Garrett Fort
Garrett Elsden Fort (June 5, 1900 - October 26, 1945) was an American short story writer, playwright, and Hollywood screenwriter. He was also a close follower of Meher Baba. Fort made his screenwriting debut with the silent film, One of the Finest (1917). Early in his career, Fort co-wrote the Broadway play Jarnegan (1928), based on the novel by Jim Tully. Fort's first talkie effort was the ground-breaking Rouben Mamoulian production Applause (1929). In 2006 Applause was recognized as a culturally, historically and aesthetically significant film by the National Film Registry. Fort was adept at alternating horrific highlights with bits of unexpected humor. As a screenwriter he is best remembered for his work on the original screen adaptations of such horror/melodramas as Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931), Dracula's Daughter (1936), and The Mark of Zorro (1940).