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Allen Estrin (born June 20, 1954) is an American screenwriter, producer, director, and author. He is known for screenwriting with his late brother Mark Estrin, co-writing a novel with Joseph Telushkin, and his current work with Dennis Prager. With Prager he co-founded PragerU and serves as the executive producer of
the Dennis Prager Show ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
.


Career

Estrin co-founded the digital media website PragerU, short for "Prager University", with Dennis Prager and is currently the executive producer of The Dennis Prager Show. When Estrin originally conceptualized PragerU, he had planned for it to be a brick-and-mortar university, but later proposed instead creating short educational videos online. Estrin credits a copyright lawsuit with forcing PragerU videos to stop using photographs, and Jeremy Boreing with helping to develop its current animation style. Estrin represented PragerU at
President Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
's "Social Media Summit" in July 2019. He predicts that leftists will eventually create their equivalent of PragerU. Estrin was a screenwriter for several television shows including '' Boston Public'', '' Touched by an Angel'', and '' The Practice.'' He also co-wrote '' Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World''. And with his brother Mark Estrin (1947-2005) he wrote Bare Essentials, and Warm Hearts, Cold Feet. He was also a co-producer for Bare Essentials. With Prager, David Zucker, and
Susan Silverberg Grossand Susan is a feminine given name, from Persian "Susan" (lily flower), from Egyptian '' sšn'' and Coptic ''shoshen'' meaning "lotus flower", from Hebrew ''Shoshana'' meaning "lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means "rose" and a flower in general), ...
he wrote '' For Goodness Sake''. He and Prager wrote a sequel,
For Goodness Sake II ''For Goodness Sake'' is a short comedy film made in 1992, hosted by its co-writer, radio talk show host Dennis Prager. Released in 1993, the film contains comical vignettes that address everyday ethical issues. Mentor Media Inc. marketed the fi ...
. Estrin is a lecturer in screenwriting at the
American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...
. He directed "Israel in a Time of Terror".


Books

Estrin wrote ''The Hollywood Professionals, Volume 6: Capra, Cukor and Brown'', published in 1980, about directors
Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-born American film director, producer and writer who became the creative force behind some of the major award-winning films of the 1930s ...
, George Cukor, and Clarence Brown. With Joseph Telushkin, Estrin also co-wrote the novel ''Heaven's Witness'', published in 2004. '' Publishers Weekly'' offered a mostly positive review, saying "Detailed backstories, plus numerous psychoanalytical and New Age tidbits, slow the plot in places, but the past-life angle sustains interest." The Washington Examiner praised the book as "the most interesting of this year's religious mysteries."
Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...
said it was "especially good at balancing belief and skepticism about reincarnation." And the
Jewish Journal ''The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles'', known simply as the ''Jewish Journal'', is an independent, nonprofit community weekly newspaper serving the Jewish community of greater Los Angeles, published by TRIBE Media Corp. ''The Journal'' wa ...
called the book "a page-turning whodunit" that "raises some lofty questions about the nature of the afterlife and what happens to us after we die." CBS
option Option or Options may refer to: Computing *Option key, a key on Apple computer keyboards *Option type, a polymorphic data type in programming languages *Command-line option, an optional parameter to a command *OPTIONS, an HTTP request method ...
ed this book for a 2005 TV movie, paid both authors to write the script, but then stopped making such movies.


Personal life

Estrin married Susan Chamberlain in 1985. He is the son of Donald and Mildred Estrin, with brothers Joel and Mark, and a sister Amy. A scholar of the movies, Estrin has brought his knowledge of film to
the Dennis Prager Show ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
, where Prager calls him the "Living Martyr". Estrin is a
honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...
aficionado. In 2002, Estrin was denied life insurance because he traveled to Israel, one of the countries subject to U.S. State Department travel advisories. Because of this, he sued 14 insurance companies. This led to some insurers changing such policies, and to a bill in California to outlaw such travel restrictions on policies.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Estrin, Allen American directors American producers American screenwriters Conservative talk radio people Living people 1954 births