Carl Gottlieb
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Carl Gottlieb (born March 18, 1938) is an American
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 ...
, actor, comedian, and executive. He is best known for co-writing the screenplay for '' Jaws'' (1975) and its first two sequels, as well as directing the 1981 film '' Caveman''.


Early life

Gottlieb was born on March 18th, 1938 to a middle class
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 in New York City, the son of Elizabeth, a medical administrative assistant, and Sergius M. Gottlieb, an engineer. Gottlieb studied drama at
Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...
where he befriended character actor Larry Hankin. After graduating, he was drafted into the U.S. Army, serving as an entertainment specialist in the Special Services division from 1961 to 1963.Writer Carl Gottlieb on serving in the Army - TelevisionAcademy.com/Interviews
Television Academy via
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. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
Carl Gottlieb Biography (1938-)
www.filmreference.com. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
Following his discharge, he became a member, later in the 1960s, of the
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
improvisational comedy Improvisational theatre, often called improvisation or improv or impro in British English, is the form of theatre, often comedy, in which most or all of what is performed is unplanned or unscripted, created spontaneously by the performers. In its ...
troupe The Committee. They made one feature film: ''A Session with the Committee''.


Career

He began writing comedy for TV, contributing to ''
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour ''The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'' is an American television comedy, comedy and variety show television series hosted by the Smothers Brothers and initially airing on CBS from 1967 to 1969. The series was a major success, especially consid ...
'' for which he won an Emmy Award in 1969, The Music Scene, '' The Bob Newhart Show'', ''
All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American sitcoms in the United States, sitcom television series that aired on CBS for nine seasons from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979, with a total of 205 episodes. It was later produced as ''Archie Bunker's Pla ...
'', and '' The Odd Couple''. He also appeared on camera on '' Ken Berry's Wow Show'' variety summer television program in 1972. Minor acting roles have included
Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer, producer. He is considered an enduring figure from the New Hollywood era, known for directing subversive and sat ...
's '' M*A*S*H'' and the film '' Clueless''. Gottlieb also cowrote
David Crosby David Van Cortlandt Crosby (August 14, 1941 – January 18, 2023) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He first found fame as a member of the Byrds, with whom he helped pioneer the genres of folk rock and psychedelic music, psych ...
's two autobiographies, 1989's ''Long Time Gone'' and 2006's ''Since Then''.


''Jaws''

Gottlieb was hired as an actor to appear as Harry Meadows, the editor of the local newspaper, in ''Jaws''. He was hired by his friend,
Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg ( ; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest film directors of all time and is ...
, to redraft the script, adding more dimensions to the characters, particularly humor. His redrafts reduced the role of Meadows (who still appears in the Town Hall corridor and the Tiger Shark scene). He wrote a book, ''The Jaws Log'', about the notoriously difficult production of the film. He was enlisted under similar circumstances to work on the ''
Jaws 2 ''Jaws 2'' is a 1978 American horror thriller film directed by Jeannot Szwarc and co-written by Carl Gottlieb. It is the sequel to Steven Spielberg's '' Jaws'' (1975), and the second installment in the ''Jaws'' franchise. The film stars Roy ...
'' screenplay. He co-wrote the screenplays for '' The Jerk'', in which he played Iron Balls McGinty, and ''
Jaws 3-D ''Jaws 3-D'' (titled ''Jaws III'' in its 2-D form) is a 1983 American horror film directed by Joe Alves and starring Dennis Quaid, Bess Armstrong, Simon MacCorkindale and Louis Gossett Jr. As the second sequel to Steven Spielberg's '' Jaws' ...
''. Gottlieb contributes to ''Jaws'' related activities, such as interviews (including the documentary '' The Shark Is Still Working'') and attended JawsFest on
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in June 2005.


Writers' politics

Gottlieb joined the
Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is the name of two American labor unions representing writers in film, television, radio, and online media: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) is headquartered in New York City and is affiliated wit ...
in 1968 and became interested in Guild politics and with a desire to serve fellow writers following writers' strikes in the 1970s and 1981. He was elected to the Board of Directors in 1983, and re-elected for numerous terms thereafter, including two stints as vice-president (1991–1994). He was again appointed VP of the Writers Guild of America, West in 2004 and served until the following year. In September 2011, he was elected as WGA-West secretary-treasurer.


Filmography


Feature films


As writer only


As director


As actor


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gottlieb, Carl Living people 1938 births 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews American male comedians American male film actors American male screenwriters American male television actors Comedians from New York City Jewish American military personnel Jewish American screenwriters Male actors from New York City Military personnel from New York City Military personnel from New York (state) Primetime Emmy Award winners Screenwriters from New York (state) Syracuse University alumni United States Army soldiers Writers from New York City