Benjamin F. Glazer (May 7, 1887 – March 18, 1956) was a

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

, producer,

Foley artist In filmmaking, Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to films, videos, and other media in post-production to enhance audio quality. It is named after sound-effects artist Jack Foley (sound effects artist), Jack Foley ...

, and director of American films from the 1920s through the 1950s. He made the first translation of author / playwright

Ferenc Molnár Ferenc Molnár ( , ; born Ferenc Neumann; January 12, 1878April 1, 1952), often anglicized as Franz Molnar, was a Hungarians, Hungarian-born author, stage director, dramatist, and poet. He is widely regarded as Hungary's most celebrated and c ...

's play '' Liliom'' (1909) into English from its original Hungarian (Magyar) in 1921. His translation was used in the first American live stage play performance that year and later in the subsequent 1930 film version, and in every production in English of the play for the 115 years since its 1909 writing until recently. It also served as the basis for the

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

for

Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their musical ...

's ''

Carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...

'', as well as for Phoebe and Henry Ephron's screenplay for the 1956 film version. Glazer was born in

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

, United Kingdom, into a Hungarian

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family.The forgotten career of an Ulster Oscar winner
/ref> After crossing the Atlantic Ocean and moving to the United States, in the early 20th century, he moved south to

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 ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, studied at the

University of Pennsylvania Law School The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (also known as Penn Carey Law, or Penn Law; previously University of Pennsylvania Law School) is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Phi ...

, and passed the Pennsylvania

bar exam A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associat ...

to practice and become a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

in 1906. Glazer was one of the founding members of the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of adva ...

, which began awarding

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 ...

s (Oscars) in 1927. He is best known for his Oscar-winning writing for '' 7th Heaven'' (1927) in the academy's first awards ceremony and '' Arise, My Love'' (1940). Additional screenwriting credits extended from the

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

era (1896-1927), and into the subsequent period of the

sound film A sound film is a Film, motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, bu ...

s (also known as "talkies", generally increasingly after 1927). They include ''

The Merry Widow ''The Merry Widow'' ( ) is an operetta by the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The Libretto, librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein (writer), Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's ...

'', '' Flesh and the Devil'', ''

Mata Hari Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod (, ; 7 August 187615 October 1917), better known by the stage name Mata Hari ( , ; , ), was a Dutch Stripper, exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for German Empire, Germany during World War ...

'', ''

A Farewell to Arms ''A Farewell to Arms'' is a novel by American writer Ernest Hemingway, set during the Italian campaign of World War I. First published in 1929, it is a first-person account of an American, Frederic Henry, serving as a lieutenant () in the a ...

'', '' We're Not Dressing'', and '' Tortilla Flat''. Glazer also directed one film, the 1948 '' Song of My Heart'', a highly fictionalized biography (

Biopic A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or group of people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudrama films and histo ...

) of the famous

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

composer

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

. Glazer was married to actress Sharon Lynn, who had her own film career. He died of circulatory failure in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

at the age of 68.

Selected filmography

(as screenwriter unless otherwise noted) * '' Sinners in Silk'' (1924) * '' The Great Divide'' (1924) * '' Fine Clothes'' (1925) * ''

'' (1925) * '' Memory Lane'' (1926) * '' The Gay Deceiver'' (1926) * '' Wild Oats Lane'' (1926) * '' Flesh and the Devil'' (1926) * '' The Lady in Ermine'' (1927) * '' 7th Heaven'' (1927) * '' Paid to Love'' (1927) * '' The Trail of '98'' (1928) * '' Beggars of Life'' (1928) * '' The Boudoir Diplomat'' (1930) * '' The Devil to Pay!'' (1930) * '' Liliom'' (1930) * '' Pagan Lady'' (1931) * ''

'' (1931) * '' Monsieur Albert'' (1932) * ''

'' (1932) * '' No Man Of Her Own'' (1932) * '' The Way to Love'' (1933) * '' We're Not Dressing'' (1934) * '' She Loves Me Not'' (1934) (also producer) * '' Rhythm on the Range'' (1934) (also producer) * '' Four Daughters'' (1938) (assoc. producer) * '' Going Places'' (1938) (assoc. producer) * '' Yes, My Darling Daughter'' (1939) (assoc. producer) * '' They Made Me a Criminal'' (1939) (assoc. producer) * '' Arise, My Love'' (1940) (story) * '' Paris Calling'' (1941) * '' Tortilla Flat'' (1942) * '' Song of My Heart'' (1948) (also director) * ''

'' (1955) (libretto)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Glazer, Benjamin Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences founders Best Story Academy Award winners Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award winners 1887 births 1956 deaths University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni Screenwriters from Northern Ireland Male writers from Northern Ireland Television writers from Northern Ireland Television directors from Northern Ireland 20th-century Irish Jews 20th-century Irish male writers