Dean Riesner
Encyclopedia
Dean Riesner was a prolific American film and television writer.
Riesner's father was a silent film director, and Dean began acting in films at the age of five. His career at this young age ended because his mother wanted her son to have a real childhood. As an adult, his first job in films was as a co-author for the 1939 Ronald Reagan
movie Code of the Secret Service
.
Reisner won an Oscar for directing Bill and Coo
(1948), a feature film with a cast of real birds, costumed as humans, acting on the world's smallest film set.
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Riesner worked primarily in television, including writing for Rawhide
and the "Tourist Attraction" episode of The Outer Limits
, although he occasionally contributed to feature films like The Helen Morgan Story
. In 1968 he landed a job working on the Clint Eastwood
action film Coogan's Bluff
, and this in turn would lead to him writing several other Eastwood features throughout the 1970s. Riesner helped pen the screenplays for two Eastwood films in 1971, Play Misty for Me
and the original Dirty Harry
. In 1973 he provided an uncredited rewrite for High Plains Drifter
, and in 1976 he was one of the writers to draft The Enforcer, the third Dirty Harry thriller. That same year he provided the teleplay for NBC's highly rated miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man
, starring Nick Nolte
. In 1979 he wrote an early draft screenplay for The Godfather Part III
, but his script was discarded when Francis Ford Coppola
and Mario Puzo
finally agreed to collaborate on a third entry in the series.
Riesner continued to write into the 1980s, though most of his work from that period went uncredited. Those films include Das Boot
, The Sting II
, and Starman
.
Riesner died in 2002 of natural causes. He had been married to actress Maila Nurmi
, better known as the horror host
ess Vampira.
Riesner's father was a silent film director, and Dean began acting in films at the age of five. His career at this young age ended because his mother wanted her son to have a real childhood. As an adult, his first job in films was as a co-author for the 1939 Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
movie Code of the Secret Service
Code of the Secret Service
Code of the Secret Service is a 1939 film directed by Noel M. Smith and starring Ronald Reagan. It is the second of four films in the U.S...
.
Reisner won an Oscar for directing Bill and Coo
Bill and Coo
Bill and Coo is a 1948 color film directed by Dean Riesner and conceived to showcase George Burton's trained birds .The 61-minute live action film stars many types of birds, including budgies and lovebirds. It also features other trained animals, including cats, dogs and a crow...
(1948), a feature film with a cast of real birds, costumed as humans, acting on the world's smallest film set.
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Riesner worked primarily in television, including writing for Rawhide
Rawhide (TV series)
Rawhide is an American Western series that aired for eight seasons on the CBS network on Friday nights, from January 9, 1959 to September 3, 1965, before moving to Tuesday nights from September 14, 1965 until January 4, 1966, with a total of 217 black-and-white episodes...
and the "Tourist Attraction" episode of The Outer Limits
The Outer Limits (1963 TV series)
The Outer Limits is an American television series that aired on ABC from 1963 to 1965. The series is similar in style to the earlier The Twilight Zone, but with a greater emphasis on science fiction, rather than fantasy stories...
, although he occasionally contributed to feature films like The Helen Morgan Story
The Helen Morgan Story
The Helen Morgan Story is a 1957 American biographical film directed by Michael Curtiz starring Ann Blyth and Paul Newman.The screenplay by Oscar Saul, Dean Riesner, Stephen Longstreet, and Nelson Gidding is based on the life and career of torch singer/actress Helen Morgan, with fictional touches...
. In 1968 he landed a job working on the Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
action film Coogan's Bluff
Coogan's Bluff (film)
Coogan's Bluff is a 1968 American Universal film directed by Don Siegel and starring Clint Eastwood, Lee J. Cobb, Don Stroud, and Susan Clark...
, and this in turn would lead to him writing several other Eastwood features throughout the 1970s. Riesner helped pen the screenplays for two Eastwood films in 1971, Play Misty for Me
Play Misty for Me
Play Misty for Me is a 1971 American psychological thriller film, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, in his directorial debut. Jessica Walter and Donna Mills co-star. The original music score was composed by Dee Barton.-Plot:...
and the original Dirty Harry
Dirty Harry
Dirty Harry is a 1971 American crime thriller produced and directed by Don Siegel, the first in the Dirty Harry series. Clint Eastwood plays the title role, in his first outing as San Francisco Police Department Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan....
. In 1973 he provided an uncredited rewrite for High Plains Drifter
High Plains Drifter
High Plains Drifter is a 1973 American Western film, with a hint of the supernatural, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood and produced by Robert Daley for The Malpaso Company and Universal Pictures. Eastwood plays a mysterious gunfighter hired by the residents of a corrupt frontier mining town...
, and in 1976 he was one of the writers to draft The Enforcer, the third Dirty Harry thriller. That same year he provided the teleplay for NBC's highly rated miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man
Rich Man, Poor Man (TV miniseries)
Rich Man, Poor Man was a 1976 American television miniseries that aired on ABC in one-hour episodes at 10:00pm ET/PT on Monday night for twelve weeks, beginning February 1. It was produced by Universal Television and was the second time programming of this nature had been attempted. The first TV...
, starring Nick Nolte
Nick Nolte
Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...
. In 1979 he wrote an early draft screenplay for The Godfather Part III
The Godfather Part III
The Godfather Part III is a 1990 American gangster film written by Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola, and directed by Coppola. It completes the story of Michael Corleone, a Mafia kingpin who tries to legitimize his criminal empire...
, but his script was discarded when Francis Ford Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is widely acclaimed as one of Hollywood's most innovative and influential film directors...
and Mario Puzo
Mario Puzo
Mario Gianluigi Puzo was an American author and screenwriter, known for his novels about the Mafia, including The Godfather , which he later co-adapted into a film by Francis Ford Coppola...
finally agreed to collaborate on a third entry in the series.
Riesner continued to write into the 1980s, though most of his work from that period went uncredited. Those films include Das Boot
Das Boot
Das Boot is a 1981 German epic war film written and directed by Wolfgang Petersen, produced by Günter Rohrbach, and starring Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer, and Klaus Wennemann...
, The Sting II
The Sting II
The Sting II is an 1983 film sequel to The Sting. Directed by Jeremy Kagan and written by David S. Ward , it stars Jackie Gleason, Mac Davis, Teri Garr, Karl Malden and Oliver Reed...
, and Starman
Starman (film)
John Carpenter's Starman is a 1984 science-fiction fantasy film directed by John Carpenter that tells the story of an alien who has come to Earth in response to the invitation found on the gold phonograph record installed on the Voyager 2 space probe.The screenplay was written by Bruce A. Evans,...
.
Riesner died in 2002 of natural causes. He had been married to actress Maila Nurmi
Maila Nurmi
Maila Nurmi was a Finnish-American actress who created the campy 1950s characterVampira. She portrayed Vampira as TV's first horror host and in the Ed Wood cult film Plan 9 from Outer Space...
, better known as the horror host
Horror host
Horror hosts are a particular type of television presenter, often tasked with presenting low-grade films to television audiences. This tradition is primarily American, though there have been a few international hosts over the years.-Film Packages:...
ess Vampira.