Charles MacArthur

While he did not quite attain the heights of success enjoyed by his long-time partner Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur was a justifiably popular and respected writer and bon vivant. Like Hecht, the droll, larger-than-life MacArthur earned his literary stripes in the highly competitive world of 1920s Chicago, where dozens of reporters would vie for headlines and only the most creative and talented would rise to the top. MacArthur thrived in this environment and later used his talents to pen Broadway plays, including the highly successful comedy "The Front Page" (1928-29), his first and finest collaboration with Hecht, and the madcap "Twentieth Century" which was adapted into one of the finest screwball comedies of all time in 1934. MacArthur further cemented his fame with the New York high society crowd when he married beloved Broadway star Helen Hayes, the First Lady of the American Theater. Working with Hecht, MacArthur earned an Academy Award and a pair of nominations for writing such notable movies as "Rasputin and the Empress" (1932), "The Scoundrel" (1935), "Gunga Din" (1939) and "Wuthering Heights" (1939). The pair also directed a handful of features and MacArthur found himself in demand as a script doctor, doing anonymous re-writes on such films as "The Sin of Madelon Claudet" (1931) and "Freaks" (1932). Prolific and consistently witty, MacArthur brought considerable verve and intelligence to his work and those qualities were perfectly showcased in "The Front Page," one of the most enduring and re-staged American plays of any era.