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Anne Beatts | |
|---|---|
 Beatts in 2010 | |
| Born | February 25, 1947 Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| Died | April 7, 2021 (aged 74) |
| Alma mater | McGill University |
| Occupations | Screenwriter, comedy writer |
| Notable work | National Lampoon Saturday Night Live Square Pegs |
Anne Beatts (February 25, 1947 – April 7, 2021) was an American screenwriter and comedy writer.
Early life
[edit]Beatts was born in Buffalo, New York, to Sheila Elizabeth Jean (Sherriff-Scott) and Patrick Murray Threipland Beatts.[1][2][3] She has described her parents as "beatniks."[4] Beatts had what has been called an "aggressive, dark sensibility."[4] Growing up in Somers, New York, she later attended McGill University.[4]
It was at McGill University where Beatts discovered the dark humor of Jewish writers J. D. Salinger, Philip Roth, and Bruce Jay Friedman.[4] At this time, Beatts converted to Judaism.[4]
National Lampoon
[edit]After graduating from college, Beatts wrote for The Village Voice and National Lampoon magazine, a national offshoot of the Harvard Lampoon.[5] She co-wrote a parody advertisement for Volkswagen, conceived by Philip Socci, for which the magazine was later sued by the car company.[6] The advertisement stated, "If Ted Kennedy drove a Volkswagen, he'd be President today," accompanied by a photograph of a VW Beetle floating on a lake (an allusion to Kennedy's Chappaquiddick incident).[7]
During Beatts' time at National Lampoon magazine, she worked with Michael O'Donoghue. The two became romantically involved,[7] and both joined the creative team of Saturday Night Live in the early years of the program.[8]
Television
[edit]At SNL, she was nominated for an Emmy five times, winning once.[9] Beatts created the 1982 CBS sitcom Square Pegs starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Jami Gertz,[10] and additionally appeared in uncredited guest spots on the early SNL.[citation needed] For Square Pegs, Beatts hired a staff of five women writers, believing they would be best able to voice the experiences of a teenage girl, but the network compelled her to include a male writer, Andy Borowitz, to connect with a broader audience.[11]
Beatts wrote the book for the 1985 Ellie Greenwich jukebox musical Leader of the Pack.[12]
Starting in 1987, she produced the first season of The Cosby Show spinoff A Different World.[13]
In 2000 she won a Writers Guild Award for Best Comedy/Variety show for her part in writing the Saturday Night Live: 25th Anniversary Special.[14]
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.
In 2007, Beatts served as one of the judges for the online comedy competition Project Breakout.[15]
Beatts served as Adjunct Professor in the Writing Division at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts,[16] as well as at Chapman University's Dodge College of Film and Media Arts. She also gave private lessons on writing sketch comedy.[17]
Media portrayals
[edit]Beatts was portrayed by Natasha Lyonne in the 2018 Netflix film A Futile and Stupid Gesture, and Leander Suleiman in Saturday Night. She was profiled in the January 6, 2020, issue of New York Magazine.[18]
Death
[edit]Beatts died at age 74 on April 7, 2021, at her home in West Hollywood.[19][20]
Works
[edit]- National Lampoon (Magazine)
- National Lampoon's Lemmings (with Sean Kelly, Tony Hendra, Christopher Guest, and Paul Jacobs) (1973) (Stage Show)
- Tarzoon: Shame of the Jungle (with Michael O'Donoghue) (1975) (Adaptation)
- National Lampoon: A Dirty Book (1976) (Book)
- Saturday Night Live (1975–1980) (TV)
- Titters: The First Collection of Humor by Women (with Deanne Stillman) (1976) (Book)
- Gilda Live (with Gilda Radner, Michael O'Donoghue, Alan Zweibel, Don Novello, Lorne Michaels, Marilyn Suzanne Miller, Paul Shaffer, and Rosie Shuster) (1980) (Stage Show)
- Square Pegs (1982–1983) (TV)
- Titters 101 (with Deanne Stillman and Judith Jacklin Belushi) (1984) (Book)
- Leader of the Pack (1985) (Stage Show)
- The Mom Book (with Judith Jacklin Belushi and Deanne Stillman) (1986) (Book)
- A Different World (1987–1988) (TV) (Producer only)
- Faerie Tale Theatre (1987) (TV)
- The Belles of Bleeker Street (1991) (TV)
- Murphy Brown (1991) (TV)
- The Elvira Show (1993) (TV)
- The Stephanie Miller Show (1995) (TV)
- Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (2000) (TV)
- Hollywood Off-Ramp (2000) (TV)
- 56th Annual Writers' Guild Awards (2004) (TV)
References
[edit]- ↑ Marquis Who's Who Inc (2004). Who's Who of American Women 2004-2005. Marquis Who's Who. ISBN 978-0-8379-0430-6.
- ↑ "The Gazette from Montreal, Quebec, Canada on May 27, 1960 · 37". Newspapers.com. 27 May 1960. Retrieved 2021-04-12.
- ↑ "The Gazette from Montreal, Quebec, Canada on October 25, 1980 · 87". Newspapers.com. 25 October 1980. Retrieved 2021-04-12.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Anne Beatts". She Made It - The Paley Center for Media. Archived from the original on February 27, 2007.
- ↑ "Anne Beatts, original SNL writer who broke into boys' club of comedy, dies at 74". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
- ↑ "The Press: Lampoon's Surrender". Time. 12 November 1973. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
- 1 2 Krassner, Paul (Nov 6, 2015). "The Rise and Fall of the National Lampoon". CounterPunch.
- ↑ "Group Think". gladwell.com. Archived from the original on April 28, 2007.
- ↑ "Anne Beatts". Television Academy. Retrieved 2021-04-12.
- ↑ Chaney, Jen (2021-04-09). "Allow Anne Beatts to Set the Record Straight About Square Pegs". Vulture. Retrieved 2021-04-12.
- ↑ "Anne Beatts". Television Academy Interviews. 2017-10-23. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
- ↑ Greenwich, Ellie; Beatts, Anne P.; Mintz, Melanie; Heifner, Jack (1987). Leader of the Pack: The Ellie Greenwich Musical. Samuel French, Inc. ISBN 978-0-573-68168-4.
- ↑ Haithman, Diane (1988-10-06). "Different Touch to 'Different World'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2021-04-12.
- ↑ McNary, Dave (2001-01-11). "NBC tops WGA TV noms". Variety. Retrieved 2021-04-12.
- ↑ "Comedy Contest". Project Breakout. Archived from the original on May 17, 2007.
- ↑ "Anne Beatts". Los Angeles, Calif.: University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts. Archived from the original on 26 February 2010. Retrieved 28 February 2010.
- ↑ Beatts, Anne. "Saturday Night Live in 5 Easy Lessons!". Archived from the original on 19 November 2010. Retrieved 28 February 2010.
- ↑ Cheney, Jen (January 6, 2020). "Anne Beatts was always more interesting than John Hughes". New York Magazine. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
- ↑ Kilkenny, Katie (2021-04-08). "Anne Beatts, 'SNL' Writer and 'Square Pegs' Creator, Dies at 74". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
- ↑ Littleton, Cynthia (April 8, 2021). "Anne Beatts, 'Saturday Night Live' writer and creator of 'Square Pegs,' dies at 74". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
External links
[edit]- Anne Beatts at IMDb
- Anne Beatts discography at Discogs
- Anne Beatts at The Interviews: An Oral History of Television
- "Interview with Anne Beatts", Part One and Part Two. Maximum Fun.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
- 1947 births
- 2021 deaths
- 20th-century American Jews
- 20th-century American non-fiction writers
- 20th-century American screenwriters
- 20th-century American women writers
- 21st-century American Jews
- 21st-century American non-fiction writers
- 21st-century American screenwriters
- 21st-century American women writers
- American comedy writers
- American humorists
- American magazine editors
- American people of Canadian descent
- American women non-fiction writers
- American women screenwriters
- American women television producers
- American women television writers
- American television writers
- Comedians from New York (state)
- Converts to Judaism
- Jewish American comedians
- Jewish women comedians
- Jewish American comedy writers
- Jewish American screenwriters
- American television producers
- Primetime Emmy Award winners
- National Lampoon people
- Screenwriters from New York (state)
- Television producers from New York (state)
- American women humorists
- American women magazine editors
- Writers from Buffalo, New York
- Writers Guild of America Award winners