Preston Sturges Preston Sturges Preston Sturges (; born Edmund Preston Biden; August 29, 1898 – August 6, 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. In 1941, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the film "The Great McGinty", his first of three nominations in the category. Sturges took the screwball comedy format of the 1930s to another level, writing dialogue that, heard today, is often surprisingly naturalistic, mature, and ahead of its time, despite the farcical situations. It is not uncommon for a Sturges character to deliver an exquisitely turned phrase and take an elaborate pratfall within
A Futile and Stupid Gesture (film) the biography and the panoramic overview into one feature." A Futile and Stupid Gesture (film) A Futile and Stupid Gesture is an American biographical comedy-drama film, based on Josh Karp's book of the same name, directed by David Wain, and written by Michael Colton and John Aboud. The film stars Will Forte as comedy writer Doug Kenney, during the rise and fall of "National Lampoon". The film had its world premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, and was released on Netflix on January 26, 2018. The film's timeline stretches from 1968 to 1980. The film opens