James Wilber Poe (October 4, 1921 – January 24, 1980) was an American film and television screenwriter. He is best known for his work on such films as Around the World in 80 Days (for which he jointly won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Summer and Smoke, Lilies of the Field, The Bedford Incident, and They Shoot Horses, Don't They?. He also worked as a writer on the radio shows Escape and Suspense, writing the scripts for some of their best episodes, most notably "Three Skeleton Key", "Blood Bath" and "The Present Tense", all of which starred Vincent Price. Poe was married to actress Barbara Steele from 1969 to 1978.

Career

Poe began his career at March of Time. He moved to Hollywood in 1941. He wrote radio plays and documentaries before moving into feature films. He had to sue for credit on Around the World in 80 Days. In 1965 Poe signed a contract to direct films at Columbia but never directed.

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