- Ernest Thompson
Infobox actor
name = Ernest Thompson
caption =
birthdate =November 6 ,1949
birthplace =Bellows Falls, Vermont Ernest Thompson (born Richard Ernest Thompson;
November 6 ,1949 ) is an American writer, actor, and director.Biography
Early life
Thompson was born in
Bellows Falls, Vermont . He spent his early years inMassachusetts ,New Hampshire , andMaine , moving toMaryland as a junior high school student. He attended the University of Maryland andCatholic University , graduating cum laude fromAmerican University in 1971.Career
Thompson is known as the author of the play "On Golden Pond", which he wrote at the age of twenty-eight. The play opened off-off-Broadway in 1978, starring
Tom Aldredge andFrances Sternhagen . A great success at the Kennedy Center, it opened at the New Apollo Theater on BroadwayFebruary 28 ,1979 . Revived the following season at the Century Theatre, "On Golden Pond" ran for more than 400 performances. It went on to become a hit 1981 film starring starringKatharine Hepburn andHenry Fonda . Thompson won theAcademy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 1982, as well as awards from the Golden Globes and theWriters Guild of America .Thompson’s second popular play, "
The West Side Waltz ", opened on Broadway starring Katharine Hepburn onNovember 19 ,1981 . Thompson is quoted as saying that "The West Side Waltz" came about after a telephone call he received on behalf of legendary screenwriterGeorge Seaton , creator of such classics as "Miracle On Thirty-Fourth Street", offering Thompson "the first and only George Seaton grant" to write a new play for the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles. Thompson wrote and directed a television version based on the play, premiering onCBS Thanksgiving night 1995, starringShirley MacLaine ,Liza Minnelli ,Kathy Bates , andJennifer Grey .As an
actor , Thompson's only Broadway appearance was as drifter Hal Carter in "Summer Brave ",William Inge 's revised version of his play "Picnic". He portrayed Ranger Matt Harper on NBC’s 1974 series "Sierra" and Dr. Phil Parker on ABC's "Westside Medical ". Fresh out of college, he appeared on the NBC soap opera "Somerset" as Tony Cooper #2 and in the television films "The Rimers of Eldritch" and "F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Last of the Belles". Other acting credits include roles in theBob Fosse movie "Star 80 " and "Next Stop Wonderland ", directed by Brad Anderson.Thompson wrote the screenplay for the feature film "
Sweet Hearts Dance ", directed byRobert Greenwald and starringSusan Sarandon andDon Johnson . He then went on to direct "1969", starringKiefer Sutherland ,Robert Downey, Jr. , andWinona Ryder .During the 1990s, Thompson wrote the television film "
Take Me Home Again " (released on DVD as "The Lies Boys Tell") in 1994, based on the novel byLamar Herrin , starringKirk Douglas andCraig T. Nelson , in which Thompson also appeared. He acted oppositeShirley MacLaine andJennifer Grey in "The West Side Waltz" and co-wrote and directed theShowtime movie "Out of Time", starringJames McDaniel andMel Harris .In 2000, Thompson directed his 12 short plays, "The Penis Responds", off-off-Broadway, costarring with
Richard Gilliland . In 2001, he directed his own TV version of "On Golden Pond", starringJulie Andrews andChristopher Plummer . His play "White People Christmas" played at the Zephyr Theatre in Los Angeles, directed by Thompson.Upcoming projects include the independent film "The Love Line", starring Thompson and Pamela Lambert, and the play "Ax of Love", starring
Karen Black , both directed by Thompson.Personal life
In 1991 his son August was born. In 1993, Thompson married Kristie Lanier at his home in New Hampshire, where he raised daughters Heather and Danielle.
Now divorced, Thompson lives most of the year in New Hampshire (very close to where "On Golden Pond" was filmed), where, with co-producers Morgan and Lori Murphy, he has created a company, Whitebridge Farm Productions, whose first movie will be "Elysian Farm", written and directed by Thompson.
External links
* [http://www.ernestthompson.us Ernest Thompson's website]
*
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
