Mark Frost (born November 25, 1953) is an American novelist, screenwriter, film-and-television producer and director. He is the co-creator of the mystery television series ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cancellation in 1991. The show returned in 2017 ...

'' (1990–1991; 2017) and was a writer and executive story editor of ''

Hill Street Blues ''Hill Street Blues'' is an American serial police procedural television series that aired on NBC in prime-time from January 15, 1981, to May 12, 1987, for 146 episodes. The show chronicles the lives of the staff of a single police station loca ...

'' (1982–1985).

Early life

Mark Frost was born on November 25, 1953 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, to Mary Virginia Calhoun and actor Warren Frost. He is the elder brother of actress Lindsay Frost and writer and photographer

Scott Frost Scott Andrew Frost (born January 4, 1975) is a former American football coach and player. He was the head football coach at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln from 2018 to 2022. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, Frost played college football as a qu ...

. During his childhood, Frost was raised in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

and spent his adolescence in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

, where he attended

Marshall-University High School Marshall-University High School was a public junior high and high school serving grades 6–12 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school was founded in 1968 through a merger between John Marshall High School (a Minneapolis public school) and Unive ...

. As a high-school student, he spent two years on an internship program studying and working at Minneapolis'

Guthrie Theater The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The concept of the theater was born in 1959 in a series of discussions between Sir Tyrone Gut ...

. Frost subsequently enrolled in

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

(CMU) in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, studying acting, directing and playwriting. During his time in college, he worked as a member of the lighting crew on PBS ''

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' (sometimes shortened to ''Mister Rogers'') is an American half-hour educational children's television series that ran from 1968 to 2001, and was created and hosted by Fred Rogers. The series ''Misterogers'' deb ...

'' alongside actor

Michael Keaton Michael John Douglas (born September 5, 1951), known professionally as Michael Keaton, is an American actor. He is known for his various comedic and dramatic film roles, including Jack Butler in ''Mr. Mom'' (1983), Betelgeuse in '' Beetlejuice'' ...

. Frost graduated from CMU in 1975 with a

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachel ...

. After his graduation, he returned to the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, where he was a literary associate until 1978.

Career

Frost was a writer for the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

television series ''

''. He co-created the ABC television series ''

'' and '' On the Air'' with

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

. He co-wrote and directed the film '' Storyville'', co-wrote ''

Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 (cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first s ...

'' and wrote ''

The Greatest Game Ever Played ''The Greatest Game Ever Played'' is a 2005 American biographical sports film based on the early life of amateur golf champion Francis Ouimet and his surprise winning of the 1913 U.S. Open. The film was directed by Bill Paxton, and was his last ...

'', based on his 2002 book of the same name. His other books on golf are ''The Match: The Day the Game of Golf Changed Forever'', about a 1956 match pitting pros

Ben Hogan William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory an ...

and

Byron Nelson John Byron Nelson Jr. (February 4, 1912 – September 26, 2006) was an American professional golfer between 1935 and 1946, widely considered one of the greatest golfers of all time. Nelson and two other legendary champions of the time, Ben Hoga ...

against amateurs

Harvie Ward Edward Harvie Ward, Jr. (December 8, 1925 – September 4, 2004) was an American golfer best known for his amateur career. He is best known for winning both the U.S. Amateur (twice) and the British Amateur. Born in Tarboro, North Carolina, Ward a ...

and

Ken Venturi Kenneth Paul Venturi (May 15, 1931May 17, 2013) was an American professional golfer and golf broadcaster. In a career shortened by injuries, he won 14 events on the PGA Tour including a major, the U.S. Open in 1964. Shortly before his death in 20 ...

, and ''The Grand Slam'', about the 1930 golf season of Bobby Jones. His fictional works include ''

The List of Seven ''The List of Seven'' is a 1993 novel by Mark Frost. Though initially an occult murder mystery, the story brings in conspiracy theory, vendetta, horror, history, and Theosophy. The main character, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is a real historical pers ...

'', '' The Six Messiahs'', and ''The Second Objective''.

Personal life

Frost has lived in

Ojai Ojai ( ; Chumash: ''’Awhaỳ'') is a city in Ventura County, California. Located in the Ojai Valley, it is northwest of Los Angeles and east of Santa Barbara. The valley is part of the east–west trending Western Transverse Ranges and is ...

, since 2011 with his wife Lynn and their son, Travis. His nephew is

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

player Lucas Giolito.

Bibliography

Fiction

*''

'' (1993) *'' The Six Messiahs'' (1995) *''Before I Wake'' (1997) *''The Second Objective'' (2009) *''

The Paladin Prophecy ''The Paladin Prophecy'' is the first book in the young adult fiction series of the same name by Mark Frost Mark Frost (born November 25, 1953) is an American novelist, screenwriter, film-and-television producer and director. He is the co ...

'' (2012) *''The Paladin Prophecy 2: Alliance'' (2013) *''The Paladin Prophecy 3: Rogue'' (2015) *''

The Secret History of Twin Peaks ''The Secret History of Twin Peaks'' is an epistolary (dossier-style) novel by Mark Frost, which provides background information on the history of the fictional town and characters from the television series ''Twin Peaks''. The book was publ ...

'' (2016) *'' Twin Peaks: The Final Dossier'' (2017)

Non-fiction

*''The Greatest Game Ever Played: A True Story'' (2002) *''The Grand Slam: Bobby Jones, America, and the Story of Golf'' (2006) *''The Match: The Day the Game of Golf Changed Forever'' (2007) *''Game Six: Cincinnati, Boston, and the 1975 World Series'' (2009)

Filmography

Film

Television

Accolades

;

Bram Stoker Award The Bram Stoker Award is a recognition presented annually by the Horror Writers Association (HWA) for "superior achievement" in dark fantasy and horror writing. History The Awards were established in 1987 and have been presented annually since ...

s ; Deauville American Film Festival ;

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

;

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

s ; The Stinkers Bad Movie Awards ;

Writers Guild of America Awards The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility T ...

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Frost, Mark 1953 births Living people 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American screenwriters 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American screenwriters American male novelists American male screenwriters American male television writers American television directors American television writers Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts alumni Film directors from New York City Frost family Novelists from New York (state) Screenwriters from New York (state) Television producers from New York City Writers from Brooklyn