Fun Facts Friday: Nora Ephron

Nora Ephron (19 May, 1941 – 26 June, 2012) was a writer, journalist, and of course, filmmaker. Her screenplay for When Harry Met Sally was ranked as the 40^th greatest screenplay of all time by the Writers Guild of America.

Books by Nora Ephron*

Fun Facts about Nora Ephron:

1. Nora Ephron was born in New York City but grew up in Beverly Hills, CA. She was the eldest of four daughters. Both her parents, Phoebe and Henry Ephron were playwrights and screenwriters. However, she always dreamed of going back to NYC and become another Dorothy Parker.
2. Ephron was named after Nora Helmer, the protagonist in Henrik Ibsen’s classic playA Doll’s House (Et dukkehjem).
3. She graduated with a degree in political science from Wellesley College in 1962 and worked as an intern in John F. Kennedy’s White House before going to work for Newsweek as a … mail girl because of their policy not to hire women writers.
4. Eventually Nora Ephron quit Newsweek and was later part of a class action lawsuit against the magazine. Check out the book The Good Girls Revolt by Lynn Povich for the whole story.
5. In the 1970s is when the rest of the world caught up to Nora Ephron’s wit and style. She published essays and articles (collected in Wallflower at the Orgy and Crazy Salad). Ms. Ephron’s first novel, Heartburn, was met with much success and was turned into a 1983 motion picture with Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson in the lead roles.
6. Nora Ephron got her big break when, in the 1970s, she rewrote the script for All the President’s Men. While the script wasn’t used, it was her first time writing for the big, or small, screen and launched her screenwriting career.
7. Together with Alice Arlen, Ms. Ephron wrote the script for Silkwood in 1983. The movie was a huge success and both ladies were nominated for an Academy award in 1984.
8. The first film Nora Ephron directed was This is My Life (1992). She wrote the script together with her sister Delia, based on the novel This is Your Life by Meg Wolitzer.
9. Among other movies Ms. Ephron wrote and directed are such beloved classics as You’ve Got Mail (the script written with her sister Delia), Sleepless in Seattle, and Julie & Julia.
10. Sadly, Nora Ephron passed away in 22012 from complications of leukemia. She left behind a rich legacy of beloved stories, and the Nora Ephron Award to be given by the Tribeca Film Festival to be given to a “female writer or director who embodies the spirit and vision of the legendary filmmaker.”

Books by Nora Ephron*

Zohar – Man of la Book
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account, the money is usually spent on books

Sources:

7 Behind-The-Scenes Facts about Nora Ephron’s Rom-Coms You Might Not Know | AmoMama

34 Facts About Nora Ephron | factsnippet

Nora Ephron | Wikipedia

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Fun Facts Friday: Nora Ephron

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Nora Ephron (19 May, 1941 – 26 June, 2012) was a writer, journalist, and of course, filmmaker. Her screenplay for When Harry Met Sally was ranked as the 40th greatest screenplay of all time by the Writers Guild of America.

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Man of la Book

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Man of la Book - A Bookish Blog

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