Philip G. Epstein (August 22, 1909 – February 7, 1952) was an American screenwriter most known for his screenplay for the film ''

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

'' (1942), which won an Academy Award. He had written it in partnership with his twin brother

Julius The gens Julia (''gēns Iūlia'', ) was one of the most prominent patrician families in ancient Rome. Members of the gens attained the highest dignities of the state in the earliest times of the Republic. The first of the family to obtain the ...

and Howard Koch as an adaptation of the unproduced play ''

Everybody Comes to Rick's ''Everybody Comes to Rick's'' is an American play that was bought unproduced by Warner Brothers for a record figure of $20,000 (). It was adapted for film as ''Casablanca'' (1942), starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. Written by Murray B ...

'', written by Murray Bennett and Joan Alison.

Early life and education

Epstein was born to a Jewish family in New York City and raised on the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...

of Manhattan; his identical twin brother was Julius Epstein. Their father Harry was a livery stable owner in the days when horses were widely used in the city. He and his brother Julius attended Pennsylvania State College (now Penn State University), gaining his degree in 1931. Following college, Philip took up acting and Julius became a professional boxer.

Marriage and family

Epstein was married to Lillian Targan from 1932. His son

Leslie Epstein Leslie Donald Epstein (born May 4, 1938 in Los Angeles) is an American educator, essayist, and novelist. Epstein is currently Professor of English and Director of the Creative Writing Program at Boston University. Career Epstein was born to an A ...

directs the

creative writing Creative writing is any writing that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on narrative craft, character development, and the use of literary ...

program at Boston University and is a novelist. In 2003, Leslie published a fictionalized version of his boyhood titled ''San Remo Drive: A Novel from Memory.'' His grandson

Theo Epstein Theo Nathaniel Epstein (born December 29, 1973) is an American Major League Baseball executive, who currently works for MLB as a consultant. He was the vice president and general manager for the Boston Red Sox and then the president of baseball ...

is a former baseball executive who previously served as the president of baseball operations for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

and as the general manager of the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

. His granddaughter Anya Epstein is a screenwriter.

Hollywood

After college the Epstein twins headed to Hollywood, hoping to work in the movie industry. They became successful screenwriters.

Jack L. Warner Jack Leonard Warner (born Jacob Warner; August 2, 1892 – September 9, 1978) was a Canadian-American film executive, who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. Warner's career spanned some ...

, head of

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

, had a love-hate relationship with the Epstein twin brothers. He could not argue with their commercial success, but he deplored their pranks, their work habits and the hours they kept. In 1952, Warner gave the brothers' names to the

House Un-American Activities Committee The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly dubbed the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative United States Congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, create ...

(HUAC). They never testified before the committee, but on a HUAC questionnaire, when asked if they ever were members of a "subversive organization," they wrote, "Yes. Warner Brothers." Epstein died of cancer in Hollywood, California in 1952 at the age of 42. Julius outlived him by 48 years, dying in 2000 at age 91.

Filmography

Selected filmography as a screenwriter: *'' Gift of Gab'' (1934) *'' The Strawberry Blonde'' (1941) *''

The Man Who Came to Dinner ''The Man Who Came to Dinner'' is a comedy play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. It debuted on October 16, 1939, at the Music Box Theatre in New York City, where it ran until 1941, closing after 739 performances. It then enjoyed a number of N ...

'' (1942) *''

Mr. Skeffington ''Mr. Skeffington'' is a 1944 American drama film directed by Vincent Sherman, based on the 1940 novel of the same name by Elizabeth von Arnim. The film stars Bette Davis as a beautiful but self-centered woman who has many suitors but marries Jo ...

'' (1944) *'' Arsenic and Old Lace'' (1944) *''

The Last Time I Saw Paris ''The Last Time I Saw Paris'' is a 1954 American Technicolor romantic drama made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It is loosely based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story "Babylon Revisited." It was directed by Richard Brooks, produced by Jack Cummings ...

'' (1954)

References

External links

* *
Obituary for Julius Epstein
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Epstein, Philip G. 1909 births 1952 deaths American male screenwriters Burials at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery Deaths from cancer in California Pennsylvania State University alumni People from the Lower East Side Jewish American writers Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award winners 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from New York (state) 20th-century American screenwriters American identical twins 20th-century American Jews