- Born
- Died
- Birth nameErnest Paul Lehman
- Nickname
- Ernie
- One of the most critically and commercially successful screenwriters in Hollywood history, Lehman grew up on Long Island, graduated from NY's City College. One of his first jobs was as a copywriter for a Broadway publicist. This experience would later be reflected in his novel and screenplay, "Sweet Smell of Success." He also worked as a radio comedy writer, and as editor of a financial magazine. He freelanced short stories for the likes of Collier's magazine and one of these fiction piece 'The Comedian' led to his first job in Hollywood as a screenwriter for Paramount in the mid 1950s. Nick Roddick, in Dictionary of Literary Biography, praised Lehman as "a champion of the well-crafted, what-happens-next screenplay." Served as president of the Writers Guild of America from 1983-85.- IMDb mini biography by: mwprods@rcn.com
- The son of Gertrude and Paul Lehmann, owners of an exclusive Madison Avenue dress salon he was born on the West side of New York and educated at Lawrence High School and the College of the City of New York. He worked as copy editor of a Wall Street financial magazine, a Broadway press agent, radio comedy writer and a commercial airlines radio operator before getting attention as a fiction writer in national magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Esquire. His novelette 'The Comedian' was first published in Cosmopolitan and later in book form drew Hollywood's attention and took him to the coast. While it was never made into a film it wound up as a Playhouse 90 dramatization starring Mickey Rooney and won an Emmy as Best single television show of the year. Another Cosmopolitan novelette 'The Sweet Smell of Success' went on to be a top film. Ernest started in the film industry as a screen writer for Paramount and made an auspicious debut when loaned to MGM and did the screenplay for 'The Executive Suite'. Returning to Paramount he collaborated on the screenplay of 'Sabrina' then the following year did the screenplays for 'Somebody Up There Likes Me'. 'The King and I' 'The Sweet Smell of Success',(from his own novel), 'North by North West'and 'From the Terrace' amongst many others- IMDb mini biography by: Tonyman 5
- SpousesLaurene Michele Sherman(June 8, 1997 - July 2, 2005) (his death, 1 child)Jacqueline Doris Shapiro(January 12, 1942 - August 12, 1994) (her death, 2 children)
- Actually tried to climb Mount Rushmore after writing the monument into his La Mort aux trousses (1959) plot. Halfway up, he realized he could die if he slipped and came down.
- Was eighty-six years old at the time of his son Jonathan's birth.
- An enthusiastic cyclist who could often be seen traveling around Beverley Hills on his bicycle, rather than in a limousine.
- His first collaboration with Alfred Hitchcock was supposed to be an adaptation of Hammond Innes' well-known novel, The Wreck of the Mary Deare, which MGM wanted to film. Hitchcock was not keen on the novel, feeling that all its best scenes were at the beginning and that it would be difficult to avoid an anti-climax as the story progressed. Lehman agreed and said that it would be impossible for him to adapt the book into a workable script. Instead, they devised an original story which became the classic La Mort aux trousses (1959). However, MGM ignored Hitchcock's advice about The Wreck of the Mary Deare and instead hired Eric Ambler to write and Michael Anderson to direct a film version, Cargaison dangereuse (1959), which appeared in cinemas only a few months after North By Northwest's release. This film was, however, the flop Hitchcock and Lehman had predicted.
- (January 31, 2002) His wife Laurie gave birth to son Jonathan Maxwell Lehman in Los Angeles.
- [on writing "North by Northwest" (1959) for Alfred Hitchcock] I wanted to write the Hitchcock picture to end all Hitchcock pictures.
- No good screenplay is vulnerable. Only those that still need work are vulnerable, and should be vulnerable, and should be worked on some more by the writer - or, if not him, another writer - to ensure, or make possible, a good film.
- It is not at all difficult for a writer to stay sane in Hollywood. Cynicism is more often a defense against just criticism.
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