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BIOGRAPHY
STANLEY DONEN
Stanley Donen Director | Miscellaneous Crew | Producer
Date of Birth 13 April 1924, Columbia, South Carolina, USA
Nickname The King of Musicals
Height 5' 8" (1.73 m)
Since he was a child, Stanley Donen attended dance classes and debuted on Broadway at age 17. With the help of the producer Arthur Freed and the actor Gene Kelly he got the chance to direct the musicals On the Town (1949), Singin' in the Rain (1952), and Love Is Better Than Ever (1952) which revolutionized the genre. Another important work of his own was the musical version of the book of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry 's The Little Prince (1974). As producer, he turned to the genre of comedy, with Surprise Package (1960), but he also produced some films of other genres.
Spouse (5)
Pamela Braden (1990 - 1994) (divorced)
Yvette Mimieux (4 November 1972 - 13 January 1985) (divorced)
Adelle O'Connor Beatty (23 September 1960 - 18 February 1971) (divorced) (1 child)
Marion Marshall (20 May 1952 - 7 August 1959) (divorced) (2 children)
Jeanne Coyne (12 April 1948 - 17 May 1951) (divorced)
Father of Peter Donen, Joshua Donen and Mark Donen.
His classic film, Singin' in the Rain (1952), was adapted for a musical in the West End and was awarded Outstanding Musical Production in 2001 (2000 season) at the Laurence Olivier Theatre Awards.
Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume Two, 1945-1985." Pages 273-282. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1988.
His first wife Jeanne Coyne later married Gene Kelly; his second wife Marion Marshall was a former girlfriend of the director Howard Hawks and later married the actor Robert Wagner; his third wife Adelle, Countess Beatty was the second wife of the 2nd Earl Beatty and his fourth wife Yvette Mimieux was a successful actress.
Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1969 and 1984.
Was dubbed "The King of the Hollywood Musical" by David Quinlan.
Profiled in "American Classic Screen Interviews" (Scarecrow Press). [2010]
Directed the video for Lionel Richie's song, "Dancing on the Ceiling", because of his experience directing Fred Astaire's dancing on the ceiling routine, from the movie, Royal Wedding (1951).
He has sons named Peter and Joshua, and the name "Peter Joshua" gets used in his movie "Charade", although it's not clear if this is a reference to his sons.
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