Brenda Weisberg (1900–1996) was a Russian-American screenwriter active from the late 1930s through the early 1950s. Her body of work spanned a wide range of genres, from monster movies to thrillers to family films. She wrote several films for the Rusty the Dog and

Dead End Kids The Dead End Kids were a group of young actors from New York City who appeared in Sidney Kingsley's Broadway play ''Dead End'' in 1935. In 1937, producer Samuel Goldwyn brought all of them to Hollywood and turned the play into a film. They prov ...

series.

Biography

Brenda was born in Rovno, Ukraine, to a Jewish family; she emigrated to

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

with her parents when she was a little girl. The family eventually settled in Phoenix, Arizona. After graduating high school, she began working for local publications, and eventually founded the city's first Jewish newspaper, ''The Southwestern Jewish Star''. She eventually moved to Hollywood around 1940, where she began writing genres films for big studios like Universal, RKO, and Columbia. Her credits include films like ''

The Mummy's Ghost ''The Mummy's Ghost'' is a 1944 American horror film directed by Reginald Le Borg. It is the second of three sequels to that company's ''The Mummy's Hand'' of 1940. The film is the sequel to ''The Mummy's Tomb'' (1942). Lon Chaney, Jr. again take ...

'', ''

Weird Woman ''Weird Woman'' is a 1944 Inner Sanctum film noir mystery and horror film directed by Reginald Le Borg and starring Lon Chaney Jr., Anne Gwynne, and Evelyn Ankers. The "Inner Sanctum" franchise originated with a popular radio series and all ...

'', ''

My Dog Rusty ''My Dog Rusty'' is a 1948 American drama film directed by Lew Landers and starring Ted Donaldson, John Litel and Ann Doran. It was part of the eight-film Rusty series of films produced by Columbia Pictures, about a boy and his valiant German Sh ...

'', and ''

There's One Born Every Minute ''There's One Born Every Minute'', also known as ''Man or Mouse'', is a 1942 American Universal Pictures comedy film directed by Harold Young. It was Elizabeth Taylor's first film and one of her only films with Universal Studios. The film is ...

''. She retired from screenwriting in 1952, the year she moved back to Phoenix, Arizona, and married her husband, Morris Meckler. In her later years, she became active in the local arts scene, working with the Phoenix Little Theatre as a writer, director, and actor. In 1988, she published a book about her life called ''Papa Was a Farmer''.

Selected screenplays

* ''

Girls' School Single-sex education, also known as single-gender education and gender-isolated education, is the practice of conducting education with male and female students attending separate classes, perhaps in separate buildings or schools. The practice of ...

'' (1950) * ''

Rusty's Birthday ''Rusty's Birthday'' is a black-and-white American juvenile drama, released by Columbia Pictures in November 1949. Structured as an hour-long second feature, it is the final entry in the eight-film low-budget series which centers on the bond bet ...

'' (1949) * ''

Rusty Saves a Life ''Rusty Saves a Life'' is a 1949 American drama film directed by Seymour Friedman and starring Ted Donaldson, Gloria Henry and Ann Doran.Blottner p.285 It was part of the Rusty series of films produced by Columbia Pictures. Cast * Ted Donaldso ...

'' (1949) * ''

Port Said Port Said ( ar, بورسعيد, Būrsaʿīd, ; grc, Πηλούσιον, Pēlousion) is a city that lies in northeast Egypt extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal. With an approximate population of 6 ...

'' (1948) * ''

When a Girl's Beautiful ''When a Girl's Beautiful'' is a 1947 musical comedy directed by Frank McDonald from a script by Brenda Weisberg. Actress Joi Lansing made her film debut on this film. Plot An advertising man begins a search for the "perfect woman" for a ne ...

'' (1947) * '' King of the Wild Horses'' (1947) * ''

Alias Mr. Twilight ''Alias Mr. Twilight'' is a 1946 crime drama film directed by John Sturges and starring Michael Duane, Trudy Marshall, and Lloyd Corrigan. Plot Cast * Michael Duane as Tim Quaine * Trudy Marshall as Corky Corcoran * Lloyd Corrigan as Geoffrey ...

'' (1946) * ''

Shadowed ''Shadowed'', also known as ''The Gloved Hand'', is a 1946 American film noir crime film directed by John Sturges and starring Anita Louise, Lloyd Corrigan, and Robert Scott. Plot Salesman Fred J. Johnson manages to hit a hole-in-one as he p ...

'' (1946) * ''

Ding Dong Williams ''Ding Dong Williams'' is a 1946 American comedy film directed by William Berke, and written by Brenda Weisberg and M. Coates Webster. The film stars Glen Vernon (under his real name, Glenn Vernon), Marcy McGuire, Felix Bressart, Anne Jeffreys, ...

'' (1946) * '' China Sky'' (1945) * ''

'' (1944) * ''

'' (1944) * '' The Mad Ghoul'' (1943) * ''

Keep 'Em Slugging ''Keep 'Em Slugging'' is a 1943 American film starring the Little Tough Guys and directed by Christy Cabanne for Universal Pictures. This was the final film in Universal's Little Tough Guys series, and although Universal still billed the group as ...

'' (1943) * ''

Mug Town ''Mug Town'' is a 1942 Universal film starring the Dead End Kids and the Little Tough Guys. Plot Steve, Tommy, Pig, Ape, and String get chased out of town. During their attempt to hop onto a freight car, Steve dies. The other boys go and tell Ali ...

'' (1942) * ''

Overland Mail Butterfield Overland Mail (officially the Overland Mail Company)Waterman L. Ormsby, edited by Lyle H. Wright and Josephine M. Bynum, "The Butterfield Overland Mail", The Huntington Library, San Marino, California, 1991. was a stagecoach service ...

'' (1942) * ''

'' (1942) * '' Tough as They Come'' (1942) * ''You're Telling Me'' (1942) * '' Mob Town'' (1941) * ''

Sing Another Chorus ''Sing Another Chorus'' is a 1941 American film starring Jane Frazee. Plot Andy Peyton comes home from college, wanting not to work for his father's failing garment business but to be involved in stage shows and entertainment. A former burlesqu ...

'' (1941) * '' Hit the Road'' (1941) * ''

You're Not So Tough ''You're Not So Tough'' is a 1940 Universal Studios drama film directed by Joe May and starring ''Dead End Kids'' and the '' Little Tough Guys'' and was the first in the series where Billy Halop and Huntz Hall weren't billed in the opening credits ...

'' (1940) * ''

Little Tough Guy ''Little Tough Guy'' is a 1938 crime film that starred several of the ''Dead End Kids''. In the follow-up films, the studio began using the group name '' The Little Tough Guys'', and later '' The Dead End Kids and Little Tough Guys''. This was ...

'' (1938)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weisberg, Brenda Soviet screenwriters 20th-century Russian screenwriters 1900 births 1996 deaths People from Rivne American women screenwriters 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American screenwriters Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States American people of Russian-Jewish descent