Paul Brickman (born April 23, 1949) is an American

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

. He is best known for writing and directing ''

Risky Business ''Risky Business'' is a 1983 American teen comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Brickman (in his directorial debut) and starring Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay. Best known as Cruise's breakout film, ''Risky Business'' was a critical ...

''.

Early life

Brickman was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and raised in suburban Highland Park, the son of Shirley (née Kronenthal) and

Morrie Brickman Morrie Brickman (July 24, 1917 – March 15, 1994) was a cartoonist. His nationally syndicated comic strip ''The Small Society'' was published in over 300 papers, including 35 foreign publications. Biography Brickman was born in Chicago, Illinois ...

. His father,

, was a cartoonist who created the popular comic strip "The Small Society." He graduated from Highland Park High School in 1967. He graduated from Claremont Men's College in Claremont, California.

Career

Brickman began his career by writing the screenplays for ''

The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training ''The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training'' is a 1977 American sports comedy-drama film and a sequel to the 1976 feature film '' The Bad News Bears''. Plot This film picks up the Bears' career a year after their infamous second-place finish i ...

'' and '' Handle with Care'', both of which were released in 1977. In 1983, he made his directorial debut with ''

'', starring

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 Gol ...

. Much of the film was filmed in Brickman's hometown,

Highland Park, Illinois Highland Park is a suburban city located in the southeastern part of Lake County, Illinois, United States, about north of downtown Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 30,176. Highland Park is one of several municipalities located o ...

, and the surrounding area. However, the film was set in nearby Glencoe. The film was a major success, though Brickman felt disillusioned at having to compromise on the ending. In 1990, he cowrote and directed ''

Men Don't Leave ''Men Don't Leave'' is a 1990 American comedy-drama film starring Jessica Lange as a housewife who, after the death of her husband, moves with her two sons to Baltimore. Chris O'Donnell, Arliss Howard, Joan Cusack, Charlie Korsmo and Kathy Bates ...

'', a loose adaptation of the 1982 French film ''La Vie Continue''. Brickman shared writing credit with Jon Avnet (the producer of ''Risky Business'') on the 2001 NBC miniseries ''

Uprising Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

''. His only other directing credit is a short film called ''Allison'' (2012).

Filmography

References

External links

* 1949 births Writers from Chicago Living people American male screenwriters American film directors Claremont McKenna College alumni Screenwriters from Illinois Screenwriters from California {{US-screen-writer-stub People from Highland Park, Illinois