Fred Zinnemann - Film Director, Timeline and Childhood
Fred Zinnemann's Personal Details
Fred Zinnemann was an Austrian-born American film maker who won four ‘Academy Awards’
| Information | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birthday | April 29, 1907 |
| Died on | March 14, 1997 |
| Nationality | Austrian, British, American |
| Famous | Film & Theater Personalities, Directors, Film Director |
| Spouses | Renee Bartlett (1936–1997; his death; 1 child) |
| Known as | Alfred Zinnemann |
| Birth Place | Rzeszów, Austria-Hungary |
| Born Country | Austria |
| Gender | Male |
| Father | Oskar Zinnemann |
| Mother | Anna Feiwel |
| Sun Sign | Taurus |
| Born in | Rzeszów, Austria-Hungary |
| Famous as | Film Director |
| Died at Age | 89 |
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Fred Zinnemann's photo
Who is Fred Zinnemann?
Fred Zinnemann was an Austrian-born American film maker who won four ‘Academy Awards’ for the films he made in Hollywood and elsewhere during his career spread over more than 50 years. He received seven nominations for ‘Academy Award for Best Director’ and won two ‘Academy Awards for Best Picture’. His films encompassed different genres including westerns, war and crime thrillers, adaptations of stage plays and film noirs. During his early days he wanted to be a violinist but joined the university to be a law student. While studying at the university he was impressed by American films and decided to become film director. He got involved in the film industry in Europe and finally went to France to study film making. He was known for the realistic atmosphere he produced in his films and insisted that real locations be used for taking the shots. He never bowed down to the rules made by the studios and took risks by making films in ways that nobody had tried before. He introduced a large number of stars for the first time to the American audience and directed many actors and actresses who won Oscars for their roles in different films.
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Childhood & Early Life
Fred Zinnemann was born Alfred Zinnemann in Vienna, Austria on April 29, 1907. His father was an Austrian-Jewish doctor named Oskar Zinnemann and his mother was Anna Feiwel. He had one younger brother.
After finishing school he enrolled at the ‘University of Vienna’ to study music and law and graduated with a degree in law in 1927.
While studying law he became interested in films and decided to go to France in 1927 to join the ‘Ecole Technique de Photographie’ in Paris to learn cinematography for one year.
Career
Fred Zinnemann worked initially as a cameraman for Robert Siodmak in Germany in making the documentary ‘Menschen am Sonntag’ or ‘People on Sunday’ in 1930.
He started his work in Hollywood as an extra in the film ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ directed by Lewis Milestone in 1930.
In early 1930s he became an assistant director to Robert J. Flaherty for a project that was abandoned after some time.
He started to make documentaries which included his debut effort ‘Los Redes’ or ‘The Wave’ in 1936, shot on real locations in Mexico with non-professional local actors.
He was signed up by MGM in 1937 and made ‘That Mothers Might Live’ in 1938 which won him an Oscar.
In 1942 Zinnemann worked for MGM with Jack Chertok in making the feature films ‘Kid Glove Killer’ in 1942, which was a mystery story about a police chemist, played by Van Heflin, who solves a murder. He also made ‘Eyes in the Night’ in the same year.
In 1944 he made his first big-budget film ‘The Seventh Cross’ which starred Spencer Tracy, one of the seven escapees from a Nazi concentration camp.
In 1947 he made a couple of comedies ‘Little Mr. Jim’ and ‘My Brother Talks to Horses’ starring child star Butch Jenkins.
His next project was ‘The Search’ in 1948, a story about an American soldier stationed at Berlin, played by Montgomery Clift, trying to adopt a nine-year old German concentration camp survivor played by Ivan Jandl.
He made another war film ‘Act of Violence’ in 1948 starring Robert Ryan, a crippled war veteran, trying to take revenge on a former officer for betraying his platoon when he was a prisoner-of-war captive.
His next film on war was ‘The Men’ in 1950 starring Marlon Brando and his fiancée Terersa Wright based on a story by Carl Foreman.
The film ‘Teresa’ (1951) was about the Italian wife of an American soldier who faced social problems after going to America. It starred newcomers Pier Angeli, Rod Steiger and Ralph Meeker.
The western ‘High Noon’ made by Zinnemann in 1952 was a huge success starring Grace Kellyand and Gary Cooper, a town marshal faced with a notorious gunfighter looking for revenge.
His film ‘The Member of the Wedding’ (1952), an adaptation of Carson McCuller’ Broadway play with five members from the original cast including Julie Harris, Ethel Waters and Brandon deWilde, met with great success.
‘From Here to Eternity’ in 1953 was a huge box-office hit about the US soldiers just before the attack on Pear Harbor. It starred Montogomery Clift, Frank Sinatra, Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr and Ernest Borgnine. It won eight ‘Academy Awards’.
In 1958 he started directing the film ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ with Spencer Tracy in the lead but was replaced by John Sturges as director before the shooting was complete.
He made ‘The Nun’s Story’ in 1959 starring Audrey Hepburn who joins the Resistance after overcoming the horrors of mental hospital and Nazi brutality.
In 1961 he was made a member of the jury at the ‘Cannes Film Festival’.
In 1963 ‘20th Century Fox’ wanted him to direct ‘The Day Custer Fell’ but finally scrapped it.
His film ‘Behold a Pale Horse’ made in 1964 was a box office flop.
In 1966 he made the film ‘A Man for All Seasons’ which was a huge success.
‘The Day of The Jackal’ in 1973 and ‘Julia’ in 1977 were proof of his expertise in film making.
Awards & Achievements
Jean Zinnemann won an ‘Academy Award’ for the best one-reel short film ‘That Mothers Might Live’ in 1938 and for ‘Benjy’ in 1951.
In 1952 he received the ‘Best Director’s Award’ from the ‘New York Film Critics’ for ‘High Noon’.
He won the ‘Academy Award’ for ‘Best Director’ and ‘Best Picture’ for his film ‘From Here to Eternity’ in 1953.
In 1958 he received a nomination for ‘Academy Award for Best Director’ for the film ‘The Search’.
In 1959 he was nominated for an ‘Academy Award for Best Director’ and won the ‘Best Direction’ award from ‘New York Film Critics’ for ‘The Nun’s Story’.
He won an ‘Academy Award for Best Director’ and a nomination for ‘Best Picture’ for ‘A Man for All Seasons’ in 1966. He also bagged the ‘Best Direction’ award from the ‘New York Film Critics’, the ‘Director Award’ from the ‘Directors Guild of America’ for the same film.
In 1971 he received the ‘D. W. Griffith Award’ and the ‘Order of Arts and Letters’ from the French government in 1982.
He received the ‘U.S. Congressional Lifetime Achievement Award’ in 1987 and the ‘John Hudson Award’ in 1994.
He was made a ‘Fellow of the British Film Institute’ for his immense contributions to the film industry.
Personal Life & Legacy
He married Renee Bartlett on October 9, 1936 who remained with him till his death.
He had one son from the marriage named Timothy.
Fred Zinnemann died of a heart attack in London, England, on March 14, 1997.
Trivia
Fred Zinnemann was considered a maverick director who refused to conform to standards set by the studios.
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Fred Zinnemann's awards
| Year | Name | Award |
|---|---|---|
Other | ||
| 0 | Academy Award for Best Director s: From Here to Eternity (1953) | |
| 0 | Academy Award for Best Director: A Man for All Seasons (1966)D. W. Griffith Award | |
| 1971 | ||
| 0 | Order of Arts and Letters | |
| 0 | France | |
| 1982 | ||
| 0 | U.S. Congressional Lifetime Achievement Award | |
| 1987 | ||
| 0 | John Huston Award | |
| 0 | Artists Right Foundation | |
| 1994 | ||
| 0 | New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director | |
| 0 | and Directors Guild of America (DGA) Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures: A Man for All Seasons (1966) | |
| 0 | New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director: The Nun's Story (1959) | |
| 0 | New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director: High Noon (1952) | |
| 0 | Directors Guild of America (DGA) Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures: From Here to Eternity (1953) | |
| 0 | New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director: High Noon (1952) | |
| 0 | Golden Globe for Best Film Promoting International Understanding: | |
| 0 | Academy Award for Best Short Subject | |
| 0 | One-Reel: That Mothers Might Live (1938) | |
| 0 | Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject: Benjy (1951) | |
Fred Zinnemann biography timelines
- // 29th Apr 1907Fred Zinnemann was born Alfred Zinnemann in Vienna, Austria on April 29, 1907. His father was an Austrian-Jewish doctor named Oskar Zinnemann and his mother was Anna Feiwel. He had one younger brother.
- // 1927After finishing school he enrolled at the ‘University of Vienna’ to study music and law and graduated with a degree in law in 1927.
- // 1927While studying law he became interested in films and decided to go to France in 1927 to join the ‘Ecole Technique de Photographie’ in Paris to learn cinematography for one year.
- // 1930Fred Zinnemann worked initially as a cameraman for Robert Siodmak in Germany in making the documentary ‘Menschen am Sonntag’ or ‘People on Sunday’ in 1930.
- // 1930He started his work in Hollywood as an extra in the film ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ directed by Lewis Milestone in 1930.
- // 1936He started to make documentaries which included his debut effort ‘Los Redes’ or ‘The Wave’ in 1936, shot on real locations in Mexico with non-professional local actors.
- // 9th Oct 1936He married Renee Bartlett on October 9, 1936 who remained with him till his death.
- // 1937 To 1938He was signed up by MGM in 1937 and made ‘That Mothers Might Live’ in 1938 which won him an Oscar.
- // 1938 To 1951Jean Zinnemann won an ‘Academy Award’ for the best one-reel short film ‘That Mothers Might Live’ in 1938 and for ‘Benjy’ in 1951.
- // 1942In 1942 Zinnemann worked for MGM with Jack Chertok in making the feature films ‘Kid Glove Killer’ in 1942, which was a mystery story about a police chemist, played by Van Heflin, who solves a murder. He also made ‘Eyes in the Night’ in the same year.
- // 1944In 1944 he made his first big-budget film ‘The Seventh Cross’ which starred Spencer Tracy, one of the seven escapees from a Nazi concentration camp.
- // 1947In 1947 he made a couple of comedies ‘Little Mr. Jim’ and ‘My Brother Talks to Horses’ starring child star Butch Jenkins.
- // 1948His next project was ‘The Search’ in 1948, a story about an American soldier stationed at Berlin, played by Montgomery Clift, trying to adopt a nine-year old German concentration camp survivor played by Ivan Jandl.
- // 1948He made another war film ‘Act of Violence’ in 1948 starring Robert Ryan, a crippled war veteran, trying to take revenge on a former officer for betraying his platoon when he was a prisoner-of-war captive.
- // 1950His next film on war was ‘The Men’ in 1950 starring Marlon Brando and his fiancée Terersa Wright based on a story by Carl Foreman.
- // 1951The film ‘Teresa’ (1951) was about the Italian wife of an American soldier who faced social problems after going to America. It starred newcomers Pier Angeli, Rod Steiger and Ralph Meeker.
- // 1952The western ‘High Noon’ made by Zinnemann in 1952 was a huge success starring Grace Kellyand and Gary Cooper, a town marshal faced with a notorious gunfighter looking for revenge.
- // 1952His film ‘The Member of the Wedding’ (1952), an adaptation of Carson McCuller’ Broadway play with five members from the original cast including Julie Harris, Ethel Waters and Brandon deWilde, met with great success.
- // 1952In 1952 he received the ‘Best Director’s Award’ from the ‘New York Film Critics’ for ‘High Noon’.
- // 1953‘From Here to Eternity’ in 1953 was a huge box-office hit about the US soldiers just before the attack on Pear Harbor. It starred Montogomery Clift, Frank Sinatra, Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr and Ernest Borgnine. It won eight ‘Academy Awards’.
- // 1953He won the ‘Academy Award’ for ‘Best Director’ and ‘Best Picture’ for his film ‘From Here to Eternity’ in 1953.
- // 1958In 1958 he started directing the film ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ with Spencer Tracy in the lead but was replaced by John Sturges as director before the shooting was complete.
- // 1958In 1958 he received a nomination for ‘Academy Award for Best Director’ for the film ‘The Search’.
- // 1959He made ‘The Nun’s Story’ in 1959 starring Audrey Hepburn who joins the Resistance after overcoming the horrors of mental hospital and Nazi brutality.
- // 1959In 1959 he was nominated for an ‘Academy Award for Best Director’ and won the ‘Best Direction’ award from ‘New York Film Critics’ for ‘The Nun’s Story’.
- // 1961In 1961 he was made a member of the jury at the ‘Cannes Film Festival’.
- // 1963In 1963 ‘20th Century Fox’ wanted him to direct ‘The Day Custer Fell’ but finally scrapped it.
- // 1964His film ‘Behold a Pale Horse’ made in 1964 was a box office flop.
- // 1966In 1966 he made the film ‘A Man for All Seasons’ which was a huge success.
- // 1966He won an ‘Academy Award for Best Director’ and a nomination for ‘Best Picture’ for ‘A Man for All Seasons’ in 1966. He also bagged the ‘Best Direction’ award from the ‘New York Film Critics’, the ‘Director Award’ from the ‘Directors Guild of America’ for the same film.
- // 1971 To 1982In 1971 he received the ‘D. W. Griffith Award’ and the ‘Order of Arts and Letters’ from the French government in 1982.
- // 1973 To 1977‘The Day of The Jackal’ in 1973 and ‘Julia’ in 1977 were proof of his expertise in film making.
- // 1987 To 1994He received the ‘U.S. Congressional Lifetime Achievement Award’ in 1987 and the ‘John Hudson Award’ in 1994.
- // 14th Mar 1997Fred Zinnemann died of a heart attack in London, England, on March 14, 1997.
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Fred Zinnemann's FAQ
What is Fred Zinnemann birthday?
Fred Zinnemann was born at 1907-04-29
When was Fred Zinnemann died?
Fred Zinnemann was died at 1997-03-14
Where was Fred Zinnemann died?
Fred Zinnemann was died in London, England
Which age was Fred Zinnemann died?
Fred Zinnemann was died at age 89
Where is Fred Zinnemann's birth place?
Fred Zinnemann was born in Rzeszów, Austria-Hungary
What is Fred Zinnemann nationalities?
Fred Zinnemann's nationalities is Austrian, British, American
Who is Fred Zinnemann spouses?
Fred Zinnemann's spouses is Renee Bartlett (1936–1997; his death; 1 child)
Who is Fred Zinnemann's father?
Fred Zinnemann's father is Oskar Zinnemann
Who is Fred Zinnemann's mother?
Fred Zinnemann's mother is Anna Feiwel
What is Fred Zinnemann's sun sign?
Fred Zinnemann is Taurus
How famous is Fred Zinnemann?
Fred Zinnemann is famouse as Film Director