American novelist and screenwriter of the 1930s, the son of a prominent federal attorney. He was educated in Seattle at the University of Washington and later became an Oxford Rhodes Scholar. In the early 20's, he worked as a reporter for the New York Tribune. Saunders had a special affinity for aviation, at one time dreamed of becoming a fighter ace. He had served in the Air Service during World War I as a flight instructor in Florida, but to his chagrin never saw action in France. However, he had a successful stint in Hollywood as a writer on aviation themes, beginning with
Wings (1927). His life was eventually cut short due to alcohol abuse and dissolution.
