Ben Hecht

Ben Hecht was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright and novelist who during his prolific career is credited with writing more than 70 films, 35 books and numerous other works. Called one of the most successful screenwriters in the history of motion pictures, Hecht was the first to receive an Academy Award for Original Screenplay, for Underworld in 1927. Films that he wrote or worked on include many of the great classics, including Scarface, Twentieth Century, Stagecoach, Some Like It Hot, Gone with the Wind, His Girl Friday, Notorious, Angels Over Broadway and Mutiny on the Bounty, among others. He began his career as a journalist in Chicago, writing for the Chicago Journal and later the Chicago Daily News. It was from these early experiences that Hecht drew inspiration for The Front Page. Other works include the books 1001 Afternoons in Chicago, Erik Dorn and his autobiography A Child of the Century. Hecht died in 1964, at the age of 70. For more, see BACKSTORY.