Paul Bogart


Director

About

Also Known As
Paul Bogoff, Alan Smithee
Birth Place
New York City, New York, USA
Born
November 21, 1919
Died
April 15, 2012
Cause of Death
Undetermined

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 adaptati...

Family & Companions

Alma Jane Gitnick
Wife
Set decorator. Married 1941.

Bibliography

"Take One: Television Directors on Directing"
Jack Kuney, Greenwood Press (1990)

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)

The Heidi Chronicles (1995)
Director
The Gift of Love (1994)
Director
Neil Simon's Broadway Bound (1992)
Director
Torch Song Trilogy (1988)
Director
Oh, God! You Devil (1984)
Director
Fun and Games (1980)
Director
You Can't Take It With You (1979)
Director
Winner Take All (1975)
Director
Mr. Ricco (1975)
Director
The Country Girl (1974)
Director
Tell Me Where It Hurts (1974)
Director
Class of '44 (1973)
Director
Cancel My Reservation (1972)
Director
Skin Game (1971)
Director
In Search of America (1971)
Director
Halls of Anger (1970)
Director
Marlowe (1969)
Director
Ages of Man (1966)
Director
Evening Primrose (1966)
Director

Cast (Feature Film)

Cancel My Reservation (1972)
Dr. Kaufman

Writer (Feature Film)

You Can't Take It With You (1979)
Screenplay

Producer (Feature Film)

You Can't Take It With You (1979)
Executive Producer
Class of '44 (1973)
Producer

Director (Special)

Great Performances' 20th Anniversary Special (1992)
Segment Director
Natica Jackson (1987)
Director
Mickey and Nora (1987)
Director
Weekend (1982)
Director
The Shady Hill Kidnapping (1982)
Director
Alice (1976)
Director
The Easter Promise (1975)
Director
A Memory of Two Mondays (1974)
Director
The Thanksgiving Treasure (1973)
Director
The House Without A Christmas Tree (1972)
Director
Higher and Higher, Attorneys at Law (1968)
Director
Spellbound (1962)
Director
The Picture of Dorian Gray (1961)
Director
Ten Little Indians (1959)
Director
Shirley Temple's Storybook: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1958)
Director
Hansel and Gretel (1958)
Director

Producer (Special)

Mickey and Nora (1987)
Producer
Hansel and Gretel (1958)
Producer
Shirley Temple's Storybook: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1958)
Producer

Director (TV Mini-Series)

The Canterville Ghost (1986)
Director

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

Videos

Movie Clip

Marlowe (1969) -- (Movie Clip) Spanish For Pain Friendly clash between savvy detective James Garner (as the title character, Philip, in this adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s The Little Sister) and Rita Moreno as polished Dolores, guarding her friend Mavis (Gayle Hunnicutt), implicated in a porn and murder scandal, in Marlowe, 1969.
Marlowe (1969) -- (Movie Clip) All Shadow And No Substance James Garner is the title character of the movie, and Sharon Farrell the title character of the original Raymond Chandler novel The Little Sister, after he discovered another murder while looking for her brother, leading him to ring Dr. Lagardie (Paul Stevens), early in the updated Marlowe, 1969.
Marlowe (1969) -- (Movie Clip) Open, Little Sister Groovy opening with an original song by Peter Matz and Noman Gimbel, taking it’s title from Raymond Chandler’s original novel The Little Sister, James Garner as the contemporary version of Chandler’s famous L-A detective, querying the manager (Warren Finnerty) of a hippie hotel, in Marlowe, 1969.
Marlowe (1969) -- (Movie Clip) I Go To Ridiculous Extremes James Garner (title character Philip) gets himself hired by big-time agent Crowell (William Daniels) on the runway, then visits actress Mavis Wald (Gayle Hunnicutt) on the set, to discuss the photos of her with gangster Steelgrave, in the contemporary 1969 treatment of Raymond Chandler’s 1949 novel The LIttle Sister, Marlowe.
Torch Song Trilogy (1988) -- (Movie Clip) I've Never Been Young And Beautiful A prologue with Anne Bancroft as the mom, then writing and starring in his adaptation of his substantially autobiographical Off then On-Broadway hit, Harvey Fierstein, his character called Arnold Beckhoff, introduces himself, in Torch Song Trilogy, 1988, also starring Matthew Broderick and Brian Kerwin.
Torch Song Trilogy (1988) -- (Movie Clip) Love For Sale Beginning the second segment of his original autobiographical Broadway play, Harvey Fierstein as drag queen Arnold tears into a version of the Cole Porter standard, a friend (Bob Minor) intervening when customers led by Matthew Broderick as Alan get out of line, in Torch Song Trilogy, 1988.
Torch Song Trilogy (1988) -- (Movie Clip) Lucky For Me Just after a performance at a New York gay nightclub, Arnold (Harvey Fierstein, in his own adaptation of his multiple Tony Award-winning play) meets Ed (Brian Kerwin), early in Torch Song Trilogy, 1988.
Class of '44 (1973) -- (Movie Clip) You Can Pick Your Own Branch After the opening credits, the graduation party, pals Hermie (Gary Grimes, based on the writer Herman Raucher) and Oscy (Jerry Houser), and the rarely-seen screen debut of John Candy as Paulie, in director Paul Bogart’s follow-up to Summer Of ’42, Class Of ’44, 1973.
Class of '44 (1973) -- (Movie Clip) Send Me A Samurai Sword In an un-specified outer-borough of New York, Hermie (Gary Grimes) and Oscy (Jerry Houser), working at a loading dock in the summer before college, receive pal Benjie (Oliver Conant), who surprised everybody by enlisting in the Marines, in Class Of ’44, writer Herman Raucher’s kind-of sequel to the hit Summer Of ’42, 1971.
Class of '44 (1973) -- (Movie Clip) An Expert On The Works Of Melville Shooting on location at Princeton, Freshman Hermie (Gary Grimes, loosely based on the screenwriter Herman Raucher) looks for work at the student newspaper, Jeffrey Cohen the editor, Susan Marcus his assistant, and Deborah Winters as Julie, who’ll become his love interest, in the less-popular follow-up to Summer Of ’42, 1971, Class Of ’44, 1973.
Torch Song Trilogy (1988) -- (Movie Clip) Don't Shake, It's Cookies Hoping boyfriend Ed will arrive, disappointed when it’s only mom (Anne Bancroft), Harvey Fierstein, directed by Paul Bogart in his film adaptation of his Broadway show, as gay drag performer Arnold, getting through his birthday, in Torch Song Trilogy, 1988.
Marlowe (1969) -- (Movie Clip) Winslow Wong Again banged-up James Garner (title character) is visited by Bruce Lee in his first appearance in an American film, as Winslow Wong, alarming the hairdresser next door (Christopher Cary), in the 1969 modern-day treatment of Raymond Chandler's The Little Sister, Marlowe.

Trailer

Family

Benjamin Bogart
Father
Molly Bogart
Mother
Peter Gareth Bogart
Son
Tracy Katherine Bogart
Daughter
Jennifer Jane Bogart
Daughter

Companions

Alma Jane Gitnick
Wife
Set decorator. Married 1941.

Bibliography

"Take One: Television Directors on Directing"
Jack Kuney, Greenwood Press (1990)