Stanley Prager
Encyclopedia
Stanley Prager was an American
actor
and a television
and theatre director.
Born in New York City
, Prager began his career as the stage manager for the Broadway
production The Skin of Our Teeth
in 1942. He spent the remainder of the decade acting in mostly B-movie
s, with occasional roles in better films such as A Bell for Adano
, Gun Crazy
, In the Meantime, Darling
, and A Foreign Affair
.
After his name appeared on the Hollywood blacklist
, Prager returned to Broadway as a performer in Two on the Aisle
, Two's Company, Room Service
, and The Pajama Game
. He switched gears and began directing with Neil Simon
's Come Blow Your Horn
in 1961. Additional theatre directing credits include Bravo Giovanni
, Minnie's Boys
, Don't Drink the Water
, and 70, Girls, 70
.
Prager's television directing credits include The Love Song of Barney Kempinski for ABC Stage 67
, Car 54, Where Are You?
, and The Patty Duke Show
.
For Producer Sidney Pink, Prager directed two films in Europe: Madigan's Millions
the first film to star Dustin Hoffman
, and The Bang-Bang Kid starring Tom Bosley
and Guy Madison
. In his book So You Want To Make Movies, Sidney Pink wrote that he did not find Prager to be a good film director.
Prager died of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and a television
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
and theatre director.
Born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Prager began his career as the stage manager for the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
production The Skin of Our Teeth
The Skin of Our Teeth
The Skin of Our Teeth is a play by Thornton Wilder which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It opened on October 15, 1942 at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut, before moving to the Plymouth Theatre on Broadway on November 18, 1942...
in 1942. He spent the remainder of the decade acting in mostly B-movie
B-movie
A B movie is a low-budget commercial motion picture that is not definitively an arthouse or pornographic film. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified a film intended for distribution as the less-publicized, bottom half of a double feature....
s, with occasional roles in better films such as A Bell for Adano
A Bell for Adano
A Bell for Adano is a film directed by Henry King starring John Hodiak and Gene Tierney. The film was adapted from the novel A Bell for Adano by John Hersey, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1945. In his 1945 review of the film, Bosley Crowther wrote, "... this easily vulnerable picture, which came...
, Gun Crazy
Gun Crazy
Gun Crazy is a 1950 film noir feature film starring Peggy Cummins and John Dall in a story about the crime-spree of a gun-toting husband and wife. The film was directed by Joseph H. Lewis, and produced by Frank King and Maurice King...
, In the Meantime, Darling
In the Meantime, Darling
In the Meantime, Darling is a 1944 American drama film produced and directed by Otto Preminger. The screenplay by Arthur Kober and Michael Uris focuses on a wealthy war bride who is forced to adjust to living in spartan conditions in military housing during World War II.-Plot:Due to limited wartime...
, and A Foreign Affair
A Foreign Affair
A Foreign Affair is a 1948 American romantic comedy film directed by Billy Wilder. The screenplay by Wilder, Charles Brackett, and Richard L. Breen is based on a story by David Shaw adapted by Robert Harari...
.
After his name appeared on the Hollywood blacklist
Hollywood blacklist
The Hollywood blacklist—as the broader entertainment industry blacklist is generally known—was the mid-twentieth-century list of screenwriters, actors, directors, musicians, and other U.S. entertainment professionals who were denied employment in the field because of their political beliefs or...
, Prager returned to Broadway as a performer in Two on the Aisle
Two on the Aisle
Two on the Aisle is a musical revue with a book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Styne.The project marked Comden and Green's return to Broadway following their successful reign at MGM and their first teaming with composer Styne...
, Two's Company, Room Service
Room Service (play)
Room Service is a play written by Allen Boretz and John Murray. It was originally produced by George Abbott and debuted at the Cort Theatre in New York on May 19, 1937. Its initial production ran for 500 performances, closing on July 16, 1938. The play was revived for a short run of 16...
, and The Pajama Game
The Pajama Game
The Pajama Game is a musical based on the novel 7½ Cents by Richard Bissell. It features a score by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story deals with labor troubles in a pajama factory, where worker demands for a seven-and-a-half cents raise are going unheeded...
. He switched gears and began directing with Neil Simon
Neil Simon
Neil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
's Come Blow Your Horn
Come Blow Your Horn
Come Blow Your Horn was Neil Simon's first play, which premiered in the United States in 1961 and had a London production in 1962 at the Prince of Wales Theatre.-Act Summaries:Time: The Present...
in 1961. Additional theatre directing credits include Bravo Giovanni
Bravo Giovanni
Bravo Giovanni is a musical with a book by A. J. Russell, lyrics by Ronny Graham, and music by Milton Schafer. It is based upon the novel, "The Crime of Giovanni Venturi", by Howard Shaw ....
, Minnie's Boys
Minnie's Boys
Minnie's Boys is a musical with a book by Arthur Marx and Robert Fisher, music by Larry Grossman, and lyrics by Hal Hackady.It provides a behind-the-scenes look at the early days of the Marx Brothers and their relationship with their mother, the driving force behind their ultimate success.After an...
, Don't Drink the Water
Don't Drink the Water (play)
Don't Drink the Water is a play written by Woody Allen that premiered on Broadway on November 17, 1966 and played for 598 performances at three different Broadway theaters. The farce takes place inside an American Embassy behind the Iron Curtain...
, and 70, Girls, 70
70, Girls, 70
70, Girls, 70 is a musical with a book by Fred Ebb and Norman L. Martin adapted by Joe Masteroff, lyrics by Ebb, and music by John Kander.The musical is based on the 1958 play Breath of Spring by Peter Coke...
.
Prager's television directing credits include The Love Song of Barney Kempinski for ABC Stage 67
ABC Stage 67
ABC Stage 67 was the umbrella title for a series of 26 weekly shows that included dramas, variety shows, documentaries, and original musicals....
, Car 54, Where Are You?
Car 54, Where Are You?
Car 54, Where Are You? is an American sitcom that ran on NBC from 1961 to 1963. Episodes had various directors, the most recognized being Al De Caprio. Stanley Prager and Nat Hiken also directed several episodes. Most of its filming was on location in The Bronx, and at Biograph...
, and The Patty Duke Show
The Patty Duke Show
The Patty Duke Show is an American sitcom which ran on ABC from September 18, 1963, until May 4, 1966, with reruns airing through August 31, 1966. The show was created as a vehicle for rising star Patty Duke...
.
For Producer Sidney Pink, Prager directed two films in Europe: Madigan's Millions
Madigan's Millions
Madigan's Millions , is a 1968 Italian-Spanish movie directed by Stanley Prager and produced by Sidney W. Pink....
the first film to star Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
, and The Bang-Bang Kid starring Tom Bosley
Tom Bosley
Thomas Edward "Tom" Bosley was an American actor. Bosley is best known for portraying Howard Cunningham on the long-running ABC sitcom Happy Days. He also was featured in recurring roles on Murder, She Wrote, and Father Dowling Mysteries...
and Guy Madison
Guy Madison
Guy Madison was an American film and television actor.-Early life:Born Robert Ozell Moseley in Pumpkin Center, California, Madison attended Bakersfield College, a junior college, for two years and then worked briefly as a telephone lineman before joining the United States Coast Guard in...
. In his book So You Want To Make Movies, Sidney Pink wrote that he did not find Prager to be a good film director.
Prager died of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.