John Jay Osborn Jr.
John Jay Osborn Jr. | |
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Born | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. | August 5, 1945
Died | October 19, 2022 San Francisco, California, U.S. | (aged 77)
Occupation |
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Education | Harvard University (BA, JD) Yale University |
Notable works |
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John Jay Osborn Jr. (August 5, 1945 – October 19, 2022) was an American author, lawyer, law professor, and author of The Paper Chase, a bestselling novel published in 1971, and other works.
Early life and education
[edit]Osborn was born in Boston, on August 5, 1945.[1] His father, John Jay Sr., was a doctor at Stanford University School of Medicine; his mother was Anne (née Kidder). He was a descendant of both John Jay,[1][2] a Founding Father and the first Chief Justice of the United States, and of railroad baron Cornelius Vanderbilt.[1][3]
When Osborne was nine, he relocated with his family from Boston to the San Francisco Bay Area.[1] He attended Harvard University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in American history in 1967, and then obtained his Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School in 1970.[4] He also did graduate work at Yale Law School.[5]
Career
[edit]The Paper Chase
[edit]For his third-year writing project at Harvard Law, Osborn wrote The Paper Chase, a fictional account of one Harvard Law School student's battles with the imperious Professor Charles Kingsfield. Osborn found a publisher with the assistance of William Alfred and the book was released in 1971.[1] It was made into a film two years later, starring John Houseman and Timothy Bottoms.[6] Houseman won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as contracts professor Kingsfield.[1][7] The Paper Chase also became a television series, and Osborn wrote several of the scripts.[1][8]
Law
[edit]After graduating from law school, Osborn clerked for Judge Max Rosenn of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 1970 to 1972.[9] He was later an associate attorney with the firm Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler.[10]
Law professor
[edit]Osborn taught law at the University of Miami, the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University, the UC Berkeley School of Law,[5] and the University of San Francisco School of Law, from which he retired in 2018.[3]
Further novels and writings
[edit]Osborn's third novel, The Associates, was adapted into a short-lived television series starring Martin Short and Wilfrid Hyde-White.[5] He was also one of the writers, along with Thomas A. Cohen, of the screenplay for the 2010 film version of the 1983 novel The River Why by David James Duncan.[11] His final book, Listen to the Marriage, was published in 2018.[1][12]
Personal life
[edit]Osborn married Emilie Heffron Sisson in 1968.[1][3] She was a Radcliffe College graduate who worked as a physician with the Palo Alto Medical Foundation, and they remained married until his death.[1] Together, they had three children, including Sam Meredith, who also attended Harvard College and Harvard Law School.[13]
Death
[edit]Osborn died on October 19, 2022, at his home in San Francisco, lat age 77.. He suffered from squamous cell cancer prior to his death.[1]
Publications
[edit]Novels
- The Paper Chase (1971)[1]
- The Only Thing I've Done Wrong (1977) ISBN 9780395251744
- The Associates (1979) ISBN 9780395270974
- The Man Who Owned New York (1981) ISBN 9780395305119
- Listen to the Marriage (2018)[1]
Scripts
- The Paper Chase (15 of 54 episodes, 1978–1986)[8]
- "The Man Who Would Be King" (1978)[14]
- "A Day in the Life of..." (1978)[15]
- "Moot Court" (1978)[16]
- "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" (1978)[17]
- "Scavenger Hunt" (1979)[18]
- "Outline Fever" (1983)[19][20]
- "Birthday Party" (1983)[19][21]
- "Plague of Locusts" (1983)[19][22]
- "Snow" (1983)[19][23]
- "Mrs. Hart" (1984)[19][24]
- "War of the Wonks" (1984)[19][25]
- "Billy Pierce" (1984) (teleplay only)[19][26]
- "Decisions: Part 1" (1985)[27]
- "Decisions: Part 2" (1985)[27]
- "Honor" (1986)
- L.A. Law (1 episode, 1986–1994)[1]
- "December Bribe" (1987)
- Spenser: For Hire (1 episode, 1985–1988)
- "Substantial Justice" (1988)[28]
- The River Why (2010, with Thomas A. Cohen)[8]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Rosenwald, Michael S. (October 24, 2022). "John Jay Osborn Jr., author of 'The Paper Chase,' dies at age 77". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ Feron, James (October 18, 1981). "Westchester Journal". New York Times. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
- ^ a b c Sipher, Devan (September 5, 2010), "Meredith Osborn, Christiaan Highsmith", The New York Times, pp. ST16, retrieved October 3, 2010
- ^ Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2008. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008.
- ^ a b c Haberman, Clyde; Krebs, Albin (September 14, 1979). "Notes on People; Street Theater". New York Times. p. B4. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
- ^ "The Paper Chase". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
- ^ "The 46th Academy Awards – 1974". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. October 4, 2014. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
- ^ a b c "John Jay Osborn Jr". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Back Matter". Cardozo Studies in Law and Literature. 7 (1). Cardozo School of Law: 116. 1995. doi:10.2307/743350. JSTOR 743350. Retrieved October 25, 2022. (registration required)
- ^ Goldstein, Tom (December 8, 1978). "Business and the Law". The New York Times. p. D4. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
- ^ "The River Why". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
- ^ Osborn, John Jay (October 23, 2018). Listen to the Marriage: A Novel. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 9780374718787.
- ^ Garcia, Ken (January 28, 2003). "Father of the 'Paper Chase' / San Francisco writer helped define Harvard". The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 1, Episode 4". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 1, Episode 3". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 1, Episode 9". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 1, Episode 11". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 1, Episode 22". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g "The Paper Chase Season 2". Radio Times. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ O'Connor, John J. (April 15, 1983). "Old Friends, New Start". The New York Times. p. C30. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 2, Episode 2". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 2, Episode 6". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 2, Episode 7". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 2, Episode 8". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 2, Episode 12". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Paper Chase: Season 2, Episode 19". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ a b "The Paper Chase Season 3". Radio Times. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ "Spenser: For Hire Season 3". Radio Times. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
External links
[edit]- 1945 births
- 2022 deaths
- Deaths from squamous cell carcinoma of skin
- Harvard Law School alumni
- University of Miami faculty
- University of San Francisco faculty
- Yale University faculty
- Yeshiva University faculty
- American male novelists
- 20th-century American novelists
- 20th-century American male writers
- Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler people
- Novelists from Florida
- Novelists from Connecticut
- Novelists from New York (state)
- Yale Law School alumni
- Novelists from Boston
- John Jay
- Vanderbilt family
- Deaths from cancer in California