Otto Preminger

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  • OTTO PREMINGER


    Information from IMDb


    Date of Birth
    5 December 1905, Wiznitz, Bukovina, Austria-Hungary (now Wyschnyzja, Ukraine))


    Date of Death
    23 April 1986, New York City, New York, USA (lung cancer and Alzheimer's disease)


    Birth Name
    Otto Ludwig Preminger


    Nickname
    Otto the Ogre


    Height
    6' (1.83 m)


    Mini Biography
    Otto Ludwig Preminger was born in Vienna, Austria to a Jewish family. His father was a prosecutor, and Otto originally intended to follow his father into a law career; however, he fell in love with the theater and became a stage director. He directed his first film in 1931, and came to the US in 1936 to direct on the Broadway stage. He alternated between stage and film until the great success of Laura (1944) made him an A-list director in Hollwyood.


    For two decades after "Laura was released in 1944, Preminger ranked as one of the top directors in the world. His powers began to wane after Advise & Consent (1962), and by the end of the decade, he was considered washed-up. However, such was the potency of his craftsmanship that he continued to direct major motion pictures into the 1970s, with Rosebud (1975) getting scathing reviews. His last directorial effort was The Human Factor (1979), which won him respectful notices.


    Otto Preminger died on April 23, 1986 in New York City from the effects of lung cancer and Alzheimer's disease. He was 80 years old.


    IMDb Mini Biography By: Jon C. Hopwood


    Spouse
    Hope Bryce (28 December 1971 - 23 April 1986) (his death) 2 children
    Mary Gardner (4 December 1951 - 10 March 1959) (divorced)
    Marion Mill (3 August 1932 - 25 August 1949) (divorced)


    Trade Mark
    Known for his boundary-pushing characters and storylines, which frequently courted controversy upon release



    Trivia
    Father, with ecdysiast of renown Gypsy Rose Lee, of producer-screenwriter Erik Lee Preminger.


    Insisted that Robert Mitchum actually slap Jean Simmons for their scenes in Angel Face (1952)


    During the filming of Saint Joan (1957), Jean Seberg (playing Joan) was about to be burned at the stake. To the horror of the cast and crew, the pile of wood below her actually caught fire. Despite cries and screams of horror Preminger would not allow the flames extinguished until he had filmed the scene (from "Played Out: The Jean Seberg Story" by David Richards).


    At the premiere of Exodus (1960), Jewish comedian Mort Sahl is reported to have exclaimed, "Otto, let my people go!", which was ironic given that Preminger himself was Jewish.


    Interred at Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, New York, USA.


    Brother of producer Ingo Preminger.


    Twins with Bryce: Victoria and Mark (b. 3 October 1960) (they were 11 at the time of their parents' marriage)


    Was voted the 47th Greatest Director of all time by Entertainment Weekly.


    Directed 9 different actors in Oscar-nominated performances: Clifton Webb, Maggie McNamara, Dorothy Dandridge, Frank Sinatra, James Stewart, Arthur O'Connell, George C. Scott, Sal Mineo and John Huston.


    Was preparing a drama about Julius Rosenberg and Ethel Rosenberg to be called "Open Question," but died before he could realize this project.


    Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1956.


    Interviewed in Peter Bogdanovich's "Who the Devil Made It: Conversations With Robert Aldrich, George Cukor, Allan Dwan, Howard Hawks, Alfred Hitchcock, Chuck Jones, Fritz Lang, Joseph H. Lewis, Sidney Lumet, Leo McCarey, Otto Preminger, Don Siegel, Josef von Sternberg, Frank Tashlin, Edgar G. Ulmer, Raoul Walsh." NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1997.


    His affair with Dorothy Dandridge was portrayed in Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999) (TV).


    His 1977 autobiography "Preminger: An Autobiography" was ghostwritten by June Callwood who also ghost-wrote Barbara Walters 1970 book "How to Talk With Practically Anybody About Practically Anything".


    Collaborated with Max Reinhardt before emigrating from Austria to the United States.


    Had a degree in law.


    Chief executive at the Theater in Josefstadt in Vienna from 1933 to 1935.


    Was interred in the Woodlawn Cemetery, The Bronx, New York.


    John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume One, 1890-1945." Pages 888-898. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1987.


    For his appearance in "Batman" (1966), Preminger was paid $2,500, the standard fee for actors who appeared in the show after asking for a role. The Screen Actors Guild got wind of this, and ordered that none of their members were to work for Preminger unless he paid the SAG dues for his appearance in Batman, and various other monies he owed them dating back to his acting career. As a result, Preminger ended up $7,600 out of pocket from his turn as Mr. Freeze.


    The Austrian Post AG issued a special Stamp in Preminger's Honor on February 5, 2010 in the Series "Austrians in Hollywood". Face Value of the Stamp 0.55 Euro.


    Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume Two, 1986-1990, pages 705-707. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1999.


    Salary
    Laura (1944) $1,500/week



    Personal Quotes
    I do not welcome advice from actors, they are here to act.


    I don't think he'd be capable of directing his little nephew to the bathroom. - Dyan Cannon


    There were giants in the industry. Now it is an era of midgets and conglomerates.


    Giving direction to a group of children on Exodus (1960): "Cry, you little monsters!"


    Directing Marilyn Monroe was like directing Lassie. You needed fourteen takes to get each one of them right.


    Marilyn Monroe? A vacuum with nipples.


    Filmography
    Director
    1986 Cinéma cinémas (TV series documentary) – Jean Seberg - Les essais: 1957 (1986)
    1979 The Human Factor
    1975 Rosebud
    1971 Such Good Friends
    1970 Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon
    1968 Skidoo
    1967 Hurry Sundown
    1965 Bunny Lake Is Missing
    1965 In Harm's Way
    1963 The Cardinal
    1962 Advise & Consent
    1960 Exodus
    1959 Anatomy of a Murder
    1959 Porgy and Bess
    1958 Bonjour tristesse
    1957 Saint Joan
    1955 One Man Mutiny
    1955 The Man with the Golden Arm
    1954 Producers' Showcase (TV series) – Tonight at 8:30 (1954)
    1954 Carmen Jones
    1954 River of No Return
    1953 Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach
    1953 The Moon Is Blue
    1952 Angel Face
    1951 The 13th Letter
    1950 Where the Sidewalk Ends
    1949 Whirlpool
    1949 Lady Windermere's Fan
    1948 That Lady in Ermine (uncredited)
    1947 Daisy Kenyon
    1947 Forever Amber
    1946 Centennial Summer
    1945 Fallen Angel
    1945 Czarina
    1944 Laura
    1944 In the Meantime, Darling
    1943 Margin for Error
    1938 Kidnapped (uncredited)
    1937 Danger: Love at Work
    1936 Under Your Spell (as Otto Ludwig Preminger)
    1931 Die große Liebe (as Otto Ludwig Preminger)


    Producer
    1979 The Human Factor
    1975 Rosebud
    1971 Such Good Friends
    1970 Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon
    1968 Skidoo
    1967 Hurry Sundown
    1965 Bunny Lake Is Missing
    1965 In Harm's Way
    1963 The Cardinal (producer)
    1960 Exodus
    1959 Anatomy of a Murder
    1958 Bonjour tristesse
    1957 Saint Joan
    1955 The Man with the Golden Arm
    1954 Producers' Showcase (TV series) (guest producer - 1 episode) – Tonight at 8:30 (1954)
    1954 Carmen Jones
    1953 Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach
    1953 The Moon Is Blue
    1952 Angel Face
    1951 The 13th Letter
    1950 Where the Sidewalk Ends
    1949 Whirlpool
    1949 Lady Windermere's Fan
    1947 Daisy Kenyon
    1946 Centennial Summer
    1945 Fallen Angel
    1944 Laura
    1944 In the Meantime, Darling
    1931 Die große Liebe


    Actor
    1977 The Hobbit (TV movie) ..Elvenking (voice)
    1968 Skidoo ...Voice introducing the credits (voice) (uncredited)
    1966 Batman (TV series)
    – Deep Freeze (1966) … Mr. Freeze
    – Green Ice (1966) … Mr. Freeze
    1965 Bunny Lake Is Missing ..On-screen Trailer Host and Narrator (uncredited)
    1965 In Harm's Way ...Trailer Host/Narrator (uncredited)
    1954 Suspense (TV series)
    Captain von Weissenborn– Operation: Barracuda (1954) … Captain von Weissenborn
    1953 Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach ...Voice
    1953 Stalag 17 ...Oberst von Scherbach
    1951 The Billy Rose Show (TV series) – Whirligig of Life (1951)
    1945 Where Do We Go from Here? ...General Rahl (uncredited)
    1943 They Got Me Covered ...Otto Fauscheim
    1943 Margin for Error ...Karl Baumer
    1942 The Pied Piper ...Maj. Diessen

    Best Wishes
    Keith
    London- England

    Edited once, last by ethanedwards ().

  • Otto Preminger, was an iconic who only made 1 movie with Duke


    In Harms Way. (1965)


    otto-preminger-john-wayne-collection-christophel-FW5HGC.jpg


    He directed and produced some classics, namely
    Exodus, Carmen Jones, Porgy & Bess, The Man With the Golden Arm


    On the set of In Harms Way, he was apparently a tyrant!
    Holywood pundits predicted, that Preminger with stars Duke Wayne and Kirk Douglas
    would result in bruised egos and tantrums.


    Kirk Douglas in his autobiography remembered:

    Quote

    Preminger bald as a bullet strutted around the set,
    repeating to anybody who would listen


    He was merciless to Tom Tyron, but Kirk Douglas
    would have none of it.


    The only person who escaped Preminger's wrath was Duke.
    He never shouted at Duke


    Although Duke's and Preminger's politics were completely opposite,
    they worked well together.

    Quote

    On the first day of shooting Preminger gave Duke a note saying
    Look John...let's agree not to talk politics, and we'll get along very well...

    Not only did they get on well, they developed an affection for one another.


    Preminger declared later,

    Quote

    Wayne is an ideal professional...always prompt, always prepared,.
    He is also humorous.


    Duke in turn appreciated the director's craftsmanship and authority

    Best Wishes
    Keith
    London- England

    Edited 5 times, last by ethanedwards ().

  • There's a story somewhere of Duke decking Perminger due to Otto's treatment of a fellow actor during production of this film. Anyone remember this?