Robert Getchell (December 6, 1936 – October 21, 2017) was an American screenwriter.
Robert Getchell | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 6, 1936[1] Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | October 21, 2017 (aged 80) Monterey, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Screenwriter |
Early life and education
editGetchell graduated from the University of Missouri in 1965 and taught literature at the University of Missouri.[2]
Career
editGetchell wrote the 1974 film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore[3] and created the sitcom based on that film, Alice. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his screenplays for both Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore and the subsequent Bound for Glory.
Getchell's recurrent theme in most of his films is the relationship between a parent or parent substitute and a child or young person in trying or dangerous situations[4]
Getchell was also the screenwriter for the 1981 docudrama film Mommie Dearest, based on Christina Crawford's nightmarish childhood with her violent, manipulative, alcoholic adoptive mother, the actress Joan Crawford. The film was intended to be a serious drama about child abuse, but Getchell's script was chaotic, jumbled, and lacked psychological insight. It won the Golden Raspberry award that year for worst screenplay, one of the factors that led Mommie Dearest to be remembered as a cult film.
Getchell adapted Geoffrey Wolff's The Duke of Deception[5] for a screenplay and, later, Tobias Wolff's book This Boy's Life: A Memoir for the film, This Boy's Life.[6][7]
Personal life
editFilmography
edit- Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)
- Bound for Glory (1976)
- Alice (1976–1985)
- Mommie Dearest (1981)
- Sweet Dreams (1985)
- Stella (1990)
- Point of No Return (1993)
- This Boy's Life (1993)
- The Client (1994)
Awards
edit- 1975: nominated for an Academy Award and Writers Guild of America Award for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore.
- 1976: won a BAFTA Award for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore.
- 1977: nominated for an Academy Award and WGA Award for Bound for Glory.
- 1982: won a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay for Mommie Dearest.
Further reading
editPutt, Jr., Barry M. (2019). Alice: Life Behind the Counter in Mel's Greasy Spoon (A Guide to the Feature Film, the TV Series, and More). Albany, Georgia: BearManor Media. ISBN 978-1629334264.
References
edit- ↑ Writers Guild of America West [@WGAWest] (31 October 2017). "RIP WGAW member / screenwriter / "Alice" creator Robert Getchell (Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore) 12/5/36-10/21/17" (Tweet). Retrieved 8 April 2019 – via Twitter.
- 1 2 Barnes, Mike (6 November 2017). "Robert Getchell, 'Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore' Screenwriter, Dies at 81". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 6 November 2017.
- ↑ Canby, Vincent (January 30, 1975). "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore Movie Review". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 23 June 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
- ↑ "More-on-Alice-Doesnt-Live-Here-Anymore". Normal Theater. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
- ↑ "Life With Stepfather : Tobias Wolff's memoir of a brutish '50s childhood, 'This Boy's Life,' proves to be a rewarding challenge to its film adaptors". Los Angeles Times. 4 April 1993.
- ↑ "This Boy's Life". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
- ↑ "ed-zwick-by-the-book-interview". nytimes.com. 2024-02-15. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
- ↑ "Vote Yes on G" (PDF). Carmel Pine Cone. October 16, 2009.
External links
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