Louis Alan Garfinkle (1928-2005) was an American scriptwriter and the co-developer of the Collaborator computer screenwriting program. He was nominated for the

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 ...

with four others for ''

The Deer Hunter ''The Deer Hunter'' is a 1978 war drama film co-written and directed by Michael Cimino about a trio of Slavic-American steelworkers whose lives were upended after fighting in the Vietnam War. The three soldiers are played by Robert De Niro, Chr ...

''. He died of complications from

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

at his home in Studio City in 2005. He was born in Seattle in 1928 and studied at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

from which he received his B.A. in 1948. Garfinkle was one of the co-creators with director Cary Brown and fellow screenwriter Francis Feighan of the Collaborator, an interactive scriptwriting computer program that was popular in the 1990s. Garfinkle's obituary in the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' stated that Collaborator "poses questions aimed at shaping a movie treatment and prods the writer to flesh out characters". Garfinkle also co-wrote the story for the 1973 Broadway musical '' Molly'' that starred

Kaye Ballard Kaye Ballard (November 20, 1925 – January 21, 2019) was an American actress, comedian, and singer. Early life Ballard was born Catherine Gloria Balotta in Cleveland, Ohio, one of four children born to Italian immigrant parents, Lena (née Nac ...

. Garfinkle collaborated on five films with the director

Albert Band Albert Band (May 7, 1924 – June 14, 2002) was a French-American film director and film producer. He was the son of artist Max Band, father of filmmaker Charles Band and of film composer Richard Band and the grandfather of Alex Band, Taryn Ban ...

Credits

*'' The Young Guns'' (1956) *''

I Bury the Living ''I Bury the Living'' is a 1958 horror film directed by famed B movie director Albert Band and starring Richard Boone and Theodore Bikel. It was written by Louis A. Garfinkle and produced by Garfinkle and Band. Plot Robert Kraft is the newly app ...

'' (1958) *''

Face of Fire ''Face of Fire'' is a 1959 American drama film directed by Albert Band and written by Louis A. Garfinkle. It is based on the 1898 short story ''The Monster'' by Stephen Crane. The film stars Cameron Mitchell, James Whitmore, Bettye Ackerman, M ...

'' (1959) *'' The Doberman Gang'' (1972) *''

Little Cigars ''Little Cigars'' is a film released in 1973 by American International Pictures and was directed by Chris Christenberry. The film was also released in the United States as ''The Little Cigars Mob''. Plot A gang of dwarves team up with a gang ...

'' (1973) *''

'' (1978) (co-writer)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Garfinkle, Louis A. American male screenwriters University of Southern California alumni Writers from Seattle