Paul Bogart
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Bibliography
Biography
An award-winning director whose roots date to the days of live TV, Paul Bogart went on to direct the bulk of the episodes of the CBS sitcom "All in the Family" as well as numerous TV dramas and several feature films. He has proven particularly adept at recreating stage productions for the small screen, and has been trusted by actors that the Actors Studio tagged him to direct an adaptation of "The Three Sisters" (1964) performed at the famed center of method acting. After World War II military service, Bogart began his show business career working as a puppeteer and actor with the Berkeley Marionettes. By 1950, he was a stage manager and associate director on live TV programs for NBC, and in 1952 went freelance, working as a director for many of the anthology shows of the period, including "The U.S. Steel Hour" and "Kraft Theatre."
By 1963, Bogart was directing episodes of the famed CBS drama series, "The Defenders" and won his first Emmy for a 1964 installment. He subsequently also won Emmys during the 60s for two "CBS Playhouse" dramas, "Dear Friends" (1967) and "Shadow Game" (1969). He joined "All in the Family" as director in 1971 and stayed with the series through its end in 1978, winning an Emmy for directing the 1977 episode in which Edith Bunker turned 50 years old. He remained with the Archie Bunker character for one season of "Archie Bunker's Place," the CBS sequel series, from 1979-80, then moved to the CBS sitcom "Alice." In 1984, Bogart was executive producer and director of "Mama Malone," (CBS, 1984), a short-lived yet vibrant series in which Lila Kaye played a woman hosting a cooking show out of her turbulent home. From 1985-86, Bogart worked as director and supervising producer on NBC's "The Golden Girls" during its first season (1985-86). Subsequently, he was executive producer of (and directed the pilot for) "Bagdad Cafe" (CBS, 1990-91), starring Whoopi Goldberg and Jean Stapleton, based on the Percy Adlon's feature film.
Bogart has excelled in adapting stage productions for TV, as evidenced by "You Can't Take It With You" (CBS, 1979), "Neil Simon's 'Broadway Bound'" (ABC, 1992), and "The Heidi Chronicles" (TNT, 1995). His TV longform output has been limited by his ongoing work in series, but Bogart directed "Nutcracker: Money, Madness, and Murder" (NBC, 1987), which told the story of a woman who manipulated her sons into killing her father so she could inherit his money, and "The Gift of Love" (CBS, 1994), in which Andy Griffith is a man who receives his deceased grandson's heart.
Bogart did not begin directing features until 1969 with "Marlowe," about a private investigator who searches for a girl's missing brother. Despite a heavy schedule with sitcoms in the 70s, he managed to direct a feature during hiatuses, including "Cancel My Reservations" (1972) and "Class of '44" (1973), the unsuccessful sequel to 1971's "Summer of '42." In 1984, he directed George Burns and Ted Wass in the sequel "Oh God! You Devil" and he helmed the big screen adaptation of Harvey Fierstein's Broadway success, "Torch Song Trilogy" (1988).
Filmography
Director (Feature Film)
Cast (Feature Film)
Writer (Feature Film)
Producer (Feature Film)
Director (Special)
Producer (Special)
Director (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1944
Served in U.S. Air Force during WWII
1946
Worked as an actor and puppeteer with the Berkeley Marionettes
1952
Began working as a freelance director on TV
1961
Directed episodes of legal drama "The Defenders" (CBS)
1969
Directed first feature, "Marlowe"
1975
Directed episodes of "All in the Family" (CBS), including the 1977 episode titled "Edith's 50th Birthday"
1976
Directed the pilot episode of "Alice" (CBS)
1979
Helmed episodes of the spin-off series "Archie Bunker's Place" (CBS)
1984
Executive produced and directed the CBS sitcom "Mama Malone"
1985
Directed and served as supervising producer of "The Golden Girls" (NBC)
1988
Directed screen adaptation of "Torch Song Trilogy," written by Harvey Fierstein
1990
Executive produced and directed episodes (including pilot) of the CBS sitcom "Bagdad Cafe"
1991
Received the French Festival Internationelle Programmes Audiovisuelle at Cannes
1992
Helmed ABC presentation of Neil Simon's play "Broadway Bound"
1995
Directed TNT adaptation of "The Heidi Chronicles," based on a play by Wendy Wasserstein and starring Jamie Lee Curtis