George Marion Jr.

George Marion Jr. (August 30, 1899 – February 25, 1968) was an American screenwriter. He wrote for 106 films between 1920 and 1940. Director Billy Wilder told Hollywood oral historian Max Wilk that, as a title writer for silent films, Marion "was the most sought after; the producers would bring him a picture with all the scenes finished—they wouldn't even know yet whether it was a comedy, very often, or whether they had a drama—until Marion finished writing the titles!" Marion also wrote lyrics for at least one Broadway musical revue: 1943's Early to Bed with music by Thomas "Fats" Waller. Collaborating with Karl Farkas, Marion wrote the libretto for Hungarian composer Emmerich Kálmán's 1945 operetta Marinka. Marion was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was actor and director George F. Marion. In 1929, Marion and his wife were involved in the trial of an income-tax adviser. Both of them were witnesses in the trial of J. Marjorie Berger in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. Marion testified that he signed his tax return without having read it. His wife testified that, at Berger's suggestion, she created two cash books that contained some fictitious entries and some true entries. Marion died in New York, New York from a heart attack.