Elmore Leonard Elmore Leonard Elmore John Leonard Jr. (October 11, 1925August 20, 2013) was an American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. His earliest novels, published in the 1950s, were Westerns, but he went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures. Among his best-known works are "Get Shorty", "Out of Sight", "Swag", "Hombre", "Mr. Majestyk", and "Rum Punch" (adapted as the movie "Jackie Brown"). Leonard's writings include short stories that became the films "3:10 to Yuma" and "The Tall T", as well as the FX television series "Justified". Leonard was born
Quentin Tarantino earliest works, a screenplay called "Captain Peachfuzz and the Anchovy Bandit", based on Hal Needham's 1977 film "Smokey and the Bandit" starring Burt Reynolds. The summer after his 15th birthday, Tarantino was grounded by his mother for shoplifting Elmore Leonard's novel "The Switch" from Kmart. He was allowed to leave only to attend the Torrance Community Theater, where he participated in such plays as "Two Plus Two Makes Sex" and "Romeo and Juliet". At about 15, Tarantino dropped out of Narbonne High School in Harbor City, Los Angeles. He then worked as an usher at a porn theater in Torrance,