---
name: "Beirne Lay Jr."
canonical: "https://film.one/person/beirne-lay-jr"
roles: ["Writer"]
born: "1 September 1909"
died: "26 May 1982"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-09-20T02:06:52.271921+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Beirne Lay Jr.

Writer. Born 1 September 1909 in Berkeley Springs. Died 26 May 1982.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer
- **Born:** 1 September 1909, Berkeley Springs
- **Died:** 26 May 1982
- **Academy Awards:** 2 Oscar nominations
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beirne_Lay_Jr., https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4881371, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0493446/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/223803

## Biography

Beirne Lay Jr. was an American author and screenwriter who specialised in aviation and military subjects. Born on 1 September 1909 in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, he graduated from Yale University in 1931 and entered the US Army Air Corps the following year. He served as a pilot and, during the Second World War, rose to the rank of colonel, commanding a bomber group in the Eighth Air Force; he was shot down over France in 1944 and evaded capture with assistance from the French Underground.

Lay is best known for his collaboration with Sy Bartlett on the novel *Twelve O'Clock High*, published in 1948, and the 1949 film adaptation for which they wrote the screenplay. The film, directed by Henry King and starring Gregory Peck, received four Academy Award nominations. His other screenwriting credits include *Flying Leathernecks* (1951), *Strategic Air Command* (1955), *Toward the Unknown* (1956) and *The Gallant Hours* (1960). He also wrote the 1945 book *I've Had It* about his wartime experiences.

Lay died of cancer on 26 May 1982 in Los Angeles, aged 72.

*Sources: nytimes.com, ipfs.io, en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Twelve O'Clock High* (1949), Fi1m 83, Novel, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/twelve-oclock-high.md)

## Complete filmography (9)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Young and the Brave* (1963), Screenplay
- *The Gallant Hours* (1960), Screenplay
- *Toward the Unknown* (1956), Writer, Associate Producer
- *24 Hour Alert* (1955), Screenplay
- *Strategic Air Command* (1955), Writer
- *Above and Beyond* (1953), Story, Writer
- *Flying Leathernecks* (1951), Screenplay
- *Twelve O'Clock High* (1949), Screenplay, Novel — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/twelve-oclock-high.md)
- *I Wanted Wings* (1941), Screenplay, Book

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 0 won, 2 nominated

- 1956: Best Story (nominated), for *Strategic Air Command*
- 1954: Best Story (nominated), for *Above and Beyond*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/beirne-lay-jr