| Michael Blankfort | |
| Birth Date: | December 10, 1907 |
| Birth Place: | New York City, New York |
| Death Date: | July 13, 1982 |
| Death Place: | Los Angeles, California |
| Occupation: | Screenwriter Writer Playwright |
| Notableworks: | Broken Arrow (1950) (front for Albert Maltz) The Caine Mutiny The Juggler (film)(novel and film adaptation) |
| Spouse: | 1st) Laurette Spingarn 2nd) Dorothy Stiles |
Michael Seymour Blankfort[1] (December 10, 1907 – July 13, 1982)[2] was an American screenwriter, writer of books and playwright. He served as a front for the blacklisted Albert Maltz on the Academy Award-nominated screenplay of Broken Arrow (1950). He was born in New York City and died in Los Angeles.[2]
The Writers Guild of America, West, in its 1991 restoration of credit for the Broken Arrow screenplay to Maltz, expressed "a strong statement of appreciation for the courage of screenwriter Michael Blankfort" for his action in fronting for Maltz, in which Blankfort "risked being blacklisted himself to help his friend".[3] Among his own screenplays were The Juggler (1953) and The Caine Mutiny. He was president of the Writers Guild of America, West from 1967 to 1969[2] and won the Guild's Valentine Davies Award (along with Norman Corwin) in 1972.[4] He also served on the Board of Governors of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences from 1969 to 1971.[1]
Michael Blankfort and his wife Dorothy Stiles Blankfort were among the founding members of the Los Angeles Contemporary Art Council, a group of prominent local art collectors connected to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The Blankforts donated over 400 pieces of art to the museum, including works by Yves Klein, Willem de Kooning and Arshile Gorky.[5]
As screenwriter:
As associate producer:
1953: National Jewish Book Award for The Juggler[6]