Oscar Millard (March 1, 1908 – December 7, 1990) was an English

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

who published two books set in Belgium before finding success in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

as a screenwriter.

Author

In 1936 Millard published a biography of

Adolphe Max Adolphe Eugène Jean Henri Max (30 December 1869 – 6 November 1939) was a Belgian liberal politician and mayor of the City of Brussels from 1909 until his death. He was also an irregular freemason, an honorary Minister of State and a member ...

, who had been mayor of Brussels during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and had been imprisoned for refusing to cooperate with the occupying forces. He followed this in 1937 with a novel inspired by the clandestine wartime newspaper ''

La Libre Belgique ''La Libre Belgique'' (; literally ''The Free Belgium''), currently sold under the name ''La Libre'', is a major daily newspaper in Belgium. Together with ''Le Soir'', it is one of the country's major French language newspapers and is popular in ...

'', entitled '' Uncensored''.Howard Maxford, ''Hammer Complete: The Films, the Personnel, the Company'' (2019), p. 559. In 1942, this was adapted for the screen as '' Uncensored'', with

Terence Rattigan Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan (10 June 191130 November 1977) was a British dramatist and screenwriter. He was one of England's most popular mid-20th-century dramatists. His plays are typically set in an upper-middle-class background.Geoffrey Wan ...

as the main scriptwriter. The setting was updated to the contemporary

German occupation of Belgium during World War II The German occupation of Belgium (french: link=no, Occupation allemande, nl, Duitse bezetting) during World War II began on 28 May 1940, when the Belgian army surrendered to German forces, and lasted until Belgium's liberation by the Western ...

Screenwriter

Hollywood success came after the war, when Millard collaborated on the

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, fe ...

for ''

Come to the Stable ''Come to the Stable'' is a 1949 American comedy drama film that tells the story of two French religious sisters who come to a small New England town and involve the townsfolk in helping them to build a children's hospital. It stars Loretta Young ...

'', a comedy about nuns. He fared better the following year when he picked up an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination for the gritty war movie ''

The Frogmen ''The Frogmen'' is a 1951 American black-and-white World War II drama film from Twentieth Century Fox, produced by Samuel G. Engel, directed by Lloyd Bacon, that stars Richard Widmark, Dana Andrews, and Gary Merrill. The film's storyline is base ...

'' (1951). Millard's output after that was less successful though interesting: the

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality h ...

thriller ''

No Highway in the Sky ''No Highway in the Sky'' (also known as ''No Highway'') is a 1951 British black-and-white aviation drama film from 20th Century Fox, produced by Louis D. Lighton, directed by Henry Koster, that stars James Stewart, Marlene Dietrich, Glynis ...

'' (1951) and

Otto Preminger Otto Ludwig Preminger ( , ; 5 December 1905 – 23 April 1986) was an Austrian-American theatre and film director, film producer, and actor. He directed more than 35 feature films in a five-decade career after leaving the theatre. He first gai ...

's full-guns-blazing

femme fatale A ''femme fatale'' ( or ; ), sometimes called a maneater or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype of ...

movie '' Angel Face'' (1952). Millard's reputation was considerably tarnished after writing the

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Gol ...

Susan Hayward Susan Hayward (born Edythe Marrenner; June 30, 1917 – March 14, 1975) was an American film actress, best known for her film portrayals of women that were based on true stories. After working as a fashion model for the Walter Thornton Model A ...

barbarian A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either Civilization, uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by som ...

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...

'' The Conqueror'' (1956). The film was panned by critics, and a legend circulated that filming downwind of a lake bed where the Atomic Energy Commission had tested 11 nuclear weapons the year before caused a cancer outbreak among the cast and crew; in reality, the number of people associated with the film that developed cancer was about the same, percentage-wise, as the general US population. After that, Millard found consistent work on television, writing scripts for such shows as ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings. It ...

'', ''

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was re ...

'' for which his was awarded in 2013 by the Writers Guild of America (101 Best written TV Series) and ''

Twelve O'Clock High ''Twelve O'Clock High'' is a 1949 American war film about aircrews in the United States Army's Eighth Air Force, who flew daylight bombing missions against Germany and Occupied France during the early days of American involvement in World War II ...

''.

Filmography

* '' Uncensored'' (1942) * ''

'' (1949) * ''

'' (1951) * ''

'' (1951) * '' Angel Face'' (1953) * '' Second Chance'' (1953) * '' The Conqueror'' (1956) * ''

Song Without End ''Song Without End'', subtitled ''The Story of Franz Liszt'', is a 1960 biographical film romance made by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by Charles Vidor, who died during the shooting of the film and was replaced by George Cukor. It was produ ...

'' (1960) * '' Dead Ringer'' (1964) * ''

The Reward ''The Reward'' is a 1965 American Western film directed by Serge Bourguignon and starring Max von Sydow, Yvette Mimieux, Efrem Zimbalist Jr. and Gilbert Roland. based on a novel by Michael Barrett. Plot El Paso crop duster Scott Svenson accide ...

'' (1965) * ''

The Salzburg Connection ''The Salzburg Connection'' is a 1972 American thriller film directed by Lee H. Katzin, starring Barry Newman and Anna Karina . It is based on the 1968 novel of the same title by Helen MacInnes. It was filmed in DeLuxe Color and Panavision. The ...

'' (1972)

References

External links

* English male screenwriters American male screenwriters 1908 births 1990 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century English screenwriters 20th-century English male writers English emigrants to the United States {{US-screen-writer-stub