Steve Gordon (October 10, 1938 – November 27, 1982) was an American screenwriter and film director who wrote and directed the 1981 comedy ''

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more w ...

'', starring

Dudley Moore Dudley Stuart John Moore CBE (19 April 193527 March 2002) was an English actor, comedian, musician and composer. Moore first came to prominence in the UK as a leading figure in the British satire boom of the 1960s. He was one of the four writ ...

. Gordon died in New York City on November 27, 1982, from a heart attack. He was 44 years old. Gordon was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the 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. Beginning with th ...

for ''Arthur''. The film not only marked his directorial debut, but his only work as a film director. He had written only one previous feature film, '' The One and Only'' (1978), starring

Henry Winkler Henry Franklin Winkler, OBE (born October 30, 1945), is an American actor, comedian, author, executive producer, and director. After rising to fame as Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli on the American television series '' Happy Days'', Winkler has ...

, having spent several years writing for television.

Early and personal life

Gordon was born in

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester ...

but was raised by his aunt and uncle in

Ottawa Hills, Ohio Ottawa Hills is a village in Lucas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 4,517 at the 2010 census. The village was developed on both sides of the Ottawa River (Ohio) and serves as a bedroom community and suburb of Toledo. The Ottawa ...

, after his parents died. Gordon grew up in a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in the Toledo suburb of

, and graduated from Ottawa Hills High School in 1957. Gordon then attended

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pu ...

, where he majored in political science and history; he graduated in 1961. Gordon had resided in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

since his graduation from Ohio State. He never married.

Death and legacy

According to his brother, Gordon had been suffering from chest pains and had visited the doctor five days before his death. Gordon's niece was eating lunch with him at his New York City apartment when he suffered a fatal heart attack. He was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in Toledo, Ohio. In December 1982, Gordon's brother, Toledo radiologist Dr. Michael Gordon, created an annual scholarship for Ottawa Hills High School students in Steve's name. In 2010 he was one of five people inducted into the Ottawa Hills Foundation's Community Hall of Fame.

Filmography

*'' Lotsa Luck'' (1974) (TV) *'' The New Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1974) (TV) *'' Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers'' (1974) (TV) *'' Chico and the Man'' (1974) (TV) *''

Barney Miller ''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th St in Greenwich Village. The series was broadcast on ABC Network from January 23, 1975, to May 20, 1982. It was created ...

'' (1975) (TV) *''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy i ...

'' (1976) (TV) (Creator) *'' The One and Only'' (1978) *'' Good Time Harry'' (1980) (TV) *''

'' (1981) (Director/Writer)

References

External links

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Steve Gordon
by Ken Levine {{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Steve American male screenwriters American television writers 1938 births 1982 deaths Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences alumni American male television writers People from Chester, Pennsylvania People from Ottawa Hills, Ohio Film directors from Pennsylvania Film directors from Ohio Golden Globe Award-winning producers Screenwriters from Ohio Screenwriters from Pennsylvania 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters