Frank Q. Dobbs (July 29, 1939 – February 15, 2006) was a screenwriter, film director, film producer and cinematographer notable for his work on numerous Western films and television series, including

Larry McMurtry Larry Jeff McMurtry (June 3, 1936March 25, 2021) was an American novelist, essayist, bookseller and screenwriter whose work was predominantly set in either the Old West or contemporary Texas.

's five-hour CBS mini-series '' Streets of Laredo'' (1995). Born in Houston, Texas, Dobbs attended

Sam Houston State Teachers College Sam Houston State University (SHSU or Sam) is a public university in Huntsville, Texas. It was founded in 1879 and is the third-oldest public college or university in Texas. It is one of the first normal schools west of the Mississippi River and ...

, where he majored in journalism and minored in English and theater, while shooting college promotional films and also creating his own independent Western short films. After graduating in 1961, he collaborated with Ray Miller on ''Eyes of Texas'', a TV magazine series for Houston's KPRC, and he soon headed for Hollywood, entering the film industry by scripting two episodes of '' Gunsmoke'' in 1965-66.

Career

Producer

In 1983, he co-produced ''Lone Star Bar and Grill'' for Showtime. In 1997, he was a co-producer of John Milius' ''

Rough Riders The Rough Riders was a nickname given to the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish–American War and the only one to see combat. The United States Army was small, understaffed, and di ...

''. With Chris Black, he co-scripted the pilot of ''

The Magnificent Seven ''The Magnificent Seven'' is a 1960 American Western film directed by John Sturges. The screenplay by William Roberts is a remake – in an Old West–style – of Akira Kurosawa's 1954 Japanese film ''Seven Samurai'' (itself initially relea ...

'' TV series, which ran from 1998 to 2000. His association with McMurtry continued when he produced Hallmark's '' The Johnson County War'' miniseries in 2002.

Director

Dobbs made his feature film directorial debut in 1972 with the horror Western, ''Enter the Devil'', shot in

Lajitas, Texas Lajitas is an unincorporated community in Brewster County, Texas, United States, near the Big Bend National Park. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 75 in 2010. History The settlement is named after the Boquill ...

, and followed with three other features. In 2003, he directed Burt Reynolds and Bruce Dern in the TV movie '' Hard Ground'', a period Western about a Yuma prison escapee who plans to control the Mexican border by assembling an army of desperadoes.

Actor

He appeared as an actor in ''Streets of Laredo'' and '' Gambler V: Playing for Keeps'' (1994), which he co-scripted. Dobbs lived in Houston, where he died of cancer at age 66.

Awards

'' Houston: The Legend of Texas'', which Dobbs produced in 1986, won a Bronze Wrangler Award. He was the executive producer of the Disney Channel documentary ''The Legend of Billy the Kid'' (1994), which won an Emmy. He was a technical consultant on ''Amargosa'' (2000), Todd Robinson's documentary about Death Valley Junction dancer-painter Marta Becket, which won a 2003 Emmy Award for cinematographer Curt Apduhan, in addition to numerous festival awards and nominations.

References

External links

*
ObituaryFirst Annual Frank Q. Dobbs Memorial, Shindig and BBQ, San Marcos, Texas (March 11, 2006)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dobbs, Frank Q. 1939 births 2006 deaths American male screenwriters People from Houston Sam Houston State University alumni Film directors from Texas Screenwriters from Texas 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters