937)
- Best Writing, Screenplay (You Can't Take It with You, 1939)
- Best Writing, Motion Picture Story (Here Comes the Groom, 1952)
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Robert Riskin, Who Won 'Oscar' For 'It Happened Ohe Night,' Dies." New York Times. September 22, 1955.
- ^ Churchill, Douglas W. "Capra and Riskin to Film 'Life and Death of John Doe' for First Independent Venture." New York Times. November 7, 1939.
- ^ "Robert Riskin Joins Metro as Producer-Writer -- Paramount and Roxy Top Holiday Marks." New York Times. January 2, 1942.
- ^ "Fay Wray Married to Robert Riskin." New York Times. August 25, 1942.
External links
- Robert Riskin at the Internet Movie Database
- Six Screenplays by Robert Riskin, Edited and Introduced by Pat McGilligan.
- Robert Riskin at Find a Grave
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Mentioned in
When You're in Love, film music
(Classical Work)
Magic Town
(1947 Comedy Film)
The Whole Town's Talking
(1935 Comedy Film)
Meet John Doe
(1941 Comedy Drama Film)
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
(1936 Comedy Drama Film)
» More