Dore Schary
Born
Isadore Schary

(1905-08-31)August 31, 1905
Newark, New Jersey, US
DiedJuly 7, 1980(1980-07-07) (aged 74)
New York City
Occupation(s)Screenwriter, playwright, film director, studio executive

Isadore "Dore" Schary (August 31, 1905 – July 7, 1980) was an American motion picture director, writer, and producer, and playwright who became head of production at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and eventually president of the studio.[1][2]

Career

Schary had his first success as a writer when a play he wrote, Too Many Heroes, ran on Broadway for 16 performances in the fall of 1937. He worked in Hollywood, Los Angeles, and in 1938 won the Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Story as co-writer of the screenplay for Boys Town. From 1942 to 1943, he ran MGM's "B" pictures organization. He was with RKO Pictures when in 1948 he became chief of production at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios.

Schary and studio chief and founder Louis B. Mayer were constantly at odds over philosophy; Mayer favoring splashy, wholesome entertainment and Schary leaning toward what Mayer derided as "message pictures". In the postwar period, MGM's success as a studio declined. The MGM corporate office in New York decided that Schary might be able to turn the tide. Schary was involved in disputes at the studio with Mayer over films such as Battleground and The Red Badge of Courage. In 1951, Mayer was ousted and Schary installed as president. He was replaced in 1956 by Benny Thau, another long-term executive.

During his term, the studio system was coming to an end due to United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. (1948), a Supreme Court decision that severed the connection between film studios and the theaters that showed their films.[3] In addition, television was causing a decrease in theater attendance.

MGM swimming star Esther Williams would later state in her 1999 autobiography The Million Dollar Mermaid that Schary was rude, cruel, and as imperious as Mayer had been. She found it appropriate that Schary was fired on Thanksgiving Day, since he was a "turkey".[4]

In 1956 in his final year running MGM, he appeared on the show This is Your Life. Host Ralph Edwards stated that there has never been a show where more stars appeared to honor a guest.[5] Following his departure from MGM, he wrote the Broadway play, Sunrise at Campobello. The play won five Tony Awards. He wrote and produced the motion picture of the same name in 1960. He also had a brief uncredited role in the film, playing the Chairman of the Connecticut Delegation.[6]

Politics

Although one of the studio executives who formulated the 1947 Waldorf Statement, he became an outspoken opponent of the anti-communist investigations the House Un-American Activities Committee. He served as National Chairman of the B'nai B'rith's Anti-Defamation League and as New York City Commissioner for Cultural Affairs. [citation needed]

Personal life

Schary was born in Newark, New Jersey and was the father of novelist and memoirist Jill Robinson. He graduated from Central High School in Newark in 1923.

Death

Schary died in 1980, aged 74, and was interred in the Hebrew Cemetery, West Long Branch, New Jersey.

Legacy

To honor his memory, the Anti-Defamation League established the Dore Schary Awards in 1982.

Select Filmography

As Head of MGM B Unit

For David O. Selznick

As Head of RKO

Produced While Head of MGM

Theatre Credits

References

  1. ^ "Dore Schary". The New York Times.
  2. ^ Schary, Dore (1979). Heyday: An autobiography. Boston: Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-77270-4.
  3. ^ "U.S. Supreme Court decides Paramount antitrust case". History.com.
  4. ^ "Dore Schary 1963 Playbill "Love And Kisses" Signed Autograph". guaranteedautographs.com. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  5. ^ "Dore Schary 1963 Playbill "Love And Kisses" Signed Autograph". guaranteedautographs.com. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  6. ^ Sunrise at Campobello at IMDb

Dory worked as a printer in his young life at Art Craft Press. Newark n.j.

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