FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!

Writers Turned Screenwriters Trivia Quiz

Here's a look at some novelists and playwrights who have wandered into the world of screenwriting.

A multiple-choice quiz by robert362. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
robert362

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
121,461

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
630

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. "The Misfits" is an original screenplay by one of America's best playwrights. Which one? Hint

Arthur Miller

Eugene O'Neill

William Inge

Tennessee Williams

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. Evan Hunter is a successful novelist; he also wrote the screenplay for a Hitchcock classic. Which one? Hint

The Birds

Rear Window

Vertigo

Saboteur

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. The quirky "western" "Night of the Hunter" featured a screenplay by James Agee. Who was the star of the movie? Hint

Van Heflin

Dean Martin

Robert Mitchum

Rod Taylor

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. "The Big Sleep" included screenplay work by what author? Hint

William Faulkner

Tom Wolfe

Ernest Hemingway

Robert Ludlum

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. F. Scott Fitzgerald worked on the screenplay version of the novel, "The Three Comrades". Who wrote the novel? Hint

Leo Tolstoy

Erich Maria Remarque

Rudyard Kipling

Oscar Wilde

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. What writer worked on the screenplay version of Lillian Hellman's play "Watch on the Rhine"? Hint

Theodore Dreiser

Norman Mailer

Dashiell Hammett

Gore Vidal

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. Playwright Anthony Shaffer wrote the screenplay for what Hitchcock movie? Hint

Torn Curtain

Strangers on a Train

Rope

Frenzy

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. Raymond Chandler wrote the screenplay for what classic movie? Hint

Out of the Past

Double Indemnity

Sorry, Wrong Number

Treasure of the Sierra Madre

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. Harold Pinter wrote the screenplay for which of these novels by John Fowles? Hint

The French Lieutenant's Woman

The Magus

The Collector

The Ebony Tower

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. A novel isn't always adapted into a screenplay by someone other than the original novelist. An example of this is "Mildred Pierce". Who was the author and screenwriter? Hint

Robert Ludlum

Irving Wallace

James Gould Cozzens

James M. Cain

(Optional) Create a Free FunTrivia ID to save the points you are about to earn:

Select a User ID:

Choose a Password:

Your Email:

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. "The Misfits" is an original screenplay by one of America's best playwrights. Which one?

Answer: Arthur Miller

It's a curiously unsatisfying piece - but it's interesting because of the cast: Marilyn Monroe (in her last completed movie) while her marriage to Miller was falling apart, and Clark Gable in his last film role - he died shortly after completion of the picture.

2. Evan Hunter is a successful novelist; he also wrote the screenplay for a Hitchcock classic. Which one?

Answer: The Birds

Hunter has written many novels as Hunter and as Ed McBain; he's also had some of his novels turned into movies. "Birds" was a very fine screenplay effort (from the Daphne DuMaurier short story).

3. The quirky "western" "Night of the Hunter" featured a screenplay by James Agee. Who was the star of the movie?

Answer: Robert Mitchum

Agee, best known for "A Death in the Family" wrote the screenplay to this decidedly strange story. (Robert Mitchum has "Love" and "Hate" written across his fingers.)

4. "The Big Sleep" included screenplay work by what author?

Answer: William Faulkner

Perhaps that's why the plot is so damned hard to follow.

5. F. Scott Fitzgerald worked on the screenplay version of the novel, "The Three Comrades". Who wrote the novel?

Answer: Erich Maria Remarque

Remarque did more than merely write the classic "All Quiet on the Western Front".

6. What writer worked on the screenplay version of Lillian Hellman's play "Watch on the Rhine"?

Answer: Dashiell Hammett

Hammett and Hellman had a long personal relationship.

7. Playwright Anthony Shaffer wrote the screenplay for what Hitchcock movie?

Answer: Frenzy

Shaffer wrtote the superb "Sleuth". This effort, however was not the best - for him or for Hitch.

8. Raymond Chandler wrote the screenplay for what classic movie?

Answer: Double Indemnity

Chandler wrote many tales about detective Philip Marlowe - but this wasn't one of them. (Nice job, though.)

9. Harold Pinter wrote the screenplay for which of these novels by John Fowles?

Answer: The French Lieutenant's Woman

Fowles is often a fascinating writer: "The Magus" is quite interesting and ""The Collector" is also a good read. "Lieutenant" didn't read well (in my opinion) - and the movie (again, my opinion) was tough going. (Of course, Pinter is Pinter ...)

10. A novel isn't always adapted into a screenplay by someone other than the original novelist. An example of this is "Mildred Pierce". Who was the author and screenwriter?

Answer: James M. Cain

I haven't read the novel, but the movie was solid.

Source: Author robert362

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor DakotaNorth before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.