Author. He was an 20th-century English author, who wrote mainly thrillers and in particular spy novels along with receiving an Academy Award nomination for a screenplay. Although he studied engineering at Northampton Polytechnic and served a traineeship with an engineering company, his upbringing got the better of him. His parents were in the entertainment business and worked as music hall artists, with which he helped in his early years. He started writing plays and then became a copywriter for an advertising agency. He subsequently moved to Paris and started to write. At the start of World War II, he signed on as a private soldier, but in 1941 he was commissioned into the Royal Artillery but soon reassigned to photographic units. By the end of the war, he was an assistant director of the Army Film and Photographic Unit, with a rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and having been awarded the Bronze Star. After the war, he worked in the civilian film industry and in 1953 received an Academy award nomination for his work on the film "The Cruel Sea." In 1960 he created the American TV series "Checkmate." His best known works are "The Mask of Dimitrios" in 1939, which was made into a film in 1944, and "The Light of Day" in 1962, which was filmed in 1964 as "Topkapi." Other classic films based on his work include "Journey into Fear" in 1943 and "The October Man" in 1947. He also wrote the screenplay for "A Night to Remember" about the sinking of the HMS Titanic. Additionally, using the pseudonym Eliot Reed, he co-wrote a number of books with Charles Rodda. He received many honors, including the Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America, and was given the Order of the British Empire in 1981
Author. He was an 20th-century English author, who wrote mainly thrillers and in particular spy novels along with receiving an Academy Award nomination for a screenplay. Although he studied engineering at Northampton Polytechnic and served a traineeship with an engineering company, his upbringing got the better of him. His parents were in the entertainment business and worked as music hall artists, with which he helped in his early years. He started writing plays and then became a copywriter for an advertising agency. He subsequently moved to Paris and started to write. At the start of World War II, he signed on as a private soldier, but in 1941 he was commissioned into the Royal Artillery but soon reassigned to photographic units. By the end of the war, he was an assistant director of the Army Film and Photographic Unit, with a rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and having been awarded the Bronze Star. After the war, he worked in the civilian film industry and in 1953 received an Academy award nomination for his work on the film "The Cruel Sea." In 1960 he created the American TV series "Checkmate." His best known works are "The Mask of Dimitrios" in 1939, which was made into a film in 1944, and "The Light of Day" in 1962, which was filmed in 1964 as "Topkapi." Other classic films based on his work include "Journey into Fear" in 1943 and "The October Man" in 1947. He also wrote the screenplay for "A Night to Remember" about the sinking of the HMS Titanic. Additionally, using the pseudonym Eliot Reed, he co-wrote a number of books with Charles Rodda. He received many honors, including the Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America, and was given the Order of the British Empire in 1981
Bio by: Peter Cox
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