Stirling Silliphant

Writing

Stirling Silliphant

Born January 15, 1918 · Detroit, Michigan, USA

Died April 26, 1996 · aged 78

Stirling Dale Silliphant (January 16, 1918 – April 26, 1996) was an American screenwriter and producer. He is best remembered for his screenplay for In the Heat of the Night, for which he won an Academy Award in 1967, and for creating the television series Naked City, Perry Mason, and Route 66. Other features as screenwriter include the Irwin Allen productions The Towering Inferno and The Poseidon…

Known For

The Towering InfernoThe Towering Inferno · 1974
The Towering Inferno
7.01974
MovieActionDrama
At the opening party of a colossal—but poorly constructed—skyscraper, a massive fire breaks out, threatening to destroy the tower and everyone in it.
Over the TopOver the Top · 1987
Over the Top
6.51987
MovieActionDrama
Lincoln Hawk a hard-luck big-rig trucker takes us under the glaring Las Vegas lights for all the boisterous action of the World Armwrestling Championship. Relying on wits and willpower, Hawk tries to rebuild his life by capturing the first-place prize money, and the love of the son he abandoned years earlier into the keeping of his rich, ruthless father-in-law.
The Poseidon AdventureThe Poseidon Adventure · 1972
The Poseidon Adventure
7.21972
MovieAdventureDrama
When their ocean liner capsizes, a group of passengers struggle to survive and escape.
In the Heat of the NightIn the Heat of the Night · 1967
In the Heat of the Night
7.71967
MovieCrimeDrama
African-American Philadelphia police detective Virgil Tibbs is arrested on suspicion of murder by Bill Gillespie, the racist police chief of tiny Sparta, Mississippi. After Tibbs proves not only his own innocence but that of another man, he joins forces with Gillespie to track down the real killer. Their investigation takes them through every social level of the town, with Tibbs making enemies as well as unlikely friends as he hunts for the truth.
The EnforcerThe Enforcer · 1976
The Enforcer
6.71976
MovieCrimeAction
Dirty Harry Callahan returns again, this time saddled with a rookie female partner. Together, they must stop a terrorist group consisting of angry Vietnam veterans.
ShaftShaft · 1971
Shaft
6.41971
MovieCrimeThriller
Cool Black private eye John Shaft is hired by a crime lord to find and retrieve his kidnapped daughter.
The SwarmThe Swarm · 1978
The Swarm
5.01978
MovieScience FictionHorror
Scientist Dr. Bradford Crane and army general Thalius Slater join forces to fight an almost invisible enemy threatening America; killer bees that have deadly venom and attack without reason. Disaster movie-master Irwin Allen's film contains spectacular special effects, including a train crash caused by the eponymous swarm.
The Killer EliteThe Killer Elite · 1975
The Killer Elite
5.81975
MovieCrimeAction
Mike Locken is one of the principal members of a group of freelance spies. A significant portion of their work is for the CIA, and while on a case for them one of his friends turns on him and shoots him in the elbow and knee. His assignment, to protect someone, goes down in flames. He is nearly crippled, but with braces is able to again become mobile. For revenge as much as anything else, Mike goes after his ex-friend.

Filmography

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Alcoa TheatreAlcoa Theatre · 1957
Alcoa Theatre
7.01957
SeriesDrama
Alcoa Theatre is a half-hour American anthology series telecast on NBC at 9:30 pm on alternate Monday nights from October 7, 1957 to September 16, 1960. The program also aired under the title Turn of Fate, with the stories depicting the difficulties faced by individuals who are suddenly thrust into unexpected and perilous dangers. Alcoa Theatre was syndicated together with Goodyear Theatre as Award Theatre. In 1955, The Alcoa Hour premiered in a one-hour format aired on Sunday nights, but it was reduced to 30 minutes, retitled Alcoa Theatre, and moved to Monday evening in 1957. The show employed an alternating rotating company of actors: David Niven, Robert Ryan, Jane Powell, Jack Lemmon and Charles Boyer. Each appeared in dramatic and light comedic roles through the first season.

Writer