Isobel Lennart
Encyclopedia
Isobel Lennart was an American
screenwriter
and playwright
.
A native of Brooklyn, New York, Lennart moved to Hollywood, where she was hired to work in the MGM mail room, a job she lost when she attempted to organize a union. She joined the Communist Party
in 1939 but left five years later.
Lennart's first script, The Affairs of Martha
, an original comedy about the residents of a wealthy community who fear their secrets are about to be revealed in an exposé written by one of their maids, was filmed in 1942
with Spring Byington
, Marjorie Main
, and Richard Carlson
. This was followed in quick succession by A Stranger in Town
, Anchors Aweigh
, and It Happened in Brooklyn
.
In 1947, the House Un-American Activities Committee
(HUAC) began an investigation into the motion picture industry. Lennart, who had been blacklisted due to her left-wing leanings, was called to tesitify and named twenty-one individuals she knew had been members of the Communist Party, thus saving her own career.
Lennart's later screen credits include A Life of Her Own
, Love Me or Leave Me
, Merry Andrew
, The Inn of the Sixth Happiness
, Please Don't Eat the Daisies
, The Sundowners
, and Two for the Seesaw
.
In 1964, Lennart wrote the book for the Broadway musical Funny Girl, based on the life and career of Fanny Brice
and her tempestuous relationship with gambler Nicky Arnstein
. It catapulted Barbra Streisand
to fame and earned her a Tony Award
nomination. In 1968
, Lennart wrote the screen adaptation, which won her a Writers Guild of America
award for Best Screenplay. It proved to be her last work. Three years later, she was killed in an automobile accident in Hemet, California
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
A native of Brooklyn, New York, Lennart moved to Hollywood, where she was hired to work in the MGM mail room, a job she lost when she attempted to organize a union. She joined the Communist Party
Communist party
A political party described as a Communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of communism through a communist form of government...
in 1939 but left five years later.
Lennart's first script, The Affairs of Martha
The Affairs of Martha
The Affairs of Martha is a 1942 romantic comedy film directed by Jules Dassin. A young maid, Marsha Hunt, falls in love with Jeff Sommerfield and the two marry on impulse before he leaves for an anthropological trip. Before he leaves, he asks her to get the marriage annulled, but she does not do so...
, an original comedy about the residents of a wealthy community who fear their secrets are about to be revealed in an exposé written by one of their maids, was filmed in 1942
1942 in film
The year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:...
with Spring Byington
Spring Byington
Spring Byington was an American actress. Her career included a seven-year run on radio and television as the star of December Bride. She was a key MGM contract player appearing in films from the 1930s through the 1960s.-Early life:Byington was born Spring Dell Byington in Colorado Springs,...
, Marjorie Main
Marjorie Main
Marjorie Main was an American character actress, mainly at MGM, perhaps best known for her role as Ma Kettle in a series of ten Ma and Pa Kettle movies.-Early life and career:...
, and Richard Carlson
Richard Carlson
Richard Carlson was an American actor, television and film director, and screenwriter.-Career:Born in Albert Lea, Minnesota, Carlson graduated from the University of Minnesota with an M.A. degree, Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa. He later appeared on the Broadway stage in the 1930s after studying...
. This was followed in quick succession by A Stranger in Town
A Stranger in Town
A Stranger in Town is a 1943 comedy-drama political film made by Loew's Inc. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed by Roy Rowland and produced by Robert Sisk from an original screenplay by Isobel Lennart and William Kozlenko...
, Anchors Aweigh
Anchors Aweigh (film)
Anchors Aweigh is a 1945 American musical comedy film directed by George Sidney in which two sailors go on a four-day shore leave in Hollywood, accompanied by music and song, meet an aspiring young singer and try to help her get an audition at MGM...
, and It Happened in Brooklyn
It Happened in Brooklyn
It Happened in Brooklyn is a 1947 MGM musical romantic comedy film directed by Richard Whorf and starring Frank Sinatra, Kathryn Grayson, Peter Lawford, and Jimmy Durante and featuring Gloria Grahame and Marcy McGuire...
.
In 1947, the House Un-American Activities Committee
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
(HUAC) began an investigation into the motion picture industry. Lennart, who had been blacklisted due to her left-wing leanings, was called to tesitify and named twenty-one individuals she knew had been members of the Communist Party, thus saving her own career.
Lennart's later screen credits include A Life of Her Own
A Life of Her Own
A Life of Her Own is a 1950 American melodrama film directed by George Cukor. The screenplay by Isobel Lennart focuses on an aspiring model who leaves her small town in the Midwest to seek fame and fortune in New York City.-Plot:...
, Love Me or Leave Me
Love Me or Leave Me (film)
Love Me or Leave Me is a 1955 biographical film which tells the life story of Ruth Etting, a singer who rose from dancer to movie star. It stars Doris Day as Etting, James Cagney as gangster Martin "Moe the Gimp" Snyder, her first husband and manager, and Cameron Mitchell as pianist/ arranger Myrl...
, Merry Andrew
Merry Andrew (film)
Merry Andrew is a 1958 American musical film directed and choreographed by Michael Kidd. The screenplay by Isobel Lennart and I.A.L. Diamond is based on the short story "The Romance of Henry Menafee" by Paul Gallico...
, The Inn of the Sixth Happiness
The Inn of the Sixth Happiness
The Inn of the Sixth Happiness is a 1958 American 20th Century Fox film based on the true story of Gladys Aylward, a tenacious British maid, who became a missionary in China during the tumultuous years leading up to World War II...
, Please Don't Eat the Daisies
Please Don't Eat the Daisies (film)
Please Don't Eat the Daisies is a comedy film starring Doris Day and David Niven, made by Euterpe Inc., and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer...
, The Sundowners
The Sundowners
The Sundowners is a 1960 film that tells the story of an Australian outback family torn between the father's desires to continue his nomadic sheep-herding ways and the wife's and son's desire to settle down in one place...
, and Two for the Seesaw
Two for the Seesaw
Two for the Seesaw is a 1962 romance-drama film directed by Robert Wise and starring Robert Mitchum and Shirley MacLaine. It was adapted from the Broadway play written by William Gibson.-Plot:...
.
In 1964, Lennart wrote the book for the Broadway musical Funny Girl, based on the life and career of Fanny Brice
Fanny Brice
Fanny Brice was a popular and influential American illustrated song "model," comedienne, singer, theatre and film actress, who made many stage, radio and film appearances and is known as the creator and star of the top-rated radio comedy series, The Baby Snooks Show...
and her tempestuous relationship with gambler Nicky Arnstein
Nicky Arnstein
Julius W. "Nicky" Arnstein was an American businessman, professional gambler, and con artist. Among his aliases were "Nick Arnold," "Nicholas Arnold," "Julius Arnold," "Wallace Ames," "John Adams," and "J...
. It catapulted Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
to fame and earned her a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
nomination. In 1968
1968 in film
The year 1968 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 30 - The film The Lion in Winter, starring Katharine Hepburn, debuts.* November 1 - The MPAA's film rating system is introduced.-Top grossing films :- Awards :...
, Lennart wrote the screen adaptation, which won her a Writers Guild of America
Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America is a generic term referring to the joint efforts of two different US labor unions:* The Writers Guild of America, East , representing TV and film writers East of the Mississippi....
award for Best Screenplay. It proved to be her last work. Three years later, she was killed in an automobile accident in Hemet, California
Hemet, California
Hemet is a city in the San Jacinto Valley in Riverside County, California, United States. It covers a total area of , about half of the valley, which it shares with the neighboring city of San Jacinto. The population was 78,657 at the 2010 census....
.