Jonathan Lynn | |
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Born | Jonathan Adam Lynn 3 April 1943 |
Education | Pembroke College, Cambridge |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1964–present |
Notable work | Clue Nuns on the Run My Cousin Vinny The Whole Nine Yards |
Jonathan Adam Lynn (born 3 April 1943) is an English stage and film director, producer, writer, and actor. He directed the comedy films Clue, Nuns on the Run, My Cousin Vinny, and The Whole Nine Yards. He also co-created and co-wrote the television series Yes Minister.
Lynn was born in Bath, Somerset, the son of physician Robin Lynn and sculptor Ruth Helen (née Eban), whose first cousin on her mother's side was the neurologist Oliver Sacks. Another cousin, Caroline Sacks, married Nicholas Samuel, 5th Viscount Bearsted.[1][2][3][4] Lynn was educated at Kingswood School, Bath, between 1954 and 1961, after which he studied law at Pembroke College, Cambridge. (His maternal uncle, Israeli statesman Abba Eban, had also studied at Cambridge in the 1930s.) There he participated in the Cambridge University Footlights Club revue Cambridge Circus (appearing with the revue in 1964 on Broadway and on The Ed Sullivan Show).[5][6]
Lynn's first West End appearance was in a stage production of Green Julia, for which he was nominated for the 1965 Plays and Players Award as Most Promising New Actor.[7] In 1967, he played Motel the tailor in the original West End production of Fiddler on the Roof (production recorded by CBS Records).[8] From the late 1960s, Lynn was appearing in and writing television sitcoms, including the television comedy series Twice a Fortnight with Graeme Garden, Bill Oddie, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Tony Buffery.[9]
Lynn played the Irish medical student Danny Hooley in the second series of the television comedy Doctor in the House in 1970. He wrote some episodes for Doctor at Large, Doctor in Charge, Doctor at Sea and Doctor on the Go.[4] As a TV actor, his most memorable roles included Beryl's boyfriend Robert in early series of The Liver Birds,[10] the role of Harold in Jack Rosenthal's 1976 television film Bar Mitzvah Boy,[11] and the role of Ted Margolis in Rosenthal's The Knowledge (1979).[12] He had a bit-part as a window cleaner in the BBC television series The Good Life. His film appearances have included roles in Prudence and the Pill (1968), The House That Dripped Blood (1971), Romance with a Double Bass (1974), and Three Men and a Little Lady (1990).
Lynn is a guest instructor at HB Studio.[13]
Lynn's first (co-written) screenplay was for The Internecine Project, which was released in 1974.[14] For television he wrote episodes for the Doctor TV series and On the Buses and wrote for Harry Worth and George Layton before eventually, in partnership with Antony Jay, writing Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister.[15] His later writing credits include the first two films he directed, Clue (1985) and Nuns on the Run (1990).[16] He is also known for his co-writing, co-producing, and co-directing of the revived Yes, Prime Minister series produced by the BBC on Gold in 2013.[17]
Lynn co-authored the books The Complete Yes Minister, as well as The Complete Yes Prime Minister, which spent 106 weeks on the Sunday Times top 10 fiction list. Both were ranked number one on the Sunday Times list, including in December 1986 when the books were ranked number one and number two respectively.[18] He also wrote the 1993 novel Mayday.[19] In 2011 Lynn wrote a non-fiction work entitled Comedy Rules. The Independent newspaper called the book "a charming memoir, full of amusing and insightful anecdotes about the many entertainers Lynn has worked with" and described it as a combination of autobiography and how-to manual for comedy. The paper wrote further: "By dovetailing different types of book, Lynn cleverly avoids the pitfalls of both genres. Because it's ostensibly a sort of how-to book, there are no boring childhood reminiscences. Because it's also a kind of autobiography, his no-nonsense dos and don'ts are springboards for entertaining yarns, rather than academic discourse."[20]
Lynn won praise for his direction of the 2010 London stage version of Yes, Prime Minister, which he co-wrote as well.[21]
In 2016 Lynn's play The Patriotic Traitor was published. Its subject is the relationship of Philippe Pétain to Charles de Gaulle. In the words of the blurb, ‘Two giants of the twentieth century who loved each other like father and son until they found themselves on opposing sides in World War II. In 1945 de Gaulle had his oldest friend tried for treason. Their complex relationship – noble, comic and absurd – changed history.’ [22][23]
Lynn also co-wrote the stage play of "Clue", together with Hunter Foster, Eric Price and Sandy Rustin.
Lynn also produced six episodes of the new Yes, Prime Minister television series, was executive producer of He's Such a Girl, Vanity Fair, and was a producer for Trial and Error.[6] It also received an exclusive production agreement with Columbia Pictures Television in 1992.[24]
Lynn's work on the Minister series earned him three BAFTAs, two Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, and two Pye Television Writers Awards, and he won the ACE Award for Best Written Comedy Series. The Campaign for Freedom of Information also recognized Lynn with a special award for his work on the show.[6] Lynn was a recipient of a Diamond Jubilee Award for Political Satire in 2010.[25] He received a NAACP Image Award for the 2003 film The Fighting Temptations.[26]
Year | Title | Credit | Notes | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Director | Writer | Producer | |||
Film | |||||
1974 | The Internecine Project | Yes | Screenplay | ||
1985 | Clue | Yes | Yes | Screenplay, story | |
1990 | Nuns on the Run | Yes | Yes | Written by | |
1992 | My Cousin Vinny | Yes | |||
1992 | The Distinguished Gentleman | Yes | |||
1994 | Greedy | Yes | |||
1996 | Sgt. Bilko | Yes | |||
1997 | Trial and Error | Yes | Yes | ||
2000 | The Whole Nine Yards | Yes | |||
2003 | The Fighting Temptations | Yes | |||
2004 | Vanity Fair | Executive | |||
2008 | He's Such a Girl | Executive | |||
2010 | Wild Target | Yes | |||
Television | |||||
1971 | Doctor at Large | Yes | Episode: "Pull the Other One!" | ||
1972–73 | On the Buses | Yes | 6 episodes | ||
1972–73 | Doctor in Charge | Yes | 11 episodes | ||
1972 | Nearest and Dearest | Yes | Episode: "Worker's Playtime" | ||
1973 | Romany Jones | Yes | Episode: "Look After the Pennies" | ||
1973 | All Star Comedy Carnival | Yes | Writer: Doctor in Charge | ||
1974 | My Name is Harry Worth | Yes | 3 episodes | ||
1974 | Doctor at Sea | Yes | 5 episodes | ||
1975 | Doctor on the Go | Yes | 5 episodes | ||
1975–76 | My Brother's Keeper | Yes | 13 episodes | ||
1980–84 | Yes Minister | Yes | 22 episodes, written by & script by | ||
1982 | The Funny Side of Christmas | Yes | Writer: Yes Minister | ||
1983 | Arms and the Man | Yes | TV film | ||
1985 | Twee handen op een buik | Yes | TV film | ||
1986–88 | Yes, Prime Minister | Yes | 16 episodes | ||
1987 | Mr. President | Yes | Episode: "Freedom of Speech" | ||
1988 | American Playhouse | Yes | Episode: "Suspicion" | ||
1988 | Smart Guys[27] | Yes | Unsold pilot | ||
1990 | Ferris Bueller | Yes | Episode: "Pilot" | ||
1990 | Life After Life | Yes | TV film | ||
2013 | Yes, Prime Minister | Yes | Yes | Yes | 6 episodes, written by |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1966 | Thirteen Against Fate | Moise | Episode: "The Lodger" |
1967 | Twice a Fortnight | Various | 11 episodes |
1968 | Prudence and the Pill | Chemist's Assistant | Feature film |
1968 | The Jazz Age | Harry Plant | Episode: "Black Exchange" |
1969 | Hadleigh | Harold | Episode: "The Ring" |
1969 | Softly, Softly | Tony | Episode: "Wild Goose" |
1969 | The Merchant of Venice | Tubal | Short TV film |
1970 | ITV Playhouse | John Simons | Episode: "Rumour" |
1970 | Doctor in the House | Danny Hooley | 9 episodes |
1971 | The House That Dripped Blood | Mr. Petheridge (uncredited) | Feature film (segment: "The Cloak") |
1972 | The Liver Birds | Johnny | Episode: "The Driving Test" |
1972 | ITV Sunday Night Drama | Bill | Episode: "Don't Deed the Fish" |
1972 | Colditz | Bergman | Episode: "The Spirit of Freedom" |
1972 | Turnbull's Finest Half Hour | Roddy Cheever-Jones | 5 episodes |
1973 | Doctor in Charge | Danny Hooley | Episode: "Should Auld Acquaintance Be Forgot?" |
1974 | The Liver Birds | Robert | 7 episodes |
1974 | Whodunnit? | Bob Deacon | Episode: "It's Quicker by Train" |
1974–75 | The Dick Emery Show | Various | 4 episodes |
1975 | The Good Life | Window Cleaner | Episode: "Pig's Lib" |
1975 | Romance with a Double Bass | Leader of the Orchestra | Short film |
1975–76 | My Brother's Keeper | Pete Booth | 13 episodes |
1975 | Who Sold You This, Then? | (unknown role) | Video short film |
1976 | Play for Today | Harold | Episode: "Bar Mitzvah Boy" |
1976 | Pleasure at Her Majesty's | Various | TV film |
1976 | The Cold Call | (unknown role) | Video short film |
1977 | The Fortune Teller | (unknown role) | Short film |
1978 | BBC2 Play of the Week | Gaston | TV film: "She Fell Among Thieves" |
1978 | Play for Today | Cyril Benson | Episode: "Dinner at the Sporting Club" |
1979 | The Knowledge | Ted Margolies | TV film |
1980 | Breaking Glass | Radio DJ | Feature film |
1982 | Outside Edge | Kevin | TV film |
1984 | Diana | Twining | Miniseries, 3 episodes |
1985 | Into the Night | Tailor | Feature film |
1988 | American Playhouse | Beaky Thwaite | Episode: "Suspicion" |
1990 | 3 Men and a Little Lady | Vicar Hewitt | Feature film |
1994 | Greedy | Douglas | Feature film |
1999 | One Man Band | Tailor's Assistant | Short film |
2009 | He's Such a Girl | Priest | Feature film |
2010 | Wild Target | Parrot (voice) | Feature film |
Year | Title | Credit | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1975 | Decisions, Decisions | Writer | Video short |
1976 | The Cold Call | Writer | Video short |
1977 | How Am I Doing? | Writer | Video short |
1977 | The Unorganized Manager, Part One: Damnation | Writer | Video short |
1977 | The Unorganized Manager, Part Two: Salvation | Writer | Video short |
1977 | The Fortune Teller | Writer | Short |
1979 | I'd Like a Word with You | Writer | Video short |
1983 | Arms and the Man | Stage director | TV film |
2003 | Beyoncé Feat. Walter Williams Sr.: He Still Loves Me | Director | Music video |