Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written Drama

The Writers Guild Award for Best Written Drama was an award presented from 1949 to 1984 by the Writers Guild of America, after which it was discontinued.

Winners & Nominees Source: Notes

The year indicates when the film was released. The awards were presented the following year.

1940s YearFilmWriter(s)1948The Snake PitFrank Partos and Millen BrandAll My SonsChester ErskineAnother Part of the ForestVladimir PoznerBerlin ExpressHarold MedfordCall Northside 777Jerome Cady, and Jay DratlerCommand DecisionWilliam R. Laidlaw, and George FroeschelI Remember MamaDewitt BodeenJohnny BelindaIrma von Cube, and Allen VincentKey LargoRichard Brooks, and John HustonSorry, Wrong NumberLucille FletcherThe Naked CityAlbert Maltz, and Malvin WaldThe Treasure of the Sierra MadreJohn Huston1949All the King's MenRobert RossenBattlegroundRobert PiroshChampionCarl ForemanIntruder in the DustBen MaddowThe Hasty HeastRanald MacDougallThe HeiressRuth Goetz, and Augustus GoetzThe WindowMel Dinelli

1950s YearFilmWriter(s)1950Sunset BoulevardCharles Brackett, Billy Wilder, and D.M. Marshman Jr.All About EveJoseph L. MankiewiczPanic in the StreetsRichard MurphyThe Asphalt JungleBen Maddow, and John HustonThe MenCarl Foreman1951A Place in the SunMichael Wilson and Harry BrownA Streetcar Named DesireTennessee WilliamsDeath of a SalesmanStanley RobertsDetective StoryPhilip Yordan, and Robert WylerFourteen HoursJohn Paxton1952High NoonCarl Foreman5 FingersMichael WilsonCome Back, Little ShebaKetti FringsMoulin RougeAnthony Veiller, and John HustonThe Bad and the BeautifulCharles Schnee1953From Here to EternityDaniel TaradashAbove and BeyondMelvin Frank, Norman Panama, and Beirne Lay Jr.Little FugitiveRay AshleyMartin LutherAllan Sloane, and Lothar WolffShaneA. B. Guthrie Jr.1954On the WaterfrontBudd SchulbergExecutive SuiteErnest LehmanRear WindowJohn Michael HayesThe Barefoot ContessaJoseph L. MankiewiczThe Country GirlGeorge Seaton1955MartyPaddy ChayefskyBad Day at Black RockMillard KaufmanBlackboard JungleRichard BrooksEast of EdenPaul OsbornPicnicDaniel Taradash1956Friendly PersuasionMichael WilsonBaby DollTennessee WilliamsGiantFred Guiol, and Ivan MoffatSomebody Up There Likes MeErnest LehmanThe RainmakerN. Richard Nash195712 Angry MenReginald RoseHeaven Knows, Mr. AllisonJohn Lee Mahin, and John HustonPaths of GloryStanley Kubrick, Calder Willingham, and Jim ThompsonPeyton PlaceJohn Michael HayesSayonaraPaul Osborn1958The Defiant OnesHarold Jacob Smith, and Nedrick YoungCat on a Hot Tin RoofRichard Brooks, and James PoeI Want to Live!Nelson Gidding, and Don MankiewiczSeparate TablesTerence Rattigan, and John GayThe Long, Hot SummerIrving Ravetch, and Harriet Frank Jr.1959The Diary of Anne FrankFrances Goodrich, and Albert HackettAnatomy of a MurderWendell MayesBen-HurKarl TunbergCompulsionRichard MurphyThe Nun's StoryRobert Anderson

1960s YearFilmWriter(s)1960Elmer GantryRichard BrooksSons and LoversGavin Lambert, and T.E.B. ClarkePsychoJoseph StefanoSpartacusDalton TrumboThe SundownersIsobel Lennart1961The HustlerSidney Carroll, and Robert RossenA Raisin in the SunLorraine HansberryFannyJulius J. EpsteinJudgment at NurembergAbby MannThe InnocentsWilliam Archibald, and Truman Capote1962To Kill a MockingbirdHorton FooteBilly BuddPeter Ustinov, and DeWitt BodeenBirdman of AlcatrazGuy TrosperFreudCharles Kaufman, and Wolfgang ReinhardtThe Miracle WorkerWilliam Gibson1963HudHarriet Frank Jr., and Irving RavetchAmerica AmericaElia KazanCaptain Newman, M.D.Richard L. Breen, Phoebe Ephron, and Henry EphronThe BalconyBen MaddowThe Great EscapeJames Clavell, and W.R. BurnettThe Ugly AmericanStewart Stern1964BecketEdward AnhaltOne Potato, Two PotatoRaphael Hayes, and Orville H. HamptonSeven Days in MayRod SerlingThe Best ManGore VidalThe Night of the IguanaAnthony Veiller, and John Huston1965The PawnbrokerMorton S. FineA Patch of BlueGuy GreenThe Spy Who Came in from the ColdPaul Dehn, and Guy TrosperThe CollectorStanley Mann, and John KohnShip of FoolsAbby Mann1966Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?Ernest LehmanHarperWilliam GoldmanThe ProfessionalsRichard BrooksThe Sand PebblesRobert Anderson1967Bonnie and ClydeRobert Benton, and David NewmanGuess Who's Coming to DinnerWilliam RoseIn Cold BloodRichard BrooksIn the Heat of the NightStirling SilliphantUp the Down StaircaseTad Mosel1968The Lion in WinterJames GoldmanPetuliaLawrence B. MarcusRachel, RachelStewart SternRosemary's BabyRoman PolanskiThe Heart Is a Lonely HunterThomas C. Ryan1969Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumMidnight Cowboy †Waldo SaltAnne of the Thousand Days ‡John Hale, and Bridget BolandThe Prime of Miss Jean BrodieJay Presson AllenThey Shoot Horses, Don't They? ‡James Poe, and Robert E. ThompsonTrue GritMarguerite RobertsBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid †William GoldmanAlice's RestaurantVenable Herndon, and Arthur PennDownhill RacerJames SalterEasy RiderPeter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Terry SouthernMe, NatalieA. Martin Zwelback

1970s YearFilmWriter(s)1970Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumI Never Sang for My FatherRobert AndersonAirport ‡George SeatonCatch-22Buck HenryLittle Big ManCalder WillinghamThe Great White HopeHoward SacklerBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenPatton †Francis Ford Coppola and Edmund H. NorthFive Easy pieces ‡Carole Eastman (As Adrien Joyce)Love Story ‡Erich segal1971Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumThe French Connection †Ernest TidymanA Clockwork Orange ‡Stanley KubrickJohnny Got His GunDalton TrumboMcCabe & Mrs. MillerRobert Altman, and Brian McKayThe Last Picture Show ‡Larry McMurtry, and Peter BodganovichBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenSunday Bloody Sunday ‡Penelope GilliattKlute ‡Andy Lewis, and David E. LewisSummer of '42 ‡Hernan RaucherThe Hellstrom ChronicleDavid Seltzer1972Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumThe Godfather †Mario Puzo, and Francis Ford CoppolaDeliveranceJames DickleyPete 'n' Tillie ‡Julius J. EpsteinSlaughterhouse-FiveStephen GellerSounder ‡Lonne Elder IIIBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenThe Candidate †Jeremy LarnerBad CompanyDavid Newman, and Robert BentonImagesRobert AltmanThe Culpepper Cattle Co.Eric Bercovici, and Gregory PrentissThe Great Northfield, Minnesota RaidPhilip Kaufman1973Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumSerpico ‡Waldo Salt, and Norman WexlerCinderella LibertyDarryl PonicsanThe Exorcist †William Peter BlattyThe Last Detail ‡Robert TowneThe Paper Chase ‡James BridgesBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenSave the TigerSteve ShaganMean StreetsMartin Scorsese, and Mardik MartinPaydayDon CarpenterThe Sting †David S. WardThe Way We WereArthur Laurents1974Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumThe Godfather Part II †Francis Ford Coppola, and Mario PuzoConrackIrving Ravetch, and Harriet Frank Jr.Lenny ‡Julian BarryThe Parallax ViewDavid Giler, and Lorenzo Sempler Jr.The Talking of Pelham One Two ThreePeter StoneBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenChinatown †Robert TowneA Woman Under the InfluenceJohn CassavetesAlice Doesn't Live Here Anymore ‡Robert GetchellHarry and Tonto ‡Paul Mazursky, and Josh GreenfeldThe Conversation ‡Francis Ford Coppola1975Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumOne Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest †Lawrence Hauben, and Bo GoldmanBarry Lyndon ‡Stanley KubrickThe Man Whou Would Be King ‡John Huston, and Gladys HillJawsPeter Benchley, and Carl GottliebThe Man in the Glass BoothEdward AnhaltBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenDog Day Afternoon †Frank PiersonFrench Connection IIAlexander Jacobs, Robert Dillon, and Laurie DillonNashvilleJoan TwekesburyThe Wind and the LionJohn Milius1976Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumAll the President's Men †William GoldmanBound for Glory ‡Robert GetchellThe Seven-Per-Cent Solution ‡Nicholas MeyerMarathon ManWilliam GoldmanThe ShootistMiles Hood Swarthout, and Scott HaleBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenNetwork †Paddy ChayefskyThe OmenDavid SeltzerRocky ‡Sylvester StalloneTaxi DriverPaul SchraderThe Front ‡Walter Bernstein1977Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumJulia †Alvin SargentI Never Promised You a Rose Garden ‡Gavin Lambert, and Lewis John CarlinoIslands in the StreamDenne Bart PetitclercLooking for Mr. GoodbarRichard BrooksBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenThe Turning Point ‡Arthur LaurentsClose Encounters of the Third KindSteven SpielbergSaturday Night FeverNorman WexlerThe Late Show ‡Robert Benton1978Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumMidnight Express †Oliver StoneBloodbrothers ‡Walter NewmanGo Tell the SpartansWendell MayesInvasion of the Body SnatchersW.D. RichterWho'll Stop the RainJudith Rascoe, and Robert StoneBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenComing Home †Nancy Dowd, Robert C. Jones, and Waldo Salt An Unmarried WomanPaul MazurskyDays of HeavenTerrence MalickInteriors ‡Woody AllenThe Deer Hunter ‡Deric Washburn, Michael Cimino, Louis Garfinkle, and Quinn K. Redeker1979Best Drama Adapted from Another MediumKramer vs. Kramer †Robert BentonNorma Rae ‡Irving Ravetch, and Harriet Frank Jr.Best Drama Written Directly for the ScreenThe China Syndrome ‡Mike Gray, T. S. Cook, and James BridgesApocalypse NowJohn Milius, and Francis Ford Coppola

1980s

YearNomineesWriter(s)1980Best Drama Adapted from Other MediumOrdinary People †Alvin Sargent Coal Miner's Daughter ‡Thomas RickmanThe Elephant Man ‡Christopher De Vore, Eric Bergren, and David LynchThe Great SantiniLewis John CarlinoThe Stunt Man ‡Lawrence B. Marcus, Richard RushBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenMelvin and Howard †Bo GoldmanFameChristopher GoreMy BodyguardAlan Ornsby1981Best Drama Adapted from Other MediumOn Golden Pond †Ernest Thompson, and Donald E. StewartCutler's WayJeffrey Alan FiskinPrince of the City ‡Jay Presson Allen, and Sidney LumetRagtime ‡Michael WellerBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenReds‡Warren Beatty and Trevor GriffithsAbsence of MaliceKurt LuedtkeAtlantic CityJohn GuareBody HeatLawrence Kasdan1982Best Drama Adapted from Other MediumMissing †Costa-Gavras, and Donald E. StewartSophie's Choice ‡Alan J. PakulaThe Verdict ‡David MametThe World According to GarpSteve TesichBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial ‡ Melissa MathisonAn Officer and a GentlemanDouglas Day StewartShoot the MoonBo Goldman1983Best Drama Adapted from Other MediumReuben, Reuben ‡Julius J. EpsteinThe Year of Living DangerouslyDavid Williamson, Peter Weir, and C.J. KochThe Right StuffPhilip KaufmanBest Drama Written Directly for the ScreenTender Mercies † Horton FooteSilkwoodNora Ephron, and Alice ArlenWarGamesLawrence Lasker, and Walter F. Parkes

References

External links

WGA.org