Name Jack Jr. Role Screenwriter | ||
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Books The Secret of My Success, Dick Tracy, Legal Eagles: A Novel Movies Top Gun, Anaconda, Dick Tracy, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Bl, Turner & Hooch Similar People Jim Cash, Don Simpson, Luis Llosa, Michael Blodgett, Daniel Petrie | ||
Education Michigan State University | ||
Top gun screenwriter and msu alumnus jack epps jr
Jack Epps Jr. (born 1949) is an American screenwriter, known chiefly for such popular '80s films as Top Gun, Legal Eagles and The Secret of My Success, which he wrote with longtime partner Jim Cash. Cash graduated from the College of Arts and Letters at Michigan State University.
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Early career
Jack came to California to become a director, but he did not have the money or know-how to do so. He decided to first write a script and to hope that this would lead to directing. Partnering with Anderson House, they sold a script to Hawaii Five-O. He continued to work with House for a few years, before partnering with Jim Cash.
Major accomplishments
After completing seven unproduced screenplays together, Epps and Cash produced Top Gun. This film went on to become the number-one world wide box office hit in 1986. After this, they quickly wrote other screenplays that were produced, including Legal Eagles and The Secret of my Success. Epps co-authored over 25 screenplays and eight motion pictures that he produced including Dick Tracy, Turner & Hooch and Anaconda. He wrote for some of the most successful actors in the industry including Tom Cruise, Robert Redford, Tom Hanks, Warren Beatty and others.
Awards and honors
Epps was awarded on honorary doctorate of fine arts by Michigan State University at their 2009 commencement. He is also the recipient of the Michigan State University Spartans in Hollywood Award. He is part of the Writer's Guild of America where he has been a member for three decades and he is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.