George Wells

The son of vaudevillian 'Billy K. Wells' (qv) graduated from New York University and began as a writer for radio ('The Jack Pearl Show','Lux Radio Theater'). In 1943, he joined MGM under contract as a screenwriter, rapidly acquiring a reputation for lending a deft touch and inventiveness to light comedies and musicals. Wells won the Academy Award for Best Original Story and Screenplay for _Designing Woman (1957)_ (qv), a sophisticated marital comedy starring 'Lauren Bacall' (qv) and 'Gregory Peck' (qv). He also co-wrote _Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949)_ (qv) with 'Harry Tugend' (qv), an MGM musical with 'Gene Kelly' (qv), nominated by the Writer's Guild of America for an award as Best Written American Musical. He produced several of 'Esther Williams' (qv)'s films, including _Jupiter's Darling (1955)_ (qv). 'George Wells' (qv) left MGM in 1970, penned a few more TV scripts and in 1982 wrote 'Taurus', described as a "'novel of erotic horror".::I.S.Mowis