Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Joseph L. Mankiewicz | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Mankiewicz in a 1950 publicity photograph | |
| Born | Joseph Leo Mankiewicz February 11, 1909 |
| Died | February 5, 1993 (aged 83) Bedford, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Columbia University (BA) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1929–1972 |
| Spouses | Elizabeth Young
(m. 1934; div. 1937)Rose Stradner
(m. 1939; died 1958)Rosemary Matthews (m. 1962) |
| Children | 4, including Tom |
| Relatives | Herman J. Mankiewicz (brother) |
| Family | Mankiewicz family |
Joseph Leo Mankiewicz (February 11, 1909 – February 5, 1993) was an American filmmaker. A four-time Academy Award winner, he is best known for his witty and literate dialogue and his preference for voice-over narration and narrative flashbacks.[1] Also known as an actor's director, Mankiewicz directed several prominent actors, including Bette Davis, Gene Tierney, Humphrey Bogart and Elizabeth Taylor, to several of their memorable onscreen performances.[2]
Early life and education
[change | change source]Mankiewicz was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, to Franz Mankiewicz (died 1941) and Johanna Blumenau, Jewish emigrants from Germany and Courland, respectively.[3] His siblings were Herman J. Mankiewicz (1897–1953) and Erna Stenbuck (née Mankiewicz, 1901–1979).[4] At age four, Joseph moved with his family to New York City, and graduated in 1924 from Stuyvesant High School.[5] He followed his brother Herman to Columbia University, where he initially wanted to be a psychiatrist. Mankiewicz once stated, "I took a pre-med course at Columbia. Then came the part where you disembowel frogs and earthworms, which horrified and nauseated me. But what really finished me was physics."[6] Mankiewicz failed the course, and switched his major to English and wrote for the Columbia Daily Spectator. He graduated in 1928 and moved to Germany. There, he intended to enroll at the University of Berlin and finish his studies at Oxford for a potential career in pedagogy.[7]
Personal life
[change | change source]Joseph was the uncle of Frank Mankiewicz, a political campaign manager who officially announced the assassination of Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy in 1968. His niece Johanna "Josie" Mankiewicz Davis, worked as a journalist and a novelist. In July 1974, she was struck and killed by a taxicab in New York City at the age of 36.[8]
His great-nephews include writer-filmmaker Nick Davis (Johanna's son), NBC's Dateline reporter Josh Mankiewicz and television host Ben Mankiewicz (Frank's sons).[9]
Death
[change | change source]Mankiewicz died of a heart attack on February 5, 1993, six days before his 84th birthday. He was interred in Saint Matthew's Episcopal Churchyard cemetery in Bedford, New York.[5]
References
[change | change source]- ↑ "Famed movie director Mankiewicz dies". Lancaster Eagle-Gazette. Lancaster, Ohio. AP. February 7, 1993. p. 24. Archived from the original on April 17, 2025. Retrieved September 29, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Joseph L. Mankiewicz". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on June 15, 2024.
- ↑ "Dr. Frank Mankiewicz". The New York Times. December 5, 1941.
Mankiewicz, Mr. Frank, dearly beloved husband of Johanna, devoted father of Herman, Joseph, and Mrs. Erna Stenbuck. Services Park West Memorial Chapel, ...
- ↑ "Erna Mankiewicz Stenbuck, 78, Retired New York Schoolteacher". The New York Times. August 19, 1979. p. 36. Archived from the original on October 3, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
- 1 2 Flint, Peter (February 6, 1993). "Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Literate Skeptic of the Cinema, Dies at 83". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 5, 2025. Retrieved November 1, 2007.
Joseph L. Mankiewicz, a writer, director and producer who was one of Hollywood's most literate and intelligent film makers, died yesterday at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco, N.Y. He was 83 and lived in Bedford, N.Y.
- ↑ Coughlan, Robert (March 12, 1951). "15 Authors in Search of a Character Named Mankiewicz". Life. pp. 158–173. ISSN 0024-3019. Retrieved February 1, 2025 – via Google Books.
- ↑ Geist 1978, p. 21.
- ↑ "Writer Is Killed By Taxicab Here". The New York Times. July 27, 1974. p. 30. Archived from the original on April 12, 2025. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ↑ Davis 2021, pp. 295–297.
