AJ Carothers
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A. J. Carothers (October 22, 1931 – April 9, 2007) was an American playwright and television writer, best known for his work with
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
.


Life and career

Born in
Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
on October 22, 1931, Carothers was older than his two siblings, Gibson and Lesley. He sold his first story, a murder mystery, to a classmate when he was 9 for 15 cents. After an Army stint in Panama – where he helped create the first television station in the Caribbean – he returned to Los Angeles to pursue his career in 1957. During his career, he wrote more than 100 motion pictures, television shows, and plays. His final works included writing the book for the Sherman Brothers stage musical '' Busker Alley'' which toured the U.S. in 1996, and was produced in November, 2006, by the York Theater Festival, and ''Two Can Play'', which enjoyed successful runs in Kansas City and Virginia. Carothers also wrote speeches for Nancy Reagan, John Ritter, Patrick Stewart, John Lithgow and many others. He wrote the scripts for the Music Center Spotlight Awards from its 1995 inception through 2006. Carothers garnered many honors, including the Distinguished Artists Award given by the Los Angeles Music Center, numerous Box Office Blue Ribbon awards, and The Kinkaid School Distinguished Alumnus award. He was a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and served on its Writers Executive Committee, as well as The Writers Guild of America. 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 ...
'' named him "Father of the Year" in 1967.


Personal life and death

Carothers was married to Caryl Carothers for 47 years, and had three sons, Christopher, Cameron, and Andrew. In his later years, Carothers was diagnosed with
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
, which eventually took his life on April 9, 2007.


Major screenwriting credits

*''
Miracle of the White Stallions ''Miracle of the White Stallions'' is a 1963 American adventure war film released by Walt Disney starring Robert Taylor (playing Alois Podhajsky), Lilli Palmer, and Eddie Albert. It is the story of the evacuation of the Lipizzaner horses ...
'' (1963) also known as ''The Flight of the White Stallions'' (UK) *''
Emil and the Detectives ''Emil and the Detectives'' () is a 1929 novel set mainly in Berlin, by the German writer Erich Kästner and illustrated by Walter Trier. It was Kästner's first major success and the only one of his pre-1945 works to escape Nazi censorship. The ...
'' (1964) *''
The Happiest Millionaire ''The Happiest Millionaire'' is a 1967 American musical film starring Fred MacMurray, based upon the true story of Philadelphia millionaire Anthony Drexel Biddle. The film, featuring music by the Sherman Brothers, was nominated for an Academy A ...
'' (1967) (screenplay) *'' Never a Dull Moment'' (1968) *''
Hero at Large ''Hero at Large'' is a 1980 American superhero comedy film starring John Ritter and Anne Archer. The film was written by AJ Carothers and directed by Martin Davidson. The original music score was composed by Patrick Williams. Plot Steve Nic ...
'' (1980) - Stage Director *'' The Secret of My Success'' (1987) (screenplay) (story)


Major television writing credits

*'' Studio One'' (1948) TV Series (writer) *''
The Third Man ''The Third Man'' is a 1949 British film noir directed by Carol Reed, written by Graham Greene and starring Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, and Trevor Howard. Set in postwar Vienna, the film centres on American Holly Martins (Cotten ...
'' Episode: "The Man Who Died Twice" (1959) (as A.J. Carothers) *''
Bourbon Street Beat ''Bourbon Street Beat'' is a private detective television series that aired on the ABC network from October 5, 1959, to July 4, 1960, starring Richard Long as Rex Randolph and Andrew Duggan as Cal Calhoun, with Arlene Howell as detective agency s ...
'' (1959) TV Series (writer) *''
My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chronicl ...
'' (5 episodes, 1961–1962) TV series (writer) *''
Nanny and the Professor ''Nanny and the Professor'' is an early 1970s American sitcom created by AJ Carothers and Thomas L. Miller for 20th Century-Fox Television that aired on ABC from January 21, 1970 until December 27, 1971. During pre-production, the proposed tit ...
'' (1970) TV Series (creator) (writer) (executive script consultant) (executive story consultant) *''
Goldilocks "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" (originally titled "The Story of the Three Bears") is a 19th-century English fairy tale of which three versions exist. The original version of the tale tells of an obscene old woman who enters the forest hom ...
'' (1971) *''Miss Stewart, Sir'' (1972) (TV) (as A.J. Carothers) *''Topper Returns'' (1973) (TV) (as A.J. Carothers) *''Forever'' (1978) (TV) *'' The Thief of Baghdad'' (1978) (TV) *''
Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney in ...
'' TV serial episodes including: "Never a Dull Moment" (1979) ; "Emil and the Detectives: Part 1" (1966), "Emil and the Detectives: Part 2" (1966); Flight of the White Stallions: Part 1" (1965) TV Episode (writer) "Flight of the White Stallions: Part 2" (1965) TV Episode (writer) *''Summer Girl'' (1983) (TV) also known as ''The Hands That Rob the Cradle'' *''
Goodnight, Beantown ''Goodnight, Beantown'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS for two brief seasons in 1983 and 1984. Synopsis The series stars Bill Bixby as Matt Cassidy and Mariette Hartley as Jennifer Barnes, two news anchors at WYN-TV, a fictional televis ...
'' (1983) (TV) including the pilot episode and the "Custody" episode *''
Making of a Male Model ''Making of a Male Model'' is a 1983 American made-for-television romantic drama film directed by Irving J. Moore and starring Joan Collins and Jon-Erik Hexum. It was produced by ABC and released on October 9, 1983. Plot Kay Dillon, a succ ...
'' (1983) (TV)


Film credits


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carothers, A. J. 1931 births 2007 deaths Writers from Houston Disney people 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male screenwriters American male dramatists and playwrights Screenwriters from Texas 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters