John Monk Saunders | |
|---|---|
 Saunders withFay Wray, 1930 | |
| Born | (1897-11-22)November 22, 1897 Hinckley, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Died | March 11, 1940(1940-03-11) (aged 42) Fort Myers, Florida, U.S. |
| Education | Broadway High School University of Washington in Seattle University of Oxford |
| Occupations |
|
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | Academy Award for Best Story (1930) |
John Monk Saunders (November 22, 1897 – March 11, 1940) was an American novelist, screenwriter, and film director.
Born inHinckley, Minnesota, to Robert C. Saunders and Nannie Monk Saunders, his family (6 children) moved to Seattle, Washington in 1907 where his father served as US Attorney. John attendedBroadway High School,[1] where he excelled as both student and athlete. Saunders, a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity, received his education atUniversity of Washington in Seattle where he was president of his freshman class and quarterback on the freshman football team. He served in theAir Service duringWorld War I as aflight instructor in Florida, but was never able to secure a posting to France, a disappointment that frustrated him for the remainder of his life. After the University of Washington, he was aRhodes Scholar at Oxford, entering in the fall of 1919 where he was the first American to attendMagdalen College. Saunders was a member of their championship swimming team and played on the Rugby squad. He completed his 3-year degree there in just 11⁄2 years. While at Oxford, he formed friendships withJohn Masefield andRudyard Kipling. After graduation, he served as attaché at the American Relief Association in Vienna, Austria.
After the war he spent time in Paris then returned to Oxford, completing his master's degree in 1923. He worked as a journalist in the US, including stints with theLos Angeles Times andNew York Tribune. Saunders began selling short stories to magazines such asCosmopolitan andLiberty magazines and became editor ofAmerican magazine.[2]
He first sold the movie rights to one of his stories in 1924, and in 1926, Famous Players–Lasky/Paramount purchased the rights to Saunders's unfinished novel about WWI pilots.Wings garnered $39,000 for the writer - the highest sum paid for film rights at that time - as well as the first Academy Award for Best Picture.
Saunders's first screen credit wasToo Many Kisses (1925), based on his story "A Maker of Gestures". This was followed byThe Shock Punch (1925) based on his play.
In 1926 Famous Players–Lasky/Paramount purchased the screen rights to Saunders's unfinished novel about pilots in World War One for a then-record $39,000. The film,Wings (1927), became the first film to ever win anAcademy Award for Best Picture.
He followed it withThe Legion of the Condemned (1928), starringGary Cooper.[3]
Saunders's story "The Dock Walloper" was filmed asThe Docks of New York (1928), Directed byJosef von Sternberg. He worked on the script forShe Goes to War (1929)
The Dawn Patrol (1930), was based on his story "The Flight Commander". It starredRichard Barthelmess andDouglas Fairbanks Jr. Saunders won an Oscar for Best Story.[4] On receipt of his award, he said, "This indeed is a crazy business where I am being sued for plagiarism on one hand and given the statuette for originality on the other".
Saunders published a series of short stories collectively referred to as "Nikki and Her War Birds" in Liberty magazine. In 1931, Saunders arranged these stories into his first complete novel calledSingle Lady.[5]
Saunders wroteThe Finger Points (1931), thenThe Last Flight (1931) which he adapted fromSingle Lady.
Saunders also wrote a playNikki which was produced on Broadway withFay Wray.[6]
The Eagle and the Hawk (1933) was based on his story, "Death in the Morning". It starredFredric March,Cary Grant andCarole Lombard.
Saunders wroteAce of Aces (1933), adapting his story "Birds of Prey".
Devil Dogs of the Air (1935) was based on his story. His stories provided the basis forWest Point of the Air (1935) andI Found Stella Parish (1935).
Saunders was one of several writers on the documentary filmConquest of the Air (UK, 1936), which he also co-directed.
He was credited for providing the idea forA Yank at Oxford (1938) and did uncredited work onStar of the Circus (1938).The Dawn Patrol was remade in 1938 starringErrol Flynn,Basil Rathbone andDavid Niven.
Saunders went to Virginia in 1938 to research a historical novel.[2] He and his second wife separated that year, and Saunders was treated at a Virginia hospital for what was described as a nervous disorder.[7][8]
Saunders was married to Avis Hughes, daughter of novelistRupert Hughes (uncle ofHoward Hughes), from 1922 to 1927. Later he married actressFay Wray (1928–1939). FriendGary Cooper served as his best man. Saunders and Wray had a daughter, Susan Cary Saunders (Riskin).[9]
In 1934, Saunders was involved in a highly publicized fist fight with actorHerbert Marshall, a veteran of WWI.[10] This led to Saunders losing work opportunities and condemnation from the Hollywood social scene.
Saunders suffered from alcoholism most of his adult life. Despite care by a nurse from Johns Hopkins hospital, Saunders hanged himself at aFort Myers, Florida, beach cottage on March 11, 1940.[11][12]
