# William Goldman dead at 87. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 16, 2018, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631 "2018-11-16T18:32:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/1 "2018-11-16T18:32:36Z")
> **[William Goldman, Oscar-Winning Writer of ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance...](https://variety.com/2018/film/news/william-goldman-dead-dies-butch-cassidy-and-the-sundance-kid-1203030474/)** > > William Goldman, who won Oscars for his original screenplay for “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and his adaptation of “All the President’s Men,” died on Friday morning in his Manhattan home, V… Perhaps best known for _Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, All the President’s Men_ and _The Princess Bride_, and for his pithy analysis of Hollywood bigshots and studio strategy: “Nobody knows anything.” Very talented guy. May he rest in peace. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/2 "2018-11-16T18:33:29Z")
[Link](https://slate.com/culture/2018/11/william-goldman-dead-87-princess-bride-butch-sundance.html) The writer of _Princess Bride_ and _Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid_ has gone to that big scriptwriter’s bullpen in the sky. simulpost ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/3 "2018-11-16T18:41:52Z")
_Inconceivable_! ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/4 "2018-11-16T18:43:22Z")
He’s only \*mostly \*dead. RIP, one of the best. ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/5 "2018-11-16T18:47:20Z")
Oh dear me, maybe 2018 got jealous of 2016 and decided to try and catch up while it still has time…! R.I.P. William Goldman. _Is it safe…?_ ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/6 "2018-11-16T19:07:03Z")
There are 2 duplicate threads: [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=21326834](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=21326834) ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/7 "2018-11-16T19:08:31Z")
There are two duplicate threads: [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=21326783](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=21326783) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/8 "2018-11-16T19:59:10Z")
Heh. I started my thread exactly one minute before the other one. No wonder it didn’t show up when I searched! ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/9 "2018-11-16T20:19:54Z")
I just saw this. Princess Bride is one of my favorite movies. He did an excellent job moving his book into a screenplay. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/10 "2018-11-16T20:59:37Z")
Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who tells you otherwise is trying to sell you something. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/11 "2018-11-16T20:59:58Z")
Oh, and merging. ---
**Author:** ![Sefton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Sefton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sefton)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/12 "2018-11-16T21:32:06Z")
He also wrote the novel/screenplay for Marathon Man, one of my favorites. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/13 "2018-11-16T21:32:20Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Oh, and merging. Thanks, **Chronos**! ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/14 "2018-11-16T22:16:40Z")
Here’s his [IMDb page.](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001279/) You really have to check out that run from ~1969-1990. Screenplay for _All the President’s Men_. Imagine trying to turn _that_ book into a compelling story. And then succeeding wonderfully. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/15 "2018-11-17T00:41:12Z")
He wrote a couple of wonderful books about screenwriting that I enjoyed a lot, _Adventures in the Screen Trade_ and _Which Lie Did I Tell_? ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/16 "2018-11-17T00:58:35Z")
I remember reading an interview where William Goldman said he never got enough credit for coming up with the “Follow the money” line in ATPM. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/17 "2018-11-17T01:00:58Z")
All of the above, and I liked _Magic_ as well. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-goldman-dead-at-87/824631/18 "2018-11-17T04:07:25Z")
I heard him give the commencement address at our mutual alma mater, Oberlin College, in 1985, I think it was. He talked about people often mistaking him for the British author William Golding, who wrote _Lord of the Flies_. After politely correcting the first five dozen or so over the years, he just began nodding and saying thanks when complimented on the book.