Bo Goldman death: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest screenwriter dies aged 90

Writer won Oscars for two of his screenplays, including for the 1975 movie starring Jack Nicholson

(Ron Galella Collection via Getty)

Oscar-winning screenwriter Bo Goldman, known for writing the script for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, has died aged 90.

He died on Tuesday (25 July) in Helendale, California, his son-in-law, director Todd Field, told the New York Times. A cause of death was not disclosed.

Born into a Jewish family in New York in 1932, one of five children, Robert Goldman’s father was a Broadway producer who owned a chain of retail stores, but lost his fortune during the Depression.

His parents never married, and it wasn’t until years later that Goldman learnt his father had several children with another woman. Having attended “fancy schools”, which he believed were paid for by his uncle, Samuel, Goldman began working as an assistant to renowned Broadway composer Jule Styne, before serving in the US army.

After leaving his wife and six children behind in 1974 and moving to Los Angeles in an attempt to revive his career, Goldman was offered the chance by director Milos Forman to adapt Ken Kesey’s novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, for the big screen.

The script, in collaboration with Lawrence Hauben, ended up winning an Oscar for Best Screenplay adapted from other material. The film was also named Best Picture and earned Oscars for Forman, along with actors Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher.

In 1980, Melvin and Howard won Goldman his second Oscar for Best Screenplay written directly for the screen.

A decade later, he bagged his third Oscar nomination for his work in 1993’s Scent of a Woman.

The screenwriter’s other credits include The Flamingo Kid (1984), Little Nikita (1988), and City Hall (1996).

During his career, Goldman also won two Golden Globe Awards, two Writers Guild of America Awards, and the Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998, as well as two Bafta nominations.

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“If there is a train of thought that runs through my work,” he told The Washington Post in 1982, “it is a yearning, a longing to make the people real and capture their lives on the screen. I think there is nothing more fulfilling in the world than to see your view of life realised in art.

“For me, film is unique; it has a peculiar quality for re-creating life. I find life so wonderful, that to try to capture it in art is like trying to catch starlight.”

He is survived by his son Justin Ashforth and four daughters: Mia Goldman, Amy Goldman, Diana Rathbun and Serena Rathbun. He is also survived by seven grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Many people from the film industry have paid tribute to Goldman upon hearing the news of his death.

“One of our greatest screenwriters has died,” wrote writer Mark Harris. “Melvin and Howard alone would earn him his place in history, but there was also Cuckoo’s Nest, The Rose, The Flamingo Kid, Shoot the Moon...

“RIP Bo Goldman, a master not replaceable by AI or lesser talents.”

The Wrap’s Drew Taylor added: “So sad to hear about the passing of Bo Goldman. Truly one of the great Hollywood screenwriters, his scripts always had such amazing energy & life, his empathy for his characters was enchanting.

“Melvin & Howard is my favorite script of his & one of the greatest movies ever. RIP.”