The 23rd Writers Guild of America Awards honored the best film writers and television writers of 1970. Winners were announced in 1971.
| 23rd WGA Awards |
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| Date | 1971 |
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| Organized by | Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West |
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Winners and nominees
Film
Winners are listed first highlighted in boldface.
| Best Drama Written Directly for the Screenplay - Patton, Written by Francis Ford Coppola and Edmund H. North
- Five Easy Pieces, Written by Carole Eastman; Story by Bob Rafelson and Carole Eastman
- Love Story, Written by Erich Segal
| Best Comedy Written Directly for the Screenplay - The Out of Towners, Written by Neil Simon
- The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, Written by Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond
- Quackser Fortune Has a Cousin in the Bronx, Written by Gabriel Walsh
- Start the Revolution Without Me, Written by Fred Freeman and Lawrence J. Cohen
- The Cheyenne Social Club, Written by James Lee Barrett
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- I Never Sang for My Father, Screenplay by Robert Anderson; Based on "I Never Sang for My Father" by him
- Airport, Screenplay by George Seaton; Based on the novel by Arthur Hailey
- Catch-22, Screenplay by Buck Henry; Based on the novel by Joseph Heller
- Little Big Man, Screenplay by Calder Willingham; Based on the novel by Thomas Berger
- The Great White Hope, Screenplay by Howard Sackler; Based on the play by Howard Sackler
| - MASH, Screenplay by Ring Lardner Jr.; Based on the novel by Richard Hooker
- Lovers and Other Strangers, Screenplay by Renée Taylor, Joseph Bologna and David Zelag Goodman; Based on the play by Joseph Bologna and Renée Taylor
- The Owl and the Pussycat, Screenplay by Buck Henry; Based on the play by Bill Manhoff
- The Twelve Chairs, Screenplay by Mel Brooks; Based on the novel by Ilya Ilf and Yevgeni Petro
- Where's Poppa?, Screenplay by Robert Klane; Based on his novel
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Television
| Episodic Comedy - "The Valediciton" – Room 222 (ABC) – Richard de Roy
- "The Fourth Estate" – My World and Welcome to It (NBC) – Lila Garrett and Bernie Kahn
- "Funny Money" – Room 222 (ABC) – Steven Pritzker
- "Check the check" – The Governor & JJ (CBS) – Arne Sultan and Earl Barret
| Episodic Drama - "A Continual Roar of Musketry: Part 1 & 2" – The Bold Ones: The Senator (NBC) – David W. Rintels
- "Meanwhile Back at the Studio" – Bracken's World (NBC) – Joseph Bonaduce
- "Infinity" – Bracken's World (NBC) – Cliff Gould
- "Trouble in Mind" – Hawaii Five-O (CBS) – Mel Goldberg and Sasha Gilien
- "The Glass Prison" – The Young Lawyers (ABC) – John W. Bloch
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Special awards
| Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement |
| James Poe |
| Valentine Davies Award |
| Daniel Taradash |
| Morgan Cox Award |
| Leonard Spigelgass |
| Edmund J North Award |
| Lamar Trotti |