Rose Leiman Goldemberg

Rose Marion Leiman Goldemberg (May 17, 1928 – July 21, 2025) was an American playwright, screenwriter, poet and author of fiction and non-fiction books and stories.

Goldemberg's stageplays frequently incorporate biographical material, as with Sophie (1987), about entertainer Sophie Tucker; and Picon Pie (2004), about Yiddish theater actress Molly Picon. Her plays have been produced widely off-Broadway, in venues throughout the United States, and internationally.

Goldemberg's 1979 staged reading of excerpts, Letters Home, based on the book of collected correspondence between Sylvia Plath and her mother, has been translated into numerous languages and been honored all over the world.

Goldemberg's most prominent work for television was The Burning Bed (1984), a TV movie based on the true story of a survivor of domestic violence, played by Farrah Fawcett. Another well-known television movie written by Goldemberg, Stone Pillow (1985), starred Lucille Ball as a homeless woman. Other screenplays written by Goldemberg include Land of Hope (1976), and Mother and Daughter: The Loving War (1980). Goldemberg was more involved with the production and filming of television movies, mini-series, and shows than is typical for screenwriters, making cast recommendations and visiting the sets. Most of her screenplays are dramas.

Goldemberg also taught the subjects of English and Theater at the City College of New York and Fairleigh Dickinson University. She was a published author of such books as Adios, Hollywood and Antique Jewelry: A Practical & Passionate Guide. She was also an award-winning poet and author of short stories. She started writing at the age of five, and entered Brooklyn College in 1944 at the age of 16. After receiving her BA (magna cum laude) from Brooklyn College, she attended Ohio State University on a teaching assistantship and received her MA. Upon graduating she started working at the newly formed TV Guide, where she reviewed TV scripts and wrote plot summaries. It was there that she decided to become a screenwriter. She studied at the American Theatre Wing and Columbia University, Gandhiji premiered in 1977 at Back Alley's downtown studio, 617 F St. NW, Washington D.C. It garnered a Robby Award, Goldemberg's play Letters Home premiered as part of the Women's Project at the American Place Theatre in New York City in 1979. It dramatizes the correspondence between author Sylvia Plath and her mother. It was later staged at the Theatre at New End in London; Playbox Theatre in Melbourne; and in Paris; Copenhagen; Montreal; Tel Aviv; Los Angeles; and other cities. In 1986, French feminist film director Chantal Akerman directed it for film.

Goldemberg's Mother and Daughter: The Loving War is a TV movie first broadcast on the CBS network in 1980, which was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Best Drama Award. Death at Dinner, a comedy, which aired on the PBS network in 1985, was a segment of The Booth television series written by Goldemberg. and starred Barbara Minkus as Molly Picon. The production toured throughout the country, appearing off-Broadway at the DR2 Theater on July 15, 2005, in New York City, moving to the Lamb's Theatre on February 17, 2005. It closed on June 2, 2005.

In 2011, Goldemberg was interviewed by NY Women in Film and Television. In the interview, Goldemberg talks about how she broke into television and shares stories about the experiences she had while working in the industry.

Personal life Rose Leiman married Raymond Schiller in 1949; they divorced in 1968.

Work Screenwriting The Burning Bed (Tisch-Avnet, NBC) Co-producer ++ Sophie (musical, book and lyrics), Jewish Rep, NY Humanitas Prize Nominations: Stone Pillow, The Burning Bed, Born Beautiful, Mother and Daughter: The Loving War, Land of Hope. American Theater Wing Playwriting Scholarship Award