Robert Wright Campbell (June 9, 1927–September 21, 2000), often credited as R. Wright Campbell or Robert Campbell, was an American screenwriter, author and occasional actor. He was the brother of actor William Campbell and brother in law of
Judith Campbell Exner
Judith Exner (January 11, 1934 – September 24, 1999) was an American woman who claimed to be the mistress of U.S. president John F. Kennedy and Mafia leaders Sam Giancana and John Roselli. She was also known as Judith Campbell Exner, and Judi ...
. He wrote ten television series, including ''Maverick'' and ''Marcus Welby, M.D.''.
Biography
Campbell was born in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Pratt Institute, intending to be a commercial artist. He was drafted into the US Army during the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
. When he asked his brother William how much he earned for acting, he went to Hollywood after his discharge.
Hollywood
Campbell began writing for
anthology series
An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a dif ...
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has been called "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and is known as a trailblazer in the world of independent film. Many of Corman's films are based on works t ...
for whom he wrote the screen play ''
Five Guns West
''Five Guns West'' is a 1955 Western film set during the American Civil War directed by Roger Corman. It was Corman's first film as director although he had already made two as producer. It was the second film released by the American Releasing ...
'' (1955), which was the first film Corman directed.
Campbell sold two original Western scripts to Universal, ''
Gun for a Coward
''Gun for a Coward'' is a 1957 American CinemaScope Western film directed by Abner Biberman and starring Fred MacMurray, Jeffrey Hunter and Janice Rule. The film also stars Josephine Hutchinson as MacMurray's mother, despite being less than five ...
'' and '' Quantez''. Both ended up being made with Fred MacMurray.
He also sold two stories to Kirk Douglas's Bryna Productions: ''King Kelly'' about a soldier who sets himself up as a ruler in the South West after the Civil War, and ''The Allison Brothers''. Neither was made.
In 1956 he and his brother announced they had purchased a story about John Ashley, ''Requiem for an Outlaw'' and intended to make it independently but the film was not made.
Campbell was hired to work on the screenplay '' Man of a Thousand Faces'', the biography of
Lon Chaney
Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) was an American actor. He is regarded as one of the most versatile and powerful actors of cinema, renowned for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and affli ...
. The producer deliberately picked a young writer who would not be influenced by "nostalgia". The script was reworked by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts but Campbell kept his screen credit. All the writers were nominated for Best Screenplay.
Campbell did a fourth script for Universal, ''Beneath the Roses'', but it was not made.
He wrote for several
Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television Studios (operating under the name Warner Bros. Television; formerly known as Warner Bros. Television Division) is an American television production and distribution studio of the Warner Bros. Television Group division of ...
shows such as ''
Maverick
Maverick, Maveric or Maverik may refer to:
History
* Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick
Aviation
* AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design
* General Aviation Design Burea ...
'', ''
Bronco
A bucking horse is any breed or either gender of horse with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock.
The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for rod ...
'' and '' Hawaiian Eye''.
He reworked ''Five Guns West'' for Corman as ''
The Secret Invasion
''The Secret Invasion'' is a 1964 American war film directed by Roger Corman. It stars Stewart Granger, Raf Vallone, Mickey Rooney, Edd Byrnes, Henry Silva, Mia Massini and William Campbell. Appearing three years before ''The Dirty Dozen'' (196 ...
''. He planned to follow it with ''The Deserters'' another WW2 tale for Corman but it appears to have not been made.
In 1972 he wrote ''Whistler'' for Corman, a biopic of James Abbott Whistler.
Novels
Campbell left screenwriting and turned to novels after visiting Carmel-by-the-Sea, California where he moved to. His first novel was ''The Spy Who Sat and Waited'' (1975).
He wrote several novels of
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
that he called "La-La Land" with a hero named James Whistler in ''Alice in La-La Land'' and ''In La-La Land We Trust'', a series of Jimmy Flannery novels beginning with ''The Junkyard Dog'' (awarded the Edgar Award and Anthony Award for Best Paperback Original) and ''The Cat's Meow'' and two Jake Hatch novels.
His 1978 novel, ''Where Pigeons Go to Die'', was adapted into a television film of the same title for NBC by actor and filmmaker Michael Landon.
Death
Campbell died at Hospice House on September 21, 2000, in Monterey, California at the age of 73.
Legacy
On February 2, 2003, the ''Robert Campbell Balcony'' over the Harrison Memorial Library's main reading room was named in his honor.
Writings
Screenplays
*''
The Loretta Young Show
''The Loretta Young Show'' (originally known as ''Letter to Loretta'') is an American anthology drama television series broadcast on Sunday nights from September 2, 1953, to June 4, 1961, on NBC for a total of 165 episodes. The series was hosted ...
'' - "Thanksgiving in Beaver Run" (1954)
*''
Five Guns West
''Five Guns West'' is a 1955 Western film set during the American Civil War directed by Roger Corman. It was Corman's first film as director although he had already made two as producer. It was the second film released by the American Releasing ...
'' (1955) - also appeared as actor
*''
The Star and the Story
''The Star and the Story'' is an American television anthology series which aired 1955–1956 in first-run syndication. A filmed half-hour series, episodes were approximately 25 minutes long, excluding commercials.
Produced by Four Star Produc ...
'' (1955) - episode "Hand to Hand"
*''
Medic
A medic is a person involved in medicine such as a medical doctor, medical student, paramedic or an emergency medical responder.
Among physicians in the UK, the term "medic" indicates someone who has followed a "medical" career path in postgra ...
'' (1955) - episode "All the Lonely Night"
*''
Cheyenne
The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enr ...
'' (1955–56) - episodes "The Outlander", "The Storm Riders"
*''
Gun for a Coward
''Gun for a Coward'' is a 1957 American CinemaScope Western film directed by Abner Biberman and starring Fred MacMurray, Jeffrey Hunter and Janice Rule. The film also stars Josephine Hutchinson as MacMurray's mother, despite being less than five ...
Machine Gun Kelly
George Kelly Barnes (July 18, 1895 – July 18, 1954), better known by his pseudonym "Machine Gun Kelly", was an American gangster from Memphis, Tennessee, active during the Prohibition era. His nickname came from his favorite weapon, a Thom ...
'' (1958)
*''
Maverick
Maverick, Maveric or Maverik may refer to:
History
* Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick
Aviation
* AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design
* General Aviation Design Burea ...
'' (1958) - episode "Rope of Cards"
*'' Teenage Caveman'' (1958)
*''Maverick'' (1960) - episode "Cruise of the Cynthia B"
*''
Bronco
A bucking horse is any breed or either gender of horse with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock.
The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for rod ...
The Young Racers
''The Young Racers'' is a 1963 sports drama film directed by Roger Corman and starring Mark Damon, William Campbell, Luana Anders and Patrick Magee. It is based on the Formula One races in Europe.
Plot
Joe Machin ( William Campbell), an Am ...
'' (1963) - also acted
*''
The Masque of the Red Death
"The Masque of the Red Death" (originally published as "The Mask of the Red Death: A Fantasy") is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in 1842. The story follows Prince Prospero's attempts to avoid a dangerous plagu ...
'' (1964)
*''
The Secret Invasion
''The Secret Invasion'' is a 1964 American war film directed by Roger Corman. It stars Stewart Granger, Raf Vallone, Mickey Rooney, Edd Byrnes, Henry Silva, Mia Massini and William Campbell. Appearing three years before ''The Dirty Dozen'' (196 ...
Marcus Welby, M.D. Marcus, Markus, Márkus or Mărcuș may refer to:
* Marcus (name), a masculine given name
* Marcus (praenomen), a Roman personal name
Places
* Marcus, a main belt asteroid, also known as (369088) Marcus 2008 GG44
* Mărcuş, a village in Dobârl ...
'' (1974) - episode "No Charity for the MacAllisters")
Novels
*''The Spy Who Sat and Waited'' (1975)
*''Where Pigeons Go to Die'' (1978)
*''Circus Couronne'' (1979)
*''Malloy's Subway'' (1981)
*''The Junkyard Dog'' (1986)
*''In La-La Land We Trust'' (1986)
*''Alice in La-La Land'' (1987)
*''The 600-Pound Gorilla'' (1987)
*''Hip Deep in Alligators'' (1987)
*''Juice'' (1988)
*''Thinning the Turkey Herd'' (1988)
*''The Cat's Meow'' (1988)
*''Plugged Nickel'' (1988)
*''Nibbled to Death by Ducks'' (1989)
*''Red Cent'' (1989)
*''Sweet La-La Land'' (1990)
*''The Gift Horse's Mouth'' (1990)
*''Boneyards'' (1992)
*''In a Pig's Eye'' (1992)
*''The Wizard of La-La Land'' (1995)
*''Sauce for the Goose'' (1996)
*''The Lion's Share ''(1996)
*''Pigeon Pie'' (1998)
Plays
*''Wondersmith'' (1978)STAGE REVIEW: 'Wondersmith': Bonhomie in Bohemia
Christon, Lawrence. Los Angeles Times 08 Feb 1978: f12.
*''Quadruped'' (1991)
As Actor Only
*''
Cell 2455, Death Row
''Cell 2455, Death Row: A Condemned Man's Own Story'' is a 1954 memoir that is the first of four books written on death row by convicted robber, rapist and kidnapper Caryl Chessman (27 May 1921 – 2 May 1960). Sentenced to death in 1948 under C ...