Nancy Dowd (born 1945) is an Academy Award-winning screenwriter whose credits include the films Slap Shot and Coming Home.[1]
Nancy Dowd | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1945 (age 78–79) Framingham, Massachusetts |
| Occupation | Screenwriter |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | UCLA |
| Notable works | Slap Shot (1977) Coming Home (1978) |
| Notable awards | Academy Award Best Original Screenplay 1979 Coming Home |
Career
editDowd was born in Framingham, Massachusetts, the daughter of wealthy machine tool plant operator. She graduated from Smith College and spent her junior year at the Sorbonne. After graduation she taught English in Tokyo and worked for a time as a beer hall hostess. She later attended the UCLA Film School and worked as a student assistant to the director King Vidor.[2]
Dowd's first screenplay, commissioned by Jane Fonda, was an antiwar story about a returning Vietnam War veteran titled "Buffalo Ghost." The script was turned over to Waldo Salt and was filmed as Coming Home. In a 1977 New York Times interview, Dowd called the new version of the screenplay "terrible."[2]
Her brother Ned Dowd inspired[3] the story behind Slap Shot based on his experiences playing minor league hockey. Ned and his wife, Nancy N. Dowd, both appeared in the film.[4]
She wrote lyrics for a song used in Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains, another film she wrote.
Dowd often uses pseudonyms such as Rob Morton or Ernest Morton, or simply writes films without being officially credited.[citation needed]
Filmography
edit- F.T.A. (1972) (Documentary)
- Slap Shot (1977)
- Coming Home (with Waldo Salt and Robert C. Jones) (1978)
- Straight Time (1978) (uncredited)
- North Dallas Forty (1979) (uncredited)
- Saturday Night Live (1980–1981) (TV)
- Ordinary People (1980) (uncredited)
- Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains (1982) (as "Rob Morton")
- Love (1982) (writer and director of segment "For Life")
- Cloak & Dagger (1984) (uncredited)
- Swing Shift (1984) (as "Rob Morton")
- White Nights (1985) (uncredited)
- Happy New Year (1987) (as "Warren Lane")
- Let It Ride (1989) (as "Ernest Morton")
References
edit- ^ Hamill, Sean D. (12 April 2010). "Nancy Dowd". The New York Times.
- ^ a b Klemesrud, Judy (1977-03-03). "Author Says Her 'Slap Shot'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-05-27.
- ^ "Slap Shot Is 30! | GoonBlog.com". 2007-06-27. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
- ^ Jackson, Jonathon (2010). The Making of Slap Shot: Behind the Scenes of the Greatest Hockey Movie Ever Made. Wiley. p. 106. ISBN 9780470678008. Retrieved 2020-01-24.
External links
edit- Nancy Dowd at IMDb
- Nancy Dowd at AllMovie