Biography
James Lee was an American screenwriter and playwright. Born James Henderson Lee III on 4 January 1923 in Pleasant Ridge, Michigan, he graduated from Harvard University and began his career as a stage actor in New York before turning to writing.
Lee wrote several episodes of the 1977 ABC miniseries Roots, adapting Alex Haley's novel, and shared a 1977 Humanitas Prize with William Blinn for one episode; he also received an Emmy nomination for his work on the series. Earlier, he wrote episodes of the anthology series Omnibus (one of which won an Edgar Award) and created the medical drama series Rafferty (1977). His other credits include the play and 1959 film Career, and screenplays for The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1960) and Change of Habit (1969).
Lee was married to actress Neva Patterson from 1957 until his death on 2 July 2002 in Santa Monica, California.
