Dudley Nichols (April 6, 1895 – January 4, 1960) was an American

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

. He was the first person to decline an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

, as part of a boycott to gain recognition for the Screen Writers Guild; he would later accept his

Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Awards, Academy Award 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 Story. Be ...

in 1938.

Biography

Dudley Nichols was born April 6, 1895, in

Wapakoneta, Ohio Wapakoneta, (, ) is a city in and the county seat of Auglaize County, Ohio, United States, about north of Dayton and south of Toledo. The population was 9,957 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of and is included in the Wapakonet ...

. He studied at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

where he was active member of the Sigma chapter of

Theta Xi Theta Xi () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) on April 29, 1864. Of all the social fraternities today, Theta Xi was the only one founded during the Civil War. It ...

fraternity. After working as a reporter for the ''

New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publi ...

'', Nichols moved to Hollywood in 1929 and became one of the most highly regarded screenwriters of the 1930s and 1940s. He collaborated on many films over many years with director

John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...

, and was also noted for his work with

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head of ...

Howard Hawks Howard Winchester Hawks (May 30, 1896December 26, 1977) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era. Critic Leonard Maltin called him "the greatest American director who is not a household name." A v ...

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), known as Fritz Lang, was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety'', August 4, 1976, p. 6 ...

and

Jean Renoir Jean Renoir (; 15 September 1894 – 12 February 1979) was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. As a film director and actor, he made more than forty films from the silent film, silent era to the end of the 1960s. ...

. Nichols wrote or co-wrote the screenplays for films including ''

Bringing Up Baby ''Bringing Up Baby'' is a 1938 American screwball comedy film directed by Howard Hawks, and starring Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant. It was released by RKO Pictures, RKO Radio Pictures. The film tells the story of a paleontologist in a numb ...

'' (1938), ''

Stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...

'' (1939), ''

For Whom the Bell Tolls ''For Whom the Bell Tolls'' is a novel by Ernest Hemingway published in 1940. It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer attached to a Republican guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter, he is assigned ...

'' (1943), ''

Scarlet Street ''Scarlet Street'' is a 1945 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang. The screenplay concerns two criminals who take advantage of a middle-aged painter in order to steal his artwork. The film is based on the French novel ''La Chienne'' (literal ...

'' (1945), ''

And Then There Were None ''And Then There Were None'' is a mystery novel by the English writer Agatha Christie, described by her as the most difficult of her books to write. It was first published in the United Kingdom by the Collins Crime Club on 6 November 1939, as ...

'' (1945), ''

The Bells of St. Mary's ''The Bells of St. Mary's'' (1945) is an American musical comedy-drama film, produced and directed by Leo McCarey and starring Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman. Written by Dudley Nichols and based on a story by McCarey, the film is about a priest ...

'' (1945), '' Pinky'' (1949) and ''

The Tin Star ''The Tin Star'' is a 1957 American Western film based on a short story, directed in VistaVision by Anthony Mann and starring Henry Fonda and Anthony Perkins, in one of Perkins' first roles. The film became one of the few low-budget westerns t ...

'' (1957). Nichols initially declined the Academy Award he received for '' The Informer'', due to a dispute between the Screen Writers Guild, of which he was a founder, and the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motio ...

. He collected the award at the 1938 Oscar ceremony. He served as president of the Screen Writers Guild in 1937 and 1938. He also co-wrote the documentary ''

The Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under Ad ...

'', which won the 1942

Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosoph ...

. Nichols produced and

directed Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

three films—''

Government Girl ''Government Girl'' is a 1943 American romantic-comedy film, produced and directed by Dudley Nichols and starring Olivia de Havilland and Sonny Tufts. Based on a story by Adela Rogers St. Johns, and written by Dudley Nichols and Budd Schulberg, th ...

'' (1943), ''

Sister Kenny ''Sister Kenny'' is a 1946 American biographical film about Sister Elizabeth Kenny, an Australian bush nurse, who fought to help people who suffered from polio, despite opposition from the medical establishment. The film stars Rosalind Russell, ...

'' (1946) and ''

Mourning Becomes Electra ''Mourning Becomes Electra'' is a play cycle written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The play premiered on Broadway at the Guild Theatre on 26 October 1931 where it ran for 150 performances before closing in March 1932, starring Lee Baker ...

'' (1947)—for which he also wrote the screenplay.

Awards

In 1954 he received the

Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement The Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement (also known as the Screen Laurel Award) is a lifetime achievement award given by the Writers Guild of America. It is given "to that member of the Guild who, in the opinion of the current Board of Dir ...

from the

Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), headquartered in New York City and affiliated with the AFL–CIO * The Writers Guil ...

Death

He died in Hollywood of cancer in 1960 and was interred in the

Hollywood Forever Cemetery Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a full-service cemetery, funeral home, crematory, and cultural events center which regularly hosts community events such as live music and summer movie screenings. It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Angeles ...

Filmography

References

External links

* * * * * Dudley Nichols Papers. Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. {{DEFAULTSORT:Nichols, Dudley 1895 births 1960 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American novelists American male novelists American male screenwriters American mystery writers Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award winners Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery Deaths from cancer in California People from Wapakoneta, Ohio University of Michigan alumni 20th-century American screenwriters