Wendell Mayes
Encyclopedia
Wendell Mayes was a Hollywood screenwriter
. His father Von Mayes was a lawyer and his mother Irene (née Haynes) was a teacher.
Mayes began as an actor. An episode he wrote for the "Kraft Television Theatre
" 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. That was his first credit in a successful screenwriting career.
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. Mayes died of cancer at the age of 72.
His screenwriting credits included:
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
. His father Von Mayes was a lawyer and his mother Irene (née Haynes) was a teacher.
Mayes began as an actor. An episode he wrote for the "Kraft Television Theatre
Kraft Television Theatre
Kraft Television Theatre is an American drama/anthology television series that began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. In January 1948, it moved to 9pm on Wednesdays, continuing in that timeslot until 1958. Initially produced by the J...
" received a good review in a Los Angeles newspaper and Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder was an Austro-Hungarian born American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, artist, and journalist, whose career spanned more than 50 years and 60 films. He is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Hollywood's golden age...
hired him to work on the script to the film The Spirit of St. Louis. That was his first credit in a successful screenwriting career.
For Anatomy of a Murder
Anatomy of a Murder
Anatomy of a Murder is a 1959 American courtroom crime drama film. It was directed by Otto Preminger and adapted by Wendell Mayes from the best-selling novel of the same name written by Michigan Supreme Court Justice John D. Voelker under the pen name Robert Traver...
, 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
Trial movies
Trial movies is a film genre, also commonly referred to as courtroom drama.-The American Bar Association's list:In 1989, the American Bar Association rated the twelve best trial films of all time, and provided a detailed and reasoned legal evaluation for its choices. Ten of them are in English; M...
of all time. Mayes died of cancer at the age of 72.
His screenwriting credits included:
- The Spirit of St. Louis (with Billy WilderBilly WilderBilly Wilder was an Austro-Hungarian born American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, artist, and journalist, whose career spanned more than 50 years and 60 films. He is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Hollywood's golden age...
and Charles LedererCharles LedererCharles Lederer was a prolific and well-connected American film writer and director of the 30s to the 60s, from a prominent theatrical family with close ties to the Hearst dynasty.-Early life:...
), Warner Brothers, 1957 - The Enemy BelowThe Enemy BelowThe Enemy Below is a 1957 war film which tells the story of the battle between the captain of an American destroyer escort and the commander of a German U-boat during World War II. It stars Robert Mitchum, Curt Jürgens, David Hedison and Theodore Bikel. The movie was directed and produced by Dick...
, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1957 - The Way to the Gold, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1957
- From Hell to TexasFrom Hell to TexasFrom Hell to Texas is a 1958 film directed by Henry Hathaway. It stars Don Murray and Diane Varsi.-Cast:*Don Murray as Tod Lohman*Diane Varsi as Juanita Bradley*Chill Wills as Amos Bradley*Dennis Hopper as Tom Boyd*R.G. Armstrong as Hunter Boyd...
(also known as Manhunt) (with Robert BucknerRobert BucknerRobert Buckner was a film screenwriter, producer and short story writer.He wrote the screenplays for films including Knute Rockne All American...
), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1958 - The Hunters, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1958
- The Hanging TreeThe Hanging TreeThe Hanging Tree is a 1959 movie directed by Delmer Daves. Karl Malden took over directing duties for several days when Daves fell ill. The film stars Gary Cooper, Maria Schell, George C...
(with Halsted Welles), Warner Brothers, 1959 - Anatomy of a MurderAnatomy of a MurderAnatomy of a Murder is a 1959 American courtroom crime drama film. It was directed by Otto Preminger and adapted by Wendell Mayes from the best-selling novel of the same name written by Michigan Supreme Court Justice John D. Voelker under the pen name Robert Traver...
, Columbia, 1959 - North to AlaskaNorth to AlaskaNorth to Alaska is a 1960 comedic western movie directed by Henry Hathaway and John Wayne . It starred Wayne along with Stewart Granger, Ernie Kovacs, Fabian and Capucine....
(with John Lee MahinJohn Lee MahinJohn Lee Mahin was a prolific screenwriter and producer. He was the son of John Lee Mahin, Sr. , a Chicago newspaper and advertising man, and Julia Graham Snitzler....
, Martin Rackin, and Claude BinyonClaude BinyonClaude Binyon was a screenwriter and director. His genres were comedy, musicals, and romances.As a Chicago-based journalist, he became city editor of the show business trade magazine Variety in the late 1920s...
), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1960 - Advise and ConsentAdvise and ConsentAdvise and Consent is a 1959 political novel by Allen Drury that explores the United States Senate confirmation of controversial Secretary of State nominee Robert Leffingwell who is a former member of the Communist Party...
, Columbia, 1962 - Von Ryan's ExpressVon Ryan's ExpressVon Ryan's Express is a 1965 World War II adventure film starring Frank Sinatra and Trevor Howard, based on a novel by David Westheimer, and directed by Mark Robson.-Plot:...
(with Joseph Landon), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1965 - In Harm's WayIn Harm's WayIn Harm's Way is a 1965 American epic war film produced and directed by Otto Preminger and starring John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Patricia Neal, Tom Tryon, Paula Prentiss, Stanley Holloway, Burgess Meredith, Brandon De Wilde, Jill Haworth, Dana Andrews, and Henry Fonda.It was the last black-and-white...
, Paramount, 1965 - HotelHotelA hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
, Warner Brothers, 1967 - The Stalking Moon (with Alvin SargentAlvin SargentAlvin Sargent is an American screenwriter. He has won two Academy Awards for his screenplays and has been involved in the writing of all movies to date in the Spider-Man film series.-Life and career:...
), National General Pictures,1968 - The Revengers, National General Pictures, 1972
- The Poseidon Adventure (with Stirling SilliphantStirling SilliphantStirling Dale Silliphant was an American screenwriter and producer. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, moved to Glendale, California as a child, graduated from Hoover High School, and was educated at the University of Southern California...
), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1972 - Death WishDeath WishDeath Wish is a 1972 novel by Brian Garfield.-Plot:Paul Benjamin is a CPA in New York and lifelong liberal. However, his staid life is overturned when his daughter, Carol, and spouse, Esther, are attacked by muggers. His wife does not survive the attack, and his traumatized daughter is left in a...
, Paramount, 1974 - Bank ShotBank ShotBank Shot is a 1974 film directed by Gower Champion and written by Wendell Mayes . The film stars George C. Scott, Joanna Cassidy, Sorrell Booke, and G. Wood.-Plot:...
, United Artists, 1974 - Go Tell the SpartansGo Tell the SpartansGo Tell the Spartans is a 1978 American war film based on Daniel Ford's 1967 novel Incident at Muc Wa, about U.S. Army military advisors during the early part of the Vietnam War in 1964, a time when Ford was a correspondent in Vietnam for The Nation.The film's title is from Simonides's epitaph to...
, Avco Embassy, 1978 - Love and Bullets (with John Melson), Associated Film Distribution,1979
- MonsignorMonsignorMonsignor, pl. monsignori, is the form of address for those members of the clergy of the Catholic Church holding certain ecclesiastical honorific titles. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian monsignore, from the French mon seigneur, meaning "my lord"...
, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1982
External links
- Wendell Mayes entry in Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Wendell Mayes biography