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Herman Raucher, a best-selling author and the Academy Award nominated screenwriter of “Summer of ’42,” died Dec. 28 of natural causes at Stamford Hospital in Stamford, Conn. He was 95.

Raucher got his start in the industry working in live television. He wrote one hour dramas for anthology series including “Studio One,” “Good Year Playhouse” and “The Alcoa Hour.” In his screenwriting career, he wrote the scripts for two films starring Anthony Newley, “Sweet November” (1968) and “Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?” (1969), which Newley also directed.

Raucher was inspired by Bobbie Gentry’s popular song “Ode to Billie Joe” to write the screenplay for Max Baer Jr.’s 1976 romance film of the same name starring Robby Benson and Glynnis O’Connor. Raucher also co-wrote the script for the 1977 film “The Other Side of Midnight.”

Raucher is remembered for penning the script for the popular coming-of-age film “Summer of ’42,...

Herman Raucher, the best-selling author and screenwriter who earned an Oscar nomination for the coming-of-age classic Summer of ’42 and wrote the script for the thought-provoking Watermelon Man, has died. He was 95.

Raucher died Thursday of natural causes at Stamford Hospital in Stamford, Connecticut, his daughter Jenny Raucher told The Hollywood Reporter.

Raucher, who started out in live television, penned the screenplays for two Anthony Newley-starring films: Sweet November (1968), directed by Robert Ellis Miller and also featuring Sandy Dennis, and Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? (1969), featuring Joan Collins.

He also was given inspiration from Bobbie Gentry’s 1967 hit song to write the screenplay to Ode to Billy Joe (1976), a love story that starred Robby Benson and Glynnis O’Connor and was helmed by Max Baer Jr.

With the Robert Mulligan-directed Summer of ’42 (1971) in postproduction, someone came up with the idea of Raucher writing a...