Fanya Foss (sometimes credited as Fanya Lawrence or F.A. Foss, October 4, 1906 – December 12, 1995) was a Russian Empire-born American screenwriter, short story writer, and television writer active in Hollywood during the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. She was married to actor-filmmaker

Marc Lawrence Marc Lawrence (born Max Goldsmith; February 17, 1910 – November 28, 2005) was an American character actor who specialized in underworld types. He has also been credited as F. A. Foss, Marc Laurence and Marc C. Lawrence. Early life Lawrence w ...

, with whom she had a daughter, actress Toni Lawrence (ex-wife of

Billy Bob Thornton Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...

), and a son, artist Michael Lawrence.

Biography

Fanya was born into a Jewish family in

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, in 1906, and moved to New York City with her family when she was a year old. Against her parents' wishes, she married her first husband, the writer

Edward Dahlberg Edward Dahlberg (July 22, 1900 – February 27, 1977) was an American novelist, essayist, and autobiographer. Background Edward Dahlberg was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Elizabeth Dahlberg. Together, mother and son led a vagabond existence ...

, while she was only 17; that marriage would end in divorce. As a talented young singer, she won a scholarship to

Juilliard The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

and toured Paris. She later married Gordon Kingman (this marriage also ended). She returned to New York City and took a position as a librarian at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

before she began working at ''

The Brooklyn Eagle :''This article covers both the historical newspaper (1841–1955, 1960–1963), as well as an unrelated new Brooklyn Daily Eagle starting 1996 published currently'' The ''Brooklyn Eagle'' (originally joint name ''The Brooklyn Eagle'' and ''King ...

'' as a reporter and then became an editor at a publishing house, where she specialized in travel books. Her stint as a literary editor led her to some travels of her own; she left NYC with $25, determined to see the country. During this trip, she ended up working in various bookstores and art shops; while on the road, she learned one of her mystery thriller scripts had sold to

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...

. She met character actor Marc Lawrence while working in Hollywood; the pair were married in Las Vegas in 1942. After the 1940s, she concentrated primarily on writing television, although she did collaborate with her husband on films like 1965's ''

Nightmare in the Sun ''Nightmare in the Sun'' is a 1965 film drama directed by Marc Lawrence, and written by George Fass and Fanya Foss, about a murderous affair. Derek starred along with Ursula Andress and Aldo Ray. Smaller roles in the film featured Sammy Davi ...

'' and 1973's ''

Pigs The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus s ...

''. The pair lived in Rome in the 1950s to avoid the Hollywood blacklist. Fanya was a member of the

Screen Writers Guild The Screen Writers Guild was an organization of Hollywood screenplay authors, formed as a union in 1933. In 1954, it became two different organizations: Writers Guild of America, West and the Writers Guild of America, East. Founding Screenwriter ...

. She died in Palm Springs, California, on December 12, 1995.

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1972) * ''

'' (1965) * '' Why Girls Leave Home'' (1945) * '' Hi Ya, Sailor'' (1943) * ''

The Stork Pays Off ''The Stork Pays Off'' is a 1941 American comedy film directed by Lew Landers and written by Fanya Foss and Aleen Leslie. The film stars Victor Jory, Rochelle Hudson, Maxie Rosenbloom, Horace McMahon, George McKay and Ralf Harolde. The film was ...

'' (1941) * ''

The Richest Man in Town ''The Richest Man in Town'' is a 1941 comedy film directed by Charles Barton, which stars Frank Craven, Edgar Buchanan, and Eileen O'Hearn. Cast list * Frank Craven as Abb Crothers * Edgar Buchanan as Pete Martin * Eileen O'Hearn as Mary Martin ...

'' (1941) * ''

Affectionately Yours ''Affectionately Yours'' is a 1941 American romantic comedy film directed by Lloyd Bacon and starring Merle Oberon, Dennis Morgan, and Rita Hayworth. Plot Foreign correspondent Rickey Mayberry ( Dennis Morgan) hurriedly flies back from Port ...

'' (1941) * ''

Girls Under 21 ''Girls Under 21'' is a 1940 American drama film directed by Max Nosseck, starring Bruce Cabot and Rochelle Hudson. Plot summary Frances White (Rochelle Hudson) from the slums, escapes the tenements by marrying rich gangster Smiley Ryan (Bruce ...

'' (1940)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foss, Fanya 1906 births 1995 deaths American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent American women screenwriters Jewish American writers Columbia University librarians Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American Jews