Jack Laird

Jack Laird (born Jack Laird Schultheis; May 8, 1923 – December 3, 1991) was an American screenwriter, producer, director, and actor. He received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations for his works in Ben Casey, Night Gallery, and Kojak.

Jack Laird
Born
Jack Laird Schultheis

(1923-05-08)May 8, 1923
Monrovia, California, U.S.
DiedDecember 3, 1991(1991-12-03) (aged 68)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting placeHollywood Forever Cemetery
Occupation
Years active1949–1990
Spouse(s)Cicely Ann Browne (1948-?)

Peggy Johnson (1958-1963)

Jeri Emmett (?-1991)

Early life

Laird was born on May 8, 1923 in Monrovia, California to Leonard Schultheis, a businessman, and Thelma Laird, a Theater Director who taught night school dramatics, and from whom Laird took classes, in his high school years he was art editor of the school newspaper, while a student at Pasadena Junior College, Laird formed his dance band "Aris Laird and his ARIStocrats of Swing", the group was made up of players who later joined the likes of Stan Kenton, Benny Goodman, and Les Brown, the band broke up when Laird enlisted in the Army Air Force during World War II, he was assigned as a pilot in the Ninth Air Force, he served with the First Allied Airborne while stationed in Manchester, England.

Career

Laird entered the entertainment industry at a young age. One of his first appearances as a child actor was in an unbilled bit part in the 1934 film The Circus Clown. After his discharge from the army, Laird resumed civilian life in New York, where he enrolled at the Dramatic Workshop and studied playwriting under John Gassner, he returned to Hollywood for a screen test and ultimately starred in a series of movie and radio roles, but eventually moved into writing and producing, he began writing for various television shows, such as The Lone Ranger, The Millionaire, M Squad, Private Secretary, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Ford Theatre, The Wild Wild West, The Ann Sothern Show, Mr. District Attorney, and Have Gun – Will Travel. Laird distinguished himself as a writer and story editor on the medical show Ben Casey, eventually becoming an associate producer, he would receive an Emmy nomination in 1962 for his work on the Episode "I Remember a Lemon Tree", he then went on to write and produce independent projects for Universal Studio. In the 1970s, Laird came into his own as a Writer, Director, and Producer, working on such shows as The Psychiatrist, Night Gallery, Kojak, and many more.[1][2][3]

One of Laird's favorite actors was Leslie Nielsen with whom he made several made-for-TV movies, including 1964's See How They Run, the first feature in that genre,[4][5] Code Name: Heraclitus, Dark Intruder, The Return of Charlie Chan and numerous TV episodes. Nielsen also starred in a series produced by Laird was evidently an admirer of horror writer H.P. Lovecraft. He based at least two episodes of Night Gallery on Lovecraft's work - "Pickman's Model" (based directly on the Lovecraft story of the same title Pickman's Model) and "Professor Peabody's Last Lecture". The dialogue of the 1965 horror movie Dark Intruder, produced by Laird, includes some references to alien beings invented by Lovecraft, tying the film to Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. In an early scene where Brett Kingsford meets with the police commissioner, opines that "gods older than the human race...deities like Dagon and Azathoth still have worshippers." He was also an avid film collector and jazz fan.[6]

Personal life

In 1948, Laird married his first wife, actress Cicely Ann Browne, but due to their careers, the marriage ended, Browne retained custody of their son, Sean. In 1958, Laird married his second wife, Peggy Johnson, a young stage actress, they had a daughter, Sharon, after five years, Johnson and Laird divorced, in the mid 1960s, Laird married his third wife, Jeri Emmett, a former Playboy Bunny turned writer, they had a daughter, Persephone, Emmett had written a few episodes for such television shows as, The Fugitive, Iron Horse, The Bold Ones: The Protectors (under the name Betty Deveraux),[7] and Mannix, as well as a Television Series Treatment called "Confessions of a Den Mother", and a book about her days working at the playboy club called "Point Your Tail in The Right Direction".

Death

Laird died of heart disease on December 3, 1991 in Los Angeles at the age of 71. His final resting place in Hollywood Forever Cemetery is in the "Garden of Legends" (formerly Section 8), Lot 266. His grave is next to the cenotaph of actress Jayne Mansfield.

Filmography

Films

YearFilmCreditNotes
1934 The Circus ClownActor (Uncredited)
1949Mr. Belvedere Goes to CollegeActor (Uncredited)
Sword in the DesertActor (Uncredited)Role: Orderly
1950FrancisActor (Uncredited)Role: Switchboard Operator
1951Call Me MisterActor (Uncredited)Role: Soldier
Journey into LightActor (Uncredited)
1964The Hanged ManWriterTelevision Movie, Co-Wrote Screenplay with "Stanford Whitmore"
See How They RunProducer
1965Dark IntruderProducer
1967Code Name: HeraclitusProducer
How I Spent My Summer VacationProducer
Ready and WillingProducer
1968Shadow over ElveronProducer
1969Trial RunProducer
Destiny of a SpyProducer
1970The Movie MurdererProducer
Hauser's MemoryProducer
1973Amanda FallonDirector, Producer
The Return of Charlie ChanProducer
1975One Of Our OwnWriter, Producer
1976Perilous VoyageProducer
1979Beggarman, ThiefProducer
1981Hellinger's LawWriter, Executive ProducerCo-Wrote Screenplay with "Peter S. Fischer"
1990Kojak: It's Always SomethingWriter
Kojak: None So BlindWriterCo-Wrote Screenplay with "Scott Shepherd"
The Bride in BlackWriterCo-Wrote Story with "Claire Labine"

Television

YearTV SeriesCreditNotes
1951Racket SquadWriter1 Episode
1952China SmithWriterUnknown Episodes
ReboundActor2 Episodes
Your Jeweler's ShowcaseWriter1 Episode
The UnexpectedWriter2 Episodes
1953The Adventures of Wild Bill HickokWriter1 Episode
1954WaterfrontWriter1 Episode
The New Adventures of China SmithWriter4 Episodes
Kraft Television TheatreWriter1 Episode
Private SecretaryWriter1 Episode
1954-55The Lone RangerWriter6 Episodes
1955Fireside TheatreWriter1 Episode
Brave EagleWriter1 Episode
Cavalcade of AmericaWriter4 Episodes
1955-57Highway PatrolWriter4 Episodes
1956Warner Bros. PresentsWriter2 Episodes
Celebrity PlayhouseWriter6 Episodes
Matinee TheaterWriter5 Episodes
The Man Called XWriter2 Episodes
1956-57Dr. ChristianWriter6 Episodes
1957Men of AnnapolisWriter2 Episode
Code 3Writer2 Episodes
Wire ServiceWriter1 Episode
1957-58Broken ArrowWriter3 Episodes
1957-59M SquadWriter12 Episodes
1957-60The MillionaireWriter6 Episodes
1958The Restless GunWriter1 Episode
Man Without a GunWriter3 Episodes
TargetWriter1 Episode
Rescue 8Writer1 Episode
1958-59Man with a CameraWriter2 Episodes
FlightWriter3 Episodes
1958-62Have Gun – Will TravelWriter7 Episodes
1959Tales of Wells FargoWriter1 Episode
21 Beacon StreetWriter1 Episode
The Third ManWriter1 Episode
DragnetWriter1 Episode
World of GiantsWriter1 Episode
The LineupWriter1 Episode
New York ConfidentialWriter3 Episodes
1959-60Hotel de PareeWriter3 Episodes
BroncoWriter2 Episodes
1959-61The RebelWriter4 Episodes
1960Pony ExpressWriter1 Episode
1960-61DanteWriter2 Episodes
1960-62My Three SonsWriter2 Episodes
1961The DetectivesWriter1 Episode
1961-65Ben CaseyWriter, Story Editor, Producer, Associate Producer, Actor22 Episodes
1964ChanningWriter, Producer, Executive Producer17 Episodes
Kraft Suspense TheatreProducer2 Episodes
1964-67Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler TheatreWriter, Director, ProducerMultiple Episodes
1966The Wild Wild WestWriter2 Episodes
1969-70The Bold Ones: The ProtectorsExecutive Producer5 Episodes
1970The PsychiatristStory Consultant1 Episode
1970-73Night GalleryWriter, Director, Producer, Actor43 Episodes
1972-73The Bold Ones: The New DoctorsProducer2 Episodes
1973 Dr. Simon LockeWriter1 Episode
1973-77KojakWriter, Supervising Producer78 Episodes
1975-76Doctors' HospitalWriter, Producer13 Episodes
1976-77SwitchProducer, Supervising Producer9 Episodes
1977Testimony of Two Men Producer3 Episodes
1978The Dark Secret of Harvest HomeProducer2 Episodes
What Really Happened to the Class of '65?Writer, Producer4 Episodes
1981The Gangster ChroniclesProducer13 Episodes
1984Whiz KidsWriter (Uncredited)1 Episode
1985Deadly NightmaresProduction Consultant1 Episode
Hell TownWriter1 Episode
The InsidersWriter2 Episodes

Unproduced Projects

Throughout his career Jack Laird had a number of projects that were never produced or broadcast:

  • From The 1950's to the 1960s, Laird wrote several spec scripts, which included, "Red Wolf Crossing", which was an adaptation of the Will Henry novel "To Follow a Flag", "A God In A Garden", which was based on an original story by Theodore Sturgeon, "An Extenuating Circumstance", a screenplay Laird co-wrote with Charles F. Haas, that was adapted from the story "A Coward" By Guy de Maupassant, "The Steel Trap", which was based on a story by William T. Orr, "Three Marked Pennies", which was based on a story By Mary Elizabeth Counselman, "Four Cornered Triangle" an original screenplay Laird wrote, "A Day Off", which was based on a story By Walter Gilkyson,[8] he was also set to produce five projects, "Crime! Pleasant Dreams Sweet Celia", a screenplay written by Gene R. Kearney, "Out Of The Darkness", a screenplay written by Barré Lyndon[9] and Alvin Sapinsley, "Fires, Bombs, and Patriots", a screenplay written by Abby Mann,[10] "The Invisible Man", based on the H.G. Wells novel of the same name that was adapted by Howard Rodman,[11] and "The Other Place", a screenplay written by Theodore Sturgeon.[12]
  • In early 1967, Laird and Herman Miller had written an early draft of Coogan's Bluff.
  • In 1969, Laird was attached to two film projects that were never produced, "The Richest Hill On Earth" which was written by Halsted Welles (Based on a treatment by Laird), and "Unit Theta", which was written by Wilton Schiller.
  • From the 1950s to the 1980s, Laird had written or had developed several Television Series Treatments that were never picked up called "Daniel Boone: The Gun Runners",[13] "Talmadge", "Brute Force", "Atonement", "...& Cucamonga", "E.Z. Wheeler: Ex-Cop", "In The Name Of The Law", "Newsroom",[14] "Code Name: Damocles"[15] "Senior Year", "The Lorne Greene Project", and "Tokatyan".
  • At the time of his death, Laird was working on a television series based on stories by thriller writer Robert Ludlum[1]
  • In 1967, he created an unsold comedy pilot, The Return of the Original Yellow Tornado, about two elderly, retired superheroes Mickey Rooney is the original Yellow Tornado and Eddie Mayehoff is his retired sidekick who must once again don their leotards to do battle with a super-villain who has been set free and has vowed to destroy the world. The pilot was eventually expanded to a film-that was never released.[16][17]
  • In 1972, he worked as producer on one of the pilot episodes produced for Biography, an unsold TV series. Four pilots were completed and eventually appeared as TV movies, but Laird's episode about Houdini was never filmed.[16]
  • In the 1970s, Laird was attached to several film projects, a spec script he had written called "Hotel Imperial - Tokyo", which was based on an original story by Alan Lee, "Mantrap", a spec script he co-wrote with Wilton Schiller, "The Broken-Field Runner", a screenplay written by Fred Segal, which Laird was going to produce.
  • In 1988, Laird wrote a spec script that was called "Suffer The Little Children".

References

  1. "Filmreference.com". Jack Laird Biography. Retrieved February 16, 2008.
  2. "Jack Laird filmography". www.bfi.org.uk. Retrieved 2020-07-18.
  3. "Jack Laird Filmography". www.catalog.afi.com. Retrieved 2020-07-24.
  4. "Television and the Movie Industry". digitalhistory.uh.edu. Archived from the original on 2007-10-19. Retrieved 2007-11-05.
  5. "Cinema: Film History Since 1880". matthewhunt.com. Retrieved 2007-11-05.
  6. Skelton, Scott; Benson, Jim (1999). Rod Serling's Night Gallery: An After-Hours Tour. Syracuse University Press. ISBN 978-0-8156-2782-1.
  7. "Betty Deveraux". www.wgfoundation.org. Retrieved 2020-09-17.
  8. "1950'S TV SCRIPTS JACK LAIRD ANTHOLOGY #4 BOUND VOLUME". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  9. "1967 UNPRECEDENTED SCRIPT-OUT OF THE DARKNESS - LAIRD". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  10. "1971 UNIQUE & ORIGINAL TV SCRIPT-FIRES, BOMBS & PATRIOTS-LAIRD COLLECTION". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  11. "CIRCA 1960 INCOMPARABLE TV SCREENPLAY TREATMENT-THE INVISIBLE MAN-LAIRD". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  12. "THEODORE STURGEON 1966 SCRIPT "THE OTHER PLACE" JACK LAIRD UNIVERSAL STUDIOS TV". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  13. "RARE 1954 FIRST EPISODE DANIEL BOONE TV SCRIPT EARLY TELEVISION UN-MADE PILOT". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  14. "1970'S PILOT SCRIPTS JACK LAIRD CREATED / WRITTEN BOUND VOLUME TELEVISION SHOWS". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  15. "ORIGINAL TV PREMISE CIRCA 1970 - CODE NAME: DAMOCLES - JACK LAIRD COLLECTION". www.worthpoint.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  16. "The Internet Movie Database". Jack Laird - Other Works. Retrieved February 16, 2008.
  17. "Mickey Rooney and Eddie Mayehoff as Superheroes to compete with Batman- The Return of the Original Yellow Tornado, Captain Nice and Mr. Terrific". www.thelifeandtimesofhollywood.com. Retrieved 2020-07-24.
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