Jack Henry Harris (November 28, 1918 – March 14, 2017) was an American film producer and distributor. He produced ''

The Blob ''The Blob'' is a 1958 American science fiction horror film directed by Irvin Yeaworth, and written by Kay Linaker and Theodore Simonson. It stars Steve McQueen (in his first feature film leading role) and Aneta Corsaut and co-stars Earl Rowe a ...

'' (1958), ''

4D Man ''4D Man'' (also known as ''The Evil Force'' in the UK; reissued as ''Master of Terror'' in the US) is a 1959 independent American science fiction film in color by De Luxe, produced by Jack H. Harris (from his original screenplay), directed by ...

'' (1959), and ''

Equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...

'' (1970).

Biography

Harris was born to a Jewish family in Philadelphia, the son of Sara and Benny Ostravsky. His mother was from Romania and his father from Poland; the latter changed the family surname to Harris. Harris began his career in show business as a vaudeville performer in Gus Edwards' Kiddie Revue when he was six years old. He would later work in a theatre as an usher, in a publicity department, and in the distribution field, finally later taking up a career as a producer. Harris is credited with coming up with the original motivation for his 1958 film, ''The Blob''. Harris also worked on the TV series '' It's About Time'' and ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, su ...

''. Harris was among the 22 people selected to be honored with a star 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, Californ ...

in 2014, in the motion pictures category. 95 at the time of his unveiling ceremony held on February 4, 2014, he was the oldest person to be honored with a star on the Walk of Fame.

Personal life

In 1988, he married Judith "Judy" Parker; they lived in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...

Death

Harris died March 14, 2017, at his home in Beverly Hills, surrounded by his family, aged 98; he is survived by his two children, Lynda Resnick and Anthony Harris.

Filmography

''He was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.''

Film

;Miscellaneous crew ;As an actor ;As writer ;As director ;Thanks

Television

;Miscellaneous crew

Book

In 2015 Harris published his first book, ''FATHER OF THE BLOB: The Making Of A Monster Smash & Other Hollywood Tales'' (TVGuestpert Publishing).Harris, Jack H. (2015). ''Father of the Blob: The Making of a Monster Smash and Other Hollywood Tales'', TVGuestpert Publishing. .

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Jack H. 1918 births 2017 deaths Film producers from Pennsylvania Jewish film people Businesspeople from Philadelphia American male film actors American people of Romanian-Jewish descent American people of Polish-Jewish descent 20th-century American businesspeople