Alec Coppel

Alec Coppel (17 September 1907 – 22 January 1972) was an Australian-born screenwriter, novelist and playwright. He spent the majority of his career in London and Hollywood, specialising in light thrillers, mysteries and sex comedies. He is best known for the films Vertigo, The Captain's Paradise (1953), Mr Denning Drives North (1951) and Obsession (1949), and the plays I Killed the Count and The Gazebo.

Biography Early life Coppel was born in Melbourne and attended Wesley College. He moved to England in the 1920s to study medicine at Cambridge University, but dropped out before graduating and went to work in advertising, writing in his spare time. Coppel's first stage plays were Short Circuit (1935) and The Stars Foretell (1936).

I Killed the Count His first big success was his play I Killed the Count (1937), which had a successful run in the West End. Coppel turned it into a novel (1939), screenplay and radio play. It also led to him receiving screenwriting offers.

His script credits include Over the Moon (1939), the film version of I Killed the Count (1939), and Just like a Woman (1939). Coppel contributed to the book of a revue, Let's Pretend (1940), and wrote a new play, Believe It or Not (1940).

Return to Australia Coppel returned to Australia in 1940 for his "health". While there he and Kathleen Mary Robinson founded Whitehall Productions, operating out of the Minerva Theatre in Kings Cross.

The first play they presented there was the world premiere of Coppel's Mr Smart Guy (1941). The huge theatre was seldom full but they staged two plays every night.

Return to London Coppel moved back to London in 1944 after he and Robinson disagreed. He was replaced by Roland Walton.

Move to Hollywood Coppel moved to Los Angeles in 1954, where he wrote a number of scripts. He did some uncredited work on To Catch a Thief (1955) and did the thriller Appointment with a Shadow (1957). With Samuel A. Taylor, Coppel supplied the screenplay for Vertigo (1958), based on the Boileau-Narcejac novel D'entre les morts.

He wrote the plays The Genius and the Goddess (1957) and The Joshua Tree (1958), and saw The Captain's Paradise adapted into a musical as Oh, Captain! (1958). He had a big hit with The Gazebo (1959), based on a story by Coppel and his wife; this was later filmed although someone else did the screenplay. Coppel adapted The Captain's Paradise (1961) for stage and did a swashbuckler for MGM Swordsman of Siena (1962).

Later career He spent the 1960s mostly working in Europe and London. He adapted his own story "Laughs with a Stranger" into Moment to Moment (1966). Coppel did some uncredited work on the script for Taste of Excitement to make it more of a comedy; director Don Sharp, who knew Coppel from Australia, said the writer's work was unhelpful.

Coppel's last two credits were a pair of sex comedies co-written with Denis Norden, The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom and The Statue, based on his play Chip Chip Chip.

He also wrote the plays Not in My Bed, You Don’t (1968), Cadenza and A Bird in the Nest and the TV play A Kiss is Just a Kiss (1971).

Personal life Coppel died of colon cancer on 22 January 1972, in London.

He was married twice. He is survived by his son Chris Coppel who lives in the UK and continues to represent his father's works.

Partial filmography Year Title Director Notes 1937 Over the MoonThornton Freeland Co-screenplay 1939 I Killed the CountFrederic Zelnik Screenplay, based on his play 1939 Just Like a WomanPaul L. Stein Co-screenplay 1946 SmithyKen G. Hall Co-screenplay 1948 Brass MonkeyThornton Freeland Screenplay 1948 Woman HaterTerence Young Based on short story 1949 ObsessionEdward Dmytryk Screenplay, dialogue director; based on his novel, A Man About a Dog 1950 Two on the Tiles John Guillermin Screenplay 1951 Smart Alec John Guillermin Screenplay, based on his play Mr Smart Guy 1951 No Highway in the Sky Henry Koster Co-screenplay 1951 Mr. Denning Drives North Anthony Kimmins Screenplay, based on his novel 1953 The Captain's Paradise Anthony Kimmins Co-screenplay 1954 Hell Below Zero Mark Robson Co-screenplay 1954 The Black Knight Tay Garnett Co-screenplay 1954 To Catch a Thief Alfred Hitchcock Uncredited contribution to script 1957 Appointment with a Shadow Richard Carlson Screenplay 1958 Vertigo Alfred Hitchcock Co-screenplay 1959 The Gazebo George Marshall Based on his play 1962 Swordsman of Siena Étienne Perier Co-screenplay 1966 Moment to Moment Mervyn LeRoy Co-screenplay 1968 The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom Joseph McGrath Co-screenplay, based on his play A Bird in the Nest 1971 The Statue Rod Amateau Co-screenplay, based on his play Chip, Chip, Chip 1971 Jo Jean Girault French film. Based on his play The Gazebo

Unused screenplays The Chinese Room The List of Adrian Messenger

Plays Short Circuit (1935) The Stars Foretell (1936) I Killed the Count (1937) Let's Pretend (1938) – contributed to book of a revue Believe It or Not (1940) Mr Smart Guy (1941) Saturday's Child (1946) My Friend Lester (1947) A Man About a Dog (1949) The Genius and the Goddess (1957) The Joshua Tree (1958) – from a story by Myra and Alec Coppel Oh, Captain! (1958) – based on his story only The Gazebo (1959) – from a story by Myra and Alec Coppel Viva Le Difference (1960) The Captain's Paradise (1961) Not in My Bed, You Don’t (1968) – with Myra Coppel Cadenza (1977) A Bird in the Nest Chip, Chip, Chip

TV plays Guests for Dinner (1956) – episode of Alcoa Theatre A Kiss Is Just a Kiss (1971)

Novels I Killed the Count (London: Blackie, 1939) A Man About a Dog (London: George G Harrap and Company Ltd, 1947) (US: Over the Line) Mr. Denning Drives North (London: George G Harrap & Co Ltd, 1950) The Last Parable (London: Arthur Baker, 1953) Moment to Moment (Greenwich: Fawcett Publications, 1966) Tweedledum and Tweedledee (London: Geoffrey Bles, 1967)

Radio plays A Rum Affair (1941) Mr Smart Guy (1941) Murder Scrapbook (1950)

Unmade projects Peace in Our Time (1940) – British film