ROSENTHAL, Jack (Morris) 1931-2004

OBITUARY NOTICE—

See index for CA sketch: Born September 8, 1931, in Manchester, England; died May 29, 2004, in London, England. Author. Rosenthal was an award-winning author of British television scripts for series, movies, and plays. After completing a B.A. in English and languages at Sheffield University, he served in the British Navy as a Russian translator. Returning to civilian life, he was hired by Granada Television, where his first job was writing trailers for television programs. Rosenthal's big break came in 1960, when he was hired to be one of the writers for the popular series Coronation Street. He continued to write for the show through the 1960s, also contributing to series such as That Was the Week That Was (1963), The Dustbinmen (1969), and Sadie, It's Cold Outside (1975). He remained a prolific writer through the 1990s, penning television screenplays such as Your Name's Not God, It's Edgar (1969), There'll Almost Always Be an England (1974), The Evacuees (1975), P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang (1982), and Bag Lady (1989). He also wrote the stage musical Bar Mitzvah Boy (1978) and the play Smash! (1981), and movie screenplays including The Lovers (1973), Yentl (1983), which he wrote with Barbra Streisand and for which he won a Golden Globe award, and The Chain (1985). He was the recipient of numerous other prizes from such organizations as the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, the Royal Television Society, and the Cannes Film Festival. His more recent work included the television plays Eskimo Day (1996) and Cold Enough for Snow (1997). In 1994, Rosenthal was named a Commander of the British Empire for his many writing contributions.

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Independent (London, England), May 31, 2004, p. 30.

Times (London, England), May 31, 2004, p. 23.