Diane Thomas

Diane Renee Thomas (January 7, 1946 – October 21, 1985) was an American screenwriter who wrote the 1984 film Romancing the Stone, her only produced screenplay credit. She was also originally hired to write the third Indiana Jones film, completing a first draft set in a haunted house before George Lucas and Steven Spielberg decided on a different approach.

Early promotional materials for the 1989 film Always credited Thomas as the film's co-writer, but the final film credits list Jerry Belson as the sole screenwriter.

Early life and education Thomas was born January 7, 1946, in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Her family moved to Long Beach, California, when she was 12 years old. She enrolled at the University of Southern California (USC), and graduated with a degree in marketing. She next worked as an advertising copywriter. However, she grew tired of copy writing and later enrolled at the Actors Studio, studying under Sherman Marks and Jack Garfein. There, she wrote short sketches and performed with several improvisational acting groups. Meanwhile, she enrolled in graduate school studying clinical psychology.

According to other accounts, the script was sold as a Cinderella story in itself: Thomas pitched the story directly to Douglas when the actor happened to come into her café as a customer. This account, however, is disputed. Douglas said of the script, "It just had a spontaneity about the writing ... She was not cautious. The script had a wonderful spirit about it. ... There was a total lack of fear to the writing. It worked." The film became one of the highest-grossing films of 1984, earning $115 million worldwide.

Thomas's death came six weeks before the sequel to Romancing the Stone, The Jewel of the Nile (1985), was released. At the time, Thomas was unavailable to write The Jewel of the Nile as she was under contract with Spielberg; Thomas, a backseat passenger, was killed instantly. Young was taken to UCLA Medical Center, where he died from his injuries two hours later. Thomas's boyfriend was hospitalized with internal injuries. He was arrested under suspicion of "driving under the influence of alcohol," open to UCLA Extension screenwriting students who took three Extension classes the previous year. Original judges included Steven Spielberg, Michael Douglas, James L. Brooks, Norman Kurland , and Kathleen Kennedy. The first who later wrote Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), other first-place winners of the award include: Carol Heikkinen Gavin Hood, Stuart Beattie, and Carol Barbee. The UCLA Extension Screenplay Competition replaced the Diane Thomas Screenwriting Award in 2006.