Luther Berryhill Davis (August 29, 1916 – July 29, 2008) was an American playwright and screenwriter.

Early life an education

Davis was born in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from Culver Military Academy in 1934 and received a bachelor of arts from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in 1938.Weber, Bruce
"Luther Davis: Tony-award winning writer of musical and movies"
''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving Greater Pittsburgh, metropolitan Pittsburgh in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the fi ...

'', Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, volume 82, number 6, August 6, 2008, A-11. He served in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

until 1945, rising to the rank of major. While in the army air forces, he served in Asia and Europe.

Career

In collaboration with Charles Lederer, Robert Wright, and George Forrest, Luther Davis wrote '' Kismet'', '' Timbuktu!'', and two different treatments of Vicki Baum’s novel '' Grand Hotel'' (''At the Grand'' for the Los Angeles and San Francisco Light Opera Association and the Broadway musical version, '' Grand Hotel, The Musical''). He received two

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 ...

s in 1954 (with Lederer) for ''Kismet'' as Best Author (Musical) and as co-author of the book contributed to the Best Musical win. He was nominated again in 1978, for Most Innovative Production of a Revival, as producer of ''Timbuktu!'', and in 1990 as author of the Best Book (Musical) for ''Grand Hotel, The Musical''. He wrote fifteen movies, many television specials and co-produced Stephen MacDonald’s

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

play, ''Not About Heroes''. He won two

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is a professional organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the E ...

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

s and was nominated many times by 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 ...

and the League of American Theatres and Producers. He was the father of two daughters and was married to soap opera actress Jennifer Bassey, his companion since 1978, from 2004 until his death.

Credits

Stage plays

*'' Kiss Them for Me'' (March 20, 1945 – June 23, 1945) *''

New Faces of 1952 ''New Faces of 1952'', also known as ''Leonard Sillman's New Faces of 1952'', is a 1952 musical revue with songs and comedy skits, produced and conceived by Leonard Sillman. It was the fourth of Sillman's seven ''New Faces'' revues, each intended ...

'' (May 16, 1952 – March 28, 1953) *'' Kismet'' (December 3, 1953 – April 23, 1955) *'' Timbuktu!'' (March 1, 1978 – September 10, 1978) *'' Grand Hotel'' (November 12, 1989 – April 25, 1992)

Screenplays

*'' The Hucksters'' (1947) *'' B.F.'s Daughter'' (1948) *'' Black Hand'' (1950) *'' A Lion Is in the Streets'' (1953) *'' New Faces'' (1954) *'' Kismet'' (1955) *''

The Eternal Sea ''The Eternal Sea'' (aka ''The Admiral Hoskins Story'') is a 1955 American biographical war film directed by John H. Auer and starring Sterling Hayden, Alexis Smith and Ben Cooper. The film follows the career of Captain John Hoskins, who lose ...

'' (1955) *'' Kiss Them for Me'' (1957) *'' The Gift of Love'' (1958) *'' Holiday for Lovers'' (1959) *'' Le Meraviglie Di Aladino'' (1961) *'' Lady in a Cage'' (1964) *'' Daughter of the Mind'' (1969) *'' The Old Man Who Cried Wolf'' (1970) *''

The Silent Force ''The Silent Force'' is the third studio album by Dutch symphonic metal band Within Temptation, released on 15 November 2004, by GUN Records. On 5 August 2008, ''The Silent Force'' along with ''Mother Earth (Within Temptation album), Mother Eart ...

'' (TV series) (1970-1971) *'' Across 110th Street'' (1972)

Creator

*''

'' (TV series) (1970-1971)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Luther 1916 births 2008 deaths 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male screenwriters Writers from Brooklyn Place of death missing Edgar Award winners Tony Award winners American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from New York (state) Culver Academies alumni 20th-century American screenwriters United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Yale College alumni