So, when I was discharged after about four years in the army. a friend of mine who was living out here in Hollywood wrote to me and said, 'If you and your wife haven't decided as to the future course of your lives, why not come out here and live with us while you recover and make a decision?' We gladly accepted and moved to Hollywood. I began to write, and after a year or so, I was in.

[In a 1972 interview] Until recently, screenwriters were under contract to the studios. Now we free lance. I've always preferred to free-lance even though the money does not come in regularly and you can't count on it. I like the sound of the word, and I feel like I belong to myself. it gives me the right to say, ' I don't like this, so I won't do it.'