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Paul Monash
Paul Monash
Paul Monash
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Paul Monash (June 14, 1917 – January 14, 2003) was an American television and film producer and screenwriter.

Key Information

Life and career

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Paul Monash was born in Harlem, New York, in 1917, and grew up in The Bronx. His mother, Rhoda Melrose, acted in silent films. Monash earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a master's degree in education from Columbia University.[1] An aspiring novelist, he rode the rails across the United States, served as a merchant marine, lived as an expatriate in Paris, and studied art.[2]

Monash won early acclaim for his writing for television, including his work on the pioneer anthology series Studio One, Suspense and Playhouse 90. He received an Emmy Award for "The Lonely Wizard," a 1957 episode of Schlitz Playhouse of Stars that starred Rod Steiger.[3] Monash wrote and produced the pilot for the TV series The Untouchables (1959), shown in two parts on Desilu Playhouse and edited as a feature film for distribution in Europe. He also wrote some episodes of the 1958–1959 NBC docudrama about the Cold War, Behind Closed Doors, hosted by and starring Bruce Gordon.[4]

After the success of The Untouchables, Monash was asked to create Peyton Place (1964–1969), an ABC-TV series that was the first prime-time serialized drama on American television.

His film production credits include Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), Slaughterhouse-Five (1972), The Front Page (1974) and Carrie (1976). Monash produced the feature film The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973), a dark, critically acclaimed crime drama starring Robert Mitchum, and also adapted the George V. Higgins novel for the screen.

Monash wrote the 1979 CBS-TV adaption of All Quiet on the Western Front, a Hallmark Hall of Fame production that received a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Made for Television. His screenplay for the HBO film Stalin (1992) was nominated for an Emmy Award; and Monash received the Humanitas Prize for his teleplay for the TNT film George Wallace (1997).

His final credit was the A&E Network original film, The Golden Spiders: A Nero Wolfe Mystery (2000), a critically praised adaption of the Rex Stout novel.[5] The TV movie first aired March 5, 2000, the same day that the Writers Guild of America, west, presented the 83-year-old Monash with the Paddy Chayefsky award for lifetime achievement. It is the guild's highest award, given to writers who have "advanced the literature of television through the years."[6]

Paul Monash died of pancreatic cancer January 14, 2003, in Los Angeles.[2]

Filmography

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Writer

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Producer

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Awards

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References

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Paul Monash

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Paul Monash is an American film and television producer and screenwriter known for his influential work in Hollywood and television from the 1950s through the 1970s, including producing acclaimed films such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Carrie, and Slaughterhouse-Five, as well as serving as executive producer on the long-running soap opera Peyton Place. Born in New York on June 14, 1917, the son of silent film actress Rhoda Melrose, Monash grew up in the Bronx and earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin. He began his career writing for television anthology series in the 1950s before transitioning to producing, where he contributed to series such as Peyton Place and Judd, for the Defense. His film producing credits include major successes that blended commercial appeal with notable storytelling, establishing him as a key figure in bringing both literary adaptations and genre films to the screen. Monash's career spanned writing pilots and episodes for early television dramas, producing high-profile motion pictures, and occasionally authoring novels. He was recognized for his eye for strong scripts and ability to navigate both the small and big screens effectively. He died in Los Angeles on January 14, 2003.

Early life and education

Family background and childhood

Paul Monash was born on June 14, 1917, in the Harlem district of New York City. His mother, Rhoda Melrose, was a former silent-screen actress whose career in early cinema provided the family with connections to the entertainment industry. Monash grew up in the Bronx, where he spent his childhood years.

Education and early experiences

Paul Monash earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and subsequently received a master's degree in education from Columbia University. Driven by the ambition to write the Great American Novel, he pursued a variety of experiences to inform and enrich his literary aspirations. Spurred by a sense of adventure, Monash hitchhiked across the United States and served in the merchant marine. He lived in Greenwich Village, where he published one novel, and spent four years in Paris and the surrounding area, where he published another. These works did not attain significant recognition, but the period abroad and the diverse encounters shaped his perspective as a writer. By the late 1940s and early 1950s, Monash shifted toward television scriptwriting, finding the medium's demands and opportunities more compatible with his interests than continued pursuit of novel-writing.

Television writing career

Anthology series contributions

Paul Monash began his television writing career in the early 1950s during the golden age of live anthology drama series. He quickly established himself by contributing scripts to several prominent anthology programs, including Studio One, Kraft Television Theatre, Climax!, Playhouse 90, Suspense, and Schlitz Playhouse of Stars. His work during this live television era earned critical acclaim for its quality and helped define the medium's early dramatic output. Notable examples of his contributions include the teleplay "The Singin' Idol" for Kraft Television Theatre, which was later adapted into the 1958 theatrical film Sing, Boy, Sing. He also wrote "Bailout at 43,000" for Climax!, broadcast live on December 29, 1955, and subsequently expanded into the feature film Bailout at 43,000. For Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, Monash penned "The Lonely Wizard" as well as additional episodes between 1957 and 1958. His credits extended to other series such as You Are There, reflecting the breadth of his involvement in the anthology format. Monash's early television output was prolific, with numerous writing credits across these live anthology series forming the majority of his work in the medium during this foundational period.

Award-winning teleplays and pilots

Paul Monash achieved significant acclaim in television writing during the late 1950s, particularly through his contributions to anthology series. He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Best Teleplay Writing – Half Hour or Less in 1958 for the episode "The Lonely Wizard" on Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, which starred Rod Steiger. This award highlighted his ability to craft compelling dramatic scripts within the constraints of half-hour formats. Monash further distinguished himself by writing pilots that launched several notable series. He scripted the two-part pilot for The Untouchables, which aired in 1959 on Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse and was later edited into a feature film for European release. The pilot's success proved instrumental in transitioning Monash's career toward producing, as it demonstrated his capacity to develop high-impact concepts for ongoing series. He also wrote the pilots for The Asphalt Jungle and Twelve O'Clock High, extending his influence on adventure and crime genres in early episodic television.

Television producing career

Major series as executive producer

Paul Monash transitioned from writing to producing in television during the early 1960s, beginning with his role as executive producer on Cain's Hundred from 1961 to 1962, a series he also created. He achieved his greatest impact in this period as executive producer of Peyton Place on ABC, which aired from 1964 to 1969 and ran for 514 episodes, for which he wrote the pilot. Peyton Place adapted Grace Metalious's novel into an ongoing narrative format that brought soap opera-style storytelling to network prime time. Monash oversaw the series' production, contributing to its success in tackling controversial themes within a serialized structure. Monash later served as executive producer on Judd, for the Defense from 1967 to 1969, a legal drama that ran for 50 episodes and addressed socially charged issues such as blacklisting, for which he wrote the pilot and some episodes. These producing credits reflect Monash's contributions to serialized and issue-driven formats in prime-time television.

Film career

Breakthrough productions

Paul Monash transitioned to theatrical film production in the early 1970s after establishing himself in television. He played a key role in bringing Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) to the screen when he read William Goldman's original screenplay and urged 20th Century Fox to purchase it for $400,000, the highest price paid for an original screenplay at the time. The film, starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford and directed by George Roy Hill, became one of the era's biggest hits. Monash earned a reputation for his keen eye in recognizing strong material and advocating for it. Screenwriter Dennis Feldman, a family friend, attributed Monash's producing success to the fact that he "recognized great properties" and "knew a good thing when he saw it," pointing to examples such as the screenplay for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and the novel Carrie. His first credited feature film as producer was Slaughterhouse-Five (1972), an adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's novel also directed by George Roy Hill. Monash next produced the Billy Wilder-directed remake of The Front Page (1974), starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau. He produced Carrie (1976), the horror adaptation of Stephen King's novel. Later in his film career, Monash served as executive producer on Big Trouble in Little China (1986).

Key films as producer and screenwriter

Paul Monash served as both producer and screenwriter on the 1973 neo-noir crime drama The Friends of Eddie Coyle. He adapted the screenplay from George V. Higgins' 1970 debut novel of the same name, preserving the book's gritty, dialogue-driven portrayal of small-time criminals in Boston's underworld. Directed by Peter Yates and released by Paramount Pictures, the film starred Robert Mitchum as the title character, a low-level gunrunner and thief squeezed between law enforcement and his associates, with supporting performances by Peter Boyle, Richard Jordan, and Steven Keats. Filmed entirely on location in and around Boston during late 1972, the production emphasized authenticity, including sequences shot at real sites such as South Shore Bank and during an actual Boston Bruins hockey game at Boston Garden. Monash's dual role allowed him to oversee the translation of Higgins' terse, realistic prose into a cinematic format, reflecting his prior experience adapting material for television anthology series. The film received positive critical notices for its unsentimental tone, strong performances (particularly Mitchum's), and faithful evocation of the source novel's atmosphere, though it failed to recoup its modest budget and was not a commercial success. This project stands as Monash's primary feature film credit in both producing and screenwriting capacities, with no other theatrical films documented where he held both roles simultaneously.

Later television career

Miniseries and TV movies

In his later career, Paul Monash returned to television as a screenwriter for miniseries and TV movies, contributing adaptations and original scripts to several high-profile productions. He wrote the screenplay for the CBS television film All Quiet on the Western Front (1979), an adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque's novel that received the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Made for Television. He also penned the teleplay for the CBS miniseries Salem's Lot (1979), based on Stephen King's horror novel. During the 1990s, Monash scripted the HBO biographical film Stalin (1992), which earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing for a Miniseries or a Movie. He wrote the TNT TV movie Kingfish: A Story of Huey P. Long (1995), a biographical drama about the Louisiana politician. Monash wrote the screenplay for the TNT miniseries George Wallace (1997), which received the Humanitas Prize and a Writers Guild of America nomination. In 1998, he contributed a segment to the Showtime anthology Rescuers: Stories of Courage: Two Women. His final credited work was the teleplay for the A&E TV movie The Golden Spiders: A Nero Wolfe Mystery (2000), an adaptation of Rex Stout's novel.

Personal life

Family and literary pursuits

Paul Monash was survived by his wife, Jacqueline Boncy Monash, as well as his two daughters, Stephanie Monash and Jessica Berty, and two stepchildren, Rija Kline and Paul Kline. In addition to his work in film and television, Monash maintained a lifelong passion for literary pursuits. In 2000, while accepting the Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for lifetime achievement from the Writers Guild of America, he humorously remarked that his "Great American Novel" remained in its first draft after many years of effort. Monash's dedication to writing extended beyond his professional screenwriting, reflecting a personal commitment to the craft that began early in his career.

Death and legacy

Death

Paul Monash died of pancreatic cancer on January 14, 2003, at his home in Los Angeles at the age of 85. He had been diagnosed with the illness only about a month earlier. Monash continued working on a novel until weeks before his death. Memorial services were scheduled for January 25, 2003, at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California.

Awards and honors

Paul Monash received notable recognition for his contributions to television writing and producing. He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Best Teleplay Writing - Half Hour or Less in 1958 for the Schlitz Playhouse of Stars episode "The Lonely Wizard." The CBS television adaptation All Quiet on the Western Front, for which Monash wrote the teleplay, earned the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Made for Television in 1980. He shared the Humanitas Prize in 1997 for the teleplay George Wallace. In 2000, Monash was honored with the Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Lifetime Achievement in Television from the Writers Guild of America West. Monash also earned several nominations, including a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing for a Miniseries or a Special for Stalin in 1993, a Writers Guild of America Award for Adapted Long Form for George Wallace in 1998, a CableACE Award for Writing a Movie or Miniseries for George Wallace in 1997, and a nomination for an Edgar Award for Best Television Feature or Miniseries for Salem's Lot in 1980.
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