Reginald Rose (December 10, 1920 – April 19, 2002) was an American playwright and screenwriter. He wrote about controversial social and political issues. His realistic approach was particularly influential in the anthology programs of the 1950s.
Rose was born and raised in Manhattan. He was best known for his courtroom drama Twelve Angry Men, exploring the members of a jury in a murder trial. It was adapted for a film of the same name, directed by Sidney Lumet and released in 1957.
Early life Reginald Rose was born in Manhattan on December 10, 1920, the son of Alice (née Obendorfer) and William Rose, a lawyer. Rose attended Townsend Harris High School and briefly attended City College (now part of the City University of New York). He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, from 1942 to 1946, where he was promoted to first lieutenant.
Rose began trying to write when he was 15 years old and living in Harlem, but he said, "I didn't make it until I was 30." In the interim, he worked as an ad agency's copywriter, a publicist for Warner Bros, a window washer, a clerk, and a counselor at a camp.
Career Television He sold Bus to Nowhere, his first teleplay, in 1951 to the live dramatic anthology program Studio One. They bought his play, Twelve Angry Men, four years later. This latter drama, set entirely in a room where a jury is deliberating the fate of a teenage boy accused of murder, was inspired by Rose's service on a similar trial. The play later was adapted as the 1957 film of the same name, directed by Sidney Lumet.
Rose said about his own jury service: "It was such an impressive, solemn setting in a great big wood-paneled courtroom, with a silver-haired judge, it knocked me out. I was overwhelmed. I was on a jury for a manslaughter case, and we got into this terrific, furious, eight-hour argument in the jury room. I was writing one-hour dramas for Studio One then, and I thought, wow, what a setting for a drama."
Rose received an Emmy for his teleplay Twelve Angry Men and an Oscar nomination for its 1957 feature-length film adaptation. From 1950 to 1960, Rose wrote for all three of the major broadcast networks. In 1961 he created and wrote for The Defenders. The weekly courtroom drama was spun off from one of Rose's episodes of Studio One. The Defenders won two Emmy awards for his dramatic writing.
Rose co-wrote the 1986 TV movie My Two Loves, starring Mariette Hartley and Lynn Redgrave.
The Twilight Zone and films His teleplay "The Incredible World of Horace Ford" was the basis for a 1963 episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. It starred Pat Hingle, Nan Martin, and Ruth White. The episode was broadcast on CBS on April 18, 1963, as Episode 15 of Season Four. The theme was how individuals glorify the past by repressing and exercising censorship of the negative aspects: we remember the good while we forget the bad. The teleplay had originally been produced in 1955 as a Studio One episode.
Rose wrote screenplays for many dramas, beginning with Crime in the Streets (1956), an adaptation of his 1955 teleplay for The Elgin Hour. He made four movies with British producer Euan Lloyd: The Wild Geese, The Sea Wolves, Who Dares Wins and Wild Geese II.
Personal life, death and legacy Rose married Barbara Langbart in 1943, with whom he had four children. After they divorced, he married Ellen McLaughlin (not the playwright and actress) in 1963, with whom he had two children.
Rose died on April 19, 2002, in a Norwalk, Connecticut, hospital, aged 81. The cause of death was complications of heart failure.
Rose's papers are housed in the Wisconsin Historical Society Archives at the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research. The collection includes "variant drafts of scripts, correspondence, clippings, and production information". Films and tape recordings are included in addition to printed documents. Columbia University Libraries also have scripts, "cast lists, shooting schedules, and allied notes and papers" related to The Defenders. The material is housed in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
Filmography Film Year Title Writer Producer Notes1956Crime in the Streets 195712 Angry Men 1957Dino 1958Man of the West 1959The Man in the Net 1973Baxter! 1978The Wild Geese 1978Somebody Killed Her Husband 1980The Sea Wolves 1981Whose Life Is It Anyway? 1982The Final Option 1985Wild Geese II
Television Year Title Writer Creator Notes1951Out There Wrote episode "The Bus To Nowhere"1952–1957Studio One Wrote 17 episodes1953The Revlon Mirror Theater Wrote episode "The Enormous Radio"1953–1954Danger Wrote 5 episodes1954The Elgin Hour Wrote episode "Crime in the Streets"1955Goodyear Playhouse Wrote episode "The Expendable House"1955Three Empty Rooms Television film1955The Challenge Television film1956The Alcoa Hour Wrote episode "Tragedy in a Temporary Town"1957ITV Television Playhouse Wrote episode "Thunder on Sycamore Street"1957Armchair Theatre Wrote episode "Tragedy in a Temporary Town"1959Shell Presents Wrote episode "Tragedy in a Temporary Town"1959–1960Playhouse 90 Wrote episodes "A Quiet Game of Cards", "A Marriage of Strangers" and "The Cruel Day"1959–1960Sunday Showcase Wrote episodes "A Tribute to Eleanor Roosevelt on Her Diamond Jubilee" and "The Sacco-Vanzetti Story"1960The General Motors Hour Wrote episode "Thunder on Sycamore Street"1960Encounter Wrote episodes "Remarkable Incident at Carson Corners" and "The Incredible World of Horace Ford"1961The Play of the Week Wrote episode "Black Monday"1961Drama '61 Wrote episode "The Cruel Day"1961–1965The Defenders Wrote 132 episodes1962A Quiet Game of Cards Television film1963BBC Sunday-Night Play Wrote episode "The Remarkable Incident at Carson Corners"1963Suspense Wrote episode "Thunder on Sycamore Street"1963The Twilight Zone Wrote episode "The Incredible World of Horace Ford"1965Directions Wrote episode "The Final Ingredient"1965Love Story Wrote episode "A Marriage of Strangers"1967Stranger on the Run Television film1967CBS Playhouse Wrote episode "Dear Friends"1970Annie, the Women in the Life of a Man Television special1973Jackanory Wrote 3 episodes1974The Zoo Gang 5 episodes1977The Four of Us Television film1979Studs Lonigan Television miniseries1982The Rules of Marriage Television film1986My Two Loves Television film1987Escape from Sobibor Television film
Awards and nominations YearAwardWorkCategoryResultNote(s)1955Primetime Emmy AwardsTwelve Angry MenBest Written Dramatic Material1957Tragedy in a Temporary TownBest Teleplay Writing, One Hour or More1958Academy Awards12 Angry MenBest Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another MediumBest Picture (with Henry Fonda)1958Edgar AwardsBest Motion Picture Screenplay1958Writers Guild of America AwardsBest Written American Drama1961Primetime Emmy AwardsSacco-Vanzetti StoryOutstanding Writing Achievement in Drama1962The DefendersOutstanding Writing Achievement in Drama1963Outstanding Writing Achievement in Drama (with Robert Thom)1968Dear FriendsOutstanding Writing Achievement in Drama1979Edgar AwardsSomebody Killed Her HusbandBest Motion Picture Screenplay1987Writers Guild of America AwardsTwelve Angry MenLaurel Award for TV Writing Achievement1987Primetime Emmy AwardsEscape from SobiborOutstanding Writing in a Miniseries or a Special1988Writers Guild of America AwardsAdapted Long Form1997CableACE Awards12 Angry MenWriting a Movie or Miniseries
Plays The Porcelain Year (1950) Black Monday (1962) Twelve Angry Men (1964) Dear Friends (1968) This Agony, This Triumph (1970)
References
External links Reginald Rose at the Museum of Broadcast Communications Reginald Rose Papers at the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research