Marcus Dunstan (born September 19, 1975) is an American screenplay writer and director.

Life and career[link]

Dunstan was born in Macomb, Illinois. He spent his formative years working in movie theaters and studying film at the University of Iowa.

While in college Dunstan experimented with 16mm film often using himself as the guinea pig in poorly executed stunts that left him dragging behind a car, the target of flying knives, and thrice being set on fire. He holds the record for spilling the most fake blood ever in a student film.^[1] Since moving to Los Angeles in 1999, Dunstan toiled in several odd jobs including a retirement home, an Optometry clinic, and a video store while spending his nights writing on a borrowed computer from fellow screenwriter, Patrick Melton.

In March 2005, Dunstan and Melton won Season Three of Project Greenlight with their screenplay, Feast. The director was John Gulager. The film starred Krista Allen and Eric Dane and was produced by Dimension Films and Neo Art & Logic.^[2]

Dunstan has written the screenplays for Feast, Feast 2: Sloppy Seconds, Feast 3: The Happy Finish, The Collector, Saw IV, Saw V, Saw VI, and Saw 3D.^[3] He is also in pre-producation and post-production for several of his other screenplays.^[4] In addition to writing the screenplay for The Collector, he also directed the film. He will direct the sequel to The Collector, titled The Collection. The film, produced by Liddell Entertainment and Fortress Features, began filming in January 2011.^{[5] [6]}

In addition to writing and directing, he and writing partner Patrick Melton have made cameo appearances in Saw V, Supergator, Feast and The Collector, appearing in the later two through the same puppet show clip shown on TV screens.^[7] He also co-written the Thriller novel Black Light - Don't Look Too Deep alongside Patrick Melton and Stephen Romano, which will published on October 5th, 2011 over Mulholland Books as hardcover.^[8] The novel will adapt in a feature film written by Patrick Melton and Dunston, under the direction of Stephen Romano, Mike De Luca will produce for Warner Bros..^[9]

Filmography[link]

Writer[link]

Producer[link]

• The Candidate (2010)

Director[link]

• The Collector (2009)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Marcus Dunstan at the Internet Movie Database

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Dunstan
Archbishop of Canterbury
Province	Canterbury
Diocese	Diocese of Canterbury
See	Archbishop of Canterbury
Enthroned	unknown
Reign ended	988
Predecessor	Byrhthelm
Successor	Æthelgar
Orders
Consecration	959
Personal details
Birth name	Dunstan
Born	possibly 909 or slightly earlier Baltonsborough
Died	19 May 988, age around 79 Canterbury
Buried	Canterbury Cathedral
Sainthood
Feast day	19 May
Venerated in	Eastern Orthodox Church[1] Roman Catholic Church Anglican Communion
Attributes	man holding a pair of smith's tongs; with a dove hovering near him; with a troop of angels before him
Patronage	blacksmiths; Charlottetown, Canada; goldsmiths; locksmiths; musicians; silversmiths
Shrines	Canterbury Cathedral (but also claimed by Glastonbury Abbey), both destroyed

Dunstan (909 – 19 May 988)^[2] was an Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey, a Bishop of Worcester, a Bishop of London, and an Archbishop of Canterbury, later canonised as a saint.^[3] His work restored monastic life in England and reformed the English Church. His 11th-century biographer, Osbern, himself an artist and scribe, states that Dunstan was skilled in "making a picture and forming letters", as were other clergy of his age who reached senior rank.^[4]

Dunstan served as an important minister of state to several English kings. He was the most popular saint in England for nearly two centuries, having gained fame for the many stories of his greatness, not least among which were those concerning his famed cunning in defeating the Devil.^[5]

Early life (909–43)[link]

Birth[link]

Dunstan was born in Baltonsborough, Somerset.^[6] He was the son of Heorstan, a noble of Wessex. Heorstan was the brother of the bishops of Wells and of Winchester.^[7] It is recorded that his mother, Cynethryth, was a pious woman. Osbern's life of Dunstan relates that a messenger miraculously told her of the saintly child she would give birth to:

She was in the church of St Mary on Candleday, when all the lights were suddenly extinguished. Then the candle held by Cynethryth was as suddenly relighted, and all present lit their candles at this miraculous flame, thus foreshadowing that the boy "would be the minister of eternal light" to the Church of England.^[5]

The anonymous author of the earliest Life places Dunstan's birth during the reign of Athelstan, while Osbern fixed it at "the first year of the reign of King Æthelstan", 924 or 925. This date, however, cannot be reconciled with other known dates of Dunstan's life and creates many obvious anachronisms. Historians therefore assume that Dunstan was born c. 910 or earlier.^[8]

School to the king's court[link]

As a young boy, Dunstan studied under the Irish monks who then occupied the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey.^[9] Accounts tell of his youthful optimism and of his vision of the abbey being restored. While still a boy, Dunstan was stricken with a near-fatal illness and effected a seemingly miraculous recovery. Even as a child, he was noted for his devotion to learning and for his mastery of many kinds of artistic craftsmanship. With his parent's consent he was tonsured, received minor orders and served in the ancient church of St Mary. He became so well known for his devotion to learning that he is said to have been summoned by his uncle Athelm, the Archbishop of Canterbury, to enter his service.^[5] He was later appointed to the court of King Athelstan.^[10]

Dunstan soon became a favourite of the king and was the envy of other members of the court.^[5] A plot was hatched to disgrace him and Dunstan was accused of being involved with witchcraft and black magic.^[3] The king ordered him to leave the court and as Dunstan was leaving the palace his enemies physically attacked him, beat him severely, bound him, and threw him into a cesspool.^[11] He managed to crawl out and make his way to the house of a friend. From there, he journeyed to Winchester and entered the service of his uncle, Ælfheah, Bishop of Winchester.^[5]

The bishop tried to persuade him to become a monk, but Dunstan was doubtful whether he had a vocation to a celibate life. The answer came in the form of an attack of swelling tumours all over Dunstan's body. This ailment was so severe that it was thought to be leprosy.^[5] It was more probably some form of blood poisoning caused by being beaten and thrown in the cesspool.^[11] Whatever the cause, it changed Dunstan's mind. He took Holy Orders in 943, in the presence of Ælfheah, and returned to live the life of a hermit at Glastonbury.^[5] Against the old church of St Mary he built a small cell five feet long and two and a half feet deep. It was there that Dunstan studied, worked at his handicrafts, and played on his harp.^[5] It is at this time, according to a late 11th-century legend, that the Devil is said to have tempted Dunstan and to have been held by the face with Dunstan's tongs.^[11]

Monk, abbot, and bishop (943–60)[link]

Life as a monk[link]

Dunstan worked as a silversmith and in the scriptorium while he was living at Glastonbury. It is thought likely that he was the artist who drew the well-known image of Christ with a small kneeling monk beside him in the Glastonbury Classbook, "one of the first of a series of outline drawings which were to become a special feature of Anglo-Saxon art of this period."^[4] Dunstan became famous as a musician, illuminator, and metalworker.^[10] Lady Æthelflaed, King Æthelstan's niece, made Dunstan a trusted adviser and on her death she left a considerable fortune to him.^[5] He used this money later in life to foster and encourage a monastic revival in England. About the same time, his father Heorstan died and Dunstan inherited his fortune as well. He became a person of great influence, and on the death of King Æthelstan in 940, the new King, Edmund, summoned him to his court at Cheddar and made him a minister.^[3]

Again, royal favour fostered jealousy among other courtiers and again Dunstan's enemies succeeded in their plots. The king was prepared to send Dunstan away.^[5] There were then at Cheddar certain envoys from the "Eastern Kingdom", which probably meant East Anglia. Dunstan implored the envoys to take him with them when they returned to their homes. They agreed to do so, but it never happened. The story is recorded:

... the king rode out to hunt the stag in Mendip Forest. He became separated from his attendants and followed a stag at great speed in the direction of the Cheddar cliffs. The stag rushed blindly over the precipice and was followed by the hounds. Eadmund endeavoured vainly to stop his horse; then, seeing death to be imminent, he remembered his harsh treatment of St Dunstan and promised to make amends if his life was spared. At that moment his horse was stopped on the very edge of the cliff. Giving thanks to God, he returned forthwith to his palace, called for St. Dunstan and bade him follow, then rode straight to Glastonbury. Entering the church, the king first knelt in prayer before the altar, then, taking St. Dunstan by the hand, he gave him the kiss of peace, led him to the abbot's throne and, seating him thereon, promised him all assistance in restoring Divine worship and regular observance.^[5]

Abbot of Glastonbury[link]

Dunstan, now Abbot of Glastonbury, went to work at once on the task of reform.^[3] He had to re-create monastic life and to rebuild the abbey. He began by establishing Benedictine monasticism at Glastonbury.^[10] That the Rule of St. Benedict was the basis of his restoration is not only definitely stated by his first biographer, who knew Dunstan well, but it is also in accordance with the nature of his first measures as abbot, with the significance of his first buildings, and with the Benedictine leanings of his most prominent disciples.^[5]

Remains of the choir of Glastonbury Abbey church

Dunstan's first care was to rebuild the Church of St. Peter, rebuild the cloister, and re-establish the monastic enclosure. The secular affairs of the house were committed to his brother, Wulfric, "so that neither himself nor any of the professed monks might break enclosure."^[5] A school for the local youth was founded and soon became the most famous of its time in England.^[10] A substantial extension of the irrigation system on the surrounding Somerset Levels was also completed.

Within two years of Dunstan's appointment, in 946, King Edmund was assassinated. His successor was Eadred. The policy of the new government was supported by the Queen Mother, Eadgifu of Kent, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Oda, and by the East Anglian nobles, at whose head was the powerful ealdorman Æthelstan the "Half-king". It was a policy of unification and conciliation with the Danish half of the kingdom.^[9] The goal was a firm establishment of royal authority. In ecclesiastical matters it favoured the spread of Catholic observance, the rebuilding of churches, the moral reform of the clergy and laity, and the end of the religion of the Danes in England.^[11] Against all these reforms were the nobles of Wessex, who included most of Dunstan's own relatives, and who had an interest in maintaining established customs.^[5] For nine years Dunstan's influence was dominant, during which time he twice refused the office of bishop (that of Winchester in 951 and Crediton in 953), affirming that he would not leave the king's side so long as the king lived and needed him.^[10]

Changes in fortune[link]

In 955, Eadred died, and the situation was at once changed. Eadwig, the elder son of Edmund, who then came to the throne, was a headstrong youth wholly devoted to the reactionary nobles. According to one legend, the feud with Dunstan began on the day of Eadwig's coronation, when he failed to attend a meeting of nobles. When Dunstan eventually found the young monarch, he was cavorting with a noblewoman named Ælfgifu and her mother, and refused to return with the bishop. Infuriated by this, Dunstan dragged Eadwig back and forced him to renounce the girl as a "strumpet". Later realizing that he had provoked the king, Dunstan fled to the apparent sanctuary of his cloister, but Eadwig, incited by Ælfgifu, whom he married, followed him and plundered the monastery.^[5]

King Eadwig's reign was marred by conflicts with his family and with Dunstan.

Although Dunstan managed to escape, he saw that his life was in danger. He fled England and crossed the channel to Flanders, where he found himself ignorant of the language and of the customs of the locals.^[10] The count of Flanders, Arnulf I, received him with honour and lodged him in the Abbey of Mont Blandin, near Ghent.^[5] This was one of the centres of the Benedictine revival in that country, and Dunstan was able for the first time to observe the strict observance that had seen its rebirth at Cluny at the beginning of the century. His exile was not of long duration. Before the end of 957, the Mercians and Northumbrians revolted and drove out Eadwig, choosing his brother Edgar as king of the country north of the Thames.^[9] The south remained faithful to Eadwig. At once Edgar's advisers recalled Dunstan.^[10] On his return, the archbishop consecrated Dunstan a bishop and, on the death of Coenwald of Worcester at the end of 957, Oda appointed Dunstan to that see.^[12]

In the following year the See of London became vacant and was conferred on Dunstan, who held it in conjunction with Worcester.^[3][12] In October 959, Eadwig died and his brother Edgar was readily accepted as ruler of Wessex. One of Eadwig's final acts had been to appoint a successor to Archbishop Oda, who died on 2 June 958. First he appointed Ælfsige of Winchester, but he perished of cold in the Alps as he journeyed to Rome for the pallium. In his place Eadwig nominated Byrhthelm, the Bishop of Wells. As soon as Edgar became king he reversed this act on the ground that Brithelm had not been able to govern even his former diocese properly.^[5] The archbishopric was then conferred on Dunstan.^[10]

Archbishop of Canterbury (960–78)[link]

Dunstan went to Rome in 960, and received the pallium from Pope John XII.^[3] On his journey there, Dunstan's charities were so lavish as to leave nothing for himself and his attendants. His steward complained, but Dunstan seems to have suggested that they trust in Jesus Christ.

On his return from Rome, Dunstan at once regained his position as virtual prime minister of the kingdom. By his advice Ælfstan was appointed to the Bishopric of London, and Oswald to that of Worcester. In 963, Æthelwold, the Abbot of Abingdon, was appointed to the See of Winchester. With their aid and with the ready support of King Edgar, Dunstan pushed forward his reforms in the English Church.^[3] The monks in his communities were taught to live in a spirit of self-sacrifice, and Dunstan actively enforced the law of celibacy whenever possible.^[13] He forbade the practices of simony (selling ecclesiastical offices for money) and ended the custom of clerics appointing relatives to offices under their jurisdiction. Monasteries were built, and in some of the great cathedrals, monks took the place of the secular canons; in the rest the canons were obliged to live according to rule. The parish priests were compelled to be qualified for their office; they were urged to teach parishioners not only the truths of the Christian faith, but also trades to improve their position.^[11] The state saw reforms as well.^[10] Good order was maintained throughout the realm and there was respect for the law. Trained bands policed the north, and a navy guarded the shores from Viking raids. There was a level of peace in the kingdom unknown in living memory.^[5]

In 973, Dunstan's statesmanship reached its zenith when he officiated at the coronation of King Edgar. Edgar was crowned at Bath in an imperial ceremony planned not as the initiation, but as the culmination of his reign (a move that must have taken a great deal of preliminary diplomacy).^[14] This service, devised by Dunstan himself and celebrated with a poem in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle forms the basis of the present-day British coronation ceremony.^[14] There was a second symbolic coronation held later. This was an important step, as other kings of Britain came and gave their allegiance to Edgar at Chester.^[15] Six kings in Britain, including the kings of Scotland and of Strathclyde, pledged their faith that they would be the king's liege-men on sea and land.

Edgar died two years after his coronation, and was succeeded by his eldest son Edward (II) "the Martyr".^[10] His accession was disputed by his stepmother, Ælfthryth, who wished her own son Æthelred to reign. Through the influence of Dunstan, Eadward was chosen and crowned at Winchester.^[3] Edgar's death had encouraged the reactionary nobles, and at once there was a determined attack upon the monks, the protagonists of reform. Throughout Mercia they were persecuted and deprived of their possessions. Their cause, however, was supported by Æthelwine, the ealdorman of East Anglia, and the realm was in serious danger of civil war. Three meetings of the Witan were held to settle these disputes, at Kyrtlington, at Calne, and at Amesbury. At the second of them the floor of the hall where the Witan was sitting gave way, and all except Dunstan, who clung to a beam, fell into the room below, several men were killed.^[5]

Final years (978–88)[link]

In March 978, King Eadweard was assassinated at Corfe Castle, possibly at the instigation of his stepmother, and Æthelred the Unready became king. His coronation on Low Sunday 31 March, 978, was the last state event in which Dunstan took part.^[5] When the young king took the usual oath to govern well, Dunstan addressed him in solemn warning. He criticised the violent act whereby he became king and prophesied the misfortunes that were shortly to fall on the kingdom,^[14] but Dunstan's influence at court was ended.^[10] Dunstan retired to Canterbury, to teach at the cathedral school.^[3]

Theological manuscript from Glastonbury Abbey (Bodleian Library):Abbot Dunstan ordered the writing of this book.

Only three more public acts are known. In 980, Dunstan joined Ælfhere of Mercia in the solemn translation of the relics of King Eadward II, soon to be known as St Edward the Martyr, from their grave at Wareham to a shrine at Shaftesbury Abbey. In 984, in obedience to a vision of St Andrew, he persuaded King Æthelred to appoint Ælfheah as Bishop of Winchester in succession to Æthelwold. In 986, Dunstan induced the king, by a donation of 100 pounds of silver, to stop his persecution of the See of Rochester.^[5]

Dunstan's retirement at Canterbury consisted of long hours, both day and night, spent in private prayer, as well as his regular attendance at Mass and the daily office. He visited the shrines of St Augustine and St Æthelberht, and there are reports of a vision of angels who sang to him heavenly canticles.^[5] He worked to improve the spiritual and temporal well-being of his people, to build and restore churches, to establish schools, to judge suits, to defend widows and orphans, to promote peace, and to enforce respect for purity.^[9] He practised his crafts, made bells and organs and corrected the books in the cathedral library. He encouraged and protected European scholars who came to England, and was active as a teacher of boys in the cathedral school. On the vigil of Ascension Day 988, it is recorded that a vision of angels warned he would die in three days.^[5] On the feast day itself, Dunstan said Mass and preached three times to the people: at the Gospel, at the benediction, and after the Agnus Dei. In this last address, he announced his impending death and wished his congregation well.^[16] That afternoon he chose the spot for his tomb, then went to his bed. His strength failed rapidly, and on Saturday morning, 19 May, he caused the clergy to assemble. Mass was celebrated in his presence, then he received Extreme Unction and the Viaticum, and died. Dunstan's final words are reported to have been, "He hath made a remembrance of his wonderful works, being a merciful and gracious Lord: He hath given food to them that fear Him."^[5]

The English people accepted him as a saint shortly thereafter. He was formally canonised in 1029. That year at the Synod of Winchester, St Dunstan's feast was ordered to be kept solemnly throughout England.^[5]

Legacy[link]

Until Thomas Becket’s fame overshadowed Dunstan's, he was the favourite saint of the English people. Dunstan had been buried in his cathedral; and when that building was destroyed by a fire in 1074, his relics were translated by Archbishop Lanfranc to a tomb on the south side of the high altar in the rebuilt Canterbury Cathedral.^[5]

Dunstan shoeing the Devil's hoof, as illustrated by George Cruikshank

The monks of Glastonbury used to claim that during the sack of Canterbury by the Danes in 1012, Dunstan's body had been carried for safety to their abbey. This story was disproved by Archbishop William Warham, who opened the tomb at Canterbury in 1508. They found Dunstan's relics still to be there. Within a century, however, his shrine was destroyed during the English Reformation.^[5]

He functions as the patron saint of goldsmiths and silversmiths, as he worked as a blacksmith, painter, and jeweller. His Feast Day is May 19, which is why the date year on hallmarks runs from May 19 to May 18, not the calendar year. St Dunstan's—the charity that provides support, rehabilitation, and respite care to blind ex-service personnel of the British Armed Forces—is named after him, as are many churches all over the world. St Dunstan's, Mayfield, St Dunstan's, Stepney, St Dunstan-in-the-East, London, and St Dunstan-in-the-West, London are four of the more well known in Britain.

English literature contains many references to him, for example in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens,^[17] and in this folk rhyme:

St Dunstan, as the story goes,
Once pull'd the devil by the nose
With red-hot tongs, which made him roar,
That he was heard three miles or more.^[18]

From this the tongs have become a symbol of St Dunstan and are featured in the arms of Tower Hamlets.

Daniel Anlezark has tentatively suggested that Dunstan may be the medieval author of Solomon and Saturn citing the style, word choice, and Hiberno-Latin used in the texts.^[19] However, Clive Tolley examines this claim from a linguistic point-of-view and disagrees with Anlezark's claim.^[20]

Another story relates how Dunstan nailed a horseshoe to the Devil's hoof when he was asked to re-shoe the Devil's horse. This caused the Devil great pain, and Dunstan only agreed to remove the shoe and release the Devil after he promised never to enter a place where a horseshoe is over the door. This is claimed as the origin of the lucky horseshoe.

The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Anglican Communion mark his feast day on May 19.^[3]

At various passages in "The Deptford Trilogy", the character Dunstan Ramsay is compared with the saint of the same name, and in particular some stormy events in the character's love-life are rather humorously compared to Saint Dunstan's famous struggle with Satan.

See also[link]

Saints portal

• List of bishops of Worcester

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Lapidge, Michael (2004). "Dunstan [St Dunstan (d. 988)"]. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/8288. Retrieved 2 August 2007. 

Further reading[link]

Primary sources[link]

• ‘Author B’, Vita S. Dunstani, ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 3–52. Portions of the text are translated by Dorothy Whitelock in English Historical Documents c. 500–1042. 2nd ed. London, 1979. These have been superseded by the new edition and translation by Michael Lapidge and Michael Winterbottom, The Early Lives of St Dunstan, Oxford University Press, 2012.
• Adelard of Ghent, Epistola Adelardi ad Elfegum Archiepiscopum de Vita Sancti Dunstani, Adelard's letter to Archbishop Ælfheah of Canterbury (1005–1012) on the Life of St Dunstan, ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series 63. London, 1874. 53–68. Also in the new edition and translation by Michael Lapidge and Michael Winterbottom, The Early Lives of St Dunstan, Oxford University Press, 2012.
• Wulfstan of Winchester, The Life of St Æthelwold, ed. and tr. M. Lapidge and M. Winterbottom, Wulfstan of Winchester. The Life of St Æthelwold. Oxford Medieval Texts. Oxford, 1991.
• Reliquiae Dunstanianae, ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 354–439.
• Fragmenta ritualia de Dunstano, ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 440-57.
• Osbern of Canterbury, Vita sancti Dunstani and Liber Miraculorum Sancti Dunstani, ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 69–161.
• Eadmer, Vita S. Dunstani and Miracula S. Dunstani, ed. and tr. Bernard J. Muir and Andrew J. Turner, Eadmer of Canterbury. Lives and Miracles of Saints Oda, Dunstan, and Oswald. OMT. Oxford, 2006. 41–159 and 160–212; ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series 63. London, 1874. 162–249, 412–25.
• William of Malmesbury, Vita sancti Dunstani, ed. and tr. Bernard J. Muir and Andrew J. Turner, William of Malmesbury. Lives of SS. Wulfstan, Dunstan, Patrick, Benignus and Indract. Oxford Medieval Texts. Oxford, 2002; ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 250–324.
• John Capgrave, Vita sancti Dunstani, ed. W. Stubbs, Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 325-53.

Secondary sources[link]

• Dales, Douglas, Dunstan: Saint and Statesman, Cambridge: Lutterworth Press, 1988.
• Duckett, Eleanor. Saint Dunstan of Canterbury (1955).
• Dunstan, St. Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed. 17 vols. Gale Research, 1998.
• Knowles, David. The Monastic Orders in England (1940; 2d ed. 1963).
• Ramsay, Nigel St Dunstan: his Life, Times, and Cult, Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK; Rochester, NY: Boydell Press, 1992.
• Sayles, G. O., The Medieval Foundations of England (1948; 2d ed. 1950).

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Dunstan

• The True Legend of St. Dunstan and the Devil by Edward G. Flight, illustrated by George Cruikshank, published in 1871, and available from Project Gutenberg
• Prosopography of Anglo Saxon England: Dunstan

Patrick Melton
Born	(1975-06-18) June 18, 1975 (age 37) Champaign, Illinois
Occupation	Screenwriter Producer Novelist
Years active	2004–present

Patrick Melton (born June 18, 1975) is an American screenwriter, producer and novelist.

Background[link]

Melton was born in Champaign, Illinois, but grew up most of his life in Evanston, Illinois. He attended Evanston Township High School, and graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor's Degree in Communication Studies. He also attended Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, where he received a MFA in screenwriting. He is the writing partner of college friend Marcus Dunstan.

Film career[link]

In 2004, Melton won Project Greenlight Season 3 along with Marcus Dunstan and John Gulager. The TV show premiered on Bravo and resulted in the horror/comedy film Feast. Based on its success, two sequels followed, Feast 2 and Feast 3. However, it was Melton's involvement with Saw, the most successful horror franchise of all-time, that brought him worldwide recognition and international box office success.^[1] He wrote Saw IV, Saw V, Saw VI and Saw 3D for a worldwide take of nearly $500,000,000.^[2] Additionally, Melton wrote the home invasion thriller The Collector, which was directed by his longtime writing partner, Marcus Dunstan.^[3]

Melton & Dunstan adapted the acclaimed graphic novel Smoke and Guns by Kirsten Baldock and Fabio Moon.^[4]

In the fall of 2006, Dimension Films preemptively acquired a dark and edgy horror/thriller spec script from Melton & Dunstan titled The Neighbor for a six-figures.^[5]

Additionally, the writing team of Melton & Dunstan have performed writing duties on Lionsgate's My Bloody Valentine 3D, Piranha 3D by Alexandre Aja, a remake of Clive Barker's Hellraiser, a remake of William Castle's classic horror film The Tingler at Columbia Pictures for producer Neal Moritz, a remake of Scanners by David Cronenberg, a film adaptation of the classic sci-fi TV anthology The Outer Limits for MGM, and the upcoming action/adventure tentpole Pacific Rim by Guillermo Del Toro for Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros.^{[6][7][8][9][10]}

On February 8, 2010, Melton told the film website Latino Review that Saw 3D is most likely the last entry in the Saw franchise.^[11][12]

The sequel to Melton & Dunstan's horror film The Collector, named The Collection, again directed by Dunstan, went before cameras in Atlanta, GA during the spring of 2011. It is slated to be released theatrically in 2012.^[13]

In November of 2011, it was announced that Melton's debut horror/thriller novel, Black Light, would be adapted into a film with The Social Network's producer Michael De Luca.^[14]

In December of 2011, Melton sold a sci-fi pitch titled Rise to Warner Bros. along with his writing partner Marcus Dunstan. David Karlak is attached to direct and Roy Lee, producer of The Ring, is attached to produce.^[15]

Melton & Dunstan performed writing work on the religious-themed horror/thriller film titled The Occult to be directed by Christian E. Christiansen and starring Rufus Sewell and Anne Heche, which is filming in 2012 with a theatrical release slated for 2013.^[16]

Screenplays[link]

Marcus Dunstan & Patrick Melton

• 2006 Feast
• 2007 Saw IV
• 2008 Feast 2
• 2008 Saw V
• 2009 Feast 3
• 2009 The Collector
• 2009 Saw VI
• 2010 Saw 3D
• 2012 Piranha 3DD
• 2012 The Collection
• 2013 The Occult
• 2013 Black Light
• 2014 The Outer Limits
• 2014 Rise

Television[link]

With success in film, Melton & Dunstan set their sights on television and sold several ideas to major television networks like FOX, CBS, and ABC. In October of 2006, the duo sold their first television idea to FOX titled The Vineyard. It was a raunchy half-hour horror/comedy with Family Guy show runner Chris Sheridan attached as Executive Producer.^[17]

In 2008, Melton & Dunstan sold an hourlong drama to CBS titled The Good Neighbor.

Melton & Dunstan collaborated with Clive Barker in 2009 and sold an hourlong drama titled Clive Barker's Hotel to ABC. McG was attached to produce.^[18]

Novels[link]

On October 5, 2011, Melton's debut novel, Black Light, co-written with Marcus Dunstan and Stephen Romano, was released by Mulholland Books, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company.^[19] It is currently being adapted into a film for producer Michael De Luca.^[20]

• 2011 Black Light

References[link]

External links[link]

• Patrick Melton at the Internet Movie Database
• Patrick Melton on Twitter
• Official blog

Christopher McDonald
McDonald at 2011 Tribeca Film Festival
Born	(1955-02-15) February 15, 1955 (age 57) New York City, United States
Occupation	Actor

Christopher McDonald (born February 15, 1955) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Shooter McGavin in Happy Gilmore, Tappy Tibbons in Requiem for a Dream, and Mel Allen in the HBO film 61*.

Personal life[link]

McDonald was born in New York City, the son of Patricia, a nursing professor and real estate agent, and James McDonald, an educator.^[1] He was raised in upstate Romulus, New York, and is a graduate of Hobart College in Geneva, New York. McDonald is married to Lupe Gidley, and together they are the parents of four children: son Jackson (born 1990), and daughters, Hannah (born 1993), Rosie (born 1996), and Ava (born 2001).

Career[link]

McDonald has numerous film and television roles to his name, often as a supporting actor and often portraying antagonistic characters. In addition to the above, his credits also include Breakin', Grease 2, The Boys Next Door, Thelma & Louise, Grumpy Old Men, Quiz Show, Flubber, The Faculty, The Perfect Storm, House Arrest, Dirty Work, American Pie 5: The Naked Mile, Broken Flowers and Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams. He was featured as Ward Cleaver in the movie version of Leave It to Beaver and famous baseball broadcaster Mel Allen in 61*. In 1994, he starred in the film Terminal Velocity as an aggressive Russian mafia villain alongside Charlie Sheen.

In the realm of television, along with recurring roles on the television series Family Law, North Shore, Veronica's Closet, Good Advice, and Harry's Law, McDonald has also made guest appearances on Cheers, Riptide, Knight Rider, The Sopranos, Psych, Home Improvement, Las Vegas, the Law and Order franchise, Stargate Universe and Star Trek: The Next Generation as Lt. Richard Castillo in the season 3 episode "Yesterday's Enterprise".

His voice work includes the determined government agent Kent Mansley in the animated film The Iron Giant. He also voiced Superman's father Jor-El in Superman: The Animated Series and subsequently a much older Superman in the Batman Beyond two-part episode "The Call". He has recalled great affection for these roles, saying that he enjoyed them because he was (and continues to be) such a fan of Superman and because they were in such contrast to his less than sympathetic on screen roles that he is famous for. He subbed for Burt Reynolds as Boss Hogg in The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning.

He was also in Peter Gabriel's music video for the song "The Barry Williams Show" with McDonald as the eponymous lead. He also replaced Robert De Niro in the Midnight Run movie franchise; he played "Jack Walsh" in three TV films - Another Midnight Run, Midnight Runaround, and Midnight Run for Your Life.

He portrayed baseball player Joe DiMaggio in the ESPN original series The Bronx Is Burning.

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Christopher McDonald at the Internet Movie Database
• Christopher McDonald at the Internet Broadway Database
• Christopher McDonald at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)