Gregory Mcdonald (February 15, 1937 – September 7, 2008) was an American mystery writer whose most famous character is the comedy investigative reporter Irwin Maurice "Fletch" Fletcher. Two of the Fletch books earned

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

s from the

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is an organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the Edgar Award ...

: '' Fletch'' was named Best First Novel in 1975, and ''Confess, Fletch'' won for Best Paperback Original in 1977. This is the only time a novel and its sequel won back-to-back Edgars. Mcdonald would go on to write nine more ''Fletch'' novels, including prequels ''Fletch Won'', ''Fletch Too'', and ''Fletch and the Widow Bradley''. The original book became a 1985 movie of the same name starring

Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He became a key cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'', where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment became a staple of the ...

Early life

Mcdonald was born in

Shrewsbury, Massachusetts Shrewsbury (/ˈʃruzberi/ ''SHROOZ-bury'') is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Shrewsbury, unlike the surrounding towns of Grafton, Millbury, Westborough, Northborough, Boylston, and West Boylston did not become a ...

and attended Harvard, paying his own way by operating yachts.

Career

He worked as a teacher before becoming a journalist for the ''

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'' in the late 1960s. He left his newspaper position to become a novelist full-time with the publication of ''Fletch''.

Fletch novels

In 1985, the first novel in the Fletch series was adapted into a movie with

playing the irreverent investigative reporter. Chase would reprise his role in the 1989 sequel ''

Fletch Lives ''Fletch Lives'' is a 1989 American comedy mystery film starring Chevy Chase and the sequel to '' Fletch'' (1985), directed by Michael Ritchie from a screenplay by Leon Capetanos based on the character created by Gregory Mcdonald. Plot Fletch ...

'' (based on the Fletch character, but not adapted from any Mcdonald novel). Although Mcdonald had never really seen Chevy Chase perform in anything substantial, he readily agreed to the casting of the actor in the role, and had nothing but praise for his performance. In ''

Confess, Fletch ''Confess, Fletch'' is a 2022 American crime comedy film directed by Greg Mottola, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Zev Borow. Based on Gregory Mcdonald's 1976 novel of the same name, the film stars Jon Hamm, Lorenza Izzo, Marcia Gay Harde ...

'', Mcdonald also introduced his second signature protagonist, Inspector Francis Xavier Flynn, a brilliant but eccentric Boston Police homicide detective who served as a foil for Fletch. Flynn would go on to appear in four of his own spin-off novels. The Fletch series also spawned the ''Son of Fletch'' series, in which Mcdonald introduced the character of Jack Faoni, the illegitimate son of Irwin Maurice Fletcher. In addition, Mcdonald wrote two novels in the ''Skylar'' series and a number of non-series (and non-mystery) novels.

Personal life

In the mid-1980s, he moved to

Pulaski, Tennessee Pulaski is a city in and the county seat of Giles County, which is located on the central-southern border of Tennessee, United States. The population was 8,397 at the 2020 census. It was named after Casimir Pulaski, a noted Polish-born soldier o ...

, where he bought an antebellum farm and became involved in local politics, specifically anti-Klan work. (Pulaski was the birthplace of the KKK.) He died at his home from prostate cancer in 2008. Aside from his wife, Cheryle Higgins, whom he married in 2001, Mcdonald was survived by a sister, two sons, three stepsons and grandchildren. His first marriage ended in divorce.

Bibliography

Irwin Maurice "Fletch" Fletcher series

*'' Fletch'' (1974) *''Confess, Fletch'' (1976) *''Fletch's Fortune'' (1978) *''Fletch and the Widow Bradley'' (1981) *''Fletch's Moxie'' (1982) *''Fletch and the Man Who'' (1983) *''Carioca Fletch'' (1984) *'' Fletch Won'' (1985) *''Fletch, Too'' (1986)

Son of Fletch series

*''Son of Fletch'' (1993) *''Fletch Reflected'' (1994)

Francis Xavier Flynn series

*''Flynn'' (1977) *''The Buck Passes Flynn'' (1981) *''Flynn's In'' (1984) *''Flynn's World'' (1999 as e-book; 2003 on paper)

Skylar series

*''Skylar'' (1995) *''Skylar in Yankeeland'' (1997)

Standalone novels

*''Running Scared'' (1964) *''Love Among the Mashed Potatoes'' apa ''Dear M.E.'' (1978) *''Who Took Toby Rinaldi?'' (US title)/''Snatched'' (UK title) (1980) *''Safekeeping'' (1985) *''A World Too Wide'' (1987) *''Exits and Entrances'' (1988) *''Merely Players'' (1988) *''The Brave'' (1991) *''Wise Saws'' (unpublished)

Other

*''The Education of Gregory Mcdonald: Sketches from the Sixties. Writings About America, 1966-1973'' (1985) *''Souvenirs of a Blown World: Sketches from the Sixties: Writings About America, 1966-1973'',

Seven Stories Press Seven Stories Press is an independent American publishing company. Based in New York City, the company was founded by Dan Simon in 1995, after establishing Four Walls Eight Windows in 1984 as an imprint at Writers and Readers, and then incorpora ...

, 2009; collection of his writings for the ''Boston Globe''

Film adaptations

*'' Running Scared'' (1972) starring

Robert Powell Robert Powell (; born 1 June 1944) is an English actor who is known for the title roles in ''Mahler'' (1974) and '' Jesus of Nazareth'' (1977), and for his portrayal of secret agent Richard Hannay in '' The Thirty Nine Steps'' (1978) and its ...

and

Gayle Hunnicutt Gayle Jenkins, Lady Jenkins (''née'' Hunnicutt; born February 6, 1943) is an American retired film, television and stage actress. She has made more than 30 film appearances. Early life and education The daughter of Colonel Sam Lloyd Hunnicut ...

*'' Fletch'' (1985) starring

*''

'' (1989) starring Chevy Chase *'' The Brave'' (1997) starring

Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...

and

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academ ...

*''

'' (2022) starring

Jon Hamm Jonathan Daniel Hamm (born March 10, 1971) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Don Draper in the period drama television series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Televisi ...

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mcdonald, Gregory 1937 births 2008 deaths Harvard University alumni 20th-century American novelists American male novelists American mystery writers Edgar Award winners Novelists from Massachusetts People from Shrewsbury, Massachusetts 20th-century American male writers People from Pulaski, Tennessee Deaths from prostate cancer Deaths from cancer in Tennessee