(S)-1-Phenyl-3-buten-1-ol (1), prepared in high optical purity by enzymatic resolution of the racemate, is a convenient building block for the synthesis of (R)-fluoxetine (7a) and (R)-tomoxetine (7b). Compound 1 was converted to the title drugs by etherification with appropriate phenols under Mitsunobu conditions, ozonolysis of the terminal double bond, mesylation of the resulting alcohol and substitution with methylamine. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd