Darryl F. Zanuck
Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902 – December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of its longest survivors (the length of his career was rivaled only by that of Adolph Zukor). He produced three films that won the Academy Award for Best Picture during his tenure.
Zanuck was born in Wahoo, Nebraska, the son of Sarah Louise (née Torpin), who later married Charles Norton, and Frank Harvey Zanuck, who owned and operated a hotel in Wahoo. He had an older brother, Donald (1893–1903), who died in an accident when he was only 9 years old. Zanuck was of partial Swiss descent, and raised a Protestant. At age six, Zanuck and his mother moved to Los Angeles, where the better climate could improve her poor health. At age eight, he found his first movie job as an extra, but his disapproving father recalled him to Nebraska. In 1917, despite being 15, he deceived a recruiter, joined the United States Army, and served in France with the Nebraska National Guard during World War I.
Upon returning to the US, he worked in many part-time jobs while seeking work as a writer. He found work producing movie plots, and sold his first story in 1922 to William Russell and his second to Irving Thalberg. Screenwriter Frederica Sagor Maas, story editor at Universal Pictures' New York office, stated that one of the stories Zanuck sent out to movie studios around this time was completely plagiarized from another author's work.
Zanuck then worked for Mack Sennett and FBO (where he wrote the serials The Telephone Girl and The Leather Pushers) and took that experience to Warner Bros., where he wrote stories for Rin Tin Tin and under a number of pseudonyms wrote over 40 scripts from 1924 to 1929, including Red Hot Tires (1925) and Old San Francisco (1927). He moved into management in 1929, and became head of production in 1931.
In 1933, Zanuck left Warner Bros. over a salary dispute with studio head Jack L. Warner. A few days later, he partnered with Joseph Schenck to form 20th Century Pictures, Inc. with financial help from Joseph's brother Nicholas Schenck and Louis B. Mayer, president and studio head of Loew's, Inc and its subsidiary Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, along with William Goetz and Raymond Griffith. 20th Century released its material through United Artists.
During that short time (1933–1935), 20th Century became the most successful independent movie studio of its time, breaking box-office records with 18 of its 19 films, all profitable, including Clive of India, Les Miserables, and The House of Rothschild. After a dispute with United Artists over stock ownership, Schenck and Zanuck negotiated and used their studio to bring the bankrupt Fox studios in 1935 to create Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation.
Zanuck was Vice President of Production of this new studio and took a hands-on approach, closely involving himself in scripts, film editing, and producing. ... Source: Article "Darryl F. Zanuck" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Photos
Movies (299)
Rat Pack
2022 · Self (archive footage)
Hollywood Invasion
2011 · Self (archive footage)
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
2009 · Self (archive footage)
42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage
2006 · Self (archive footage)
Filmmakers vs. Tycoons
2005 · Self (archive footage)
Backstory: 'Gentleman's Agreement'
2001 · Self (archive footage)
Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood
2001 · Self (archive footage)
Backstory: 'How Green Was My Valley'
2000 · Self (archive footage)
Frank Capra's American Dream
1997 · Self (archive footage)
Darryl F. Zanuck: 20th Century Filmmaker
1995 · Self (archive footage)
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
1995 · Self (archive footage)
John Huston: The Man, the Movies, the Maverick
1988 · Self (archive footage)
Hung Up
1973 · Producer
Tora! Tora! Tora!
1970 · Executive Producer
D-Day Revisited
1968 · Self
The Agony and the Ecstasy
1965 · Executive Producer
The Visit
1964 · Producer
The Chapman Report
1962 · Producer
The Longest Day
1962 · Producer, Co-Director
The Big Gamble
1961 · Producer
Sanctuary
1961 · Producer
Crack in the Mirror
1960 · Writer, Producer
The Roots of Heaven
1958 · Producer
The Barbarian and the Geisha
1958 · Executive Producer
The Sun Also Rises
1957 · Producer
Island in the Sun
1957 · Producer
The King and I
1956 · Executive Producer
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit
1956 · Producer, Presenter
On the Threshold of Space
1956 · Executive Producer
Good Morning, Miss Dove
1955 · Executive Producer
The View from Pompey's Head
1955 · Executive Producer
Seven Cities of Gold
1955 · Executive Producer
Broken Lance
1954 · Executive Producer
The Egyptian
1954 · Producer
Beneath the 12-Mile Reef
1953 · Executive Producer
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
1952 · Producer
Viva Zapata!
1952 · Producer
The CinemaScope Parade
1951 · Self
People Will Talk
1951 · Producer
David and Bathsheba
1951 · Producer
All About Eve
1950 · Producer
The Screen Writer
1950 · Self (uncredited)
No Way Out
1950 · Presenter, Producer
Night and the City
1950 · Executive Producer
The Gunfighter
1950 · Executive Producer
A Ticket to Tomahawk
1950 · Executive Producer
Under My Skin
1950 · Executive Producer
Twelve O'Clock High
1949 · Producer
Everybody Does It
1949 · Executive Producer
Father Was a Fullback
1949 · Executive Producer
Pinky
1949 · Producer
Slattery's Hurricane
1949 · Executive Producer
Sand
1949 · Executive Producer
You're My Everything
1949 · Executive Producer
It Happens Every Spring
1949 · Executive Producer
The Fan
1949 · Executive Producer
The Forbidden Street
1949 · Executive Producer
The Walls of Jericho
1948 · Executive Producer
That Wonderful Urge
1948 · Executive Producer
The Snake Pit
1948 · Executive Producer
Apartment for Peggy
1948 · Executive Producer
Cry of the City
1948 · Executive Producer
Road House
1948 · Executive Producer
The Iron Curtain
1948 · Presenter
Give My Regards to Broadway
1948 · Executive Producer
Fury at Furnace Creek
1948 · Executive Producer
Call Northside 777
1948 · Executive Producer
Captain from Castile
1947 · Executive Producer
Gentleman's Agreement
1947 · Producer
Forever Amber
1947 · Executive Producer
Nightmare Alley
1947 · Executive Producer
The Foxes of Harrow
1947 · Executive Producer
I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now
1947 · Additional Writing
Moss Rose
1947 · Executive Producer
The Homestretch
1947 · Executive Producer
Carnival in Costa Rica
1947 · Executive Producer
Boomerang!
1947 · Executive Producer
The Shocking Miss Pilgrim
1947 · Executive Producer
The Razor's Edge
1946 · Producer
My Darling Clementine
1946 · Presenter
Centennial Summer
1946 · Executive Producer
Somewhere in the Night
1946 · Executive Producer
Strange Triangle
1946 · Executive Producer
Dragonwyck
1946 · Producer
Claudia and David
1946 · Executive Producer
Leave Her to Heaven
1945 · Executive Producer, Presenter
Winged Victory
1944 · Producer
Wilson
1944 · Producer
Buffalo Bill
1944 · Executive Producer
The Purple Heart
1944 · Producer, Story
Lifeboat
1944 · Executive Producer
Wintertime
1943 · Executive Producer
Show-Business at War
1943 · Self
Crash Dive
1943 · Executive Producer
China Girl
1942 · Screenplay, Producer
The Black Swan
1942 · Executive Producer
Thunder Birds
1942 · Story, Executive Producer
The Pied Piper
1942 · Executive Producer
Moontide
1942 · Executive Producer
This Above All
1942 · Producer
To the Shores of Tripoli
1942 · Producer
Song of the Islands
1942 · Executive Producer
Sex Hygiene
1942 · Producer
How Green Was My Valley
1941 · Producer
Know For Sure
1941 · Producer
Week-End in Havana
1941 · Executive Producer
A Yank in the R.A.F.
1941 · Story, Producer
Sun Valley Serenade
1941 · Executive Producer
Wild Geese Calling
1941 · Executive Producer
Moon Over Miami
1941 · Executive Producer
Man Hunt
1941 · Executive Producer
Blood and Sand
1941 · Producer
The Great American Broadcast
1941 · Producer
That Night in Rio
1941 · Producer
Western Union
1941 · Executive Producer
Tobacco Road
1941 · Producer
Tall, Dark and Handsome
1941 · Executive Producer
Chad Hanna
1940 · Producer
Hudson's Bay
1940 · Producer
The Mark of Zorro
1940 · Executive Producer
Down Argentine Way
1940 · Producer
Brigham Young
1940 · Producer
Public Deb No. 1
1940 · Producer
The Great Profile
1940 · Producer
The Return of Frank James
1940 · Producer
The Man I Married
1940 · Producer
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
1940 · Self
Maryland
1940 · Producer
Four Sons
1940 · Producer
Lillian Russell
1940 · Producer
Star Dust
1940 · Producer
The Grapes of Wrath
1940 · Producer
Little Old New York
1940 · Producer
The Blue Bird
1940 · Producer
Swanee River
1939 · Producer
Too Busy to Work
1939 · Producer
Drums Along the Mohawk
1939 · Producer
Hollywood Cavalcade
1939 · Producer
Here I Am a Stranger
1939 · Producer
The Rains Came
1939 · Producer
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
1939 · Producer
Stanley and Livingstone
1939 · Producer
Hotel for Women
1939 · Producer
Second Fiddle
1939 · Executive Producer
Susannah of the Mounties
1939 · Executive Producer
Young Mr. Lincoln
1939 · Producer
The Gorilla
1939 · Executive In Charge Of Production
Rose of Washington Square
1939 · Producer
The Story of Alexander Graham Bell
1939 · Producer
The Hound of the Baskervilles
1939 · Executive Producer
Wife, Husband and Friend
1939 · Producer
Tail Spin
1939 · Producer
Jesse James
1939 · Producer
Kentucky
1938 · Executive Producer
Submarine Patrol
1938 · Producer
Just Around the Corner
1938 · Producer
Suez
1938 · Producer
My Lucky Star
1938 · Producer
Gateway
1938 · Producer
Little Miss Broadway
1938 · Producer
I'll Give a Million
1938 · Producer
Always Goodbye
1938 · Producer
Three Blind Mice
1938 · Producer
Josette
1938 · Executive Producer
Kentucky Moonshine
1938 · Producer
In Old Chicago
1938 · Producer
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
1938 · Executive In Charge Of Production
Sally, Irene and Mary
1938 · Executive Producer
International Settlement
1938 · Producer
Happy Landing
1938 · Producer
Love and Hisses
1937 · Producer
Heidi
1937 · Producer
Lancer Spy
1937 · Executive Producer
Wife, Doctor and Nurse
1937 · Producer
Thin Ice
1937 · Producer
Wake Up and Live
1937 · Producer
Wee Willie Winkie
1937 · Producer
Slave Ship
1937 · Producer
Angel's Holiday
1937 · Producer
This Is My Affair
1937 · Production Manager
Seventh Heaven
1937 · Producer
Nancy Steele Is Missing!
1937 · Producer
Love Is News
1937 · Executive In Charge Of Production
On the Avenue
1937 · Producer
Banjo on My Knee
1936 · Executive Producer
White Hunter
1936 · Producer
Lloyd's of London
1936 · Production Manager
Reunion
1936 · Executive Producer
Pigskin Parade
1936 · Producer
Ladies in Love
1936 · Executive In Charge Of Production
Ramona
1936 · Executive Producer
The Road to Glory
1936 · Producer
Sing, Baby, Sing
1936 · Producer
To Mary - with Love
1936 · Producer
Poor Little Rich Girl
1936 · Producer
White Fang
1936 · Producer
Private Number
1936 · Production Manager
Half Angel
1936 · Producer
Under Two Flags
1936 · Producer
The Country Beyond
1936 · Producer
A Message to Garcia
1936 · Producer
The Prisoner of Shark Island
1936 · Producer
It Had to Happen
1936 · Producer
Professional Soldier
1935 · Producer
The Littlest Rebel
1935 · Production Manager
Show Them No Mercy!
1935 · Producer
The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo
1935 · Producer
Thanks a Million
1935 · Producer
Metropolitan
1935 · Producer
Call of the Wild
1935 · Producer
'G' Men
1935 · Novel
Les Misérables
1935 · Producer
Cardinal Richelieu
1935 · Producer
Folies Bergère de Paris
1935 · Producer
Clive of India
1935 · Producer
The Mighty Barnum
1934 · Producer
The Affairs of Cellini
1934 · Producer
Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back
1934 · Producer
Born to Be Bad
1934 · Producer
The Last Gentleman
1934 · Producer
The House of Rothschild
1934 · Producer
Looking for Trouble
1934 · Producer
Moulin Rouge
1934 · Producer
Lady Killer
1933 · Story
Gallant Lady
1933 · Producer
Advice to the Lovelorn
1933 · Producer
Blood Money
1933 · Producer
The Bowery
1933 · Producer
Baby Face
1933 · Story
Ex-Lady
1933 · Producer
The Working Man
1933 · Producer
42nd Street
1933 · Producer
The 42nd Street Special
1933 · Self
Parachute Jumper
1933 · Producer
20,000 Years in Sing Sing
1932 · Producer
Three on a Match
1932 · Producer
The Cabin in the Cotton
1932 · Producer
Life Begins
1932 · Executive Producer
Doctor X
1932 · Executive Producer
The Dark Horse
1932 · Producer, Story
The Rich Are Always with Us
1932 · Producer
The Man Who Played God
1932 · Producer
Blonde Crazy
1931 · Executive Producer
The Public Enemy
1931 · Producer
Illicit
1931 · Producer
Little Caesar
1931 · Producer, Additional Writing
The Life of the Party
1930 · Writer
The Doorway to Hell
1930 · Executive Producer
Maybe It's Love
1930 · Story
Three Faces East
1930 · Producer
The Show of Shows
1929 · Producer
Disraeli
1929 · Producer
On With the Show!
1929 · Producer
Madonna of Avenue A
1929 · Story
Hardboiled Rose
1929 · Story
My Man
1928 · Story
Noah's Ark
1928 · Story, Associate Producer
The Singing Fool
1928 · Producer
The Terror
1928 · Producer
The Midnight Taxi
1928 · Story
State Street Sadie
1928 · Story
Lights of New York
1928 · Production Supervisor
Pay as You Enter
1928 · Story
Tenderloin
1928 · Story, Producer
Ham and Eggs at the Front
1927 · Story
Jaws of Steel
1927 · Writer
Old San Francisco
1927 · Writer, Producer
The Desired Woman
1927 · Associate Producer, Story
The First Auto
1927 · Producer, Story
The Black Diamond Express
1927 · Story
Simple Sis
1927 · Story
Irish Hearts
1927 · Story
Tracked by the Police
1927 · Story
The Missing Link
1927 · Scenario Writer
Wolf's Clothing
1927 · Screenplay
The Better 'Ole
1926 · Screenplay
Across the Pacific
1926 · Adaptation
So This Is Paris
1926 · Producer
Footloose Widows
1926 · Writer
The Social Highwayman
1926 · Story
Oh! What a Nurse!
1926 · Scenario Writer
The Little Irish Girl
1926 · Adaptation
The Cave Man
1926 · Writer
Lady Windermere's Fan
1925 · Producer
Hogan's Alley
1925 · Writer
Three Weeks in Paris
1925 · Scenario Writer
Seven Sinners
1925 · Story
Red Hot Tires
1925 · Story
The Limited Mail
1925 · Writer
Eve's Lover
1925 · Scenario Writer, Producer
A Broadway Butterfly
1925 · Writer
On Thin Ice
1925 · Scenario Writer
The Lighthouse by the Sea
1924 · Writer
Find Your Man
1924 · Writer
Sherlock's Home
1924 · Scenario Writer
Money to Burns
1924 · Co-Writer
Fighting Blood
1923 · Writer
Fighting Blood
1923 · Writer
Fighting Blood
1923 · Writer
