Vincent Sherman

Vincent Sherman
Vincent Sherman
	On set of The Hasty Heart (1949), L–R: Patricia Neal, Vincent Sherman and Wilkie Cooper (cinematographer)
Born	Abraham Orovitz; July 16, 1906; Vienna, Georgia, USA
Died	June 18, 2006 (aged 99); Los Angeles, California
Years active	1928–1983
Spouse	Hedda Comorau (1931–1984; her death)
Children	2
Website	www.vincentsherman.com

Vincent Sherman (born Abraham Orovitz, July 16, 1906 – June 18, 2006) was an American director and actor who worked in Hollywood. His movies include Mr. Skeffington (1944), Nora Prentiss (1947), and The Young Philadelphians (1959).

He began his career as an actor on Broadway and later in film. He directed B-movies for Warner Bros. and then moved to directing to A-pictures. He was a good friend of actor Errol Flynn, whom he directed in Adventures of Don Juan (1949). He directed three Joan Crawford movies: The Damned Don't Cry (1950), Harriet Craig (1950), and Goodbye, My Fancy (1951).

Early life

Sherman was born Abraham Orovitz to Jewish parents.^[1] He was born and raised in the small town of Vienna, Georgia, where his father was a dry-goods salesman.^[2] Not long after graduating from Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, he became a professional actor.^[3]

Career

Sherman arrived in New York City to sell a play and soon became a stage director and actor. As a stage actor, he made his Broadway debut in the ensemble of Eugene O’Neill’s Marco Millions (1928).^[4] He arrived in Hollywood during the early sound era, where he appeared in William Wyler's 1933 film Counsellor at Law starring John Barrymore. In 1938, Sherman signed on at Warner Bros. as a director. His first film as a director was the 1939 horror film The Return of Doctor X, which starred Humphrey Bogart. The 2006 release of The Return of Doctor X included a director's commentary that Sherman had recorded that year at the age of 99.

Sherman quickly built a reputation for his ability to rewrite any script he was given and turn it into the basis for a successful film. It was these skills that led him to much bigger and star-studded pictures.^[3]^[5] Sherman was initially known as a "woman's director" during the mid 1940s, but his range expanded as his career developed.^[2]

After his film career wound up, Sherman ended his career in television. In 2004, he was the oldest of 21 individuals interviewed in the documentary film Imaginary Witness, a work that chronicled 60 years of film-making about the Holocaust.^[6]

Personal life

Sherman was married to Hedda (née Comorau) from 1931 until her death in 1984. The Shermans had two children together, a son, Eric Sherman, and a daughter, Hedwin Naimark.

Sherman had a number of high-profile affairs during his life, including on-set affairs with Bette Davis and a three-year relationship with Joan Crawford. In his memoir Studio Affairs: My Life as a Film Director, he described his relationships with Crawford and Rita Hayworth. Until his death in 2006, he had been in a decade-long relationship with actress Francine York.^[7]

Death

Sherman died on June 18, 2006, at age 99, at the Motion Picture and Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California.^[3]

Filmography

Director (feature film)

Year	Title	Notes
1939	The Return of Doctor X
1940	Saturday's Children
1940	The Man Who Talked Too Much
1941	Flight from Destiny
1941	Underground
1942	All Through the Night
1942	Across the Pacific
1943	The Hard Way
	Old Acquaintance
	The Present with a Future	Short film
1944	In Our Time
1944	Mr. Skeffington
1945	Pillow to Post
1946	Janie Gets Married
1947	Nora Prentiss
1947	The Unfaithful
1948	Adventures of Don Juan	Alternative title: The New Adventures of Don Juan
1949	The Hasty Heart
1950	Backfire
	The Damned Don't Cry
	Harriet Craig
1951	Goodbye, My Fancy
1952	Lone Star
1952	Affair in Trinidad
1957	The Garment Jungle
1958	The Naked Earth
1959	The Young Philadelphians
1960	Ice Palace
1961	A Fever in the Blood
1961	The Second Time Around
1967	Cervantes	Alternative title: Young Rebel

Actor

Year	Title	Role
1933	Counsellor at Law	Harry Becker
1934	Speed Wings	Mickey
	The Crime of Helen Stanley	Karl Williams
	One Is Guilty	William Malcolm
	Hell Bent for Love	Johnny Frank
	Midnight Alibi	Black Mike
	Girl in Danger	Willie Tolini

References

^ Sherman, Eric. "Vision of Vincent". industrycentral.net. Retrieved May 12, 2010.
^ ^a ^b Rode, Alan. "In Memoriam: Vincent Sherman". filmmonthly.com. Retrieved May 13, 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Vincent Sherman". movies.amctv.com. Retrieved May 12, 2010.
^ Vincent Sherman at the Internet Broadway Database
^ "Biography". vincentsherman.com. Retrieved May 12, 2010.
^ Presskit from Shadowdistribution.com., accessed January 16, 2011.
^ Barnes, Mike (January 6, 2017). "Francine York, Alluring Actress of the 1960s, Dies at 80". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 25, 2022.