Leonard Gardner (born 3 November 1933) is an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others asp ...

short story writer A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

, and screenwriter. His writing has appeared in ''

The Paris Review ''The Paris Review'' is a quarterly English-language literary magazine established in Paris in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen, and George Plimpton. In its first five years, ''The Paris Review'' published works by Jack Kerouac, Phil ...

'', '' Esquire'', '' The Southwest Review'', and other publications, and he has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship. Gardner was born in Stockton, and went to

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...

. He currently in

Larkspur, California Larkspur is a city in Marin County, California, United States. Larkspur is located south of San Rafael, at an elevation of . As of the 2020 Census, the city's population was 13,064. Larkspur's Police Department is shared with that of the ...

. Gardner's 1969 novel '' Fat City'' is an American classic whose stature has increased over the years. His screen adaptation of ''Fat City'' was made into an acclaimed 1972 film of the same title, directed by John Huston. The book and movie are set in and around Stockton and concern the struggles of third-rate pro boxers who only dimly comprehend that none of them will ever make the big time. Devoid of the usual "sweet science" cliches, the book roils with dark pessimism as the characters eke out a gritty existence. It is considered an underappreciated classic of early 1970s cinema. In their memoirs, producer

Ray Stark Raymond Otto Stark (October 3, 1915 – January 17, 2004) was one of the most successful and prolific independent film producers in postwar Hollywood. Stark's background as a literary and theatrical agent prepared him to produce some of the most ...

and director John Huston both cited it as among their finest achievements. Gardner adapted his short story "Jesus Christ Has Returned to Earth and Appears Here Nightly" into the screenplay for the low-budget 1989 film '' Valentino Returns''. He has a small part in the film, playing a character named Lyle. Gardner has made a couple of other acting appearances, most notably in Francis Ford Coppola's 1988 film '' Tucker: The Man and His Dream''. Gardner appears in a handful of scenes as a character known only as the Gas Station Owner. He has written a number of screenplays for television, including several for '' NYPD Blue'', for which he was a writer and producer for a few seasons.

References

External links

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Website of Fat City Boxing Club
1933 births Living people 20th-century American novelists American male novelists American male screenwriters Television producers from California Writers from Stockton, California People from Larkspur, California San Francisco State University alumni 20th-century American male writers Novelists from California Screenwriters from California {{US-screen-writer-stub