Michael L. Tolkin (born October 17, 1950) is an American screenwriter, novelist, and director. He has written numerous screenplays, including '' The Player'' (1992), which he adapted from his own 1988 novel of the same name,Tolkin, Michael
"The Player"
1st ed., New York : Atlantic Monthly Press, 1988. and for which he received the

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 ...

for Best Motion Picture Screenplay (1993) and was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best screenplay adapted from previously established material. The most frequently adapted media are novels, but other adapted narrative formats include stage plays, mus ...

. He later wrote a follow-up to the novel, titled ''The Return of the Player'', which was published in 2006. In 2018, Tolkin served as co-creator of the miniseries '' Escape at Dannemora'' with Brett Johnson. The series was based on the real-life 2015 Clinton Correctional Facility escape that led to a massive manhunt for two escaped convicts in upstate New York. In 2022, he served as creator of the miniseries '' The Offer'', which is about the making of ''

The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...

.''

Biography

Tolkin was born to a Romanian-Jewish and

Ukrainian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Ukraine dates back over a thousand years; Jewish communities have existed in the modern territory of Ukraine from the time of the Kievan Rus' (late 9th to mid-13th century). Important Jewish religious and cultural move ...

family in New York City, the son of Edith (née Leibovitch), a studio executive and film industry lawyer, and the late comedy writer Mel Tolkin. He is a 1974 graduate of

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...

. Tolkin lives in Los Angeles with his wife, author Wendy Mogel. They have two daughters, Susanna and Emma.New York Times: "So the Torah Is a Parenting Guide?" by Emily Bazelon
October 1, 2006

Filmography

Film

Uncredited writing roles * '' The Haunting'' (1999) * '' Domestic Disturbance'' (2001) * '' Dawn of the Dead'' (2004) * '' The Punisher'' (2004)

Television

Series TV films

Bibliography

* ''The Player'' (1988) * ''Among the Dead'' (1993) * ''Under Radar'' (2003) * ''The Return of the Player'' (2006)Allen Barra
"The Return of the Player," ''Salon'', October 26, 2006. * ''NK3'' (2017)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tolkin, Michael 1950 births 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers American male novelists American male screenwriters Bard College alumni Best Adapted Screenplay BAFTA Award winners Edgar Award winners Living people Middlebury College alumni Novelists from New York City Writers Guild of America Award winners American people of Romanian-Jewish descent American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Film directors from New York City Screenwriters from New York (state)