Francine Paula Pascal (néeRubin, May 13, 1932 – July 28, 2024) was an American author best known for her Sweet Valley series of young adult novels. Sweet Valley High, the backbone of the collection, was made into a television series, which led to several spin-offs, including The Unicorn Club and Sweet Valley University. Although most of these books were published in the 1980s and 1990s, they remained so popular that several titles were re-released decades later.
In 1958, she married Jerome Offenberg until divorcing in 1963. In 1964, she married John Pascal until his death in 1981.
Writing career
Francine and John Pascal were hired as writers for the soap opera The Young Marrieds. They left the show after being asked to leave New York for Los Angeles to continue working. The couple later wrote a Broadway musical, George M!, with her brother Michael Stewart.
Pascal's first novel, Hangin' Out With Cici (1977), was later turned into an ABC Afterschool Special, My Mother Was Never a Kid. Around this time, she aspired to create a soap opera, but struggled to come up with an idea. One day, a friend who worked in publishing gave her the idea for a series aimed at teenagers, which Pascal immediately responded to and developed as a book. This became the successful Sweet Valley High series, set in the fictitious Southern California town of Sweet Valley. After writing the first seven books herself, she oversaw a team of ghostwriters to expand the series. Sweet Valley High continued in numerous iterations until 2003, and was briefly revived with the novel Sweet Valley Confidential in 2011.
Pascal later developed other work, including the Fearless series, Save Johanna! (1981) and The Ruling Class.
Personal life
Pascal had three children from her marriage to Offenberg. Her daughter, Jamie Stewart Carmen, was an NBC producer who died in 2008.
John Pascal died of lung cancer in 1981. Francine Pascal later wrote the novel If Wishes Were Horses (1994), a work of autofiction about her marriage and widowhood, in which the protagonist moves to France following the death of her husband.
The Continuum Encyclopedia of Children's Literature (Continuum International Publishing Group, 2005)
The 100 Most Popular Young Adult Authors: Biographical Sketches and Bibliographies (Bernard A. Drew: Libraries Unlimited, 1997)
The Season: A Candid Look at Broadway (William Goldman: Harcourt, Brace & World, 1969)
George M! (Book by Michael Stewart, John Pascal, and Francine Pascal: Tams-Witmark, 1968; National Broadcasting Co., 1970)
Hello, Dolly! (Book by Michael Stewart and Jerry Herman: Signet Books, 1964)
Bye Bye Birdie (Book by Michael Stewart: DBS Publications, Inc., 1962)
Carnival! (Book by Michael Stewart: DBS Publications, Inc., 1968)
Mack & Mabel: A Musical Love Story (Book by Michael Stewart, Samuel French, Inc., 1976)
The Strange Case of Patty Hearst (John Pascal and Francine Pascal: Signet Books, 1974) ASINB0006W21ZY
The Young Marrieds (John Pascal and Francine Pascal: American Broadcasting Co., 1964–1966)
Hangin' Out with Cici (Francine Pascal: Pocket Books, 1977)
My Mother Was Never a Kid Afterschool Special (Original Title: Hangin' Out with Cici – Book by Francine Pascal, Screenplay by Jeffrey Kindley: American Broadcasting Co., 1981)
My First Love and Other Disasters (Francine Pascal: Dell, 1980)
Love and Betrayal & Hold the Mayo (Francine Pascal: Viking Press, 1985)
The Hand-Me-Down Kid (Francine Pascal: Viking Press, 1980)
The Hand-Me-Down Kid Afterschool Special (Book by Francine Pascal, Screenplay by Judy Engles: American Broadcasting Co., 1983)
