Everything about Stanley Kramer totally explained
Stanley Kramer (
September 29,
1913 –
February 19,
2001) was an
Academy Award-nominated American
film director and
producer responsible for some of Hollywood's most famous
"message" movies. His work was recognized with
The Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award in 1961.
Director
Steven Spielberg once described him as "one of our great filmmakers, not just for the art and passion he put on screen, but for the impact he's made on the conscience of the world." Two years later, in 1943, Kramer was drafted, but avoided going to war by working for an army film unit in New York. In 1948 Kramer organized an independent production company, Screen Plays Inc. His partners in the company were with the writer
Herbie Baker, publicist
George Glass and producer
Carl Foreman, whom he'd met previously during his time with the army film unit. It was during Kramer's career as a producer that he began to receive recognition for his talent.
While the first movie produced under his production company was a failure,
So This Is New York (1948), directed by
Richard Fleischer, the following film directed by
Mark Robson,
Champion, starring
Kirk Douglas, was a success. The film received six
Academy Awards nominations: Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Cinematography, Black and White, Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture and Best Writing, Screenplay. The film also won an Oscar for Best Film Editing. In the next three years, Kramer produced
Home of the Brave (1949), which was another success for the budding producer. In 1950, he produced
The Men, which included
Marlon Brando's screen debut.
Columbia Pictures
A year later,
Harry Cohn, the president of
Columbia Pictures offered Kramer the chance to make movies under his studio. Kramer was given free rein over what films he chose to make, along with a budget that topped at 980,000 dollars. While Kramer accepted the job, he spent the rest of the year finishing his last independent production, the film
High Noon, a Western drama directed by
Fred Zinnemann. The movie was well received, winning four Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Film Editing, Best Music, Original Song and Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic of Comedy Picture, as well as three nominations for Best Director, Best Picture and Best Writing, Screenplay.
In October 1951, Kramer ended his partnership with
Carl Foreman, who was asked to testify about his past involvement with the
Communist Party. Kramer was still producing movies at Columbia, such as
Death of a Salesman (1951),
The Sniper (1952),
The Member of the Wedding (1952),
The Juggler (1953),
The Wild One (1953) and
The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T (1953). While the movies were not considered successful, they're now found very interesting and are highly praised.
In 1953 the president of Columbia, Harry Cohn and Stanley Kramer agreed to terminate the five year contract Kramer had made to Columbia. However, for his last Columbia film, Kramer was determined to regain all of the investments Columbia had made in Kramer's previously unsuccessful films. The film,
The Caine Mutiny, was an adaptation of the book written by
Herman Wouk and was directed by
Edward Dmytryk. Kramer faced resistance from the US Navy, which the film depicted, for presenting what they considered an unfair portrayal. Kramer was able to negotiate a deal with the Navy, attempting to make the film as accurate and fair as possible. The film's cast included multiple noted actors of the time, including
Humphrey Bogart,
Van Johnson,
Fred MacMurray and
José Ferrer. Cohn kept Kramer under tight limitations, such as a budget under two and half million dollars and a running time of two hours. The result was extremely successful. The eleven million dollars it generated made up for any of Kramer's lost profits previously.
Directing
After
The Caine Mutiny, Kramer left Columbia and resumed his independent production, but this time he occupied the role of the director. During this time, Kramer reestablished himself through
Not As a Stranger (1955) and
The Pride and the Passion (1957). Fortunately for Kramer, he was able to avoid the
Hollywood blacklist, which had affected so many other members of the film industry. However, Kramer was well known for his liberal views and his desire to produce and direct controversial films. He directed
The Defiant Ones (1958),
On the Beach (1959),
Inherit the Wind (1960) and
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961). All of the films were bold and dealt with uncomfortable and serious subjects.
In contrast to his previous films however, in 1963 Kramer produced and directed the multi-million dollar, all-star comedy
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Four years later, in 1967, Kramer released
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. It is speculated that out of all of his films, this film was the one that Kramer was the most proud of. The film starred
Sidney Poitier and
Katharine Houghton and the final screen teaming of
Katharine Hepburn and
Spencer Tracy. The film was a hit, earning eight
Academy Award nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Art Direction, Best Director, Best Film Editing, Best Music and Best Picture, along with two
Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role and Best Writing, Story and Screenplay. In the following years, Kramer directed films such as
Bless the Beasts and Children (1971),
Oklahoma Crude (1973) and
The Runner Stumbles (1979).
In 1997 Kramer published his autobiography, entitled . Stanley Kramer died on
February 19,
2001 in Los Angeles after suffering from
pneumonia.
Filmography
As director
As producer
Champion (1949)
Home of the Brave (1949)
The Men (1950)
Cyrano de Bergerac (1950)
Death of a Salesman (1951)
High Noon (1952)
The Wild One (1954)
The Caine Mutiny (1954)
Further Information
Get more info on 'Stanley Kramer'.
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