Lucille Fletcher was born in Brooklyn, NY, in 1912 and began writing as a child. Friendly, outgoing, and competitive, Ms. Fletcher was a frequent recipient of literary prizes throughout her early education and at Vassar College, where she earned her degree in 1933. Entering the work world while America struggled to recover from the Depression, Fletcher took a modest job at CBS typing scripts, acting as a music cataloger, and writing publicity notices. Though her original aspiration was to write novels, Ms. Fletcher's tenure typing other writers' scripts convinced her that she could do well working in the medium. In all, Fletcher wrote and broadcast more than twenty radio plays, many inspired by actual events in her life. Her drama THE HITCH HIKER, which was performed by Orson Welles on Mercury Radio Theater was based on an experience she had while taking a road trip with her first husband. The idea for SORRY, WRONG NUMBER, which was first a radio play starring Agnes Moorehead and later a film starring Barbara Stanwyck and nominated for an Oscar, had a more personal history. The story, which won a Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe Award, was sparked by a negative encounter with a spoiled socialite that prompted Fletcher to return home and script a vicarious revenge. Fletcher continued to write novels and stories long after Radio's Golden Age had given way to television. Her books include "And Presumed Dead," "The Strange Blue Yawl," "The Girl in Cabin B54," “Blindfold,” “Night Watch,” and her final novel, "Mirror Image," published in 1988. The novel "Blindfold" became a 1966 film starring Rock Hudson, and "Night Watch" a successful film for Elizabeth Taylor in 1973. Her short story "My Client Curly" became the basis for the movie "Once Upon a Time," starring Cary Grant. She passed away on August 31, 2000.
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