David Friedkin (March 8, 1912 – October 15, 1976) was an American writer and director of radio shows, film, and television shows.

Early life and education

Friedkin was born on March 8, 1912, in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

to Russian Jewish immigrants. His father wanted him to become a doctor. When Friedkin graduated from high school at 15, he attended the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

on a violin scholarship. At 17, Friedkin decided to become a stage actor. According to his son Anthony Friedkin, he was in the running for the lead role in the film adaptation of ''Golden Boy''. He then focused on writing and directing. He served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

Signal Corps A signal corps is a military branch, responsible for military communications (''signals''). Many countries maintain a signal corps, which is typically subordinate to a country's army. Military communication usually consists of radio, telephone, ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Career

Early in his writing career, Friedkin teamed with

Morton Fine Morton Fine (December 24, 1916 – March 7, 1991) was an American screenwriter. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Fine worked in an advertising agency, a bookstore, and an aircraft factory before joining the U.S. Army Air Forces in 1942 during Wo ...

; the two would frequently collaborate for radio, television, and film for the rest of Friedkin's working life. Friedkin and Fine worked on

Elliott Lewis Eliot or Elliott Lewis may refer to: *Elliott Lewis (politician) Sir Neil Elliott Lewis (27 October 1858 – 22 September 1935),Scott Bennett, ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 10, MUP, 1986, pp 94-95. Retrieved 2009-09-13 Austra ...

' shows '' Broadway Is My Beat'', ''

Crime Classics ''Crime Classics'' is a United States radio docudrama which aired as a sustaining series over CBS Radio from June 15, 1953, to June 30, 1954. Production Produced and directed by radio actor and director Elliott Lewis, the program was a hist ...

'', the radio show ''The Line-Up'', and ''On Stage''. The two also wrote for ''

Bold Venture ''Bold Venture'' was a syndicated radio series starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall that aired from 1951 to 1952. Morton Fine and David Friedkin scripted the taped series for Bogart's Santana Productions. Synopsis Salty seadog Slate ...

'', ''Escape'', and other programs. Friedkin and Fine wrote the audition show for ''Gunsmoke'' and came up with the name "Matt Dillon". He served as president of the radio division of the

Writers Guild of America West The Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) is a labor union representing film, television, radio, and new media writers. It was formed in 1954 from five organizations representing writers, including the Screen Writers Guild. It has around 20,000 me ...

. Friedkin directed the

B-movies A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second half of a double feature, s ...

''Hot Summer Night'' (1957), which was filmed in nine days, setting a speed record for

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

, and ''Handle with Care'' (1958). His and Fine's screenplay for

Sidney Lumet Sidney Arthur Lumet ( ; June 25, 1924 – April 9, 2011) was an American film director. Lumet started his career in theatre before moving to film, where he gained a reputation for making realistic and gritty New York City, New York dramas w ...

's '' The Pawnbroker'' (1964), lauded by critics, earned them a

Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility Th ...

. His television work includes directing and writing episodes of ''

Sea Hunt ''Sea Hunt'' is an American action adventure television series that aired in syndication from 1958 to 1961 and was popular for decades afterwards. The series originally aired for four seasons, with 155 episodes produced. It stars Lloyd Bridges ...

'', '' Dr. Kildare'', '' The Virginian'', ''I Spy'', '' Bearcats'', and the unsold pilot ''River of Gold'' (1971). Friedkin was nominated for six

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

s—for ''

Kojak ''Kojak'' is an American Action film, action Crime film, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theophilus "Theo" Kojak. Tak ...

'', ''I Spy'' (four times), and ''Frontier''.

Personal life

Friedkin married Audrey Westphal, an actress and former dancer, on March 31, 1945. They had two sons: Gregory Enton Friedkin, an actor, and Anthony Friedkin, a photographer. Friedkin died on October 15, 1976.

References

External links

*
David Friedkin
on

IBDb The Internet Broadway Database (IBDB) is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It was conceived and created by Karen Hauser in 1996 and is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade asso ...

David Friedkin
on the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

David Friedkin
at the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Friedkin, David 1912 births 1976 deaths 20th-century American screenwriters American people of Russian-Jewish descent Directors Guild of America Award winners Film directors from Missouri Jewish American military personnel Mass media people from Kansas City, Missouri Military personnel from Kansas City, Missouri Military personnel from Missouri United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army Signal Corps personnel Writers Guild of America Award winners