Sidney Sheldon - Definition and Overview

Sidney Sheldon, born February 11, 1917 in Chicago, Illinois, is an American screenwriter and novelist.

Sheldon's career began in 1937 in Hollywood, California where he reviewed scripts and collaborated on a number of B-movies. After a stint in the military during World War II, Sheldon returned to civilian life and began writing musicals for the Broadway stage while continuing to write screenplays for both MGM Studios and Paramount Pictures.

Over the years, Sheldon has written for television, film, and stage, winning an Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay (1947) for The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer, a Tony Award (1959) for his musical Redhead, and earned Emmy nominations for his work on I Dream of Jeannie, an NBC sitcom.

In 1969, Sheldon wrote his first novel, The Naked Face which earned him the Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America. His next novel, The Other Side of Midnight, went to #1 on the New York Times bestseller list as did several ensuing novels, a number of which were also made into motion pictures or TV miniseries.

Bibliography - novels

• The Naked Face (1970)
• The Other Side of Midnight (1973)
• A Stranger in the Mirror (1976)
• Bloodline (1977)
• Rage of Angels (1980)
• Master of the Game (1982)
• If Tomorrow Comes (1985)
• Windmills of the Gods (1987)
• The Sands of Time (1988)
• Memories of Midnight (1990)
• The Doomsday Conspiracy (1991)
• The Stars Shine Down (1992)
• Nothing Lasts Forever (1994)
• Morning, Noon and Night (1995)
• The Best Laid Plans (1997)
• Tell Me Your Dreams (1998)
• Are You Afraid of the Dark? (2004)
• The Sky is Falling