The Entertainer (play) Holm as Jean and Bertie Carvel as Frank. In 1960, a paperback novelization by John Burke was published by Four Square Books to coincide with the release of the film. Though the attribution line says "based on the play", it is actually based on the screenplay by Osborne and Nigel Kneale. The Entertainer (play) The Entertainer is a three-act play by John Osborne, first produced in 1957. His first play, "Look Back in Anger", had attracted mixed notices but a great deal of publicity. Having depicted an "angry young man" in the earlier play, Osborne wrote at Laurence Olivier's request
John Osborne (barrister) Governor of Guernsey during the English Civil War, was Francis's elder brother. Francis Osborne married Anna Draper, sister of the prominent Parliamentarian Colonel William Draper: John was the only boy among their four surviving children. Francis shared his brother-in-law's political beliefs, although he played little part in public life. His celebrated book "Advice to a Son", which he intended for John's education, was published in two volumes in 1656 and 1658. He moved to Oxford to be closer to his son, and died there in 1659. John Osborne was at Magdalen College from 1648 to 1651 and became a fellow