- Anne Beatts
Anne Beatts is an American
comedy writer.Biography
Early life
Born to parents Beatts describes as "
beatniks " [http://www.shemadeit.org/meet/biography.aspx?m=85 The Paley Center for Media | She Made It | Anne Beatts ] ] , Beatts grew to have what has been called a "aggressive, dark sensibility" which she later put to use in the world of comedy. Growing up in Somers, New York she later attendedMcGill University .It was at McGill University where the Beatts discovered the darkly tragic humor of
Jewish writersJ. D. Salinger ,Philip Roth , andBruce Jay Friedman . At this time, Beatts converted to Judaism.National Lampoon
After graduating from college, Beatts joined up with the "National Lampoon". The magazine was a national offshoot of the "
Harvard Lampoon ". Beatts brought her dark sense of humor to her work, even penning a parody ad forVolkswagen for which the magazine was later sued by the car company. [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,944670,00.html?promoid=googlep Lampoon's Surrender - TIME ] ] The ad stated "If Ted Kennedy drove a Volkswagen, he'd be President today," which was accompanied by a photo of a VW Beetle floating in a lake (this, of course, being a reference to the Chappaquiddick incident).Beatts became the first female editor of the "
National Lampoon " magazine where she worked withMichael O'Donoghue . Beatts and O'Donoghue became romantically involved and both soon joined up with "Saturday Night Live " in the early years of the program. [ [http://www.malcolmgladwell.com/2002/2002_12_02_a_snl.htm gladwell dot com - group think ] ]Television
Beatts is regarded as something of a pioneer in TV and comedy circles, as an early female comedy writer and one of the very few female writers working in the "National Lampoon"/"SNL" comedy scene of the '70s. At "SNL" she was nominated for an
Emmy five times, winning once. She later won a Writer's Guild Award in 2001. [ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0064186/awards Anne Beatts - Awards ] ] She created the cult hit 1982 CBS series "Square Pegs " and appeared in several episodes (she also did uncredited acting work on the early "SNL"), and while the series only lasted one season it has been frequently rerun since and several of the cast members (most notablySarah Jessica Parker ) have gone on to greater fame.Since "Square Pegs", Beatts wrote the book for the 1985
Ellie Greenwich jukebox musical "Leader of the Pack" and produced the first season of "A Different World " in 1987-1988 and since then has gradually dropped out of sight, writing for television very rarely. Her most recent TV credit was the 56th Annual Writers Guild Awards in 2004. In 2006, she directed the series "John Waters Presents Movies That Will Corrupt You" with her writing and producing partner, Eve Brandstein for B-Girls Productions.Beatts is currently serving as one of the judges for the comedy competition Project Breakout. [ [http://comedy.projectbreakout.com/ Stand-Up vs. Sketch Comedy Showdown | Project Breakout ] ]
Portrayals of Anne Beatts
In the 2002 ABC
television movie "", Beatts was played byJacqueline Pillon .References
External links
*imdb name|id=0064186
*Two part interview Anne Beatts on her involvement with NL: [http://www.maximumfun.org/blog/2007/03/anne-beatts-on-joining-national-lampoon.html Part One] / [http://www.maximumfun.org/blog/2007/04/anne-beatts-pt-2.html Part Two]
* [http://www.myspace.com/annebeatts Anne Beatts] atMySpace
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