David O. Selznick: Difference between revisions

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[[Image:DavidSelznick.jpg|frame|David O. Selznick]]'''David Oliver Selznick''' ([[May 10]], [[1902]]–[[June 22]], [[1965]]), was one of the icon [[Hollywood]] [[producers]] of the Golden Age. He is best known for producing the epic blockbuster ''[[Gone Withwith the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]'' ([[1939]]) which earned him an [[Academy_award|Oscar]] for Best Picture. The film, one of the most popular and successful in Hollywood history also won seven additional Oscars and two special awards. Selznick also won the [[Irving G. Thalberg]] award that same year. He would make film history by winning the Best Picture Oscar a second year in a row for ''[[Rebecca]]'' (1940).

He was born in [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]], the son of [[silent movie]] distributor [[Lewis J. Selznick]] and Florence A. (Sachs) Selznick. He studied at [[Columbia University]] and worked as an apprentice in his father's company until his father went bankrupt in 1923. In 1926, Selznick moved to Hollywood and with his father's connections, got a job as an assistant story editor at [[MGM]]. He left MGM for [[Paramount Pictures]] in 1928 and worked there until 1931 when he joined [[RKO]] as Head of Production. His years at RKO were fruitful and he guided many notable films there, including ''A Bill of Divorcement'' (1932), ''What Price Hollywood'' (1932) and ''[[King Kong]]'' (1933). While at RKO, he also gave [[George Cukor]] his big directing break. In 1933 he returned to MGM to establish a second prestige production unit to parallel that of [[Irving Thalberg]] who was in poor health. His blockbuster classics included ''[[Dinner at Eight]]'' (1933), ''[[David Copperfield]]'' (1935), ''[[Anna Karenina]]'' (1935) and ''[[A Tale of Two Cities]]'' (1935).

But Selznick was restless and longed to be an independent producer and establish his own studio. In 1936 he realized that goal by forming [[Selznick International Pictures]] and distributing his films through [[United Artists]]. His successes continued with classics such as ''[[The Garden of Allah]]'' (1936), ''[[The Prisoner of Zenda]]'' (1937), ''[[A Star is Born]]'' (1937), ''[[Nothing Sacred]]'' (1937), ''[[Made For Each Other]]'' (1939), ''[[Intermezzo]]'' (1939) and of course, his magnum opus ''[[Gone Withwith the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]'' (1939). In 1940, he produced his second Best Picture Oscar winner in a row, ''[[Rebecca]]'' the first Hollywood production for British director [[Alfred Hitchcock]]. Selznick had brought Hitchcock over from England giving birth to the director's American career. It is interesting to note that ''[[Rebecca]]'' is Hitchcock's only film to win Best Picture.

After ''[[Rebecca]],'' Selznick closed [[Selznick International Pictures]] and took some time off. His business activities included loaning out to other studios for large profits the high-powered talent he had under contract including Hitchcock, [[Ingrid Bergman]], [[Vivien Leigh]] and [[Joan Fontaine]]. He also developed film projects and sold the packages to other producers. In 1944 he returned to producing pictures with the huge success ''[[Since You Went Away]]'' which he wrote. He followed that with the classic, ''[[Spellbound (1945 film)|Spellbound]]'' (1945) as well as ''[[Portrait of Jennie]]'' (1948). In 1949, he co-produced the memorable Orson Welles picture ''[[The Third Man]]''.

After ''[[Gone Withwith the Wind]],'' Selznick spent the rest of his career trying to top that landmark achievement. The closest he came was with ''[[Duel in the Sun]]'' (1946). With a huge budget, the film is renowned for its steller cast, its sweeping cinematography and for causing all sorts of moral upheaval because of the then risque script written by Selznick. And though it was a troublesome shoot with a number of directors, the film would turn out to be a major success. The film was the second highest grossing film of 1947 and turned out to be the first movie that [[Martin Scorcese]] would see, inspiring the director's brilliant career.

Selznick spent most of the 1950s obsessing about nurturing the career of his second wife [[Jennifer Jones]]. His last film, the big budget production, ''[[A Farewell to Arms]]'' (1957) starring Jones and [[Rock Hudson]], was ill received. But in 1954, he ventured successfully into television, producing a two hour extravaganza called ''[[Light's Diamond Jubilee]],'' which, in true Selznick fashion, made TV history by being telecast simultaneously on all networks.

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For his indelible contribution to the motion picture industry, David O. Selznick has a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] at 7000 Hollywood Blvd., in front of the historic Hollywood Roosevelt hotel.

=== Academy Awards and Nominations ===

* [[1946]] Nominated Best Picture ''[[Spellbound (1945 film)|Spellbound]]''

* [[1945]] Nominated Best Picture ''[[Since You Went Away]]''

* [[1941]] Won Best Picture ''[[Rebecca (movie)|Rebecca]]''

* [[1940]] Won [[Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award]]

* [[1940]] Won Best Picture ''[[Gone with the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]''

* [[1938]] Nominated Best Picture ''[[A Star Is Born]]''

* [[1937]] Nominated Best Picture ''[[A Tale of Two Cities]]''

==References==

== References ==

* Thomson, David. ''Showman: The Life of David O. Selznick''. New York: Knopf, 1992. ISBN 0394568338

== External link ==

* {{imdb name|id=0006388|name=David O. Selznick }}

[[Category:1902 births|Selznick, David O.]]