Helen Meinardi (1909-1997) was an American screenwriter and songwriter who wrote a string of films in the 1930s.
Helen Meinardi | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 7, 1909 Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Died | March 31, 1997 Carmel, California, USA |
| Education | Indiana University |
| Occupation | Screenwriter |
| Relatives | Hoagy Carmichael (brother-in-law) |
Biography
editHelen was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Garrett Meinardi and Sarah Henderson. Her parents separated when she was young, and her father won custody; however, Sarah briefly kidnapped Helen and Helen's younger sister, Ruth.[1]
She attended the Lucy Cobb Finishing School in Georgia as a young woman before graduating from Indiana University. After college, she worked in New York City for a time before heading to Los Angeles, determined to forge a career for herself in Hollywood.[2]
Helen began writing songs and screenplays in the 1930s; she wrote a number of songs for musician Hoagy Carmichael, who eventually became her brother-in-law.[3] Helen won an RKO contract after writing the story that inspired the 1937 film I Met Him in Paris. In her later years, she worked as a journalist for CBS in New York before retiring to Maine.[4]
Selected filmography
edit- Cross-Country Romance (1940)
- Next Time I Marry (1938)
- Maid's Night Out (1938)
- I Met Him in Paris (1937)
- Our Blushing Brides (1930)
References
edit- ^ "Mother Kidnaps Children From Home of Minister". The Dayton Daily News. 15 May 1913. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
- ^ Sudhalter, Richard M. (2003-09-17). Stardust Melody: The Life and Music of Hoagy Carmichael. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195168983.
- ^ "Little Old Stardust". The Republic. 12 Aug 1937. Retrieved 2019-11-13.
- ^ "A Maine Writer: Maine State Library". www.maine.gov. Retrieved 2019-11-13.