S. N. Behrman in many ways typifies the American screenwriter of the early sound film era. He was brought to Hollywood following a career as a playwright, worked mostly as an adapter of plays and novels to the screen, wrote nearly all of his scripts with a collaborator, and stayed in motion pictures strictly for the financial reward. Behrman displayed considerable artistic integrity and had the ability to adapt faithfully from works as diverse as Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm and Anna Karenina.

Samuel Nathaniel Behrman was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1893, the son of Zelda Feingold and Joseph Behrman. No official record of his birthdate exists, and years later he arbitrarily selected his own birthday: 9 June. Behrman grew up in the Jewish section of Worcester, where his father was a Talmudic scholar who taught Hebrew to neighborhood children. Behrman's childhood experiences provided the basis for his play The...