Samuel Spewack (1899 - 1971) was born in the Ukraine. He attended Stuyvesant High School in New York City and then received his degree from Columbia College. His wife-to-be, Bella Spewak, worked as a journalist for socialist and pacifist newspapers such as The New York Call. Her work drew attention from Samuel, working as a reporter for The World, and the couple married in 1922. Shortly afterwards, they departed for Moscow, where they worked as news correspondents for the next four years. After returning to the United States, they settled in New Hope, Pennsylvania. In the latter part of the decade, Samuel wrote several novels, including MON PAUL, THE SKYSCRAPER MURDER, and THE MURDER IN THE GILDED CAGE, on his own, while the pair collaborated on plays. The two wrote several plays and screenplays for mostly B-movies throughout the 1930s, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Story for MY FAVORITE WIFE in 1940. They also penned a 1945 remake of GRAND HOTEL, entitled Week-End at the Waldorf, which starred Ginger Rogers. Always known as a turbulent couple, the Spewaks were in the midst of their own marital woes in 1948 when they were approached to write the book for KISS ME, KATE, which centered on a once-married couple of thespians who use the stage on which they're performing as a battling ground. Bella initially began working with composer Cole Porter on her own, but theatrical necessity overcame marital sparks, and the Spewacks completed the project together. It yielded each of them two Tony Awards, one for Best Musical, the other for Best Author of a Musical. It proved to be their most successful work.
