A Kid for Two Farthings (9 page)
Read A Kid for Two Farthings Online
Authors: Wolf Mankowitz
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Wolf Mankowitz was born in 1924 on Fashion Street in Spitalfields in London’s East End, the heart of London’s Jewish community, where his father was a bookseller in the streetmarkets. This background provided him with the material for three famous novels,
A Kid for Two Farthings, Make Me
An Offer
and
My Old Man’s a Dustman. Make Me An Offer
was adapted for film in 1954 and
A Kid for Two Farthings
was adapted the following year by the director Carol Reed. In 1958 he wrote the book for the hit West End musical
Expresso Bongo
, later made into a film starring Cliff Richard.
Mankowitz’s remarkable output has included novels, plays, historical studies and the screenplays for many successful films that have received awards, including the Oscar for
The Bespoke Overcoat
, a BAFTA for the screenplay of
The Day
the Earth Caught Fire
, and the Cannes Grand Prix for
The
Hireling
.
In 1962, Mankowitz offered to introduce friend Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, holder of the film rights to James Bond, when Broccoli mentioned he desired to make the Bond series his next film project. The two men formed a partnership and began co-producing the first Bond film,
Doctor No
, for which Mankowitz was hired as one of the screenwriters. He later also collaborated on the screenplay for
Casino Royale
. Mankowitz died in 1998, in County Cork, Ireland. His ashes are at the Golders Green Crematorium.
First published in 1953 by Andre Deutsch Ltd
This paperback edition published 2009 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Copyright © 1953 by Wolf Mankowitz
The moral right of the author has been asserted
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 36 Soho Square, London W1D 3QY
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
eISBN: 978-1-40880-875-7
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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