Roland Kibbee (15 February 1914 in

Monongahela, Pennsylvania Monongahela, referred to locally as Mon City, is a Local government in Pennsylvania#Third class cities, third class city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,149 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Pittsburgh ...

– 5 August 1984 in

Encino, California Encino is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. History Etymology The name Encino is the misspelling in masculine of Encina, the Spanish language, Spanish word for "holm oak” (Quercus ilex). The Spanis ...

) was an American screenwriter and producer. He was a frequent collaborator and friend of actor-producer

Burt Lancaster Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor. Initially known for playing tough characters with tender hearts, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-year caree ...

Career

Kibbee began his career writing for radio in 1931, working with Jack Lescoulie, and later collaborated with

Nat Hiken Nathan Hiken (June 23, 1914 – December 7, 1968) was an American radio and television writer, producer, and songwriter who rose to prominence in the 1950s. Early years Hiken was born on June 23, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Jewish p ...

, writing for the series '' The Grouch Club'', which starred Lescoulie. After this, Kibbee worked on

Fred Allen John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist topically-pointed radio program '' The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and forw ...

's staff and wrote for

Groucho Marx Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer who performed in films and vaudeville on television, radio, and the stage. He is considered one of America's greatest comed ...

, before serving in the U.S. Air Force 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 ...

. Following his military service, he collaborated with

Joseph Fields Joseph Albert Fields (February 21, 1895 – March 4, 1966)According to the State of California. ''California Death Index, 1940–1997''. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, Californiaancestry.com/ ...

to write the screenplay for 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 ...

1946 film '' A Night in Casablanca''. He frequently worked on films for

, including '' The Crimson Pirate'' (1952), '' Vera Cruz'' (1954), '' The Devil's Disciple'' (1959), and '' Valdez Is Coming'' (1971). For a time they teamed to form "

Norlan Productions Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor. Initially known for playing tough characters with tender hearts, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-year caree ...

". Together they wrote, produced and directed '' The Midnight Man'' (1974). Some of his best-known films were ''A Night in Casablanca'' (1946), '' The Crimson Pirate'' (1952), ''

The Appaloosa ''The Appaloosa'' (also known as ''Southwest to Sonora'') is a 1966 American Western film starring Marlon Brando, Anjanette Comer, and John Saxon, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of a Mexica ...

'' (1966) and '' Valdez Is Coming'' (1971). Prominent TV producer and writer

Norman Lear Norman Milton Lear (July 27, 1922December 5, 2023) was an American screenwriter and producer who produced, wrote, created, or developed over 100 shows. Lear created and produced numerous popular 1970s sitcoms, including ''All in the Family'' (1 ...

also acknowledged that while he would sometimes do the opening monologues for The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show, Kibbee was in fact the show's main writer. In a 2015 interview with Variety, Lear credited both Kibbee and Hiken as his two mentors. He also wrote for TV shows, among them '' The Virginian'', '' It Takes a Thief'' (which he created) and ''

Columbo ''Columbo'' is an American crime drama television series starring Peter Falk as Columbo (character), Lieutenant Columbo, a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. After two pilot episodes in 1968 and 1971, the show originall ...

''. Kibbee won

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 ...

awards for his work on the short-lived 1961 series ''

The Bob Newhart Show ''The Bob Newhart Show'' is an American television sitcom produced by MTM Enterprises that aired on CBS from September 16, 1972, to April 1, 1978, with a total of 142 half-hour episodes over six seasons. Comedian Bob Newhart portrays a psychol ...

'', ''Columbo'' and ''

Barney Miller ''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th Street in Greenwich Village (Lower Manhattan). The series was broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from Janu ...

''. Late in his career, Kibbee co-wrote the book for the 1976

Yul Brynner Yuliy Borisovich Briner (; July 11, 1920 – October 10, 1985), known professionally as Yul Brynner (), was a Russian-born actor. He was known for his portrayal of King Mongkut in the Rodgers and Hammerstein stage musical ''The King and I'' (19 ...

musical '' Home Sweet Homer'', which closed on Broadway after one performance.

HUAC Informer

In the early '50s, Kibbee was named as a former member of the Communist party by screenwriter

Martin Berkeley Martin Berkeley (August 21, 1904 − May 6, 1979) was a Hollywood and television screenwriter who cooperated with the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) in the 1950s by naming dozens of Hollywood artists as Communists or Communist symp ...

along with 155 others. Kibbee had become a member in 1937, "by way of the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League and out three years later by way of the Nazi-Soviet Pact" He was also named by his colleague and Hecht-Lancaster executive

Harold Hecht Harold Adolphe Hecht (June 1, 1907 – May 26, 1985) was an American film producer, dance director and talent agent. He was also, though less noted for, a literary agent, a theatrical producer, a theatre director and a Broadway actor. He was ...

. Kibbee was then required to testify before the committee which he did, believing to have mostly named those who had named him. Kibbee broke off with Hecht but continued to work for the company on a freelance basis. He retained his friendship with Lancaster, allegedly warning to distance himself from Hecht. Lancaster had been a vocal critic of the

House Un-American Activities Committee The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative United States Congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, created in 19 ...

. Kibbee is one of the interview subjects in ''Naming Names'', the definitive history of the Hollywood Blacklist by journalist Victor Navasky. The author discovered that like many who had testified, Kibbee was mistaken and had in fact given names that were not previously known to the committee.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kibbee, Roland 1914 births 1984 deaths People from Monongahela, Pennsylvania American male screenwriters Television producers from Pennsylvania American television writers Primetime Emmy Award winners American male television writers 20th-century American businesspeople Screenwriters from Pennsylvania 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters