death_place death_date birth_place nationality notableworks birth_date article_title name occupation
london , england 14 july 1984 cleveland , united states american '' shaft '' '' the french connection '' 1 january 1928 ernest tidyman
 ernest tidyman writer
ernest tidyman

ernest tidyman -lrb- january 1 , 1928 -- july 14 , 1984 -rrb- was a cleveland-born american author and screenwriter , best known for his novels featuring the african-american detective john shaft .
he also co-wrote the screenplay for the film version of `` shaft '' with john d.f. black in 1971 .
his screenplay for `` the french connection '' garnered him an academy award for best adapted screenplay , as well as a golden globe award , a writers guild of america award , and an edgar award .
he also wrote the screenplay for the 1973 film `` high plains drifter '' , directed by and starring clint eastwood .
tidyman also wrote the sequel to `` shaft '' , `` shaft 's big score '' , which appeared in theaters in 1972 .
in 1974 , he published `` dummy '' , a non-fiction account of the story of donald lang , an accused deaf-mute murderer .
it was nominated for an edgar in the fact crime category .
he co-wrote `` a force of one '' in 1979 , one of chuck norris 's earlier films .
in 1980 , he wrote the teleplay for the tv movie '' '' , which he also had a hand in producing , which got him an emmy nomination .
for creating the `` shaft '' books , he became one of the few white individuals to win an naacp image award .
