Sidney Harmon

Sidney Harmon (April 30, 1907 – February 29, 1988) was a movie producer and screenwriter. Harmon was nominated for the 1942 Academy Award for Best Story for the movie The Talk of the Town. He began his career working as a writer for radio and the theater during the 1930s. Harmon produced Sidney Kingsley's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Men In White.[1]

Biography

Born in Poughkeepsie, New York in 1907,[2] Harmon produced Broadway plays throughout the 1930s (1931-1937).[3] Harmon was one of many members of the Group Theatre to become involved with movie production.[4] He married artist Lily Harmon (née Perlmutter) in 1934; they divorced in 1940.[5] He worked with movies from the 1940s to the 1960s. In 1959, he co-founded the Theatre Group at the University of California at Los Angeles with John Houseman and Robert Ryan.[6]

Harmon, with Ryan and others, initiated the Oakwood School in California in 1951.[7]

During retirement, Harmon was active in the cultural life of Palm Springs, California; he was the first director emeritus of the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert.[8] The Desert Theatre League's Sidney Harmon Award honored members "in recognition of the advancement of theatrical excellence both on and off the stage".[9]

Harmon died in Rancho Mirage, California[10] on February 29, 1988.[citation needed]

Career

Writer (1940s–1960s)

  • The Talk of the Town (1942) (story) ... aka George Stevens' The Talk of the Town
  • Drums in the Deep South (1951) (screenplay)
  • Mara Maru (1952) (story)
  • Mutiny (1952) (writer)
  • Man Crazy (1953) (writer)
  • Hand in Hand (1960) (story)

Producer (1950s–1960s)

Miscellaneous Crew

  • Men in War (1957) (presenter)

References

  1. ^ "Sidney Harmon, 80; Producer". Los Angeles Times. March 26, 1988.
  2. ^ "Sidney Harmon, 29 Feb 1988". California Death Index, 1940-1997. Sacramento: Department of Public Health Services. Birth Date: 31 August 1907.
  3. ^ The Broadway League. "Sidney Harmon – Broadway Cast & Staff". IBDB Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  4. ^ Buhle, Paul; Wagner, Dave (2003). Hide in Plain Sight: The Hollywood Blacklistees in Film and Television, 1950-2002. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-40396-144-0.
  5. ^ "Lily Harmon, 85, Portraitist and Book Illustrator," New York Times (14 Feb. 1998). Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  6. ^ Jarlett, Franklin (1997). Robert Ryan: A Biography and Critical Filmography. McFarland. p. 271. ISBN 978-0-7864-0476-6.
  7. ^ "The Oakwood Story - Oakwood School". Oakwood School. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  8. ^ Fessier, Bruce (December 3, 2015). "Paul Anka delivers McCallum benefit show his way". Desert Sun. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  9. ^ "Desert Theater League nominations for four area theater companies". KCDZ 107.7 FM News. August 2, 2016. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  10. ^ "Sidney Harmon, 80; Producer". Los Angeles Times. March 26, 1988. Retrieved September 8, 2021.


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