Jonathan Adam Lynn (born 3 April 1943) is a British-American film director, screenwriter and actor. He directed the comedy films Clue, Nuns on the Run, My Cousin Vinny and The Whole Nine Yards. He also co-created and co-wrote the political-satirical television series Yes Minister.
Early life Lynn was born in Bath, Somerset, to Jewish parents. He was the son of Robin Lynn, a Scottish physician and Ruth Helen (née Eban), an English sculptor.
His father Robin was from Glasgow, whose own father had come by boat from Lithuania. His mother Ruth's first cousin on her own mother's side was the neurologist Oliver Sacks; another cousin, Caroline Sacks, married Nicholas Samuel, 5th Viscount Bearsted.A Sense of Purpose: Recollections, Suzy Eban, Plunkett Lake Press, 2015Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 106th edition, vol. 1, Burke's Peerage, Ltd, p. 218 Lynn's maternal uncle was Israeli statesman Abba Eban, who, like Jonathan, studied at Cambridge, in the 1930s, and his grandmother was a secretary to Chaim Weizmann, first president of Israel.
Lynn described his family as "Jewish but secular". He was teased at school for his Jewishness, but in a later interview shrugged it off, as he believed "They just didn’t know any better". As a teenager, Lynn played drums in jazz bands.
Lynn was educated at Kingswood School, Bath, between 1954 and 1961. After he was accepted at age seventeen, he studied law at Pembroke College, Cambridge. He chose a degree in law despite his love for performing arts, as he said that studying law would "ensure his parents could still sleep at night knowing that their child had a legitimate career to fall back on, just in case".
Career 1960s While studying at his first year in Cambridge, he met Eric Idle. Idle asked Lynn to join the Cambridge University Footlights Club. In 1965, he was in the Footlights revue Cambridge Circus. With Bill Oddie, Tim Brooke-Taylor and David Hatch, he appeared on Broadway and on The Ed Sullivan Show. Lynn then took acting lessons from actress Mira Rostova.
Lynn's first West End appearance was in a stage production of Green Julia, for which he was nominated for the 1965 Plays and Players Award as Most Promising New Actor. In 1967, he played Motel the tailor in the original West End production of Fiddler on the Roof (production recorded by CBS Records). In 1968, he was in the film Prudence and the Pill. From the late 1960s, Lynn was appearing in and writing television sitcoms, including the television comedy series Twice a Fortnight with Graeme Garden, Bill Oddie, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Tony Buffery.
1970s Lynn played the Irish medical student Danny Hooley in the second series of the television comedy Doctor in the House in 1970, replacing Martin Shaw, who played Welsh man Huw Evans. He wrote some episodes for future series in the Doctor in the House franchises including Doctor at Large, Doctor in Charge, Doctor at Sea and Doctor on the Go. He also wrote episodes of On the Buses and wrote for Harry Worth and George Layton. In the 1970s, his most memorable roles included Beryl's boyfriend Robert in early series of The Liver Birds; Harold in Jack Rosenthal's 1976 television film Bar Mitzvah Boy,; and Ted Margolis in Rosenthal's The Knowledge (1979).
His film appearances included roles in The House That Dripped Blood (1971), and Romance with a Double Bass (1974) He had a bit-part as a window cleaner in the BBC television series The Good Life. Lynn's first (co-written) screenplay was for The Internecine Project, which was released in 1974.
1980s and 1990s After forming a partnership with Antony Jay, they would begin working with one another, eventually writing Yes Minister, which aired from 1980 to 1988. His directoral debut came in 1985, with Clue.
On 20 October 1984, he was the subject of an episode of the radio series Desert Island Discs, in which he picked a collection of Jeeves & Wooster novels by P G Wodehouse as his book of choice, a pen and paper as his luxury items, and songs written and/or composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Jimmy Durante and Paul Simon.
Lynn co-authored the books The Complete Yes Minister, as well as The Complete Yes Prime Minister, which spent 106 weeks on the Sunday Times top 10 fiction list. Both were ranked number one on the Sunday Times list, including in December 1986 when the books were ranked number one and number two respectively. He also wrote the 1993 novel Mayday.
In the 1990s, Lynn directed some of his most well-known films, including Nuns on the Run (1990), My Cousin Vinny (1992), The Distinguished Gentleman (1992), Greedy (1994), Sgt. Bilko (1996), and Trial and Error (1997). Lynn also served as a producer for Trial and Error, which received an exclusive production agreement with Columbia Pictures Television in 1992. Lynn's last acting credit came in 1994 when he appeared as a butler in Greedy.
2000s to present He was executive producer of Vanity Fair in 2004, and He's Such a Girl in 2008.
Lynn won praise for his direction of the 2010 London stage version of Yes, Prime Minister, which he co-wrote as well.
In 2011 Lynn wrote a non-fiction work entitled Comedy Rules. The Independent called the book "a charming memoir, full of amusing and insightful anecdotes about the many entertainers Lynn has worked with" and described it as a combination of autobiography and how-to manual for comedy. The paper wrote further: "By dovetailing different types of book, Lynn cleverly avoids the pitfalls of both genres. Because it's ostensibly a sort of how-to book, there are no boring childhood reminiscences. Because it's also a kind of autobiography, his no-nonsense dos and don'ts are springboards for entertaining yarns, rather than academic discourse."
Lynn co-wrote, co-produced, and co-directed the Yes, Minister revival series Yes, Prime Minister series produced by the BBC on Gold in 2013.
In 2016 Lynn's play The Patriotic Traitor was published. Its subject is the relationship of Philippe Pétain to Charles de Gaulle. In the words of the blurb, ‘Two giants of the twentieth century who loved each other like father and son until they found themselves on opposing sides in World War II. In 1945 de Gaulle had his oldest friend tried for treason. Their complex relationship – noble, comic and absurd – changed history.’ Lynn, Jonathan, The Patriotic Traitor, London, Faber and Faber, 2016. ISBN 9780571331024. The discussion between Lynn and Philip Dodd, the presenter, begins at 16.00 after the start.A podcast is also available for downloading within the United Kingdom, but not necessarily elsewhere, as in some cases the BBC blocks its podcasts from being downloaded outside the United Kingdom.
Lynn also co-wrote the stage play of "Clue", together with Hunter Foster, Eric Price and Sandy Rustin.
Personal life Lynn has been married to his wife, Canadian-born actress Rita Markelis, since 1 August 1967.
Lynn has lived in the United States for many years, primarily living in New York, and has acquired U.S. citizenship. In 2020, he and his wife put up their condo apartment on 54th Street in Manhattan for sale for $2.89 million.
He is a guest instructor at New York's HB Studio.
In 2018, Lynn criticized statements made by Jeremy Corbyn after Corbyn had attended a speech given in Parliament by Palestinian academic Manuel Hassassian. Corbyn claimed that after speaking, Hassassian was berated by certain Zionists in the audience, who Corbyn said had failed to understand the "English irony" employed in Hassassian's rhetoric. Lynn, in a letter to The Times, wrote "I am Jewish. Although I wrote Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, Corbyn says I don’t understand English irony. My co-writer Tony Jay was only half-Jewish, so perhaps he half-understood irony and was able to supply some".
Awards Lynn's work on the Minister series earned him three BAFTAs, two Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, and two Pye Television Writers Awards, and he won the ACE Award for Best Written Comedy Series. The Campaign for Freedom of Information also recognized Lynn with a special award for his work on the show. Lynn was a recipient of a Diamond Jubilee Award for Political Satire in 2010. He received an NAACP Image Award for the 2003 film The Fighting Temptations.
Filmography Film Year TitleDirectorWriterProducerExecutive producer 1974 The Internecine Project 1985 Clue 1990 Nuns on the Run 1992 My Cousin Vinny The Distinguished Gentleman 1994 Greedy 1996 Sgt. Bilko 1997 Trial and Error 2000 The Whole Nine Yards 2003 The Fighting Temptations 2004Vanity Fair 2008He's Such a Girl 2010 Wild Target
Television Year TitleDirectorWriterProducer Notes 1971 Doctor at Large Episode: "Pull the Other One!"1972–73 On the Buses 6 episodes Doctor in Charge 11 episodes 1972 Nearest and Dearest Episode: "Worker's Playtime"1973 Romany Jones Episode: "Look After the Pennies" All Star Comedy Carnival Doctor in Charge1974 My Name is Harry Worth 3 episodes Doctor at Sea 5 episodes 1975 Doctor on the Go 5 episodes 1975–76 My Brother's Keeper 13 episodes 1980–84 Yes Minister 22 episodes 1982 The Funny Side of Christmas Yes Minister 1983 Arms and the Man TV film 1985 Twee handen op een buik TV film 1986–88 Yes, Prime Minister 16 episodes 1987 Mr. President Episode: "Freedom of Speech"1988 American Playhouse Episode: "Suspicion" Smart Guys Unsold pilot1990 Ferris Bueller Episode: "Pilot" Life After Life TV film 2013 Yes, Prime Minister 6 episodes
Acting roles (film) Year Title Role Notes 1968 Prudence and the Pill Chemist's Assistant 1971 The House That Dripped Blood Mr. Petheridge Segment "The Cloak" 1975 Romance with a Double Bass Leader of the Orchestra Short film Who Sold You This, Then?Video short 1976 The Cold Call 1977 The Fortune Teller Short film 1980 Breaking Glass Radio DJ 1985 Into the Night Tailor 1990 3 Men and a Little Lady Vicar Hewitt 1994 Greedy Douglas 1999 One Man Band Tailor's Assistant Short film 2009 He's Such a Girl Priest 2010 Wild Target Parrot
Acting roles (television) Year Title Role Notes 1966 Thirteen Against Fate Moise Episode: "The Lodger" 1967 Twice a Fortnight Various 11 episodes 1968 The Jazz Age Harry Plant Episode: "Black Exchange"1969 Hadleigh Harold Episode: "The Ring" Softly, Softly Tony Episode: "Wild Goose" The Merchant of Venice Tubal TV short1970 ITV Playhouse John Simons Episode: "Rumour" Doctor in the House Danny Hooley 9 episodes1972 The Liver Birds Johnny Episode: "The Driving Test" ITV Sunday Night Drama Bill Episode: "Don't Deed the Fish" Colditz Bergman Episode: "The Spirit of Freedom" Turnbull's Finest Half Hour Roddy Cheever-Jones 5 episodes 1973 Doctor in Charge Danny Hooley Episode: "Should Auld AcquaintanceBe Forgot?"1974 The Liver Birds Robert 7 episodes Whodunnit? Bob Deacon Episode: "It's Quicker by Train" 1974–75 The Dick Emery Show Various 4 episodes 1975 The Good Life Window Cleaner Episode: "Pig's Lib" 1975–76 My Brother's Keeper Pete Booth 13 episodes1976 Play for Today Harold Episode: "Bar Mitzvah Boy" Pleasure at Her Majesty's Various TV film1978 BBC2 Play of the Week Gaston TV film: "She Fell Among Thieves" Play for Today Cyril Benson Episode: "Dinner at the Sporting Club" 1979 The Knowledge Ted Margolies TV film 1982 Outside Edge Kevin TV film 1984 Diana Twining Miniseries, 3 episodes 1988 American Playhouse Beaky Thwaite Episode: "Suspicion"
Additional credits Year Title Role Notes 1975 Decisions, DecisionsWriterVideo short 1976 The Cold Call1977 How Am I Doing? The Unorganized Manager, Part One: Damnation The Unorganized Manager, Part Two: Salvation The Fortune Teller Short film 1979 I'd Like a Word with You Video short 2003 Beyoncé Feat. Walter Williams Sr.: He Still Loves Me Director Music video
See also Cambridge Arts Theatre
References
Further reading
External links Official website