A. Martin Zweiback, ‘Grace Quigley’ Screenwriter, Dies at 85
Variety
By Marco McClendon
Screenwriter A. Martin Zweiback died last Saturday in Santa Monica, Calif. He was 85.
Zweiback got his first big break in Hollywood with the 1984 film “Grace Quigley,” starring Katharine Hepburn and Nick Nolte. Hepburn was visiting the home of George Cukor when Zweiback threw the film’s script over Cukor’s fence. By the time he made it home, he had a call from Hepburn waiting on his answering machine.
Directed by Tom Harvey, “Grace Quigley” was the first film where a director and writer edited a release of the finished film.
Zweiback’s other works include “Cactus in the Snow” (1971), which he directed, and “Gorp” (1980). He wrote screenplays for multiple TV series in the ’70s such as “Kung Fu,” “James at 16” and “The Paper Chase.”
He also wrote “Me Natalie,” Al Pacino’s first film, starring Patty Duke, who received a Golden Globe for the role.
“Me Natalie” received a WGA nomination for best drama written directly for the screen in 1970. In 2006, Zweiback won a New York International Independent Film and Video Festival award for best screenplay for “Grace Quigley.”
Mayor Tom Bradley proclaimed March 19, 1987, Screenwriter’s Day in honor of Zweiback.
ZWEIBACK, A. Martin
Born: 1931, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.A.
Died: 4/23/2016, Santa Monica, California, U.S.A.
A. Martin Zweiback’s westerns – screenwriter:
The Rifleman (TV) – 1963
Kung Fu (TV) - 1973