Jed Harris
Jed Harris , real name Jacob Hirsch Horowitz (* 25. February 1900 in Lviv ; † 15. November 1979 in New York ) was a famous American Broadway - producer and screenwriter .
biography
Jed Harris was born in Lviv to Jewish parents. After the First World War , Lviv fell back to Poland after some fierce fighting between Poles and Ukrainians . The city was occupied by Polish troops in November 1918. His parents were killed in a pogrom that lasted November 22-24, 1918. In 1920 he came to the United States and changed his name from Jakob Hirsch-Horowitz to Jed Harris . Within eighteen months, he produced four Broadway hits in a row from 1927 to 1928. Jed Harris was married three times: from 1925 to 1929 with Anita Green, from 1939 to 1941 with Louise Platt and in 1951 with Beatrice Allen. He had a long romance with the fashion designer Pauline Fairfax-Potter and the actress Ruth Gordon . His only child, Jones (* 1929), emerged from the relationship with Ruth Gordon.
Career
theatre
Between 1925 and 1956, Jed Harris produced thirty-one Broadway shows and even directed some. His productions earned seven trophies, including a Tony Award and the Pulitzer Prize for Thornton Wilder . Harris was known for his harshness and his character was depicted in many satires . Under Jed Harris leadership, some actors became world famous: Leo G. Carroll (1892–1972), Laurence Olivier (1907–1989), Lillian Gish (1893–1993), Basil Rathbone (1892–1967), Elaine Stritch (* 1926), Ruth Gordon (1896–1985), Walter Huston (1884–1950, father of John Huston ), Osgood Perkins (1892–1937, father of Anthony Perkins ), Katharine Hepburn (1907–2003). In 1949 he discovered Darlene Conley (1934-2007), who was just fifteen .
cinemamovies
While many of his theatrical hits were captured on celluloid , Jed Harris was reluctant to get involved in the movie business. His first foray into the industry was with the 1929 film Broadway . In the early 1950s, he directed the TV series "The Billy Rose Show" . Harris wrote the scripts for the films "Encounter in Tunis" (Original title: The Light Touch , 1952) with George Sanders and " Das Invisbaren Netz " (Original title: Night People , 1954) with Gregory Peck , the latter together with Tom Reed . His second and last produced film was "Seldom Laughed So" (Original title: Operation Mad Ball , 1957) with Jack Lemmon , Dick York and Mickey Rooney . Jed Harris was a frequent guest on Dick Cavett's talk show on PBS .
Awards for Jed Harris
| year | Result | Award | category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | nominated | Oscar | Best original story " The Invisible Net " (1954) together with Tom Reed |
| 1958 | nominated | WGA Award | Best script for comedy : “ Seldom laughed like that ” (1957) |
Web links
- Jed Harris in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Jed Harris in the Internet Broadway Database
literature
- Martin Gottfried: The Curse of Genius , Little, Brown and Company (1984)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Harris, Jed |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Hirsch-Horowitz, Jakob |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American Broadway producer and screenwriter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 25, 1900 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Lviv |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 15, 1979 |
| Place of death | New York , United States |