Bo Goldman
A writer of profound empathy who crafted some of cinema's most raw and human portraits of failure, genius, and aging.
1932–2023 (age 91)·American screenwriter·Birthday: September 10·The Silent Generation
Biography
Bo Goldman's path to screenwriting glory was anything but direct. The son of a Broadway producer, he began in New York theater before moving to Los Angeles for television work. For over a decade, he toiled in relative obscurity, his sharp scripts often unproduced. His breakthrough came at age 44, when he was hired to adapt Ken Kesey's 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.' Goldman's genius was in finding the film's soul not through Randle McMurphy, but through the silent observer, Chief Bromden. The script won him his first Oscar and announced a writer of extraordinary psychological insight. He followed it with 'Melvin and Howard,' a wistful, offbeat fable about the American dream that won him a second Academy Award. Goldman had a rare gift for writing about flawed, often unglamorous men—the fading boxer in 'The Hurricane,' the disgraced general in 'Scent of a Woman,' the aging media magnate in 'Meet Joe Black.' His scripts, though sometimes sparse in production, are studied for their depth of character and their unwavering, unsentimental humanity.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Bo was born in 1932, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Bo Was Born
The biggest hits of 1932
#1 Movie
Grand Hotel
Best Picture
Grand Hotel
Bo's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1932Born
Amelia Earhart flies solo across the Atlantic
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Night and Day" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: Grand Hotel
1937Started school
Hindenburg disaster; Golden Gate Bridge opens
Gas: $0.20/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"A-Tisket, A-Tasket" — Ella FitzgeraldBest Picture: The Life of Emile Zola
1945Became a teenager
WWII ends; atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $4,600Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Sentimental Journey" — Les Brown & Doris DayBest Picture: The Lost Weekend
1948Could drive
Israel declares independence; Berlin Blockade begins
Gas: $0.26/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Twelfth Street Rag" — Pee Wee HuntBest Picture: Hamlet
1950Could vote
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1953Turned 21
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1962Turned 30
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1972Turned 40
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1982Turned 50
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1992Turned 60
LA riots after Rodney King verdict
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $84,300Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"End of the Road" — Boyz II MenBest Picture: Unforgiven
2002Turned 70
Euro currency enters circulation
Gas: $1.36/galHome: $137,800Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"How You Remind Me" — NickelbackBest Picture: Chicago
2012Turned 80
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
2023Died at 91
ChatGPT goes mainstream; Israel-Hamas war begins
Gas: $3.52/galHome: $361,600Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Flowers" — Miley CyrusBest Picture: Oppenheimer
Key Achievements
- Won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' (1975).
- Won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for 'Melvin and Howard' (1980).
- Received an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay for 'Scent of a Woman' (1992).
- Won two Golden Globe Awards for his screenplays for 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' and 'Scent of a Woman'.
Did You Know?
He was the first screenwriter to win two Oscars without having any of his scripts produced in between those wins.
His son, Jesse Goldman, is a musician who composed the score for several of his father's later film projects.
He turned down an offer to adapt 'The Godfather' because he was committed to a theater project at the time.
He was a close friend and collaborator of director Michael Cimino, working on early drafts of 'The Deer Hunter'.
“Writing is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.”
