Philip MacDonald

Biography

British novelist and playwright Philip MacDonald specialized in thrillers and crime melodramas. MacDonald's plays Rynox, Gentleman's Gentleman, Nightmare, Circle of Danger and 23 Paces to Baker Street all made it to the screen, as did his complex mystery novel The List of Adrian Messenger. His screenwriting credits included John Ford's The Lost Patrol (1934) and several of 20th Century-Fox's "Charlie Chan" and "Mr. Moto" entries. Active in films until the 1950s, Philip MacDonald worked on such intriguing low-budgeters as Ring of Fear (a 1954 meller starring Mickey Spillane as himself) and Tobor the Great (1954). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide