Noel Langley

Noel Langley[1] (1911-1980) was a South African born novelist, playwright, scriptwriter and director.

Biography

Born Noel Aubrey Langley in Durban, on 25 December 1911, the son of Aubrey Samuel Langley and Dora Agnes Allison. He studied at Durban High School and the University of Natal (obtaining a BA in 1934). While at University, he began writing plays and in 1934 he left for England, where he wrote novels and worked in theatre and film, till he left for Hollywood towards the end of the 1930s. He now settled in the USA and was naturalized in 1951. His career in film work included a major contribution to the 1939 Wizard of Oz and peaked in the early and middle 1950s, when he wrote the screenplay for Ivanhoe (1952), and both wrote and directed The Pickwick Papers (1952), Our Girl Friday (1953), Svengali (1954), and The Search for Bridey Murphy (1956).

(For more on his Hollywood career see entries in Wikipedia[2]; IMDb[3] and http://oz.wikia.com/wiki/Noel_Langley. )

He was twice married, to Naomi Mary Legate (1937-1954) and Pamela Deeming (1959-1980) He passed away in Desert Hot Springs, California, in 1980.

Contribution to South African theatre, film, media and performance

His first play, Queer Cargo, was produced by the Durban Repertory Theatre in 1932.

Between 1945 and 1960, Edward, My Son (with Robert Morley), Cage me a Peacock, and Little Lambs Eat Ivy were all presented in London’s West End, and An Elegance of Rebels was broadcast by the SABC in 1959 (published 1960). He was also the author of 17 novels and his film credits include The Wizard of Oz (MGM, 1939) and The Pickwick Papers (1952).

Some of his plays were produced by the East Rand Theatre Club over the years. ***

His play An Elegance of Rebels was broadcast by the SABC in 1959 (the text published 1960).