Eleanor Bergstein (born 1938) is an American writer, known for writing and co-producing ''

Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romantic drama dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tells the story of Frances "Baby" Houseman ...

'', a popular 1980s film based in large part on her own childhood.

Life and career

Bergstein was born in 1938 in the

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

borough of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. She has one older sister, Frances, in her Jewish family. Their father, Joseph, was a doctor who left much of the care of the girls to their mother, Sarah. The family spent summers in the luxury resorts

Grossinger's Catskill Resort Hotel Grossinger's Catskill Resort Hotel was a resort in the Catskill Mountains in the Town of Liberty, near the village of Liberty, New York. One of the largest Borscht Belt resorts, it was a kosher establishment that catered primarily to Jewish client ...

in the Catskill Mountains; and, while her parents were playing golf, Bergstein was dancing.Ann Kolson
Fairy Tale Without An Ending
auf ''

nytimes.com ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' Bergstein was a teenage

Mambo Mambo most often refers to: * Mambo (music), a Cuban musical form *Mambo (dance), a dance corresponding to mambo music Mambo may also refer to: Music * Mambo section, a section in arrangements of some types of Afro-Caribbean music, particul ...

queen, competing in local competitions. While at college, she worked as a dance instructor at

Arthur Murray Arthur Murray (born Moses Teichman, April 4, 1895 – March 3, 1991) was an American ballroom dancer and businessman, whose name is most often associated with the dance studio chain that bears his name. Early life and start in dance Arthur Mur ...

dance studios. Bergstein graduated from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

in 1958. In 1966, she was married to Michael Paul Goldman and worked as a novelist, including ''Advancing Paul Newman''. This novel contains many of the themes of her famous movie. She also tried her hand at scriptwriting and had success with '' It's My Turn'', a film starring

Michael Douglas Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944) is an American actor and film producer. He has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the A ...

and

Jill Clayburgh Jill Clayburgh (April 30, 1944 – November 5, 2010) was an American actress known for her work in theater, television, and cinema. She received the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Ac ...

. During production, the producers cut an erotic dance scene from the script. That sparked Bergstein into writing a more extensive story, focusing on "dirty dancing". The movie ''Dirty Dancing'' was released in theaters in 1987. In 2004, Bergstein also adapted the movie into a stage version of ''Dirty Dancing'', which became a musical. The show opened in 2004 in Australia.

Works

*''Dirty Dancing: The Musical'', 2004 stage production *'' Let It Be Me'', 1995 film *''Ex-Lover: A Novel'', 1989 novel *''

'', 1987 film *'' It's My Turn'', 1980 screenplay *''Advancing Paul Newman'', 1973 novel

References

External links

“A Conversation with Eleanor Bergstein, Writer and Producer of ‘Dirty Dancing,’ on its 30th Anniversary”
Sophie Aroesty
Jewcy
August 28, 2017.

June 15, 2005, ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory ...

'' *''Dirty Dancing'',

The E! True Hollywood Story ''E! True Hollywood Story'' is an American television documentary series on E! that pulls back the curtain and highlights some of pop culture's most fascinating people, moments and trends. The series offers exclusive interviews with new insigh ...

, television documentary, first aired September 3, 2000
"Dirty Dancing: Baby's Out of the Corner"
May 2007, ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Bergstein, Eleanor Living people Jewish women writers Jewish American writers 1938 births People from the Catskills Writers from Brooklyn 21st-century American Jews