John Jacob Sher (16 March 1913 – 23 August 1988) was an American newspaper columnist, songwriter, film director, film writer, and producer.

Career

Born in

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

, Sher wrote for several magazines, including the ''

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine published six times a year. It was published weekly from 1897 until 1963, and then every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influ ...

,'' ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

,'' ''

Redbook ''Redbook'' is an American women's magazine that is published by the Hearst Communications, Hearst magazine division. It is one of the "Seven Sisters (magazines), Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines. It ceased print publicatio ...

,'' '' Radio Mirror,'' ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

,'' and ''

Collier's } ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter F. Collier, Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened i ...

.'' He also had been a columnist for the ''New York Reporter'', and from 1937 to 1940 ''

Screen & Radio Weekly ''Screen & Radio Weekly'' was a nationally syndicated Sunday tabloid-newspaper-supplement published by the ''Detroit Free Press'' from 1934 to 1940 that covered film, radio, and fashion – and included a short story. History The concept for ...

,'' a nationally syndicated Sunday supplement published by the ''

Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' (commonly referred to as the ''Freep'') is a major daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest local newspaper owned by Gannett (the publisher of ''USA Today''), and is operated by the Detro ...

.'' Sher wrote a number of films for

Audie Murphy Audie Leon Murphy (20 June 1925 – 28 May 1971) was an American soldier, actor, and songwriter. He was widely celebrated as the most decorated American combat soldier of World War II, and has been described as the most highly decorated enli ...

, including in 1959, ''

The Wild and the Innocent ''The Wild and the Innocent'' is a 1959 American CinemaScope Western film directed by Jack Sher and starring Audie Murphy and Sandra Dee, two inexperienced young people who get into trouble when they visit a town for the very first time. The fi ...

,'' which he also directed. In the 1979 remake for TV, '' The Kid from Left Field,''

Gary Coleman Gary Wayne Coleman (February 8, 1968 – May 28, 2010) was an American actor, known as a high-profile child star of the late 1970s and 1980s. Born in Zion, Illinois, Coleman grew up with his adopted parents, and a kidney disease; due to the co ...

(1968–2010), who starred in the series, accepted the

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...

for Best Children's Special of Episode in a Series. Sher's 1971–1972 television play, '' Goodbye, Raggedy Ann'' was nominated for an

Emmy 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 catego ...

for Outstanding Writing Achievement in Drama – Original Teleplay.

Selected Credits

Broadway

* ''The Perfect Set-Up?'' – playwright : Songs: :: "Make This a Slow Goodbye," Jack Sher (words), Farlan Myers (music)

Film

* '' My Favorite Spy'' (1951) – writer * ''

Shane Shane may refer to: People * Shane (name), a masculine given name and a surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with this name * Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress * Shane (New Zealand singer) (born ...

'' (1953) – writer * '' Off Limits'' (1953) – writer * '' The Kid from Left Field'' (1953) – writer * ''

World in My Corner ''World in My Corner'' is a 1956 American film noir drama sports film directed by Jesse Hibbs and starring Audie Murphy, Barbara Rush and Jeff Morrow. The film was produced and distributed by Universal Pictures. It is one of the few non-Western ...

'' (1956) – writer * ''

Walk the Proud Land ''Walk the Proud Land'' is a 1956 American CinemaScope Technicolor Western film directed by Jesse Hibbs and starring Audie Murphy and future Academy Award winner Anne Bancroft. Filmed at Old Tucson Studios, it recounts the first successful int ...

'' (1956) – writer * ''

Four Girls in Town ''Four Girls in Town'' is a 1957 American CinemaScope Technicolor drama film, directed by Jack Sher, about four girls trying to be movie stars. Plot When the leading lady drops out of a new film to be shot in New Orleans, studio head James Mannin ...

'' (1957) – writer, director * ''

Joe Butterfly ''Joe Butterfly'' is a 1957 American comedy film directed by Jesse Hibbs starring Audie Murphy, George Nader and Keenan Wynn, with Burgess Meredith in the title role as a Japanese man. The movie was action star Murphy's only outright comedy, and ...

'' (1957) – writer * ''

Kathy O' ''Kathy O is a 1958 American CinemaScope comedy-drama film directed by Jack Sher and starring Dan Duryea, Jan Sterling, Patty McCormack and Mary Fickett. Plot Kathy O'Rourke is a child actress who portrays girls such as Shirley Temple on the ...

'' (1958) – writer, director * ''

'' (1959) – writer, director * ''

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver ''The 3 Worlds of Gulliver'' is a 1960 American Eastmancolor fantasy adventure film loosely based upon the 1726 novel ''Gulliver's Travels'' by Jonathan Swift. The film stars Kerwin Mathews as the title character, June Thorburn as his fiancée E ...

'' (1960) – writer, director * ''

Love in a Goldfish Bowl ''Love in a Goldfish Bowl'' is a 1961 teen film directed by Jack Sher starring singing idols Tommy Sands and Fabian. Plot Gordon Slide and Blythe Holloway are two platonic best friends at a college, both from single-parent families. They are so ...

'' (1961) – writer, director * ''

Paris Blues ''Paris Blues'' is a 1961 American musical romantic drama film directed by Martin Ritt, starring Sidney Poitier as expatriate jazz saxophonist Eddie Cook, and Paul Newman as trombone-playing Ram Bowen. The two men romance two vacationing Amer ...

'' (1961) – writer * '' Critic's Choice'' (1963) – writer * ''

Move Over, Darling ''Move Over, Darling'' is a 1963 American comedy film starring Doris Day, James Garner, and Polly Bergen and directed by Michael Gordon filmed in DeLuxe Color and CinemaScope released by 20th Century Fox. The film is a remake of a 1940 sc ...

'' (1963) – writer * '' Slither'' (1973) – producer

Television

* ''

Bewitched ''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typi ...

'' – 3 episodes :: "It Takes One to Know One (26 November 1964; season 1, episode 11) – writer :: "No More Mr. Nice Guy" (23 March 1967; season 3, episode 28) – writer :: "Art for Sam's Sake" (23 February 1967; season 3, episode 24) – writer * '' The Wackiest Ship in the Army'' – 1 episode :: "The Stowaway" (31 October 1965; season 1, episode 7) – writer * '' Goodbye, Raggedy Ann'' (1971) – producer, writer * '' Holmes and Yo-Yo'' (1976–77) (TV series) – creator * '' The Kid from Left Field'' (1979) – writer

Books

* ''Twelve Sport Immortals,'' Ernest Victor Heyn (1904–1995) (ed.), Bartholomew House (1951); : Sher contributed 8 essays * ''Twelve More Sport Immortals,'' Ernest Victor Heyn (1904–1995) (ed.), Bartholomew House (1951); : Sher contributed 6 or more essays

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sher, Jack 1913 births 1988 deaths American columnists American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American journalists American male journalists American directors American male songwriters American lyricists American television writers 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male musicians