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Avery Corman | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1935-11-28)November 28, 1935 (age 90) New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Alma mater | DeWitt Clinton High School New York University |
| Spouse | Judy Lishinsky (died 2004) |
| Children | 2 |
Avery Corman (born November 28, 1935)[1] is an American novelist. He is known for the booksOh, God! (1971) andKramer Versus Kramer (1977), each adapted into a successful film.
Corman was born inthe Bronx,New York. He is a graduate of the New York City public schools; he attendedP.S. 33 andDeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx.[2] He graduated fromNew York University in 1956.
After graduating college, Corman worked in magazine publishing, then became a freelance writer of educational films and humor articles. He then began writing novels.
Corman is the author of the novelsOh, God! (1971), the basis for the1977 film;The Bust-Out King (1977);Kramer Versus Kramer (1977), adapted into the Academy Award-winning1979 film;The Old Neighborhood (1980);50 (1987);Prized Possessions (1991);The Big Hype (1992);A Perfect Divorce (2004); andThe Boyfriend from Hell (2006).[1] He is the author of a memoir,My Old Neighborhood Remembered (2014).[1] He also wrote the text forBark in the Park! Poems for Dog Lovers (2019), a children's picture book.
CriticStefan Kanfer wrote inTime of Corman's novel50: "Avery Corman has a literary gift for dialogue and predicament. Sealed in a time capsule,50 could tell future generations more about contemporary middle-aged mores than a library of sociological theses." The combination of the novelKramer Versus Kramer and the film changed the attitude of the public and the courts aboutdivorce and custody in the US and internationally. Greg Ferrara, onTurner Classic Movies' web site, wrote: "His story would explode accepted views on custody and parenting...Kramer vs. Kramer didn't just set box office records for family drama, it changed the very way people thought about divorce, family and child custody."[3]
Corman has authored articles and essays in several publications, includingThe New York Times.
After seeing a 2010 stage adaptation ofKramer vs. Kramer in Paris written byDidier Caron [fr] andStephane Boutet [fr], Corman wrote his own play based on his novel. The stage adaptation ofKramer Versus Kramer by Corman was produced in Greece, Hungary, Italy, and the Netherlands in 2012.
A gift by Corman to the City of New York of a restoredbasketball court in his childhood schoolyard became the catalyst for the creation of theCity Parks Foundation. Established in 1989, the foundation has become a multimillion-dollarnonprofit organization creating and funding parks programs throughout New York City. Corman has served on its board of directors since the foundation's inception.
He was married for 37 years to Judy Corman (née Lishinsky), who died in 2004.[1] At the time of her death, she was senior vice president, director of corporate communications and media relations atScholastic, Inc. Judy Corman masterminded the publicity for the launch and subsequent publications of theHarry Potter books in the United States.[4] She was a 2001 winner of aMatrix Award from New York Women in Communications. The Cormans' two children are Matthew, a screenwriter, and Nicholas, who works in business development inSilicon Valley.
