Robert Pirosh (April 1, 1910 – December 25, 1989) was an American screenwriter and film director.
''New York Times.'' December 31, 1989. He is most known for his

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

and

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

-themed works, inspired by his experiences as a U.S. Army infantryman 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 ...

. He won an

Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award (also known as an Oscar) for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best ...

for ''Battleground'' (1949), a semi-autobiographical account the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive or Unternehmen Die Wacht am Rhein, Wacht am Rhein, was the last major German Offensive (military), offensive Military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western ...

. He was nominated for a second Oscar for ''Go for Broke!'' (1951), a film about the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

Early life

Pirosh was born in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, and graduated from the Baltimore City College high school in 1928. His preparation for a career in Hollywood included study at the Sorbonne in France and the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

in Germany. When he began looking for work in Hollywood, he used a cover letter that began "Dear Sir, I like words" and concluded,

I like the word ''screenwriter'' better than ''copywriter'', so I decided to quit my job in a New York advertising agency and try my luck in Hollywood, but before taking the plunge I went to Europe for a year of study, contemplation and horsing around. I have just returned and I still like words. May I have a few with you?

The letter later featured in the book ''Letters of Note'' and in 2014 was described by its editor, Shaun Usher, as his "current favorite" and was read b
Benedict Cumberbatch at 'Letters Live'

Hollywood writer

Pirosh began his film career in 1934 as a junior writer for

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 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 ...

, working with fellow newcomer

George Seaton George Seaton (April 17, 1911 – July 28, 1979) was an American screenwriter, playwright, film director and producer, and theater director. Seaton led several industry organizations, serving as a three-time president of the Motion Picture Aca ...

. The two collaborated on the

Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act known for their anarchic humor, rapid-fire wordplay, and visual gags. They achieved success in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in 14 motion pictures. The core group consisted of brothers Chi ...

' 1935 comedy '' A Night at the Opera'' and their next film, '' A Day at the Races'', in 1937. He and

Delmer Daves Delmer Lawrence Daves (July 24, 1904 – August 17, 1977) was an American screenwriter, film director and film producer. He worked in many Film genre, genres, including film noir and war film, warfare, but he is best known for his Western (genre ...

adapted

Ayn Rand Alice O'Connor (born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum; , 1905March 6, 1982), better known by her pen name Ayn Rand (), was a Russian-born American writer and philosopher. She is known for her fiction and for developing a philosophical system which s ...

's '' Night of January 16th'' for a 1941 film of the same name directed by William Clemens. In 1942 he collaborated on the

screwball comedy Screwball comedy is a film subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1950s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary charact ...

'' Rings on Her Fingers'' for Henry Fonda and

Gene Tierney Gene Eliza Tierney (November 19, 1920November 6, 1991) was an American stage and film actress. Acclaimed for her great beauty, Tierney was a prominent Leading actor, leading lady during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. Sh ...

World War II

Pirosh was inducted into the U.S. Army from Los Angeles, California, on June 26, 1943. He joined the 320th Infantry Regiment, 35th Infantry Division, as a replacement during the

on December 28, 1944. During the battle, he kept a war journal, which later formed the basis for the 1949 film ''

Battleground A battlefield, battleground, or field of battle is the location of a present or historic battle involving ground warfare. It is commonly understood to be limited to the point of contact between opposing forces, though battles may involve troop ...

''.

Post-war career

He earned an Academy Award for Best Writing, Story and Screenplay in 1949 for his script for the

drama ''

'', a film he also produced, that was the first based on the Ardennes battle. His work was also honored in other venues that year. Pirosh won the

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

and 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 ...

awards.Niemi, Robert. (2006)
''History in the Media: Film and Television,'' p. 85.
/ref> In 1951, he was nominated for another

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for the screenplay '' Go for Broke!''. This was his directorial debut. He would go on to write the story for the highly regarded

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...

film '' Hell Is for Heroes'', directed by

Don Siegel Donald Siegel ( ; October 26, 1912 – April 20, 1991) was an American film director and producer. Siegel was described by ''The New York Times'' as "a director of tough, cynical and forthright action-adventure films whose taut plots centered o ...

, believed to be the basis for TV's '' Combat!'' (which he created). He also directed 1954's ''

Valley of the Kings The Valley of the Kings, also known as the Valley of the Gates of the Kings, is an area in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the Eighteenth Dynasty to the Twentieth Dynasty, rock-cut tombs were excavated for pharaohs and power ...

'' and 1955's '' The Girl Rush''. Pirosh wrote the episode "The Man From Leadville" for the 1976 CBS

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

television series '' Sara''.

Selected works

*'' The Winning Ticket'' (1935) – story *'' A Night at the Opera'' (1935) – writer (uncredited) *'' A Day at the Races'' (1937) – writer *'' The Wizard of Oz'' (1939) – writer (uncredited) *'' The Quarterback'' (1940) – writer *'' The Night of January 16th'' (1941) – writer *'' Song of the Islands'' (1942) – writer *'' Rings on Her Fingers'' (1942) – writer *'' I Married a Witch'' (1942) – writer *'' Up in Arms'' (1944) – writer *'' Man About Town'' (1947) (US version) – associate producer *''

'' (1949) – story, writer, associate producer *'' Go for Broke!'' (1951) – writer, director *'' Washington Story'' (1952) – writer, director *''

'' (1954) – writer, director *'' The Girl Rush'' (1955) – writer, director *'' Spring Reunion'' (1957) – writer, director *'' Laramie'' (1959) (TV series) – writer, producer *'' The Law and Mr. Jones'' (1960–61) (TV series) – writer *'' Bachelor Father'' (1961) (TV series) – writer *'' Hell Is for Heroes'' (1962) – story, writer *'' A Gathering of Eagles'' (1963) – writer *'' Combat!'' (1962–67) (TV series) – producer, writer, series development *'' The Fugitive'' (1963) (TV series) – writer *''

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon (; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip ...

'' (1963) – story, writer *'' The Guns of Will Sonnett'' (1968) (TV series) – writer *'' What's So Bad About Feeling Good?'' (1968) – writer *'' The Bold Ones: The New Doctors'' (1969) (TV series) – writer *''

Family Affair ''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attempt ...

'' (1970) (TV series) – writer *'' To Rome with Love'' (1970) (TV series) – writer *'' Ironside'' (1968–71) (TV series) – writer *''

My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was filmed in black-and-white and broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seve ...

'' (1971) (TV series) – writer *''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 431 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running Western, the second-longest-running Western series on ...

'' (1970–72) (TV series) – writer *''

Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that originally aired for eight seasons on CBS from September 16, 1967, to March 13, 1975. The show was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer ...

'' (1970–74) (TV series) – writer *'' Twice in a Lifetime'' (1974) (TV movie) – writer *'' Firehouse'' (1974) (TV series) – writer *''

Barnaby Jones ''Barnaby Jones'' is an American detective fiction, detective television series starring Buddy Ebsen as a formerly retired investigator and Lee Meriwether as his widowed daughter-in-law. They run a private detective firm in Los Angeles, Califor ...

'' (1974) (TV series) – writer *''

Ellery Queen Ellery Queen is a pseudonym created in 1928 by the American detective fiction writers Frederic Dannay (1905–1982) and Manfred Bennington Lee (1905–1971). It is also the name of their main fictional detective, a mystery writer in New York City ...

'' (1975) (TV series) – writer *'' The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries'' (1977) (TV series) – writer *'' Hawaii Five-O'' (1977) (TV series) – writer *'' The Oregon Trail'' (1977) (TV series) – writer *'' The Young Pioneers'' (1978) (TV series) – writer *''

The Waltons ''The Waltons'' is an American historical drama television series about a family in rural mountainous Western Virginia of the Appalachian Mountains / Allegheny Mountains / Blue Ridge Mountains chain, during the economic hardships and mass unemp ...

'' (1979–81) (TV series) – writer *''

Harry O ''Harry O'', sometimes spelled ''Harry-O'', is an American private detective series that aired for two seasons on ABC from 1974 to 1976. The series starred David Janssen, and Jerry Thorpe was executive producer. ''Harry O'' followed the broad ...

'' (1975) (TV series) – writer

Notes

References

* Chandler, Charlotte. (1978)
''Hello, I Must Be Going: Groucho and His Friends.''
Garden City, New York: Doubleday.
OCLC 3608756
* Davis, Ronald L. (2007)
''Words into Images: Screenwriters on the Studio System.''
Jackson, Mississippi:

University Press of Mississippi The University Press of Mississippi (UPM), founded in 1970, is a university press that is sponsored by the eight state universities in Mississippi (i.e., Alcorn State University, Delta State University, Jackson State University, Mississippi Sta ...

.
OCLC 237217879
* Niemi, Robert. (2006)
''History in the Media: Film and Television.''
Santa Barbara, California: ABC-Clio.
OCLC 263634503
* Shapiro, Fred R. (2006)
''The Yale Book of Quotations.''
New Haven:

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day and Clarence Day, grandsons of Benjamin Day, and became a department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and ope ...

. ,
OCLC 66527213

External links

*
Biography
from

Allmovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, television series, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pirosh, Robert 1910 births 1989 deaths American male screenwriters Best Original Screenplay Academy Award winners Baltimore City College alumni Writers from Baltimore Screenwriters from Maryland American people of Hungarian descent American expatriates in France American expatriates in Germany University of Paris alumni 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters United States Army non-commissioned officers