Jack William Thomas (born October 24, 1930, in Seattle, Washington) is an American screenwriter and

pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

author.

Biography

Thomas enlisted in the United States Navy for four years in 1950 during the period of the Korean War. He entered the University of Arizona on the G.I. Bill earning a Bachelor of Arts in 1957. The following year Thomas traveled through Europe and Mexico. Thomas became a screenwriter working for

Robert L. Lippert Robert Lenard Lippert (March 31, 1909 – November 16, 1976) was an American film producer and cinema chain owner. He was president and chief operating officer of Lippert Theatres, Affiliated Theatres and Transcontinental Theatres, all based in ...

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

B picture unit Regal Films later Associate Producers Incorporated where he wrote the films '' Lone Texan'' (1959), ''

13 Fighting Men ''13 Fighting Men'' is a 1960 American drama film directed by Harry W. Gerstad and written by Robert Hamner and Jack W. Thomas. The film stars Grant Williams (actor), Grant Williams, Brad Dexter, Carole Mathews, Robert Dix, Richard Garland and Ri ...

'' (1960) and ''

20,000 Eyes ''20,000 Eyes'' is a 1961 American drama film directed by Jack Leewood, written by Jack W. Thomas, and starring Gene Nelson, Merry Anders, James Brown, John Banner, Judith Rawlins and Robert Shayne. The film was released on June 14, 1961, by 20 ...

'' (1961). His experience led him to co-write the screenplay for Michael Curtiz's ''

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...

'' (1961) for Fox. In 1962 Thomas produced and wrote the documentary ''We'll Bury You'' that was released by Columbia Pictures. He used his profits to travel to Egypt in 1964 where he wrote a script for an unmade documentary, '' Nine Bows to Conquer''. Seeking secure and rewarding work, Thomas became a

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

deputy

probation officer A probation and parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probati ...

for six years. His experiences led him to write a series of 11 novels for

Bantam Books Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by parent company Random House, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin, Jr., Sidney B. ...

about troubled youth that were translated into five languages and sold over 1.5 million copies. Thomas returned to screenwriting for ''

Embryo An embryo is an initial stage of development of a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male spe ...

'' (1976).

Bibliography

* ''Turn Me On'' 1969 * ''Reds'' 1970 * ''The Bikers'' 1972 * ''Girls Farm'' 1974 * ''The Fear Dealers'' 1975 * ''Heavy Number'' 1976 * ''High School Pusher'' 1977 * ''Burn Out'' 1979 * ''Doing It'' 1981 * ''Head On!'' 1983 * ''Randy'' 1984 * ''Shakespeare's Hundred Best One-Liners'' (1999)

Personal life

Thomas married Cathleen "Casey" Cagney (1940-2004) the daughter of

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

in 1962. Thomas assisted Cagney in his autobiography ''Cagney By Cagney''. Jack and Cathleen had two children; Verney Lee and Christina May. Jack and Cathleen divorced in 1981.

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Jack W. 1930 births Living people 20th-century American novelists American male screenwriters Pulp fiction writers Writers from Seattle 20th-century American male writers Novelists from Washington (state) Screenwriters from Washington (state)