Anthony Shaffer
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Anthony Joshua Shaffer (15 May 1926 – 6 November 2001) was an English playwright, novelist, and screenwriter.
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Biography
Shaffer was born to a Jewish family in Liverpool, the son of Reka (née Fredman) and Jack Shaffer, who was an estate agent He was the twin brother of the better-known Peter Shaffer. He graduated with a law degree from Trinity College, Cambridge University.
Shaffer's most notable work is the play Sleuth (1970), which he adapted for the film version of the same name, and starred Sir Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine. He received Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America for both versions: for Best Play in 1971, and Best Screenplay in 1973. His other major screenplays include the Hitchcock thriller Frenzy (1972) and the British cult thriller The Wicker Man (1973) with whose director Robin Hardy Shaffer had previously set up a television production company in the United States called 'Hardy, Shaffer & Associates'.
A major theme in Shaffer's work is the playing of psychological games between people. His two best known works - Sleuth and The Wicker Man - both revolve around this idea.
Bibliography
Novels
- The Woman in the Wardrobe (1951 - co-written with Peter Shaffer, published under the pseudonym "Peter Anthony")
- How Doth the Little Crocodile? (1952 - co-written with Peter Shaffer, published under the pseudonym "Peter Anthony")
- Withered Murder (1955 - co-written with Peter Shaffer, published under the pseudonym "Peter Anthony")
- Absolution (1979 - based on Shaffer's screenplay for the 1978 film)
Plays
- The Savage Parade (1963 - a.k.a. This Savage Parade)
- Sleuth (1970)
- Murderer (1975)
- Whodunnit (1977 - a.k.a. The Case of the Oily Levantine)
Memoir
- So What Did You Expect? (2001)
Filmography
Screenplays
- Mr. Forbush and the Penguins (1971 - a.k.a. Cry of the Penguins)
- Frenzy (1972)
- Sleuth (1972)
- The Wicker Man (1973)
- Murder on the Orient Express (1974 - uncredited rewrite)
- Death on the Nile (1978)
- Absolution (1978)
- Evil Under the Sun (1982)
- Appointment With Death (film) (1988 - co-screenplay)
- Sommersby (1993 - co-story)
