William Riley Burnett (November 25, 1899 April 25, 1982) was an American novelist and screenwriter. He is best known for the crime novel Little Caesar, the film adaptation of which is considered the first of the classic American gangster movies.

Early life

Burnett was born in Springfield, Ohio, and attended Miami Military Institute in Germantown, Ohio.

Writing career

In Chicago, Burnett found a job as a night clerk in the Northmere Hotel. His experiences with the people at the hotel, including gangsters, inspired Little Caesar (novel 1929, film 1931). In 1980, he won the Mystery Writers of America's Grand Master Award. who all wrote in the hardboiled genre of fiction. He often contrasted the corruption and corrosion of the city with the better life his characters yearned for. They typically get one last shot at salvation but the oppressive system closes in and denies redemption. John Huston, Howard Hawks, Douglas Sirk, Michael Cimino, Humphrey Bogart, Paul Muni, Frank Sinatra, Steve McQueen, and Clint Eastwood.<!-- Removed John Wayne and Marilyn Monroe as Burnett only wrote the novels the movies were based on and was not involved in the screenplays. --> He received an Oscar nomination for his script for Wake Island (1942) In addition to his film work, he also wrote scripts for television and radio.

In High Sierra (1941), Humphrey Bogart plays Roy Earle, a hard-bitten criminal who rejects his life of crime to marry a crippled girl. In The Beast of the City (1932) starring Walter Huston, the police take the law into their own hands when the criminals walk free due to legal incompetence.

Burnett was called back by Howard Hughes to work on Vendetta.

Later years

In later years, with his vision declining, he stopped writing and turned to promoting his earlier work. On his death in 1982, in Santa Monica, California, Burnett was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

Critical reception

Heywood Broun described Burnett's novel Goodbye to the Past as "written with all the excitement of Little Caesar, and ten times the skill".

Works

Novels

  • Little Caesar (Lincoln MacVeagh/The Dial Press - 1929)
  • Iron Man (Lincoln MacVeagh/The Dial Press - 1930)
  • Saint Johnson (Lincoln MacVeagh/The Dial Press - 1930)
  • The Giant Swing (Harper - 1932)
  • Vanity Row (Knopf - 1952)
  • It's Always Four O'Clock (Random House - 1956) - written under pseudonym "James Updyke"
  • Underdog (Knopf - 1957)
  • Conant (Popular Library - 1961)
  • The Widow Barony (Macdonald - 1962)
  • The Roar of the Crowd: Conversations with an Ex-Big-Leaguer (C.N. Potter - 1964)
  • The Winning of Mickey Free (Bantam Pathfinder - 1965)
  • "Traveling Light" (1935)
  • "Vanishing Act" (1955)

Filmography

This list includes both works scripted or co-scripted by Burnett, as well as adaptations of his novels and short stories.

  • Little Caesar (1930) - script, based on 1929 novel under pen name of Lincoln MacVeagh
  • Iron Man (1931) - based on 1930 novel under pen name of Lincoln MacVeagh
  • The Dark Command (1940) - from his novel
  • This Gun for Hire (1942) - script
  • Wake Island (1942) - script
  • Belle Starr's Daughter (1948) - story, script
  • The Asphalt Jungle (1950) - based on 1949 novel, uncredited contribution
  • Vendetta (1950) - script
  • Arrowhead (1953) - based on his 1953 novel Adobe Walls
  • Dangerous Mission (1954) - script
  • Captain Lightfoot (1955) - based on novel, script
  • The Badlanders (1958) - based on 1949 novel The Asphalt Jungle
  • The Hangman (1959) - uncredited contribution to script
  • The Lawbreakers (1961) - script
  • Sergeants Three (1962) - story, script
  • The Jackals (1967) - remake of Yellow Sky
  • Ice Station Zebra (1968) - uncredited contribution to script, based on 1963 novel of same name by Alistair MacLean
  • Stiletto (1969) - uncredited contribution to script
  • Cool Breeze (1972) - from 1949 novel The Asphalt Jungle