Anthony Joshua Shaffer (1926 - 2001)

Born 15 May 1926 in Liverpool, Lancashire, England

Husband of Henrietta J (Glaskie) Shaffer — married 1954 (to before 1960) in Paddington, London, England

Husband of Carolyn (Soley) Shaffer — married 1961 (to before 1975) in Marylebone, Middlesex, England

Husband of Elizabeth Diane (Cilento) Shaffer — married 27 Jan 1985 in North Queensland, Australia

Died 6 Nov 2001 at age 75 in Chelsea and Westminister Hospital, London, England

Biography

Anthony Shaffer is Notable.

Anthony Shaffer has Jewish Roots.

Anthony Shaffer is one of twins.

Anthony Joshua Shaffer was born on 15th May 1926 at Liverpool, Lancashire, England, into a Jewish family.^[3] He was the older of twin sons of Jack Shaffer, an estate agent with his wife's family, and Reka Fredman. He was the identical twin brother of writer and dramatist Peter Shaffer, and they had another brother, Brian. Anthony graduated with a law degree from Trinity College, Cambridge.^[1]

He worked as a barrister and advertising copywriter before becoming a full-time writer. His most notable work was the play Sleuth (1970), which he adapted for the film version which starred Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine, and was Oscar nominated. He received Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America for both versions: for Best Play in 1971, and Best Screenplay in 1973. His other major screenplays include the Hitchcock thriller Frenzy (1972) and the British cult thriller The Wicker Man (1973).^[4] He co-wrote three detective novels with his playwright brother Peter Shaffer under the pseudonym, Peter Antony.^[1]

Anthony was married three times—to Henrietta Glaskie in1954,^[5] Carolyn Soley in 1961,^[6] with whom he had two children, Claudia and Cressida, and Australian actress Diane Cilento in 1985. He moved to North Queensland, Australia in 1975 and married Diane in 1985. Together they built a house (The Castle) and a theatre (The Karnak Playhouse). Anthony was legally domiciled in Australia (where, with Diane, he owned land and a restaurant, paid taxes and voted in elections). He also maintained a flat in London. In the last years of his life he had an extramarital relationship with Marie Josette "JoJo" Capece-Minutolo when in London.^[1]

He passed away, aged 75 years, on 6th November 2001 in the Chelsea and Westminister Hospital, London, England.^[7] He is buried in Highgate Cemetery (East), Highgate, Middlesex.^[8]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3} Wikipedia profile: Anthony Shaffer; accessed 26 Aug 2019
2. ↑ Anthony Shaffer website; accessed 26 Aug 2019
3. ↑ UK FreeBMD Birth Index Jun qtr 1926, vol 8b, page 419
4. ↑ IMDb: Anthony Shaffer; accessed 26 Aug 2019
5. ↑ UK FreeBMD Marriage Index Jun qtr 1954, vol 5d, page 453
6. ↑ UK FreeBMD Marriage Index Dec qtr 1961, vol 5d, page 668
7. ↑ Fountain, Nigel, The Guardian 7 Nov 2001: Obituary: Anthony Shaffer; accessed 26 Aug 2019
8. ↑ Find-a-Grave: Anthony Shaffer; accessed 26 Aug 2019

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Kitty Smith for contributions to this profile.