Elmore Leonard
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Elmore John Leonard, Jr. (born October 11, 1925), is a popular American novelist and screenwriter.
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Writing style
Commended by critics for his gritty realism and strong dialogue, Leonard sometimes takes liberties with grammar in the interest of speeding along the story. In his essay "Elmore Leonard's Ten Rules of Writing" he says: "My most important rule is one that sums up the 10: If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it." He also hints: "Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip."
Elmore Leonard has been called "the Dickens of Detroit" because of his intimate portraits of people from that city; however, Leonard has said, "If I lived in Buffalo, I'd write about Buffalo." His ear for dialogue has been praised by writers such as Saul Bellow, Martin Amis, and Stephen King. "Your prose makes Raymond Chandler look clumsy," Amis told Leonard at a Writers Guild event in Beverly Hills in 1998. Stephen King has called him "the great American writer."
Works
Novels
Screenplays
| Year | Title | Director | Co-writers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | The Moonshine War | Richard Quine | |
| 1972 | Joe Kidd | John Sturges | |
| 1974 | Mr. Majestyk | Richard Fleischer | |
| 1980 | High Noon, Part II (TV) | Jerry Jameson | |
| 1985 | Stick | Burt Reynolds | Joseph Stinson |
| 1986 | 52 Pick-Up | John Frankenheimer | John Steppling |
| 1987 | The Rosary Murders | Fred Walton | William X. Kienzle & Fred Walton |
| Desperado (TV series) | Virgil W. Vogel | ||
| 1989 | Cat Chaser | Abel Ferrara | James Borelli |
Stories
| Year | Story | Film Adaptation |
|---|---|---|
| 1953 | Three-Ten to Yuma | 1957 - 3:10 to Yuma </br> 2007 - 3:10 to Yuma |
| 1955 | The Captives | 1957 - The Tall T |
Also wrote a short story in the anthology Murderers' Row edited by Otto Penzler (2001) (back story for Tishomingo Blues)
Nonfiction
- 10 Rules of Writing (2007)
- Foreword to Walter Mirisch's book I Thought We Were Making Movies, Not History
