Melissa Mathison was an American film and television screenwriter and an activist for the Tibetan independence movement.
Melissa was best known for writing the screenplays for the films The Black Stallion and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, the latter of which earned her the Saturn Award for Best Writing and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
Melissa Mathison Biography
Mathison Mathison was born on June 3, 1950, in Los Angeles, one of five siblings. Her father, Richard Randolph Mathison, was the Los Angeles bureau chief of Newsweek.
Her mother was Margaret Jean (née Kieffer) Mathison, a food writer and convenience-foods entrepreneur. After graduating from Providence High School in 1968, Mathison attended the University of California, Berkeley.
Her family was friendly with Francis Ford Coppola, whose children were babysat by Mathison.
Coppola offered her a job as his assistant on The Godfather Part II (1974), an opportunity for which she left her studies at UC Berkeley.
With Coppola’s encouragement, she wrote a script for The Black Stallion, adapted from the novel, that caught Steven Spielberg’s attention.
Screenwriting and production
Mathison wrote the screenplay for E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) in collaboration with Steven Spielberg. It was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
The script was based on a story, written by John Sayles, that Spielberg provided to Mathison during the filming of Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Spielberg attributes the line “E.T. phone home” to Mathison.
She collaborated again with Spielberg for The BFG (2016), her final film, which was dedicated in her memory. She also had film credits for The Escape Artist (1982) and The Indian in the Cupboard (1995).
Melissa Mathison Net Worth
Melissa Mathison was an American screenwriter and activist who had a net worth of $100 million at the time of her death in 2015.
Melissa Mathison husband and children
Melissa Mathison was married to Harrison Ford from 1983 to 2004. They had two children together.
Melissa Mathison cause of death
Melissa Mathison passed away on November 4, 2015 at 65 years old from neuroendocrine cancer.
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