Robert Buckner(1906-1989)
- Writer
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Robert Buckner was one of those individuals who flourished under the
strictures of the studio system. He came to Hollywood highly qualified,
holding degrees from the Universities of Virginia and Edinburgh and
from the Ecole Polytechnique in Paris. His work history was also
amazingly diverse. He had at one time been an English teacher, a
courier, a tour guide, writer for the Daily Mail and London
correspondent for the New York World. At the end of his lengthy sojourn
in Britain, he returned to the U.S. and was for three years engaged by
various publishing and advertising agencies. The busy Mr. Buckner still
found sufficient time to write plays on and off-Broadway, and numerous
short stories and magazine articles, one of which (for Atlantic
Monthly) led to a lucrative contract with Warner Brothers in 1937.
Before long, Buckner had evolved into one of the most sought-after
writers of screenplays for Warners typical fast-paced, fast-talking,
tough action subjects, often starring
Errol Flynn or
James Cagney. He was handed several
prestige assignments, including
Santa Fe Trail (1940),
Dive Bomber (1941) and
Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942).
The resulting box-office success was rewarded with a promotion to
producer and further hits with
Gentleman Jim (1942) and
Life with Father (1947). After
leaving Warner Brothers in 1948, Buckner moved to Universal and rounded
out his career in 1955 as a free-lance author of teleplays and novels
("Tiger by the Tail", Moon Pilot", "Starfire").
strictures of the studio system. He came to Hollywood highly qualified,
holding degrees from the Universities of Virginia and Edinburgh and
from the Ecole Polytechnique in Paris. His work history was also
amazingly diverse. He had at one time been an English teacher, a
courier, a tour guide, writer for the Daily Mail and London
correspondent for the New York World. At the end of his lengthy sojourn
in Britain, he returned to the U.S. and was for three years engaged by
various publishing and advertising agencies. The busy Mr. Buckner still
found sufficient time to write plays on and off-Broadway, and numerous
short stories and magazine articles, one of which (for Atlantic
Monthly) led to a lucrative contract with Warner Brothers in 1937.
Before long, Buckner had evolved into one of the most sought-after
writers of screenplays for Warners typical fast-paced, fast-talking,
tough action subjects, often starring
Errol Flynn or
James Cagney. He was handed several
prestige assignments, including
Santa Fe Trail (1940),
Dive Bomber (1941) and
Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942).
The resulting box-office success was rewarded with a promotion to
producer and further hits with
Gentleman Jim (1942) and
Life with Father (1947). After
leaving Warner Brothers in 1948, Buckner moved to Universal and rounded
out his career in 1955 as a free-lance author of teleplays and novels
("Tiger by the Tail", Moon Pilot", "Starfire").