Stanley Earl Kramer (September 29, 1913February 19, 2001) was an American film director and producer, responsible for making many of Hollywood's most famous "
message films" (he would call his movies ''heavy dramas'') and a liberal movie icon.
[Film-maker Stanley Kramer dies](_blank)
a February 2001 BBC obituary As an independent producer and director, he brought attention to topical social issues that most studios avoided. Among the subjects covered in his films were racism (in ''
The Defiant Ones'' and ''
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner''),
nuclear war (in ''
On the Beach''),
greed
Greed (or avarice) is an uncontrolled longing for increase in the acquisition or use of material gain (be it food, money, land, or animate/inanimate possessions); or social value, such as status, or power. Greed has been identified as undes ...
(in ''
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World''),
creationism
Creationism is the religious belief that nature, and aspects such as the universe, Earth, life, and humans, originated with supernatural acts of divine creation. Gunn 2004, p. 9, "The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says that creationism ...
vs.
evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
(in ''
Inherit the Wind'') and the causes and effects of
fascism
Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and th ...
(in ''
Judgment at Nuremberg''). His other films included ''
High Noon'' (1952, as producer), ''
The Caine Mutiny'' (1954, as producer), and ''
Ship of Fools'' (1965).
Director
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spi ...
described him as an "incredibly talented visionary",
[ with Tom Brokaw, ]Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spi ...
, Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
, Harrison Ford and Al Gore and "one of our great filmmakers, not just for the art and passion he put on screen, but for the impact he has made on the conscience of the world."
Kramer was recognized for his fierce independence as a producer-director, with author
Victor Navasky writing that "among the independents . . . none seemed more vocal, more liberal, more pugnacious than young Stanley Kramer." His friend
Kevin Spacey, during his acceptance speech at the 2015
Golden Globes, honored Kramer's work, calling him "one of the great filmmakers of all time."
Despite uneven critical reception, both then and now, Kramer's body of work has received many awards, including 16 Academy Awards and 80 nominations, and he was nominated nine times as either producer or director.
[Byman, Jeremy. ''Showdown at High Noon: Witch-hunts, Critics, and the End of the Western'', Scarecrow Press (2004) pp. 9, 29-45; 73-76; Ch. 5] In 1961, he received the
Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award
The Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award is awarded periodically by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at the Governors Awards ceremonies to "creative producers, whose bodies of work reflect a consistently high quality of motion pictur ...
. In 1963, he was a member of the jury at the
3rd Moscow International Film Festival.
In 1998, he was awarded the first
NAACP
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...
Vanguard Award in recognition of "the strong social themes that ran through his body of work". In 2002, the
Stanley Kramer Award was created, to be awarded to recipients whose work "dramatically illustrates provocative social issues".
[
]
Early life
Kramer was born in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
. His parents were Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
, and having separated when he was very young, he remembered little about his father.[ His mother worked at a New York office of ]Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
, during which time his grandparents took care of him at home.[Spoto, Donald. ''Stanley Kramer: Film Maker'', Putnam (1978)] His uncle, Earl Kramer, worked in distribution at Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...
.
Kramer attended DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...
, where he graduated at age fifteen. He then enrolled in New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, ...
where he became a member of the Pi Lambda Phi fraternity[Membership Directory, 2010, Pi Lambda Phi Inc.] and wrote a weekly column for the ''Medley'' newspaper. He graduated in 1933 at the age of nineteen with a degree in business administration. After developing a "zest for writing" with a newspaper, biographer Donald Spoto wrote, Kramer was offered a paid internship in the writing department of 20th Century Fox and moved to Hollywood.[ Until receiving that writing job, he had planned to enroll in law school.][Lyman, Rick.]
"Stanley Kramer, Filmmaker With Social Bent, Dies at 87"
''New York Times'' February 21, 2001
Film career
Move to Hollywood
Over the following years, during the period of the Great Depression, Kramer took odd jobs in the film industry: He worked as a set furniture mover and film cutter at MGM, as writer and researcher for Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the multi ...
and Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures Corporation (currently held under Melange Pictures, LLC) was an American motion picture production-distribution corporation in operation from 1935 to 1967, that was based in Los Angeles. It had studio facilities in Studio City a ...
, and associate producer with Loew- Lewin productions. Those years as an apprentice writer and editor helped him acquire an "exceptional aptitude" in editing and develop the ability to understand the overall structure of the films he worked on. They enabled him to later compose and edit "in camera," as he shot scenes.[Wakeman, John. Ed. ''World Film Directors: Volume II, 1945-1985'', H. W. Wilson Company, N.Y. (1988) pp. 538-544]
He was drafted into the Army in 1943, during World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, where he helped make training films with the Signal Corps in New York, along with other Hollywood filmmakers including Frank Capra and Anatole Litvak
Anatoly Mikhailovich Litvak (russian: Анатолий Михайлович Литвак; 21 May 1902 – 15 December 1974), better known as Anatole Litvak, was a Ukrainian-born American filmmaker who wrote, directed, and produced films in vari ...
.[ He left the army with the rank of first lieutenant.][Dutka, Elaine]
"Stanley Kramer; Acclaimed Movies Focused on Social Issues"
''Los Angeles Times'', Feb. 20, 2001
After the war, Kramer soon discovered that there were no available jobs in Hollywood in 1947, so he created an independent production company, Screen Plays Inc. He partnered with writer Herbie Baker, publicist George Glass
George Glass (August 19, 1910 – April 1, 1984) was an American film producer and publicist, best known for his work with Stanley Kramer. In Kramer's 1997 autobiography, describing how he formed his first production company in the late 1940s, ...
and producer Carl Foreman, an army friend from the film unit. Foreman justified the production company by noting that the big studios had become "dinosaurs," which, being shocked by the onrush of television, "jettisoned virtually everything to survive." But they failed to develop cadres of younger creative talent in their wake.[
]
Producer
Kramer's new company was able to take advantage of unused production facilities by renting time, allowing him to create independent films for a fraction of the cost the larger studios had required, and he did so without studio control. Kramer also saw this as an opportunity to produce films dealing with subjects the studios previously avoided, especially those about controversial topics.
However, Kramer soon learned that financing such independent films was a major obstacle, as he was forced to approach banks or else take on private investors. He did both when necessary.[ But with studios no longer involved, rival independent companies were created which all competed for those limited funds. According to Byman, "there were no fewer than ninety-six" other companies in competition during that period, and included some of Hollywood's biggest names: Frank Capra, ]John Ford
John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...
, William Wyler
William Wyler (; born Willi Wyler (); July 1, 1902 – July 27, 1981) was a Swiss-German-American film director and producer who won the Academy Award for Best Director three times, those being for '' Mrs. Miniver'' (1942), '' The Best Years o ...
, Howard Hawks
Howard Winchester Hawks (May 30, 1896December 26, 1977) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the Classical Hollywood cinema, classic Hollywood era. Critic Leonard Maltin called him "the greatest American director who is ...
, Leo McCarey, and George Stevens.[ Kramer explained how he tried to differentiate his new company from the others, explaining he was less interested in the money than having the ability to make a statement through his films:
The first movie produced under his production company was the comedy, '' So This Is New York'' (1948), directed by Richard Fleischer, and based on ]Ring Lardner
Ringgold Wilmer Lardner (March 6, 1885 – September 25, 1933) was an American sports columnist and short story writer best known for his satirical writings on sports, marriage, and the theatre. His contemporaries Ernest Hemingway, Virginia ...
's ''The Big Town.'' It failed at the box office. It was followed with '' Champion'' (1949), another Lardner story, this one about an ambitious and unscrupulous boxer. Scripted by Foreman, it was tailored to fit the talents of Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in ''The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. Dou ...
, a former amateur wrestler who was now an actor. Filmed in only twenty-three days with a relatively small budget, it became an immense box-office success. It won an Academy Award for Best Editing, with four other nominations, including Douglas for best actor and Foreman as screenwriter.
Kramer next produced '' Home of the Brave'' (also 1949), again directed by Mark Robson Mark Robson may refer to:
* Mark Robson (film director) (1913–1978), Canadian-American film director and producer
* Mark Robson (American writer), Scottish-American writer and expert in United States coins and stamps
* Mark Robson (footballer)
...
, which became an even bigger success than ''Champion''. The story was adapted from a play by Arthur Laurents, originally about anti-Semitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Ant ...
in the army, but revised and made into a film about the persecution of a black soldier. Byman notes that it was the "first sound film about antiblack racism."[ The subject matter was so sensitive at the time, that Kramer shot the film in "total secrecy" to avoid protests by various organizations.][ Critics generally liked the film, which, notes Nora Sayre, "had a flavoring of courage."][
His renamed Stanley Kramer Company produced '' The Men'' (1950), which featured Marlon Brando's screen debut, in a drama about paraplegic war veterans. It was the first time Kramer and Foreman worked with director Fred Zinnemann, who had already been directing for twenty years and had won an Oscar. The film was another success for Kramer, who took on a unique subject dealing with a world few knew about. Critic Bosley Crowther noted that its "striking and authentic documentary quality has been imported to the whole film in every detail, attitude and word."][
Zinnemann said he was impressed with Kramer's company and the efficiency of their productions:
Also released in 1950 was Kramer's production of '']Cyrano de Bergerac
Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist.
A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th c ...
'', the first English language film version of Edmond Rostand's 1897 French play. It made a star of José Ferrer, who won his only Oscar for Best Actor.
Films with Columbia Pictures
In 1951, Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the multi ...
president Harry Cohn
Harry Cohn (July 23, 1891 – February 27, 1958) was a co-founder, president, and production director of Columbia Pictures Corporation.
Life and career
Cohn was born to a working-class Jewish family in New York City. His father, Joseph Cohn, wa ...
offered Kramer's company an opportunity to form a production unit working with his studio.[Katz, Ephraim. ''The Macmillan International Film Encyclopedia'', Macmillan (1998) p.767] Kramer was given free rein over what films he chose to make, along with a budget of nearly a million dollars each. Kramer agreed to a five-year contract during which time he would produce twenty films.[Kramer, Stanley. ''A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World: a Life in Hollywood'', Harcourt Brace (1997)][ However, Kramer would later state that the agreement was "one of the most dangerous and foolhardy moves of my entire career."][ He agreed to the commitment because of his "deep-seated desire to direct," he states, along with the security of ready studio financing.][
He finished his last independent production, '' High Noon'' (1952), a Western drama directed by Fred Zinnemann. The movie was well received, winning four Oscars, as well as three other nominations. Unfortunately, ''High Noon''s production and release intersected with ]McCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making false or unfounded accusations of subversion and treason, especially when related to anarchism, communism
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left so ...
. Writer, producer and partner Carl Foreman was called before the House Un-American Activities Committee while he was writing the film. Foreman had been a member of the Communist Party
A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. ...
ten years earlier, but declined to "name names" and was branded an "un-cooperative witness" by HUAC, and then blacklisted by the Hollywood companies, after which he sold his interest in the company.[Kramer, a long time friend and business partner of Carl Foreman removed Foreman's name from the credits as co-producer.
Kramer continued producing movies at Columbia, including '']Death of a Salesman
''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a monta ...
'' (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). With a larger budget, his films took on a "glossier" more polished look, yet his next ten films all lost money, although some were nonetheless highly praised.
In 1953, Cohn and Kramer agreed to terminate the five-year, 20-film contract Kramer had signed. However, his last Columbia film, '' The Caine Mutiny'' (1954), regained all of the losses Columbia had incurred as a result of his earlier projects. ''The Caine Mutiny'', was an adaptation of the book written by Herman Wouk and was directed by Edward Dmytryk.
Kramer observed that during the 1940s and 1950s, "cinema was the producer's medium:"
Director
After ''The Caine Mutiny'', Kramer left Columbia and resumed his independent productions, this time in the role of the director. Over the next two decades, Kramer reestablished his reputation within the film industry by directing a continual series of often successful films dealing with social and controversial issues, such as racism
Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...
, nuclear war, greed
Greed (or avarice) is an uncontrolled longing for increase in the acquisition or use of material gain (be it food, money, land, or animate/inanimate possessions); or social value, such as status, or power. Greed has been identified as undes ...
and the causes and effects of fascism
Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and th ...
. Critic Charles Champlin would later describe Kramer as "a guy who fought some hard battles. He took on social issues when it was not popular to do so in Hollywood."[
Among some of those controversial films were '' Not as a Stranger'' (1955), '' The Pride and the Passion'' (1957), '' The Defiant Ones'' (1958), '' On the Beach'' (1959), '' Inherit the Wind'' (1960), '' Judgment at Nuremberg'' (1961), and '' Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' (1967).
Besides dramas, he also directed '' It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963) with an all-star cast of comedians.
His first film as director was '' Not as a Stranger'' (1955), the story of medical students and their career, some of whom lose their idealism and succumb to blind ambition, adultery, and immoral behavior. The film was a "smash hit," although reviews were mixed. Pauline Kael claimed it "lacked rhythm and development."][
]
''The Pride and the Passion'' (1957)
'' The Pride and the Passion'' (1957) is an adaptation from ''The Gun'', a novel by C. S. Forester. It portrays in detail how a dedicated group of Spanish guerrillas dragged a gigantic cannon across half the country in an effort to defeat Napoleon's advancing army. It stars Frank Sinatra, Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...
and Sophia Loren
Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...
.
''The Defiant Ones'' (1958)
The following year, Kramer directed '' The Defiant Ones'' (1958), the story of two escaped convicts in the Deep South, one black, played by Sidney Poitier, and one white, Tony Curtis. To add to the intensity of the drama, both men are shackled together with chains, forcing them, despite their wishes, into a sense of brotherhood, suffering
and fear.
''New York Times'' film critic Bosley Crowther lauded the production and the acting in the film, calling it "a remarkably apt and dramatic visualization of a social idea—the idea of men of different races brought together to face misfortune in a bond of brotherhood — is achieved by producer Stanley Kramer in his new film." It was nominated for eight Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
, winning two.
Five years after the film was released, producer George Stevens Jr.
George Cooper Stevens Jr. (born April 3, 1932) is an American writer, playwright, director, and producer. He is the founder of the American Film Institute, creator of the AFI Life Achievement Award, and co-creator of the Kennedy Center Honors. H ...
helped organize a showing of this, along with other Kramer films, at the Moscow Film Festival
The Moscow International Film Festival (russian: Моско́вский междунаро́дный кинофестива́ль, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is the film festival first h ...
, which Kramer and co-star Sidney Poitier attended. Stevens writes that the showings of his films, especially ''The Defiant Ones'', were a "great success in Moscow." He remembers that "filmmakers applauded his films, often chanting ''Kraaaamer, Kraaaaamer, Kraaaaamer''," at their conclusion. Kramer spoke to the audience after each film, "making a fine impression for his country."[Stevens, George Jr. ''Conversations with the Great Moviemakers of Hollywood's Golden Age'', Alfred A. Knopf (2006) pp. 558-584] Stevens credits ''The Defiant Ones'' for having the most impact, however:
''On the Beach'' (1959)
With his next film, '' On the Beach'' (1959), Kramer tried to tackle the sensitive subject of nuclear war. The film takes place after World War III has annihilated most of the Northern hemisphere, with radioactive dust on a trajectory towards Australia. Kramer gave the film an "effective and eerie" documentary look at depopulated cities.[ It starred ]Gregory Peck
Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the 12th-greatest male star of Classic Hollywood ...
, Ava Gardner
Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' attention in 1946 with her perform ...
, Fred Astaire and Anthony Perkins
Anthony Perkins (April 4, 1932 – September 12, 1992) was an American actor, director, and singer. Perkins is best remembered for his role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's suspense thriller ''Psycho'', which made him an influential ...
.
Reviews were mostly positive, not just from critics but from scientists. Linus Pauling, winner of two Nobel Prizes (Chemistry and Peace), commented:
Critics Arthur Knight and Hollis Alpert likewise praised the film and admired Kramer for showing "courage in attempting such a theme."[
]
''Inherit the Wind'' (1960)
'' Inherit the Wind'' (1960) became Kramer's next challenging film, this one taking on the highly charged subjects of creationism
Creationism is the religious belief that nature, and aspects such as the universe, Earth, life, and humans, originated with supernatural acts of divine creation. Gunn 2004, p. 9, "The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says that creationism ...
and evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
, and how they are taught in school. The film, an adaptation of the play of the same name, written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee, was a fictionalized account of the 1925 Scopes Trial, which concerned a violation of Tennessee's Butler Act. This law had made it unlawful to teach human evolution in any state-funded school in Tennessee. It starred Spencer Tracy, portraying the real Clarence Darrow, defending the teacher, and Fredric March
Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated, versatile stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary '' Variety'', April 16, 1975, ...
as his rival attorney, William Jennings Bryan
William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator and politician. Beginning in 1896, he emerged as a dominant force in the Democratic Party, running three times as the party's nominee for President ...
, who insisted that creationism was the only valid subject that should be taught to children. It was nominated for four Academy Awards.
For Tracy, who was nominated as Best Actor, the film would become the first of four films he did for Kramer. "Everybody tells me how good I am," he said, "but only Stanley gives me work."[ The film received "extravagant reviews," yet failed at the box office due to its poor distribution and advertising.][ In addition, fundamentalist groups labeled the film "anti-God" and called Kramer "anti-Christ."][ Kramer, however, explains that these groups failed to understand the real theme of the film and the actual court trial it portrayed:
Kramer also notes that the film was the third part of a "trilogy of what have been called by some 'controversial pictures,'" of which the first two were ''The Defiant Ones'' and ''On the Beach''. "I have attempted, and I hope succeeded in, making pictures that command attention," said Kramer.][
]
''Judgment at Nuremberg'' (1961)
Like his previous film, '' Judgment at Nuremberg'' (1961) was a fictionalized account of a real trial, this one about the Nuremberg Trials held after the defeat of the Nazis in World War II. It also starred Spencer Tracy as the leading judge, along with numerous other stars. Richard Widmark played the American military prosecutor and Maximilian Schell the defense attorney. The film was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and won two, for Schell as Best Actor and Abby Mann for Best Screenplay. Reviews were extremely positive. Critic Hollis Alpert wrote in his review:
Similarly, Arthur Knight credited Kramer for the film's significance: "From first to last, the director is in command of his material. . . . he has not only added hugely to his stature as a producer-director, but to the stature of the American film as well."[
However, despite mostly rave reviews in the U.S. and many countries in Europe, biographer Spoto notes that during its various premieres overseas, "it shocked many, angered some, disgusted others. But it bored no one. . . "][ Kramer described its world premiere, in Berlin, as "the most frightening evening in my life."][ It was attended by hundreds of dignitaries from throughout Germany.
William Shatner, who had a supporting role, recalls that prior to filming, Kramer and screenwriter Abby Mann required that everyone involved in the production, actors and crew alike, watch some films taken by American soldiers at the liberation of the concentration camps. "They wanted us to understand what this film was about":
]
''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963)
After the seriousness of his previous films, Kramer "felt compelled to answer" for the "lack of lightness" in his earlier films, writes Spoto. As a result, he directed '' It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963), a film with a "gifted, wacky crew of comedians."[ Kramer describes it as a "comedy about greed."][ According to one writer, he directed it "to prove he could also handle comedy" and hired many of the leading comedic actors of the previous decades, from silent star Buster Keaton to emerging talent Jonathan Winters. Winters would later write that "Kramer was a man who took chances—as they say, he worked without a net."][
It played to mixed reviews with some criticizing its excessive comedy with too many comedians thereby losing its focus. Nonetheless, it was Kramer's biggest box office hit, and the public enjoyed its "socially disruptive and goofy" story and acting.][ Film critic ]Dwight Macdonald
Dwight Macdonald (March 24, 1906 – December 19, 1982) was an American writer, editor, film critic, social critic, literary critic, philosopher, and activist. Macdonald was a member of the New York Intellectuals and editor of their leftist mag ...
writes that its "small army of actors—105 speaking roles—inflict mayhem on each other with cars, planes, explosives and other devices . . . is simply too much for the human eye and ear to respond to, let alone the funny bone," calling it "hard-core slapstick."[ It was nominated for six Academy Awards, winning for Best Sound Editing.
]
''Ship of Fools'' (1965)
'' Ship of Fools'' (1965) has been described as a "floating ''Grand Hotel''," an earlier film which also had an all-star cast. Its multi-strand narrative deals with the failing personal relationships among the passengers on board a passenger liner returning to Germany in 1933, during the rise of Nazism
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
. Spoto describes its theme as one of "conscious social and psychological significance."[ It won two Academy Awards and was nominated for six others.
Some writers describe the film as a "microcosm" displaying a "weakness of the world that permitted the rise of Hitler."][ Kramer does not disagree, and wrote, "Even though we never mention him itlerin the picture, his ascendancy is an ever-present factor. Most of the passengers on the ship are Germans, returning to their fatherland at a time when millions of other Germans are looking for ways to escape."][ In a scene noted by Spoto, a Nazi passenger is "barking inanities" about how Germans should purify their race, to which a German-Jewish passenger responds, "There are nearly a million Jews in Germany. What are they going to do — kill us all?"][
]
''Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' (1967)
For his fourth film about the sensitive subject of anti-racism, he both directed and produced '' Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' (1967), a groundbreaking story about interracial marriage. It starred Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier, and Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...
, winning two Academy Awards with eight nominations. It has been listed in the top 100 films over the last 100 years by the American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees.
Lead ...
. However, despite its popularity with the public and its box-office success, many critics gave it negative reviews.
For Kramer and others involved in the production, it "was one of the most important events of their lives," writes Spoto.[ Partly because it was the first film that touched the subject since the 1920s silent era. "No one would touch this most explosive of social issues" until Kramer took on the challenge. Co-star Sidney Poitier called the film "revolutionary," and stated why:
The film was also important as it was the last film role for Spencer Tracy, who was aware while making the film that he was dying and did in fact die a few weeks after its completion. It was his fourth film directed by Kramer and his ninth with Hepburn, who was so shaken by Tracy's death, that she refused to watch the film after it was completed. Kramer called Tracy "the greatest actor I ever worked with."][
As a result of this film's commercial success, Kramer helped spur on Hollywood to reform its film marketing practices when it was observed that the film was doing excellent business everywhere in the US, including the Southern states where it was assumed that films with African American lead actors would never be accepted. As a result, the prominent presence of Black actors in films would never again be considered a factor in Hollywood film marketing and distribution.] However, Kramer, bothered by the film's negative reviews and wanting respect as an important film artist like François Truffaut
François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. After a career of more tha ...
and Jean-Luc Godard, undertook a nine-college speaking tour to screen the film and discuss racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration, includes desegregation (the process of ending systematic racial segregation). In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportun ...
. The effort proved a dispiriting embarrassment for him with college students largely dismissing his film and preferring to discuss less conventional fare like '' Bonnie and Clyde'' directed by Arthur Penn.
The film was Kramer's last major success, and his subsequent films were not profitable, although many had mixed reviews. Among those films were '' The Secret of Santa Vittoria'' (1968), '' R. P. M.'' (1970), '' Bless the Beasts and Children'' (1971), '' Oklahoma Crude'' (1973), '' The Domino Principle'' (1977), and '' The Runner Stumbles'' (1979). '' Oklahoma Crude'' was entered into the 8th Moscow International Film Festival where Kramer won the Golden Prize for Direction. At the time of his retirement, he was attempting to bring a script entitled "Three Solitary Drinkers" to the screen, a film about a trio of alcoholics that he hoped would be played by Sidney Poitier, Jack Lemmon, and Walter Matthau.
Retirement and death
In the 1980s, Kramer retired to Bellevue, Washington and wrote a column on movies for ''The Seattle Times
''The Seattle Times'' is a daily newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1891 and has been owned by the Blethen family since 1896. ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Washington s ...
'' from 1980 to 1996. During this time, he hosted his own weekly movie show on then-independent television station KCPQ.
In 1986, he signed an agreement with Columbia Pictures to produce or direct two films, ''Chernobyl'' and ''Beirut'', but the deal fell through when David Puttnam left Columbia. Three years later, he agreed to make ''ERN'' starring Robert Guillaume but the project stalled. In 1991, he signed a deal with Trimark to direct and produce ''Bubble Man'', a project he had been working on since 1972, but it was not made.
In 1997, Kramer published his autobiography ''A Mad Mad Mad Mad World: A Life in Hollywood''.
He died on February 19, 2001, in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, aged 87, after contracting pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...
. He was married three times and divorced twice. He was survived by his third wife, actress Karen Sharpe, and four children: Casey and Larry (with Anne Pearce), and Katharine and Jennifer (with Karen Sharpe).
Legacy
Kramer has been called "a genuine original" as a filmmaker. He made movies that he believed in, and "straddled the fence between art and commerce for more than 30 years." Most of his films were noted for engaging the audience with political and social issues of the time. When asked why he gravitated to those kinds of themes, he stated, "emotionally I am drawn to these subjects,"[ and thought that independent productions like his might help "return vitality to the motion picture industry. . . . If our industry is to flourish, we must break away from formula thinking."][
Film author Bill Nichols states that "Kramer's films continue a long-standing Hollywood tradition of marrying topical issues to dramatic form, a tradition in which we find many of Hollywood's more openly progressive films."][Hillstrom, Laurie Collier (ed.) ''International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers'', vol 2, St. James Press (1997) pp. 548-550] Among his themes, Kramer was one of the few filmmakers to delve into subjects relating to civil rights, and according to his wife, Karen Kramer, "put his reputation and finances on the line to present subject matter that meant something." He gave up his salary to make sure that ''Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' would be completed. He has not though been universally admired. Film critic David Thomson has written that Kramer's "films are middlebrow and overemphatic; at worst, they are among the most tedious and dispiriting productions the American cinema has to offer. Commercialism, of the most crass and confusing kind ... devitalised all fhis projects."[David Thomson ''The New Biographical Dictionary of Film'', New York: Knopf; London: Little, Brown, 2002, p.477]
Critics have often labeled Kramer's films as "message movies." Some, like Pauline Kael, were often critical of his subject matter for being "melodramas," and "irritatingly self-righteous," although she credits his films for their "redeeming social importance . . . ithsituations and settings nevertheless excitingly modern, relevant."[ Kramer, however, saw himself as "a storyteller with a point of view":
In the 1960s Kramer blamed the growing "youth culture" with having changed the "artistic landscape" as he remembered it from his own youth. "No longer," he said, "were writers or filmmakers interested in creating the Great American Novel or the great American film, or indeed with exploring what it meant to be American."][
In extreme cases, Kramer was accused of being "anti-American" due to the themes of his films, many concerning social problems or pathologies. But Kramer notes that it was his ability to produce those films in a democracy which distinguishes them:
Kramer produced and directed 23 different actors in Oscar-nominated performances, with José Ferrer, Gary Cooper, Maximilian Schell and ]Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...
winning for their performances. Kramer's was among the first stars to be completed on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...
on March 28, 1960, out of the original 1,550 stars created and installed as a unit in 1960.
One of his daughters, Kat Kramer, is co-producer of socially-relevant documentaries, as part of her series, ''Films That Change The World''.
The Stanley Kramer Award
The Producers Guild of America established the Stanley Kramer Award in 2002 to honor a production or individuals whose contribution illuminates and raises public awareness of important social issues.
Filmography
As producer and director
*'' Not as a Stranger'' (1955)
*'' The Pride and the Passion'' (1957)
*'' The Defiant Ones'' (1958)
*'' On the Beach'' (1959)
*'' Inherit the Wind'' (1960)
*'' Judgment at Nuremberg'' (1961)
*'' It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963)
*'' Ship of Fools'' (1965)
*'' Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' (1967)
*'' The Secret of Santa Vittoria'' (1968)
*'' R.P.M.'' (1970)
*'' Bless the Beasts and Children'' (1971)
*'' Oklahoma Crude'' (1973)
*'' Judgment: The Trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg'' (1974)
*'' The Domino Principle'' (1977)
*'' The Runner Stumbles'' (1979)
As producer only
*'' The Moon and Sixpence'' (Associate producer, 1942)
*'' So This Is New York'' (1948)
*'' Champion'' (1949)
*'' Home of the Brave'' (1949)
*'' The Men'' (1950)
*''Cyrano de Bergerac
Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist.
A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th c ...
'' (1950)
*''Death of a Salesman
''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a monta ...
'' (1951)
*'' High Noon'' (1952)
*'' The Sniper'' (1952)
*'' The Happy Time'' (1952)
*'' The Member of the Wedding'' (1952)
*''Eight Iron Men
''Eight Iron Men'' is a 1952 American World War II drama film directed by Edward Dmytryk and produced by Stanley Kramer. It stars Bonar Colleano, Arthur Franz, Lee Marvin and Richard Kiley. The screenplay by Harry Brown was based on his 19 ...
'' (1952)
*'' The Wild One'' (1953)
*'' The Juggler'' (1953)
*''The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T
''The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.'' is a 1953 American musical fantasy film about a boy who dreams himself into a fantasy world ruled by a diabolical piano teacher enslaving children to practice piano forever. It was the only feature film written b ...
'' (1953)
*'' The Caine Mutiny'' (1954)
*'' Pressure Point'' (1962)
*'' A Child Is Waiting'' (1963)
Academy Award Nominations
References
External links
* with Tom Brokaw, Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spi ...
, Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
, Harrison Ford and Al Gore
* , video, 3.5 min.
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kramer, Stanley
1913 births
2001 deaths
Film producers from New York (state)
20th-century American Jews
Best Director Golden Globe winners
German-language film directors
New York University Stern School of Business alumni
People from Brooklyn
People from Bellevue, Washington
Golden Globe Award-winning producers
Film directors from New York City
People from Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan
Deaths from pneumonia in California
American autobiographers
DeWitt Clinton High School alumni
Film directors from Washington (state)
Film producers from Washington (state)