Leonard Praskins

American playwright Leonard Praskins came to films in 1929 when his play The Charlatan, written in collaboration with Ernest Pascal, was adapted for the screen. Staying on in Hollywood, Praskins worked for a number of studios, including MGM (Emma, 1932), RKO (Bird of Paradise, 1932), and 20th Century (Call of the Wild, 1935). While at Universal in 1952, he held the dubious distinction of co-writing It Grows on Trees and It Happens Every Thursday, respectively the very last big-screen vehicles for Irene Dunne and Loretta Young. Before his retirement in 1956, Leonard Praskins toiled away on the unforgettable 3-D extravaganza Gorilla at Large (1954).