- Frederick Knott
Frederick Major Paull Knott (
28 August 1916 —17 December 2002 ) was an Englishplaywright , best known for writing the London-based stage thriller "Dial M for Murder ", which was later filmed in Hollywood byAlfred Hitchcock .Knott was born in
Hankow ,China , to English missionaries. He was educated atOundle School from 1929 to 1934 and later gained a law degree fromCambridge University . He served in the British Army from 1939 to 1946, rising to the rank of Major, and eventually moved to the United States.Although his most successful play, "Dial M for Murder", was a hit on the stage, it was originally a
BBC television production. As a theatre piece, it premiered at the Westminster Theatre inVictoria, London , in June 1952, directed by John Fernald and starringAlan MacNaughtan andJane Baxter . This production was followed in October by a successful run inNew York City at the Plymouth Theater, where Reginald Denham directed Richard Derr andGusti Huber . Knott also wrote the screenplay for the 1954 Hollywood movie which Hitchcock filmed forWarner Brothers in 3D, starringRay Milland andGrace Kelly , withAnthony Dawson and John Williams reprising their characters from the New York stage production, which had brought Williams aTony Award for his role as Inspector Hubbard.In 1960, Knott wrote the stage thriller "Write Me A Murder", which was produced at the
Belasco Theatre in New York in October 1961. It was directed by George Schaefer and includedDenholm Elliott andKim Hunter in the cast.In 1966, Knott's stage play "
Wait Until Dark " was produced on Broadway at theEthel Barrymore Theatre . The Director wasArthur Penn and the play starredLee Remick who won a Tony Award nomination for her performance. Later the same year,Honor Blackman played the lead in London's West End at the Strand Theatre. However the movie version released in 1967 hadAudrey Hepburn in the lead role.Knott died in New York City in 2002.
Bibliography
* "Dial M for Murder" (Samuel French, London ISBN 0-573-01102-8)
* "Dial M for Murder" (Random House Plays, New York 1952)
* "Write Me a Murder" (Dramatists Play Service Inc, New York 1962)
* "Wait Until Dark" (Samuel French, London ISBN 0-573-01050-1)External link
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