Howard Dimsdale (21 April 1914 - 27 August 1991) was a screenwriter born in Iowa. He began his career scripting film shorts in 1938, and went on to write episodes for dozens of television shows up to 1988, including The Adventures of Robin Hood, Zane Grey Theater, Ben Casey, Mannix, Planet of the Apes (episode "The Liberator"), Medical Center and The Six Million Dollar Man. In addition, Dimsdale served as story consultant/story editor for Mannix, The Zoo Gang, Planet of the Apes (all 14 episodes), Quincy M.E., The Six Million Dollar Man and The Amazing Spider-Man. He had been blacklisted during the McCarthy era (as were Michael Wilson and actors Kim Hunter, Jeff Corey, John Randolph, John Ireland and Victor Kilian), and was only able to work using a toupee and dark glasses, along with his pseudonym of Arthur Howard Dales. After retiring, he accepted a teaching position with the American Film Institute, where two writers/creators/producers of The X-Files studied under him in 1990 and 1991. They later included tributes to him in several episodes, including using his pseudonym of Arthur Dales for one character and Dimsdale's name in a newspaper in another episode. Howard Dimsdale died in Los Angeles in 1991.
External Links[]
- Howard Dimsdale profile at the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)
- Howard Dimsdale at the Robin Hood Appreciation Society Forum