Melvin Frank was half of a famous screenwriting partnership. The other half of the collaborative effort was Norman Panama . The two men became close friends while attending the University of Chicago. Frank had initially pursued a degree in engineering, but was persuaded by Panama to switch to English instead. In 1938, Frank and Panama moved to Hollywood and embarked on a career writing radio scripts and gags for Bob Hope and Milton Berle . Specialising in light comedy, they came up with the original storyline for Hope's My Favorite Blonde (1942). This opened the door for a joint screenwriting contract with Paramount (1941-46), their prolific work together culminating in an Oscar nomination for the popular Bob Hope- Bing Crosby vehicle, Der Weg nach Utopia (1945). Continuing their run of witty comedies, Frank and Panama next wrote and produced the Cary Grant - Myrna Loy box office hit Nur meiner Frau zuliebe (1948), adapted from a satirical novel by Eric Hodgins (about a couple whose dream of home ownership turns into a nightmare). From then on, Frank and Panama alternated as directors and producers, first at MGM (1950-52), then at Paramount (1954-59). Of some ten top-grossing collaborations, their most rewarding effort was the highly entertaining medieval adventure spoof, Der Hofnarr (1955), starring Danny Kaye , lavishly filmed in VistaVision and Technicolor. They also turned out an award-winning Broadway play, "Li'l Abner", based on a comic strip by Al Capp . It premiered in November 1956 and ran for 653 performances over 87 weeks, before closing in July 1958. Frank and Panama brought it to the screen the following year. The successful partnership came to an end with the final instalment in the Hope-Crosby 'Road Pictures' series, Der Weg nach Hongkong (1962). Subsequently, Frank and Panama - cordially - went their separate ways, Frank becoming a solo director and (from 1965) producer, but continuing to write comedy scripts in conjunction with others. In retrospect, his career over the next two decades was by far the more productive of the two, encompassing as producer/director the bitter-sweet adaptation of a play by Neil Simon , Das Nervenbündel (1975); and as producer/director/writer the popular sex comedy Mann, bist du Klasse! (1973), nominated for an Academy Award as Best Picture. - IMDb Mini Biography By: I.S.Mowis

Daughter is Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Bard College professor, Liz Frank. In 1974, he accepted the Oscar for "Best Actress in a Leading Role" on behalf of Glenda Jackson , who wasn't present at the awards ceremony. Frank directed Jackson in Mann, bist du Klasse! (1973) Directed one Oscar winning performance: Glenda Jackson in Mann, bist du Klasse! (1973).