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Frank Launder

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Frank Launder
Born(1906-01-28)28 January 1906
Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England
Died23 February 1997(1997-02-23) (aged 91)
Monte Carlo, Monaco
Occupation(s)Film director, producer, writer
Spouse(s)Bernadette O'Farrell (1950–97; his death)
2 children

Frank Launder (28 January 1906 – 23 February 1997) was a British writer, film director and producer, who made more than 40 films, many of them in collaboration with Sidney Gilliat.[1]

He was born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England and worked briefly as a clerk before becoming an actor and then a playwright.[2] He began working as a screenwriter on British films in the 1930s, contributing the original story for the classic Will Hay comedy Oh, Mr Porter! (1937).[3] After writing a number of screenplays with Gilliat, including The Lady Vanishes (1938) for Alfred Hitchcock, and Night Train to Munich for Carol Reed; the two men wrote and directed the wartime drama Millions Like Us (1943).[1][4]

After founding their own production company Individual Pictures, they produced a number of memorable dramas and thrillers including I See a Dark Stranger (1945) and Green for Danger (1946), but were best known for their comedies including The Happiest Days of Your Life (1950) and most famously, the St Trinians series, based on Ronald Searle's cartoons set in an anarchic girls school.[5][6] He was married to actress Bernadette O'Farrell from 1950 until his death in Monaco. The couple had two children.[7]

Selected films

References

  1. ^ a b "Frank Launder".
  2. ^ "Obituary: Frank Launder". 24 February 1997.
  3. ^ "BFI Screenonline: Oh, Mr Porter! (1937)". www.screenonline.org.uk.
  4. ^ "BFI Screenonline: Millions Like Us (1943)". www.screenonline.org.uk.
  5. ^ "Individual Pictures".
  6. ^ "BFI Screenonline: Launder and Gilliat". www.screenonline.org.uk.
  7. ^ "Robin Hood's courageous sweetheart".
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