Walter Grauman
Encyclopedia
Walter E. Grauman is an American director of stage shows, films and television shows
.
In his early years, Grauman lived in Shorewood Village, Wisconsin
, a suburb of Milwaukee, and later moved Arizona
where he attended the University of Arizona
. He served for four years in the United States Army Air Force flying 56 combat missions over Europe in a B-25 in the Twelfth Air Force and was awarded the Distinquished Flying Cross before moving to California
, where his mother was living at the time.
's studios in Los Angeles
. During his stint working at the network, he and relative (by marriage) Alan Armer
developed a talent-show type program that proved popular, setting the mold for shows like Star Search
and American Idol
to follow.
In 1957, Grauman turned to films, directing "The Disembodied" for the "B film" division of Allied Artists Studios, which was headed by friend Walter Mirisch
. Although he directed only six theatrical films, Grauman had one of the most active and long lasting television careers in history which included work on such shows as The Fugitive
, Route 66
, The Streets of San Francisco
and The Twilight Zone
. He also reportedly helped to get Michael Douglas
one of his first jobs as a lead on The Streets of San Francisco.
Mr. Grauman directed 633 Squadron
, a World War II film about a fictional sqaudron in the British
RAF. In interviews, George Lucas
has commented that he patterned the "trench run" sequence in his Star Wars: Episode IV
on a scene from this film. (See the article on 633 Squadron for more information.)
Mr. Grauman is the creator/executive producer of the Los Angeles Spotlight Awards (not to be confused with the Spotlight Awards (GDC)
for game developers), which are run through the Los Angeles Music Center
. He is also among the closest living relatives to Sid Grauman
, owner and founder of Los Angeles' famous Grauman's Chinese Theater, Egyptian Theater
and Million Dollar Theater
. He now resides in Los Angeles
with his wife.
Plus over 275 30-minute and 1-hour filmed dramatic programs, including:
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
.
Early life
Grauman was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Jacob and Irene Grauman, both children of German immigrants who married after settling in the United States. His father, Jacob Grauman, was president of a film distributing company.In his early years, Grauman lived in Shorewood Village, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, a suburb of Milwaukee, and later moved Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
where he attended the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
. He served for four years in the United States Army Air Force flying 56 combat missions over Europe in a B-25 in the Twelfth Air Force and was awarded the Distinquished Flying Cross before moving to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, where his mother was living at the time.
Entertainment Industry
After spending a few years running his own business, Grauman eventually took a job as stage manager at NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's studios in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. During his stint working at the network, he and relative (by marriage) Alan Armer
Alan Armer
Alan A. Armer was an American television writer, producer, and director.Born in Los Angeles, Armer received a bachelor's degree in speech and drama from Stanford University, a master's in theatre arts from UCLA and an honorary doctor's degree from California State University, Northridge.After...
developed a talent-show type program that proved popular, setting the mold for shows like Star Search
Star Search
Star Search is a television show that was produced from 1983-95, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Alfred Masini. A relaunch was produced in 2003-04. The show was originally filmed at the old Earl Carroll Theatre at 6230 Sunset Blvd...
and American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
to follow.
In 1957, Grauman turned to films, directing "The Disembodied" for the "B film" division of Allied Artists Studios, which was headed by friend Walter Mirisch
Walter Mirisch
Walter Mortimer Mirisch is an American film producer. In his long and successful motion picture career, Walter Mirisch has produced some of the industry’s finest and most memorable films...
. Although he directed only six theatrical films, Grauman had one of the most active and long lasting television careers in history which included work on such shows as The Fugitive
The Fugitive (TV series)
The Fugitive is an American drama series produced by QM Productions and United Artists Television that aired on ABC from 1963 to 1967. David Janssen stars as Richard Kimble, a doctor from the fictional town of Stafford, Indiana, who is falsely convicted of his wife's murder and given the death...
, Route 66
Route 66 (TV series)
Route 66 is an American TV series in which two young men traveled across America. The show ran weekly on CBS from 1960 to 1964. It starred Martin Milner as Tod Stiles and, for two and a half seasons, George Maharis as Buz Murdock. Maharis was ill for much of the third season, during which time Tod...
, The Streets of San Francisco
The Streets of San Francisco
The Streets of San Francisco is a 1970s television police drama filmed on location in San Francisco, California, and produced by Quinn Martin Productions, with the first season produced in association with Warner Bros...
and The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
. He also reportedly helped to get Michael Douglas
Michael Douglas
Michael Kirk Douglas is an American actor and producer, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and as Best Actor in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the...
one of his first jobs as a lead on The Streets of San Francisco.
Mr. Grauman directed 633 Squadron
633 Squadron
633 Squadron is a 1964 British film which depicts the exploits of a fictional Second World War British fighter-bomber squadron. It was based on a novel of the same name by Frederick E. Smith, published in 1956, which itself drew on several real Royal Air Force missions. The film was directed by...
, a World War II film about a fictional sqaudron in the British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
RAF. In interviews, George Lucas
George Lucas
George Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, and director, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive of Lucasfilm. He is best known as the creator of the space opera franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
has commented that he patterned the "trench run" sequence in his Star Wars: Episode IV
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, originally released as Star Wars, is a 1977 American epic space opera film, written and directed by George Lucas. It is the first of six films released in the Star Wars saga: two subsequent films complete the original trilogy, while a prequel trilogy completes the...
on a scene from this film. (See the article on 633 Squadron for more information.)
Mr. Grauman is the creator/executive producer of the Los Angeles Spotlight Awards (not to be confused with the Spotlight Awards (GDC)
Spotlight Awards (GDC)
The Spotlight Awards was hosted annually by the Game Developers Conference from 1997 to 1999. Its focus was on the video and computer game industry. GDC now hosts another video game award ceremony call Game Developers Choice Awards since 2001....
for game developers), which are run through the Los Angeles Music Center
Los Angeles Music Center
The Music Center is one of the three largest performing arts centers in the nation. Located in downtown Los Angeles, the Music Center is home to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Ahmanson Theater, Mark Taper Forum and Walt Disney Concert Hall...
. He is also among the closest living relatives to Sid Grauman
Sid Grauman
Sidney Patrick Grauman was an American showman who created one of Southern California's most recognizable and visited landmarks, Grauman's Chinese Theater. He was the son of David Grauman who died in 1921 in Los Angeles, California and Rosa Goldsmith...
, owner and founder of Los Angeles' famous Grauman's Chinese Theater, Egyptian Theater
Grauman's Egyptian Theatre
Grauman's Egyptian Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California, is one of the world's most famous movie theatres. Opened in 1922, it was the venue for the first-ever Hollywood premiere.- History :...
and Million Dollar Theater
Million Dollar Theater
The Million Dollar Theater at 307 S. Broadway in downtown Los Angeles is one of the first movie palaces built in the United States. It opened in February 1918...
. He now resides in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
with his wife.
Directorial Credits, theatrical films
- Lady in a CageLady in a CageLady in a Cage is a 1964 American film directed by Walter Grauman, written and produced by Luther Davis, and released by Paramount Pictures. It stars Olivia de Havilland and features James Caan in his first substantial film role.-Plot:...
, Paramount - 633 Squadron633 Squadron633 Squadron is a 1964 British film which depicts the exploits of a fictional Second World War British fighter-bomber squadron. It was based on a novel of the same name by Frederick E. Smith, published in 1956, which itself drew on several real Royal Air Force missions. The film was directed by...
, Mirisch/UA - A Rage to LiveA Rage to LiveA Rage to Live is a 1965 American drama film directed by Walter Grauman and starring Suzanne Pleshette as a woman whose passions wreak havoc on her life. The screenplay by John T. Kelley is based on the 1949 novel of the same name by John O'Hara.-Plot:...
, Mirisch/UA - The Last Escape, Mirisch/UA
- I Deal in Danger, 20th Century Fox
- The Disembodied, Allied Artists
Pilots and television Series
- Columbo
- The UntouchablesThe Untouchables (1959 TV series)The Untouchables is an American crime drama that ran from 1959 to 1963 on ABC. Based on the memoir of the same name by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley, it fictionalized the experiences of Eliot Ness, a real-life Prohibition agent, as he fought crime in Chicago during the 1930s with the help of a...
- The FugitiveThe Fugitive (TV series)The Fugitive is an American drama series produced by QM Productions and United Artists Television that aired on ABC from 1963 to 1967. David Janssen stars as Richard Kimble, a doctor from the fictional town of Stafford, Indiana, who is falsely convicted of his wife's murder and given the death...
(pilot) - The Streets of San FranciscoThe Streets of San FranciscoThe Streets of San Francisco is a 1970s television police drama filmed on location in San Francisco, California, and produced by Quinn Martin Productions, with the first season produced in association with Warner Bros...
(pilot) - Barnaby JonesBarnaby JonesBarnaby Jones is a television detective series starring Buddy Ebsen and Lee Meriwether as father- and daughter-in-law who run a private detective firm in Los Angeles. A spin-off from Cannon, the show ran on CBS from January 28, 1973 to April 3, 1980, beginning as a midseason replacement...
(pilot) - East Side/West SideEast Side/West SideEast Side/West Side is an American drama series starring George C. Scott, Elizabeth Wilson, Cicely Tyson, and later on, Linden Chiles. The series aired for only one season and was shown Monday nights on CBS.-Synopsis:...
- Naked CityNaked City (TV series)Naked City is a police drama series which aired from 1958 to 1963 on the ABC television network. It was inspired by the 1948 motion picture of the same name, and mimics its dramatic "semi-documentary" format....
- The New BreedThe New Breed (TV series)The New Breed is an American crime drama series that aired on ABC from October 3, 1961 to June 5, 1962, with thirty-six episodes.-Synopsis:...
(pilot) - Route 66Route 66 (TV series)Route 66 is an American TV series in which two young men traveled across America. The show ran weekly on CBS from 1960 to 1964. It starred Martin Milner as Tod Stiles and, for two and a half seasons, George Maharis as Buz Murdock. Maharis was ill for much of the third season, during which time Tod...
- Honey WestHoney West (TV series)Honey West is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC during the 1965-1966 television season. The series stars Anne Francis as female private detective Honey West and John Ericson as her partner Sam Bolt....
(pilot) - ManhunterThe ManhunterThe Manhunter is an American crime drama that was part of CBS' lineup for the 1974 - 1975 television season. The series was produced by Quinn Martin and starred Ken Howard as Dave Barret, a 1930s-era private investigator from Idaho...
(pilot) - Most WantedMost Wanted (TV series)Most Wanted is an American crime drama series shown on ABC from October 16, 1976 until August 20, 1977. It starred Robert Stack, Jo Ann Harris, Shelly Novack, and Hari Rhodes...
(pilot) - Bare EssenceBare EssenceBare Essence is an American television soap opera which aired on the NBC network during the 1982-1983 season.Bare Essence starred popular daytime soap actress Genie Francis and dealt with the intrigues of the perfume industry...
(pilot) - Harrigan & Son (pilot)
- The Silent Force (pilot)
- Scene of the Crime (pilot)
- Murder, She WroteMurder, She WroteMurder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
(53 one-hour episodes)
Plus over 275 30-minute and 1-hour filmed dramatic programs, including:
- V
- Trapper John, M.D.Trapper John, M.D.Trapper John, M.D. is an American television medical drama and spin-off of the film MASH, concerning a lovable surgeon who became a mentor and father figure in San Francisco, California. The show ran on CBS from September 23, 1979, to September 4, 1986....
- Twelve O'Clock HighTwelve O'Clock High (TV series)Twelve O'Clock High or 12 O'Clock High is an American drama series set in World War II. This TV series originally broadcasted on ABC-TV for two-and-one-half TV seasons from September 18, 1964, through January 13, 1967; was based on the motion picture Twelve O'Clock High...
- The Eleventh HourThe Eleventh Hour (1962 TV series)The Eleventh Hour is an American medical drama about psychiatry starring Wendell Corey, Jack Ging, and Ralph Bellamy, which aired sixty-two new episodes plus selected rebroadcasts on NBC from October 3, 1962, to September 9, 1964.-Series premise:...
- LancerLancer (TV series)Lancer is a 1968-1970 Western television series on CBS, which starred Andrew Duggan, James Stacy, and Wayne Maunder as a father with two half-brother sons, an arrangement similar to the more successful Bonanza on NBC....
- Hotel de PareeHotel de PareeHotel de Paree is a Western television series that aired on the CBS Friday schedule from October 2, 1959, until June 3, 1960, under the alternate sponsorship of Liggett & Myers and Kellogg's....
- Man Without a GunMan Without a GunMan Without a Gun is a western television series produced by 20th Century Fox television and presented in first-run syndication in the United States from 1957 to 1959...
- Colt .45Colt .45 (TV series)Colt .45 is an American Western television series shown on ABC between 1957 and 1960. The half-hour show derives from the 1950 Warner Brothers film of the same name starring Randolph Scott and formed part of the William T...
- Cover Up
- Steve Canyon
- Peter GunnPeter GunnPeter Gunn is an American private eye television series which aired on the NBC and later ABC television networks from 1958 to 1961. The show's creator was Blake Edwards...
- Blue LightBlue LightBlue Light was a unit of the 5th Special Forces Group that existed into the early 1980s.According to Col. Charles Beckwith's memoirs, this counter-terrorist group was formed by U.S. Army Special Forces leadership who disagreed with or felt politically threatened by Beckwith's Delta Force, which...
- Burke's LawBurke's LawBurke's Law is a detective series that ran on ABC from 1963 to 1965 and was revived on CBS in the 1990s. The show starred Gene Barry as Amos Burke, millionaire captain of Los Angeles police homicide division, who was chauffeured around to solve crimes in his Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud...
- The June Allyson Show
- EmpireEmpire (1962 TV series)Empire, an hour-long Western television series set on a 1960s ranch in New Mexico, starred Richard Egan , Terry Moore , and Ryan O'Neal . It ran on NBC for a season between September 25, 1962, and May 14, 1963...
Live Television Drama
- 80 Matinee Theater one-hour programs
- Alcoa TheatreAlcoa TheatreAlcoa Theatre is a half-hour anthology series telecast on NBC at 9:30 pm on alternate Monday nights from October 7, 1957 to September 16, 1960. The program also aired under the title Turn of Fate, with the stories depicting the difficulties faced by individuals who are suddenly thrust into...
- The Philco Television PlayhouseThe Philco Television PlayhouseThe Philco Television Playhouse, a live television anthology series sponsored by Philco, was telecast from 1948 to 1955. Produced by Fred Coe, the NBC series was seen on Sundays from 9:00pm to 10:00pm...
Director/Creator/Executive Producer
- Blue LightBlue LightBlue Light was a unit of the 5th Special Forces Group that existed into the early 1980s.According to Col. Charles Beckwith's memoirs, this counter-terrorist group was formed by U.S. Army Special Forces leadership who disagreed with or felt politically threatened by Beckwith's Delta Force, which...
- series, ABC - Felony SquadFelony SquadFelony Squad is a half-hour television crime drama originally broadcast on the ABC network from September 12, 1966 to January 31, 1969, a span encompassing seventy-three episodes.-Overview:...
- series, ABC - Six Movies-of-the-Week, ABC
- World Premiere, NBC
- Eleven two-hour Movies, CBS
Movies for Television and Mini-Series
- The Forgotten Man - Director/Producer/Creator
- Daughter of the MindDaughter of the MindDaughter of the Mind is a made-for-television suspense film starring Don Murray, Ray Milland and Gene Tierney. It was first broadcast on ABC on December 9, 1969 as the ABC Movie of the Week.-Plot:...
- Director/Executive Producer - Crowhaven Farm - Director/Producer
- The Old Man Who Cried Wolf - Director/Producer
- Dead Men Tell No TalesDead Men Tell No TalesDead Men Tell No Tales is a 1938 British thriller film directed by David MacDonald and starring Emlyn Williams, Sara Seegar and Hugh Williams. It is based on the 1935 novel The Norwich Victims by Francis Beeding.-Plot:...
- Director/Executive Producer - Paper Man - Director/Executive Producer
- They Call It MurderThey Call It MurderThey Call It Murder is a 1971 American television film directed by Walter Grauman.-Cast:*Jim Hutton ... Doug Selby, D.A.*Lloyd Bochner ... A.B. Carr*Jo Ann Pflug ... Sylvia Martin*Robert J. Wilke ... Sheriff Rex Brandon...
- Director/Executive Producer - Nightmare on the 13th Floor - Executive Producer/Director
Movies for Television and Mini Series - Director
- Are You In The House Alone?Are You in the House Alone?Are You in the House Alone? is a 1978 made-for-tv thriller film directed by Walter Grauman. The film is based on the 1976 novel of the same name written by Richard Peck.- Plot :...
- 2 hr - Crisis in Mid-air - 2 hr
- The Golden Gate Murders - David JanssenDavid JanssenDavid Janssen was an American film and television actor who is best known for his starring role as Dr. Richard Kimble in the television series The Fugitive , the starring role in the 1950s hit detective series Richard Diamond, Private Detective , and as Harry Orwell on Harry O.In 1996 TV Guide...
/Susannah YorkSusannah YorkSusannah York was a British film, stage and television actress. She was awarded a BAFTA as Best Supporting Actress for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe for the same film. She won best actress for Images at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival...
, 2 hr, CBS - Irwin Shaw's Top of the Hill - Wayne RogersWayne RogersWilliam Wayne McMillan Rogers III is an American film and television actor, best known for playing the role of 'Trapper John' McIntyre in the U.S...
, 4 hr - The Memory of Eva Ryker- Natalie WoodNatalie WoodNatalie Wood, born Natalia Nikolaevna Zacharenko was an American film and television actress. After first working in films as a child, Wood became a successful Hollywood star as a young adult, receiving three Academy Award nominations before she was 25 years old.Wood began acting in movies at the...
, 3 hr, CBS - Pleasure Palace - Omar SharifOmar SharifOmar Sharif is an Egyptian actor who has starred in Hollywood films including Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and Funny Girl. He has been nominated for an Academy Award and has won two Golden Globe Awards.-Early life:...
, José FerrerJosé FerrerJosé Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón , best known as José Ferrer, was a Puerto Rican actor, as well as a theater and film director...
, 2 hr, CBS - Outrage! - 2 hr, CBS
- Force Five - 2 hr, ABC
- Covenant - José Ferrer, 2 hr, NBC
CBS Movies and Mini-Series - Director/Producer
- To Race the Wind - Steve GuttenbergSteve GuttenbergSteven Robert "Steve" Guttenberg is an American actor and comedian. He became well known during the 1980s, after a series of starring roles in major Hollywood films, including Cocoon, Three Men and a Baby, Police Academy, and Short Circuit.-Early life:Guttenberg was born in Brooklyn, New York, the...
- 2 hr, CBS - Jacqueline Susann's Valley of the DollsJacqueline Susann's Valley of the DollsJacqueline Susann's Valley of the Dolls is a 1981 television miniseries based on Jacqueline Susann's novel of the same title....
, 1981 - 5 hr, CBS - Bare EssenceBare EssenceBare Essence is an American television soap opera which aired on the NBC network during the 1982-1983 season.Bare Essence starred popular daytime soap actress Genie Francis and dealt with the intrigues of the perfume industry...
- 2 hr, CBS - Illusions - 2 hr, CBS
- Who is Julia? - 2 hr, CBS
- Shakedown on Sunset Strip - 2 hr, CBS