Mandel, Frank, 1884-1958

Frank Mandel (1884 – April 20, 1958) was an American playwright and producer. He co-wrote several productions. Some of his works were adapted by others. Several of his collaborations were adapted into films. UCLA's libraries have a collection of his papers. He was born Frank Armand Mandel in San Francisco. He attended the University of California where he was interested in the public speaking society, the Student's Congress and debating team, as well as being active in the Glee Club, along with Richard Walton Tully. Mandel graduated in 1904 with a Bachelor of Letters degree and then attended Hastings Law School. After his education he started selling suits with his father, working in real estate, and writing plays. When real estate took a dive after the 1905 earthquake and fire he got together $5,000 and headed East to write plays. After writing No, No, Nanette, he formed the production team of Schwab and Mandel with Laurence Schwab. They produced works such as Follow Thru, Good News, The Firebrand and America's Sweetheart. He died on April 20, 1958, in Hollywood.