Tommy Thompson

Cannon Beach 1972

  

Little Lodge at Gearhart

Don James Invitational 1982

 In the early years, Tommy Thompson and Don James shared an office in the old Dekum Building in downtown Portland.  They were both writing pulp fiction, serial stories in magazines, getting paid by the word.  Detective stories.  Westerns.  Love stories.  Then Tommy went Hollywood.

He wrote western novels, and western movies and television scripts.  In the glory days of television westerns, Tommy Thompson had more than 300 television shows to his credit.   Bonanza, The Rifleman, Gunsmoke.  If it was a television western, Tommy had written for it. 

When most of us met him at Haystack in the early 70's, Tommy Thompson was the Executive Story Consultant for Bonanza.  He taught summer screenwriting classes at Haystack throughout the '70s.  And he showed that same Don James concern for his screenwriting students.   Tommy Thompson made script writing come alive by bringing Hollywood people to his classes.   David Dortort, Executive Producer of Bonanza; Peter Fleming, writer and director's agent; Bill Whitney, Director, all visited Haystack over the years. 

Director Bill Whitney showed Tommy's students how little they needed to say, by putting camera equipment in their hands and letting them film their scenes.  Tommy was enormously supportive of Oregon Writers Colony, and visited often in the Pacific Northwest with his wife, June.  Unfortunately, due to failing health Tommy never got to see  the interior of Colonyhouse 

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