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Biography of Otto PremingerName: Otto PremingerBirth Date: December 5, 1906 Death Date: April, 1986 Place of Birth: Vienna, Austria Nationality: American Gender: Male Occupations: filmmaker, theater producer, theater director Otto Preminger The bombastic Austrian-born film director and producer Otto Preminger (1906-1986) had a long Hollywood career making movies that defied conventions of the time.Nicknamed "Otto the Terrible" for his legendary tantrums on Hollywood sets, Otto Preminger cajoled countless stars in dozens of films from the 1930s through the 1970s. His movies ranged from the delicately crafted suspense classic Laura, to the colossal epic Exodus, and included many commercial and critical successes as well as failures. Preminger had no single specialty, but his films ranged over a wide variety of styles and subject matters. His trademarks were his staunch independence and fierce control over all aspects of his films.Early YearsPreminger's father, Marc, was a lawyer and onetime attorney general of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Otto and his brother Ingo both earned law degrees in Vienna, the latter of whom ended up as a Hollywood agent. Otto was a teenager when he first …showed first 150 words…
…showed last 150 words…became his chief assistant. In 1986 at the age of 80, Preminger died of cancer at his home in Manhattan. Critics sharply disagree on his legacy. Sarris noted: "His enemies have never forgiven him for being a director with the personality of a producer." And Purtell contended: "Of all big-name Hollywood directors, possibly none has had as bad a rep as Otto Preminger. Admired in the '50s by French critics and new-wave filmmakers, he was largely dismissed in this country for what were perceived to be superficial, self-important films.... He deserves better.... Preminger made intelligent, literate entertainments that were models of screen clarity." Associated Works Exodus (Movie), Laura (Movie) Further Reading Halliwell's Film Guide, Eighth Edition, Harper Collins, 1991.Kauffmann, Stanley, A World on Film, Harper, 1966.Sarris, Andrew, Confessions of a Cultist, Simon & Schuster, 1970.Entertainment Weekly, July 29, 1994; February 14, 1997.Film Comment, September/October 1994.Films in Review, January 1956.New York Times, April 28, 1986.Time,May 5, 1986. |