Joe Pasternak

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Joe Pasternak (right) receives his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (1985)

Joseph Herman Pasternak (born September 19, 1901 in Szilágysomlyó , Austria-Hungary , † September 13, 1991 in Hollywood , California ) was a Hungarian- American film producer.

Life

Joseph Pasternak was born in 1901 as one of eleven children of a Jewish family in what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire ; the father was a town clerk in Szilágysomlyó (today Șimleu Silvaniei in northwestern Romania ). As a teenager he emigrated to the USA, where he initially (1920) stayed with an uncle in Philadelphia . In 1922 he became the assistant waiter of the New York outdoor studio of the film production company Paramount . On the side, he also completed an acting training. He worked his way up to head waiter within a year, but then quit his job to work in a subordinate function for the renowned director Allan Dwan . In 1925 he became an assistant director on The Phantom of the Opera with Lon Chaney senior .

Universal's boss Carl Laemmle ordered Pasternak to come to Germany during the Weimar Republic towards the end of the twenties , where he was supposed to supervise and / or produce German films for the international market. This led to several collaborations with director Wilhelm Dieterle, who later moved to Hollywood . Even after the Nazis came to power in Germany, he continued to produce film musicals for Universal's European branch before returning to the United States in 1936, where he continued to work for Universal. He helped 14-year-old Deanna Durbin achieve her breakthrough in Hollywood in 1936 with the successful film comedy Drei süße Mädels ( Three Smart Girls ) . Directed by Henry Koster , with whom Pasternak - a specialist in film musicals - had already cooperated in Central Europe and was to make seven more Durbin films.

One of his most famous productions is the western comedy The Great Bluff ( Destry Rides Again ) with James Stewart and Marlene Dietrich , which celebrated a comeback with the film. This was followed by the films The House of Seven Sins ( Seven Sinners , 1940) and The Adventurer ( The Flame of New Orleans , 1941), in each of which Marlene Dietrich played a leading role again. It is rumored that Pasternak also had a private interest in the actress, which, however, did not meet with any approval.

In 1941 Pasternak switched to MGM , where he also mainly produced film musicals, including Urlaub in Hollywood ( Anchors Aweigh , 1945) with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra and Der große Caruso ( The Great Caruso ) with Mario Lanza as tenor Enrico Caruso .

After more than 90 film productions, Pasternak retired in 1968. In 1939 he was nominated for the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award . In his later career, he received ten Laurel Award nominations in the Best Producer category.

His first marriage was to Margaret Flader. He later married Dorothy Darrel, with whom he stayed until his death.

In 1991 he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame . In the same year he died of Parkinson's disease at the age of 89 , after which he was buried in Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City .

Filmography (selection)

Awards

  • 1939: Nomination for the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award at the Academy Awards
  • 1958: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1959: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1960: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1961: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1962: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1963: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1965: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1966: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1967: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1968: Nomination for the Laurel Award for Best Producer
  • 1991: Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (1541 N. Vine Street)

literature

  • Kay Less : 'In life, more is taken from you than given ...'. Lexicon of filmmakers who emigrated from Germany and Austria between 1933 and 1945. A general overview. P. 389 f., ACABUS-Verlag, Hamburg 2011, ISBN 978-3-86282-049-8

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Pasternak, Joe
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Pasternak, Joseph Herman
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Hungarian-American film producer
DATE OF BIRTH September 19, 1901
PLACE OF BIRTH Szilágysomlyó , Austria-Hungary
DATE OF DEATH September 13, 1991
Place of death Hollywood , California