Robert Getchell | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1936-12-06)December 6, 1936[1] Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | October 21, 2017(2017-10-21) (aged 80) Monterey, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Screenwriter |
Robert Getchell (December 6, 1936 – October 21, 2017) was an American screenwriter.
Getchell graduated from the University of Missouri in 1965 and taught literature at the University of Missouri.[2]
Getchell wrote the 1974 filmAlice Doesn't Live Here Anymore[3] and created thesitcom based on that film,Alice. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his screenplays for bothAlice Doesn't Live Here Anymore and the subsequentBound for Glory.
Getchell's recurrent theme in most of his films is the relationship between a parent or parent substitute and a child or young person in trying or dangerous situations[4]
Getchell was also the screenwriter for the 1981 docudrama filmMommie Dearest, based onChristina Crawford's nightmarish childhood with her violent, manipulative, alcoholic adoptive mother, the actressJoan Crawford. The film was intended to be a serious drama about child abuse, but Getchell's script was chaotic and jumbled and lack psychological insight that it won the Golden Raspberry award that year for worst screenplay, one of the factors that ledMommie Dearest to be remembered as acult film.
Getchell adaptedGeoffrey Wolff'sThe Duke of Deception[5] for ascreenplay and, later,Tobias Wolff's bookThis Boy's Life: A Memoir for the film,This Boy's Life.[6][7]
He died on October 21, 2017, aged 80.[2][8]
Putt, Jr., Barry M. (2019).Alice: Life Behind the Counter in Mel's Greasy Spoon (A Guide to the Feature Film, the TV Series, and More). Albany, Georgia: BearManor Media.ISBN 978-1629334264.
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