George Sidney
| George Sidney | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 4, 1916 Long Island City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | May 5, 2002 (aged 85) Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
| Spouse | Lillian Burns (divorced) Jane Robinson (1973-1991) Corrine Cole (1991-2002) |
George Sidney (October 4, 1916 – May 5, 2002) was an American film director and film producer who worked primarily at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Contents |
[edit] Career
Born in Long Island City, New York, Sidney began his career as an assistant at MGM until being assigned to direct the Our Gang comedies, which MGM had just acquired from Hal Roach, in 1938. Sidney, then age 21, was the youngest Our Gang senior director ever, and was only nine years older than the eldest Our Gang kid, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer's brother Harold.
After a year of working on Our Gang shorts, Sidney moved on to the Crime Does Not Pay series and popular Pete Smith specialties. He soon graduated to features, including The Harvey Girls (1946), The Three Musketeers (1948), Annie Get Your Gun (1950), Kiss Me, Kate (1953), Pal Joey (1957), and Elvis Presley's Viva Las Vegas (1964). His last film was Half a Sixpence (1967).
Sidney became good friends with MGM animation directors William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Hanna and Barbera's Jerry Mouse appeared alongside Gene Kelly in Sidney's film Anchors Aweigh (1945). After MGM closed its animation studio in 1957, Sidney helped Hanna and Barbera form a deal with Screen Gems, the television division of Columbia Pictures, to form the successful television animation studio Hanna-Barbera Productions, for which Sidney served as President/CEO for ten years, and was the majority shareholder in the company. Sidney later featured Hanna-Barbera's Fred Flintstone, Huckleberry Hound and Yogi Bear in Bye Bye Birdie.
Sidney was nominated for the Directors Guild of America Award four times, starting with the lush Technicolor remake of Show Boat. In 1958, he was presented with a Golden Globe Award for Best World Entertainment through Musical Films. For his work in the art of cinema, he was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He died of complications from lymphoma in Las Vegas, Nevada at the age of 85. He was interred at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery.
Motion picture actor George Sidney (1876–1945, born Samuel Greenfield) was his uncle.
[edit] Awards and nominations
| Year | Group | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | Directors Guild of America | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Show Boat | Nominated |
| 1953 | Directors Guild of America | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Scaramouche | Nominated |
| 1954 | Directors Guild of America | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Young Bess | Nominated |
| 1957 | Directors Guild of America | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | The Eddy Duchin Story | Nominated |
| 1959 | Directors Guild of America | DGA Honorary Life Member Award |
|
Won |
| 1986 | Directors Guild of America | Robert B. Aldrich Achievement Award |
|
Won |
| 1998 | Directors Guild of America | President's Award |
|
Won |
| 1995 | Golden Apple Award | Louella Parsons Award |
|
Won |
| 1958 | Golden Globe Award | Best World Entertainment Through Musical Films |
|
Won |
| 1993 | San Luis Obispo International Film Festival | King Vidor Memorial Award |
|
Won |
[edit] Partial filmography
- High Pressure (1932)
- Pilot #5 (1943)
- Thousands Cheer (1943)
- Anchors Aweigh (1945)
- Ziegfeld Follies (1945)
- The Harvey Girls (1946)
- Holiday in Mexico (1946)
- Cass Timberlane (1947)
- The Three Musketeers (1948)
- The Red Danube (1949)
- Key to the City (1950)
- Annie Get Your Gun (1950)
- Show Boat (1951)
- Scaramouche (1952)
- Young Bess (1953)
- Kiss Me Kate (1953)
- Jupiter's Darling (1955)
- The Eddy Duchin Story (1956)
- Jeanne Eagels (1957)
- Pal Joey (1957)
- Bye Bye Birdie (1963)
- A Ticklish Affair (1963)
- Viva Las Vegas (1964)
- The Swinger (1966)
- Half a Sixpence (1967)
[edit] External links
|
|||||||||||
|
|||||
