Colin Higgins (1941–1988) was an Australian-American screenwriter, ac
tor, director and producer. Born
in Nouméa, New Caledonia, to an Australian mother
and American father, he grew up in Sydney. After high school
he moved to Redwood City, California, attending
Stanford on a scholarship he won for his passion
for theatre. He moved to New York, fre
quently the Actors Studio without success, then worked
as a delivery boy for ABC. Enlisting in the army, he served
in Germany for the Stars and Stripes newspaper. Back at
Stanford, he graduated with a degree in creative writing. At UCLA, his
thesis became the screenplay for Harold and Maude
(1971), a cult film directed by Hal Ashby starring Bud Cort
and Ruth Gordon, with music by Cat Stevens. He also wrote
Silver Streak (1976), then directed Foul Play (1978), 9 to 5
(1980) with Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton, and
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982).
In 1986, he founded the Colin Higgins Foundation for
LGBTQ+ youth.
Openly gay, he died of AIDS in Beverly Hills on August 5
1988, at the age of 47.
