American novelist
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
. He wrote ten television series, including
Maverick
and
Marcus Welby, M.D.
.
[1]
Biography
[
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]
Campbell was born in
Newark, New Jersey
. He studied painting at Brooklyn's
Pratt Institute
, intending to be a commercial artist. He was drafted into the US Army during the
Korean War
. When he asked his brother William how much he earned for acting, he went to Hollywood after his discharge.
[2]
Hollywood
[
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]
Campbell began writing for
anthology series
such as
Loretta Young Theatre
.
Through his brother William, Campbell met
Roger Corman
for whom he wrote the screen play
Five Guns West
(1955), which was the first film Corman directed.
Campbell sold two original Western scripts to Universal,
Gun for a Coward
and
Quantez
. Both ended up being made with
Fred MacMurray
.
[3]
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,
[4]
and
The Allison Brothers
.
[5]
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.
[6]
Campbell was hired to work on the screenplay
Man of a Thousand Faces
, the biography of
Lon Chaney
. 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.
[7]
All the writers were nominated for Best Screenplay.
Campbell did a fourth script for Universal,
Beneath the Roses
, but it was not made.
[8]
He wrote for several
Warner Bros. Television
shows such as
Maverick
,
Bronco
and
Hawaiian Eye
.
He reworked
Five Guns West
for Corman as
The Secret Invasion
. He planned to follow it with
The Deserters
another WW2 tale for Corman
[9]
but it appears to have not been made.
In 1972 he wrote
Whistler
for Corman, a biopic of James Abbott Whistler.
[10]
Novels
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]
Campbell left screenwriting and turned to novels after visiting
Carmel-by-the-Sea, California
where he moved to.
[2]
His first novel was
The Spy Who Sat and Waited
(1975).
He wrote several novels of
Los Angeles
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.
[11]
[12]
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
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]
Campbell died at Hospice House on September 21, 2000, in
Monterey, California
at the age of 73.
[1]
Legacy
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]
On February 2, 2003, the
Robert Campbell Balcony
over the
Harrison Memorial Library
's main reading room was named in his honor.
[13]
Quentin Tarantino
praised Campbell's script for
Machine Gun Kelly
as the best script Corman ever shot.
Filmink
argued Campbell "Campbell never really got his due as a writer but his reputation has risen in recent years."
[14]
Writings
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]
Screenplays
[
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]
Novels
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]
- 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
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- Wondersmith
(1978)
[15]
- Quadruped
(1991)
As Actor Only
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Notes
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]
- ^
a
b
"Writer Robert Wright Campbell dies at age 73"
.
The Californian
. Salinas, California. September 23, 2000. p. 17
. Retrieved
August 6,
2022
.
- ^
a
b
"Robert W. Campbell; Author, Scriptwriter ? Los Angeles Times"
. Articles.latimes.com. October 1, 2000
. Retrieved
January 30,
2012
.
- ^
Drama: Actor-Writer Campbell Busy Western Scripter Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 28 Oct 1955: 27.
- ^
FILM GROUP ADDS FINANCING SET-UP By THOMAS M. PRYOR New York Times 15 Dec 1955: 50
- ^
COLUMBIA ERUPTS WITH MOVIE IDEA By THOMAS M. PRYOR New York Times 19 Feb 1955: 18
- ^
34 FILMS PLANNED BY FOX THIS YEAR By THOMAS M. PRYOR New York Times 04 Jan 1956: 23.
- ^
A Town Called Hollywood: Cagney, as Chaney, Will Be 'Man of Thousand Faces' Scheuer, Philip K. Los Angeles Times 28 Oct 1956: E2.
- ^
Universal Buys Script New York Times 30 Aug 1956: 19
- ^
Menotti Opera to Be Filmed Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times 31 Dec 1965: a14.
- ^
S-s-s-s-s . . . It's the Snakes!: It's the Snakes
By A. H. WEILER. New York Times 24 Sep 1972: D15.
- ^
"Robert Campbell"
. Fantasticfiction.co.uk
. Retrieved
January 30,
2012
.
- ^
"Bouchercon World Mystery Convention: Anthony Awards Nominees"
. Bouchercon.info. October 2, 2003
. Retrieved
March 6,
2012
.
- ^
Russo, Stacy Shotsberger (2008).
The Library as Place in California
. McFarland. p. 202.
ISBN
9780786431946
. Retrieved
August 6,
2022
.
- ^
Vagg, Sephen (May 13, 2024).
"Top Ten Corman ? Part Two: Top Ten Screenwriters"
.
Filmink
.
- ^
STAGE REVIEW: 'Wondersmith': Bonhomie in Bohemia
Christon, Lawrence. Los Angeles Times 08 Feb 1978: f12.
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