Rose Franken (December 28, 1895 – June 22, 1988) was an American writer and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

best known for her '' Claudia'' stories, plus the books, films, and plays based on them.

Early years

Born Rose Dorothy Lewin in

Gainesville, Texas Gainesville is a city in and the county seat of Cooke County, Texas, United States. Its population was 17,394 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is part of the Texoma region and is an important Agri-business center. History Found ...

, Franken was the youngest child of Michael and Hannah Younker Lewin. When Franken was 12, the family moved to New York; there, she attended the

Ethical Culture Fieldston School The Ethical Culture Fieldston School (ECFS), also known more simply as Fieldston or Ethical Culture, is a private pre-K through twelfth grade coeducational school in New York City with two campuses, in Manhattan and in the Bronx. The school is ...

. After graduation, she planned to attend Barnard College but was wed instead.

Career

Franken began writing after her second child was born. The editor to whom she sent her early work liked it and asked for more, thus beginning her career as a writer. Her books included ''Of Great Riches'' (1937), ''Strange Victory'' (1939), ''Claudia: The Story of A Marriage'' (1939), and ''When Doctors Disagree'' (1940). From her novel ''Claudia'' and a ''

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 ...

'' magazine serial story, "Claudia and David," Franken developed a play, a radio series ('' Claudia''), and two films. These works led to a television series, '' Claudia'' (1952). In 1963, Doubleday published Franken's autobiography, ''When All Is Said and Done''. Franken's first play was ''Another Language'' (1932), which was the basis for the film ''

Another Language ''Another Language'' is a 1933 American Pre-Code romantic drama film directed by Edward H. Griffith and starring Robert Montgomery and Helen Hayes. Plot Stella and Victor meet in Europe, fall deeply in love, and marry soon thereafter. They sa ...

'' (1933). Her next play was ''Claudia'' (1941).

Personal life

On September 1, 1913, she married Sigmund Walter Anthony Franken, an oral surgeon who died on December 17, 1932. They had three children, including physicist Peter Franken. On April 27, 1937, she married writer William Brown Meloney. He died on May 4, 1971. She was one of the artists and writers to visit Melrose Plantation on the Cane River in Louisiana.James Lynwood Wilson, ''Clementine Hunter: American Folk Artist'', p. 22. Pelican Publishing Company (1990)

Death

Franken died on June 22, 1988, in Tucson, Arizona, at age 92. She was survived by her sons, Paul, John, and Peter; four grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.Sherilyn Brandenstein, "Rose Dorothy Lewin Franken," ''The Handbook of Texas Online''
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Selected filmography

* ''Claudia and David'' (1960) (TV movie) * ''Claudia'' (1960) (TV movie) * ''Another Language'' (1957) (TV movie) * ''Mr. Dooley, Jnr.'' (1953) (TV movie) * ''Another Language'' (1952) (TV movie) * '' The Secret Heart'' (1946) * ''

Claudia and David ''Claudia and David'' is a 1946 American comedy drama film directed by Walter Lang and starring.s Dorothy McGuire, Robert Young (actor), Robert Young and Mary Astor. Dorothy McGuire and Robert Young repeat their roles from the film Claudia (1943 ...

'' (1943) * '' Claudia'' (1943) * '' Made for Each Other'' (1939) * ''

Beloved Enemy ''Beloved Enemy'' is a 1936 American drama film directed by H.C. Potter and starring Merle Oberon, Brian Aherne, and David Niven. It was loosely based on the life of Michael Collins. Plot During the Irish War of Independence in 1921, Irish ...

'' (1936) * '' Next Time We Live'' (1936) * ''

Dante's Inferno ''Inferno'' (; Italian for ' Hell') is the first part of Italian writer Dante Alighieri's 14th-century narrative poem '' The Divine Comedy'', followed by and . The ''Inferno'' describes the journey of a fictionalised version of Dante himsel ...

'' (1935) * '' Alias Mary Dow'' (1935) * ''

Storm Over the Andes ''Storm Over the Andes'' (aka ''Alas sobre El Chaco'') is a 1935 American adventure film directed by Christy Cabanne and starring Jack Holt (actor), Jack Holt, Antonio Moreno and Mona Barrie. The low-budget programmer is set against the backdrop o ...

'' (1935) * ''

Elinor Norton ''Elinor Norton'' is a 1934 American drama film directed by Hamilton MacFadden and written by Rose Franken and Philip Klein (screenwriter), Philip Klein. It is based on the 1933 novel, ''The State versus Elinor Norton'' by Mary Roberts Rinehart. ...

'' (1934) * ''

'' (1933)

References

External links

Novels and plays of Rose Franken at Florida State UniversityFinding aid to the Rose Franken Papers at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Columbia University.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Franken, Rose 1895 births 1988 deaths 20th-century American novelists American women novelists People from Gainesville, Texas Novelists from Texas American women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American women screenwriters 20th-century American screenwriters