Harriet Frank Jr. facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Harriet Frank Jr.
Frank as depicted in Amazing Stories in 1953
Born	Harriet Goldstein (1923-03-02)March 2, 1923 Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Died	January 28, 2020(2020-01-28) (aged 96) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other names	James P. Bonner Harriet Frank
Occupation	Screenwriter, producer
Years active	1947–1990
Spouse(s)	Irving Ravetch ​ ​ (m. 1946; died 2010)​

Harriet Frank Jr. (born Harriet Goldstein; 1923–2020) was an American writer and producer for movies. She worked closely with her husband, Irving Ravetch. Together, they won many awards for their movie scripts, like the New York Film Critics Circle Award and the Writers Guild of America Award. They also received many nominations for their work.

Harriet started writing after World War II. She joined a special program at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) for young writers. This is where she met Irving. They married in 1946. For ten years, Harriet worked on her own. Then, in 1957, she started working with Irving. They worked together for the rest of her career.

Over 33 years, Harriet and Irving wrote scripts for many different movies. Most of these movies were based on books by American authors. They worked very closely with director Martin Ritt. They made eight movies with him. Martin Ritt even asked them to come out of retirement three times to write new scripts for him. Their last movie together was Stanley & Iris (1990). This was also the last movie Martin Ritt directed before he passed away.

Harriet Frank Jr. is also a main topic in a book called The Mighty Franks: A Memoir (2017). This book was written by her nephew, Michael Frank.

Her Life and Movie Career

Early Life and First Scripts

Frank and Ravetch often adapted books by William Faulkner (pictured) for their movies.

Harriet Frank Jr. was born and grew up in Portland, Oregon. Her parents were Edith Frances (Bergman) and Sam Goldstein. Her father owned a shoe store. Harriet's mother changed the family name to Frank. She also changed her own name to Harriet, making herself Harriet Sr. and her daughter Harriet Jr.

In 1939, Harriet moved with her family to Los Angeles. Her mother worked there as a story editor in Hollywood. Her father went to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) at the same time as Irving Ravetch, who would become Harriet's husband. Harriet and Irving met after World War II. They were both in a training program for young writers at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Harriet and Irving got married in 1946. But they worked on their own for over 10 years. Harriet wrote scripts for movies like Whiplash (1948) and Run for Cover (1955). Their first time working together was on a script for a movie called The Long, Hot Summer (1958). This movie was based on a book by William Faulkner. However, Harriet later said that they mostly created new material for the film.

Working Together on Movies

Martin Ritt directed The Long, Hot Summer after Irving suggested him. Then, Ritt directed their next movie together, The Sound and the Fury (1959). This was another movie based on a William Faulkner book.

Harriet and Irving also worked on two movies released in 1960:

• Home from the Hill, which was based on a book.
• The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, which was based on a play that won a Tony award.

Harriet and Irving worked with Martin Ritt again to write the script for Hud (1963). This movie was based on a book called Horseman, Pass By. Critics really liked Hud. Harriet and Irving won a New York Film Critics Circle Award for "Best Screenplay." They also won a Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written American Drama. They were even nominated for an Academy Award for their script.

Harriet worked with her husband and Ritt on Hombre (1967). This was a Western movie based on a book. The next year, Harriet and Irving wrote the script for House of Cards (1968). For this movie, Harriet and her husband used the pen name James P. Bonner. They then went back to William Faulkner's books. They wrote the script for a movie based on his last book, The Reivers (1969).

Harriet and Irving wrote the scripts for The Cowboys (1972) and The Carey Treatment (also 1972). The Carey Treatment was based on a book by Michael Crichton. For this movie, they used the name James P. Bonner again. This was the last time they used that pen name.

The couple worked with Martin Ritt again on Conrack (1974). This movie was based on a true story from a book called The Water Is Wide. Harriet also worked as a producer on this movie. The film was very popular and won a BAFTA award. They also wrote the script for The Spikes Gang (1974). Around this time, Harriet also wrote two books of her own.

Later Movie Scripts

Harriet Frank published a science fiction story called "The Man from Saturn" in Amazing Stories magazine in 1953.

Harriet and Irving's next movie was Norma Rae (1979). This was another movie with director Martin Ritt. The movie tells the true story of a factory worker in the Southern United States. She gets involved in labor union activities to help workers. This was one of their most successful movies. It won many awards, including two Academy Awards.

Six years later, their next script became a movie. It was a romantic comedy called Murphy's Romance (1985). This movie was based on a book. They worked with Martin Ritt again, making it their seventh movie together. They also worked with Sally Field, who had starred in Norma Rae. Murphy's Romance was well-liked and nominated for two Academy Awards.

Five years passed before another Harriet and Irving script was made into a movie. Martin Ritt hired them to write the script for Stanley & Iris (1990). This movie was loosely based on a book by British writer Pat Barker.

Her Passing

Harriet Frank Jr. passed away at her home in Los Angeles on January 28, 2020. She was 96 years old.

Her Lasting Impact

Martin Ritt passed away on December 8, 1990, ten months after Stanley & Iris was released. Harriet, Irving, and Martin Ritt worked together on eight films. They achieved great success as a team. Stanley & Iris was Martin Ritt's last movie. It also marked the end of Harriet and Irving's careers in writing movie scripts.

Harriet Frank Jr. worked for 43 years and helped create 21 movies. She won four awards and received many nominations. She shared all of these with her husband. Besides working with her husband and Martin Ritt, Harriet also worked a lot with actors like Paul Newman. She wrote scripts for three of his movies: The Long, Hot Summer, Hud, and Hombre.

Movies She Wrote

Awards and Nominations