J. F. Lawton

J. F. Lawton
J. F. Lawton in 2009
Born	Jonathan Frederick Lawton (1960-08-11) August 11, 1960 (age 56) Riverside, California, United States
Occupation	Film director, producer, screenwriter
Years active	1989 – present
Spouse(s)	Paola Lawton

Jonathan Frederick "J. F." Lawton (born August 11, 1960) is an American screenwriter, producer and director. Screen credits include the box office hit Pretty Woman, Mistress, Blankman, Under Siege, Under Siege 2: Dark Territory, The Hunted, Chain Reaction, DOA: Dead or Alive, Jackson, and the TV series V.I.P. Under the assumed name J.D. Athens, he wrote and directed Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death and Pizza Man.

Lawton was born in Riverside, California. He is the son of author and novelist Harry Lawton and Georgeann Leona Lawton (née Honegger), a pianist. The couple met in Berkeley while attending the University of California. They later moved to Riverside, where Harry was hired as a reporter for The Press-Enterprise.

As a child, he suffered from severe dyslexia making school life very difficult. It took him many years of practice and hard work to control his learning disabilities. Despite the challenge, he decided to become a writer like his father. Harry Lawton made sure to give him as much incentive as possible. To this day Lawton credits his father for always being supportive of him, and his mother for going the extra mile to help him overcome his obstacles.