Alan Beverley Cross (13 April 1931 – 20 March 1998) was an English

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

librettist 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. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major ...

, and

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 ...

Early life

Born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

into a theatrical family, and educated at the Nautical College Pangbourne, Cross started off by writing children's plays in the 1950s. He achieved instant success with his first play, ''One More River'', which dealt with a

mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military or a crew) to oppose, change, or remove superiors or their orders. The term is commonly used for insubordination by members of the military against an officer or superior, ...

in which a crew puts its first officer on trial for manslaughter. The play premiered in 1958 at the New Shakespeare Theatre Liverpool, starring Robert Shaw, directed by

Sam Wanamaker Samuel Wanamaker (born Samuel Wattenmacker; June 14, 1919 – December 18, 1993) was an American actor and director, whose career on stage and in film and television spanned five decades. He began his career on Broadway theatre, Broadway, but sp ...

, and in 1959, still with Robert Shaw, directed by

Guy Hamilton Mervyn Ian Guy Hamilton (16 September 1922 – 20 April 2016) was an English film director. He directed 22 films from the 1950s to the 1980s, including four James Bond films. Early life Hamilton was born in Paris on 16 September 1922, son of ...

at the Duke of York's Theatre in London.

Career

Cross' second play, ''Strip the Willow'', was to make a star out of his future wife,

Maggie Smith Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (28 December 1934 – 27 September 2024) was a British actress. Known for her wit in both comedic and dramatic roles, she had List of Maggie Smith performances, an extensive career on stage and screen for over seve ...

, though the play never received a London production. In 1962, he translated Marc Camoletti's French

farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical comedy, physical humor; the use of delibe ...

'' Boeing Boeing'', which had a lengthy run in the West End. In 1964, he directed the play in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. Another success was '' Half a Sixpence'', a musical comedy based on the

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946) was an English writer, prolific in many genres. He wrote more than fifty novels and dozens of short stories. His non-fiction output included works of social commentary, politics, hist ...

novel '' Kipps'', for which he wrote the book, and for which he received a nomination for a Tony Award for Best Author. This opened in 1963, and like his first play, ran in London for more than a year. He also wrote opera librettos for Richard Rodney Bennett ('' The Mines of Sulphur'', ''All the King's Men'', and ''Victory'') and Nicholas Maw ('' The Rising of the Moon''). Cross later became well known for his screenplays, including '' Jason and the Argonauts'' (1963), '' The Long Ships'' (1964), ''

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; August 1227), also known as Chinggis Khan, was the founder and first khan (title), khan of the Mongol Empire. After spending most of his life uniting the Mongols, Mongol tribes, he launched Mongol invasions and ...

'' (1965), and '' Clash of the Titans'' (1981). He also adapted ''Half a Sixpence'' for the 1967 film version. He also worked uncredited on the script for '' Lawrence of Arabia'' (1962), although whether any of his material made it to the final edit is unknown.

Personal life

He had known Maggie Smith since her years acting in Oxford in the 1950s, but they did not marry until 1975, following the end of Smith's marriage to Robert Stephens. He was the stepfather of Smith's children from that marriage, actors Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens. He died in London in 1998 aged 66 from an

aneurysm An aneurysm is an outward :wikt:bulge, bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also b ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cross, Alan Beverley 1931 births 1998 deaths Place of birth missing English male screenwriters English opera librettists Writers from London 20th-century English dramatists and playwrights English male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century English male writers 20th-century English screenwriters People educated at Pangbourne College