Wikipedia

George Schaefer (director)

George Louis Schaefer(December 16, 1920 – September 10, 1997) was an American director of television andBroadway theatre,who was active from the 1950s to the 1990s.

George Schaefer
Born
George Louis Schaefer

(1920-12-16)December 16, 1920
Wallingford, Connecticut,US
DiedSeptember 10, 1997(1997-09-10)(aged 76)
Los Angeles, California, US

Life and career

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Schaefer was born inWallingford, Connecticut,and lived inOak Park, Illinoisfor much of his boyhood and young adulthood. He was the son of Elsie (née Otterbein) and Louis Schaefer, who worked in sales.[1]Schaefer studied stage directing at theYale School of Drama.He began his directing career while serving in theU.S. ArmySpecial ServicesduringWorld War II.He directed over 50 plays for the troops. After being discharged, he directed for theBroadway theatre.His first production was ofShakespeare'sHamletstarringMaurice Evans.In 1953, Schaefer won aTony Awardfor his production ofThe Teahouse of the August Moonwhich he co-produced with Evans.

During theGolden Age of Television,Schaefer directed numerouslive TVadaptations of Broadway plays forNBC'sHallmark Hall of Fame.His first episode forHallmarkwas an adaptation of his Broadway staging ofHamletstarring Evans. In the 1980s, several of his productions forHallmarkaired in syndication under the titleGeorge Schaefer Showcase Theatre.His television work garnered him fiveEmmywins out of 21 total nominations. He also won fourDirectors Guild of America Awardsout of 17 nominations. He holds the record for the most DGA Award nominations. He also directed fivetheatrical films,but to limited success.

In February 1962, actors who had worked with Schaefer, includingEd Wynn,Ethel GriffiesandBoris Karloff,participated in a tribute to him on the late-night talk showPM East/PM Westthat was syndicated byGroup W Productionsto Westinghouse-owned television stations in Boston, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and San Francisco, as well as to other stations in Washington D.C., New York, and Los Angeles.[2]

This telecast holds the distinction of being the only episode ofPM East/PM West,which aired five nights a week for more than a year, to survive in its entirety. A videocassette of the 1962 telecast is available for viewing at theUCLA Film and Television Archive.[3]

PM East/PM Westwas never accessible inChicago, Illinois,theAmerican South,theSouthwestern United States,thePacific Northwestor in the states ofFloridaorTexas.

From 1979 to 1981, George Schaefer was president of theDirectors Guild of America.He was as a board member of PresidentRonald Reagan's National Council on the Arts from 1982 to 1988. In 1985, he was appointedChairmanand later associateDeanat theUCLA School of Theater Film and Televisionwhere he stayed until 1991.

During the 1980s and 1990s Schaefer served on the advisory board of theNational Student Film Institute.Schaefer also was the Honorary Chairperson of the Institute for a one-year term.[4][5]

In 1996, he released hisautobiographyFrom Live to Tape to Film: 60 Years of Inconspicuous Directing.[6]

Schaefer continued directingTV moviesuntil his death in 1997. His final TV movie was an adaptation ofHarvey.He was survived by his wife, Mildred Trares (1931-2020), whom he had married in 1954.[7]

Selected television work

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Selected Broadway theatre productions

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Filmography

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References

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  1. ^"George Schaefer Biography (1920-1997)".filmreference.com.
  2. ^Peter Guralnick(2005).Dream boogie: the triumph of Sam Cooke.Little, Brown. p.374.ISBN9780316377942.PM East/PM West.
  3. ^UCLA catalog known as Melvyl has a listing for the only surviving telecast of PM East/PM West.
  4. ^National Student Film Institute/L.A: The Sixteenth Annual Los Angeles Student Film Festival.The Directors Guild Theatre. June 10, 1994. pp. 10–11.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. ^Los Angeles Student Film Institute: 13th Annual Student Film Festival.The Directors Guild Theatre. June 7, 1991. p. 3.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  6. ^Schaefer, George (1996).From Live to Tape to Film: 60 Years of Inconspicuous Directing.Directors Guild of America.ISBN9781882766048.OCLC36145736.
  7. ^Mildred Trares Schaefer

Further reading

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