Jack Rose; Radio and Movie Comedy Writer, Producer

Jack Rose, comedy writer and producer who began writing gags for Milton Berle and radio lines for Bob Hope before moving to Hollywood screenplays, has died. He was 87.

Rose, who co-wrote and produced such Cary Grant favorites as “Houseboat,” died Friday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Born in Warsaw, Rose moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., with his family as a child. He wryly noted over the years that the American city was “not much of an improvement.”

After study at Ohio University, he began working as a press agent in New York and gave his comedic talents a voice by writing material for Berle.

Rose moved west to write radio scripts for Hope and, in 1943, authored his first screenplay, the classic comedy “Road to Rio” with Hope, Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour.

A string of successes followed, starring such box office draws as Doris Day, John Wayne, Dean Martin and Jackie Gleason, as well as Hope and Grant.

Screenplays with the Rose comedic touch included “The Paleface,” “Sorrowful Jones,” “The Daughter of Rosie O’Grady,” “On Moonlight Bay,” “I’ll See You in My Dreams” and “April in Paris.”

In 1955, Rose began producing as well as writing with Hope’s “The Seven Little Foys.” The film was directed by Melville Shavelson, who became Rose’s longtime writing and producing partner.

Other Rose films included “The Five Pennies,” “Papa’s Delicate Condition,” “The Incredible Mr. Limpet” and, in 1981, “The Great Muppet Caper.”

Asked why he preferred comedies as a producer, Rose once told The Times: “It’s less of a strain. The producer’s problems are confined to whether a scene plays funny or not.”

Rose also co-wrote scripts for the annual Academy Awards television productions for many years.

“A lot of people think this show is written on the bus coming in,” he said in 1983, describing the elaborate work done on Oscar telecasts. “They don’t realize it’s rewritten on the bus going home.”

Rose is survived by three children, Jonathan Rose Levitt, Felicia Rose Levitt and Melissa Mary Rose.

The family has asked that any memorial contributions be made to the Writers Guild Foundation.