Jeff Maguire (born 1952) is an American screenwriter. Regarded for his talent for writing

sports films A sports film is a film genre in which any particular sport plays a prominent role in the film's plot or acts as its central theme. It is a production in which a sport, sporting event, athlete (and their sport), or follower of sport (and the spo ...

, Maguire got his first screenwriting break with his script ''

Escape to Victory ''Escape to Victory'' (stylized as ''Victory'') is a 1981 American-British-Italian sports war film directed by John Huston and starring Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, Max von Sydow and Pelé. The film is about Allied prisoners of wa ...

'', a film about soccer directed by John Huston in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

. His most recent contribution is ''

Gridiron Gang ''Gridiron Gang'' is a 2006 American sports drama film directed by Phil Joanou, and starring Dwayne Johnson, Xzibit, L. Scott Caldwell and Kevin Dunn. It is loosely based on the true story of the Kilpatrick Mustangs during the 1990 season. The ...

'', released in 2006. His most famous film is ''

In the Line of Fire ''In the Line of Fire'' is a 1993 American political action thriller film directed by Wolfgang Petersen and starring Clint Eastwood, John Malkovich and Rene Russo. Written by Jeff Maguire, the film is about a disillusioned and obsessed former C ...

'' starring Clint Eastwood and directed by

Wolfgang Petersen Wolfgang Petersen (14 March 1941 – 12 August 2022) was a German film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was nominated for two Academy Awards for the World War II submarine warfare film '' Das Boot'' (1981). His other films include '' The ...

, for which he received a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination for

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

. In 1990, Maguire was approached by producer Jeff Apple to develop Apple's Secret Service agent concept into a film treatment. Maguire was in debt to his relatives and about to have his utilities turned off when his script based on Apple's concept, "In the Line of Fire", went into a bidding war between stars

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...

, Sean Connery, and Clint Eastwood. When he received a call from Eastwood congratulating him on the completed deal (more than $1,000,000.00). Jeff's wife reportedly had to return a dress so they could afford to go out to dinner to celebrate. Prior to this, various moguls had rejected and almost destroyed the story. The dead-broke writer spurned Cruise, but wound up with Eastwood and about $1,000,000. Maguire is a graduate of

Hampshire College Hampshire College is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. It was opened in 1970 as an experiment in alternative education, in association with four other colleges in the Pioneer Valley: Amherst College, Smith College, Mo ...

, Amherst, Massachusetts. Raised in

Greenwich, Connecticut Greenwich (, ) is a town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. At the 2020 census, the town had a total population of 63,518. The largest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast, Greenwich is home to many hedge funds and other ...

, Maguire was once a railroad worker, a waiter, and a volunteer counselor with

Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was ...

's group,

Missionaries of Charity The Missionaries of Charity ( la, Congregatio Missionariarum a Caritate) is a Catholic centralized religious institute of consecrated life of Pontifical Right for women established in 1950 by Mother Teresa, now known in the Catholic Church as ...

, in the

Pico-Union Pico-Union is a neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. The name "Pico-Union" refers to the neighborhood that surrounds the intersection of Pico Boulevard and Union Avenue. Located immediately west of Downtown Los Angeles, it is home to ...

section of downtown

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, working primarily with Hispanic gangs. In the 1980s and 90s, he also frequented the famous Manhattan Beach, California video store

Video Archives Video Archives was a video rental store located in Manhattan Beach, California, and later moved to Hermosa Beach, California, owned and managed by Lance Lawson and Rick Humbert. Filmmakers Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary and Daniel Snyder worked t ...

, where future filmmakers

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, dark humor, non-linear storylines, cameos, ensembl ...

and

Roger Avary Roger Roberts Avary (born August 23, 1965) is a Canadian-American film and television director, screenwriter, and producer. He collaborated with Quentin Tarantino on ''Pulp Fiction'', for which they won Best Original Screenplay at the 67th Acade ...

were clerks. Maguire is a follower of

Meher Baba Meher Baba (born Merwan Sheriar Irani; 25 February 1894 – 31 January 1969) was an Indian spiritual master who said he was the Avatar, or God in human form, of the age. A major spiritual figure of the 20th century, he had a following of ...

and has contributed to Baba's journal, ''Glow International''.''Glow International''
belovedarchives.org. Accessed December 9, 2022.

Filmography

*''

Victory The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes ...

'' (1981) (Story Only) *'' Toby McTeague'' (with Jamie Brown and Djordje Milicevic) (1986) *''

'' (1993) *''

Timeline A timeline is a display of a list of events in chronological order. It is typically a graphic design showing a long bar labelled with dates paralleling it, and usually contemporaneous events. Timelines can use any suitable scale represen ...

'' (with

George Nolfi George Nolfi (born June 10, 1968) is an American filmmaker. He made his directorial debut in 2011 with sci-fi action, romance thriller, ''The Adjustment Bureau'' starring Matt Damon and Emily Blunt. Nolfi's work has been known to blend genres a ...

) (2003) *''

'' (with Jac Flanders) (2006)

References

External links

*
Jeff Maguire at Yahoo Movies
(biography) {{DEFAULTSORT:Maguire, Jeff American male screenwriters 1952 births Maguirie, Jeff Living people Hampshire College alumni