Daniel Rubin (born 1957) 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 ...

and

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 ...

. He wrote the original story, and then co-wrote with

Harold Ramis Harold Allen Ramis ( ; November 21, 1944 – February 24, 2014) was an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. His film acting roles include Egon Spengler in ''Ghostbusters'' (1984) and ''Ghostbusters II'' (1989), and as Russell Ziskey in '' St ...

the screenplay for the 1993 comedy film ''

Groundhog Day Groundhog Day (, , , ; Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia: Daks Day) is a tradition observed regionally in the United States and Canada on February 2 of every year. It derives from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if ...

'', for which the two received a

BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay The BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay is a British Academy Film Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (B ...

. The stage musical ''

'' based on the film premiered in 2016 which won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical in 2017.

Early life and education

Rubin was born in

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 ...

, the son of Melvin Rubin, an ophthalmologist, and Lorna (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Isen), owner of a publishing business, and grew up in

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...

. His grandfather was Albert Isen, former mayor of

Torrance, California Torrance is a coastal city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the metropolitan ...

. His brother,

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

, is an author, and sister, Gabrielle, a visual artist. Rubin received a B.A. in biology from

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

and a M.A. in radio, television, and film from

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

Career

Rubin wrote the original story, and then co-wrote with

the screenplay for the 1993 comedy film ''Groundhog Day'', for which the two received a

. The film is considered one of the greatest films ever made and one of the best screenplays of all time. He co-wrote ''Hear No Evil'' released the same year. With

Jefery Levy Jefery Levy (born May 21, 1958) is an American film and television director, producer, and writer, based in Beverly Hills, California. Career In 1985, while a graduate student at UCLA, Levy wrote and produced the low-budget hit '' Ghoulies'', a ...

, he co-wrote the 1994 film '' S.F.W.'' In 2016 the stage musical ''

'', which is based on the film, premiered at

The Old Vic The Old Vic is a 1,000-seat, nonprofit producing theatre in Waterloo, London, England. It was established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, and renamed in 1833 the Royal Victoria Theatre. In 1871 it was rebuilt and reopened as the Royal ...

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 ...

. It was nominated for eight

Laurence Olivier Awards The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply The Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in professional theatre in London. The awards were originally known as the Society of West End Theatre Aw ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, winning for Best New Musical; it later opened on Broadway in

, and was nominated for seven

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cere ...

, including Best Musical. The musical has a book by Rubin, based on his original story. Rubin has taught screenwriting at numerous universities and lectured on the topic at academic conferences since 1995. He was a Briggs-Copeland Lecturer on English at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Filmography

Writer

* ''

'' (with

) (1993) * '' Hear No Evil'' (with Randall M. Badat and Kathleen Rowell) (1993) * '' S.F.W.'' (with

) (1994) * ''È già ieri'' (Italian remake of ''Groundhog Day'') (2004)

Stage

* ''Groundhog Day'' (2016 musical)

Awards

Nominated

Saturn Award The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films bel ...

for Best writing 1994: ''Groundhog Day'' *

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

for Best musical 2017: ''Groundhog Day The Musical''

Won

* BAFTA Film Award for Best Screenplay 1994: ''Groundhog Day'' * ALFS Award for screenwriter of the year 1994: ''Groundhog Day'' *

Laurence Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply The Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in West End theatre, professional theatre in London. The awards were originally known as the Society of We ...

for Best New Musical 2017: ''Groundhog Day The Musical''

Books

References

External links

*
Danny Rubin's Column

Interview about Groundhog Day and screenwriting
at

Big Think Big Think is a multimedia web portal founded in 2007 by Victoria Brown and Peter Hopkins. The site publishes interviews and round table discussions with experts from a wide range of fields. Victoria Brown is the acting CEO and Peter Hopkins is th ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rubin, Danny 1957 births Living people 20th-century American Jews American male screenwriters American musical theatre librettists 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Screenwriting instructors Brown University alumni Northwestern University School of Communication alumni Harvard University staff 20th-century American screenwriters Best Original Screenplay BAFTA Award winners 21st-century American Jews