Abby Mann (December 1, 1927 – March 25, 2008) was an American film writer and producer.

Life and career

The son of

Russian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest po ...

immigrants, Mann was born as Abraham Goodman in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He grew up in

East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania East Pittsburgh is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, approximately southeast of the confluence of the Monongahela and the Allegheny rivers at Pittsburgh. The population in 1900 stood at 2,883, and in 1910, at 5,615. A ...

. Douglas Martin
"Abby Mann, 'Nuremberg' Screenwriter, Dies at 83"
nytimes.com, March 28, 2008. He was best known for his work on controversial subjects and social drama. His best known work is the screenplay for '' Judgment at Nuremberg'' (1961), which was initially a

television drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional te ...

that aired in 1959.

Stanley Kramer Stanley Earl Kramer (September 29, 1913February 19, 2001) was an American film director and producer, responsible for making many of Hollywood's most famous " message films" (he called his movies ''heavy dramas'') and a liberal movie icon.

directed the film adaptation, for which Mann received the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Adapted Screenplay. In his acceptance speech, he said: Mann later adapted the play for a 2001 production on Broadway, which featured

Maximilian Schell Maximilian Schell (8 December 1930 – 1 February 2014) was a Swiss actor. Born in First Austrian Republic, Austria, his parents were involved in the arts and he grew up surrounded by performance and literature. While he was still a child, his fa ...

from the 1961 film in a different role. In the introduction to the printed script, Mann credited a conversation with Abraham Pomerantz, U.S. Chief Deputy Counsel, for giving him the initial interest in Nuremberg. Mann and Kramer also collaborated on the films '' Ship of Fools'' and '' A Child Is Waiting''. While working for television, he created the series ''

Kojak ''Kojak'' is an American Action film, action Crime film, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theophilus "Theo" Kojak. Tak ...

'', starring

Telly Savalas Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas (; January 21, 1922 – January 22, 1994) was a Greek-American actor. Noted for his bald head and deep, resonant voice, he is perhaps best known for portraying Lt. Theo Kojak on the crime drama series '' Kojak'' (1973� ...

. Mann was executive producer, but was also credited as a writer on many episodes. His other writing credits include the screenplays for the television films ''

The Marcus-Nelson Murders This is a list of episodes for the television series ''Kojak''. The first five seasons (Pilot + 118 ep.) were aired on CBS from 1973 until 1978. CBS also commissioned a pair of TV movies in 1985 and 1987. ABC revived ''Kojak'' in 1989 for five ...

'', '' The Atlanta Child Murders'', '' Teamster Boss: The Jackie Presser Story'', and '' Indictment: The McMartin Trial'', as well as the film '' War and Love''. He also directed the 1978 NBC TV miniseries ''

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

''. In 1974, he signed a deal with

Columbia Pictures Television Columbia Pictures Television, Inc. (abbreviated as CPT) was launched on May 6, 1974, by Columbia Pictures as an American television production and distribution company. It is the second name of Columbia Pictures' television division Screen Gems ...

to develop long-form television projects.

Personal life

Mann was married to Myra Maislin. His wife had two children from a previous marriage, Adrienne Cohen Isom, and Aaron Cohen, a former Israeli Duvdevan Unit Special Forces operative.Aaron Cohen and Douglas Century
''Brotherhood of Warriors''
harpercollins.com; accessed December 31, 2017. Mann died of heart failure in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

on March 25, 2008, aged 80. He died one day after

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, ''Kiss of Death (1947 film ...

, one of the stars of ''Judgment at Nuremberg''. Mann is interred in Culver City's

Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery The Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery in Culver City, California, United States. Many Jewish people from the entertainment industry are buried there. The cemetery is known for Al Jolson's elaborate tomb (designed by Los Angeles ...

Selected filmography

* '' Port of Escape'' (1956) * '' Judgment at Nuremberg'' (1961) * '' A Child Is Waiting'' (1963) * '' Ship of Fools'' (1965) * '' The Detective'' (1968) * ''

'' (1973) * ''

'' (1978, also director) * '' The Atlanta Child Murders'' (1985) * '' War and Love'' (1985) * '' Teamster Boss: The Jackie Presser Story'' (1992) * '' Indictment: The McMartin Trial'' (1995)

References

External links

*
1961 Academy Award winners list
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mann, Abby 1927 births 2008 deaths American male screenwriters American television writers American television show creators Television producers from Pennsylvania Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award winners Burials at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery Kojak Primetime Emmy Award winners Writers from Pittsburgh Mass media people from Greater Los Angeles Screenwriters from Philadelphia American people of Russian-Jewish descent American male television writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters