Jack Smight
American film director (1925–2003)
title: "Jack Smight" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["artists-from-minneapolis", "1925-births", "2003-deaths", "deaths-from-cancer-in-california", "film-directors-from-minnesota", "film-producers-from-minnesota", "university-of-minnesota-alumni"] description: "American film director (1925–2003)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Smight" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary American film director (1925–2003) ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Jack Smight |
| image | Jack Smight.webp |
| caption | Jack Smight |
| birth_name | John Ronald Smight |
| birth_date | |
| birth_place | Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. |
| death_date | |
| death_place | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| occupation | Theatre director, film director, film producer |
| spouse | Joyce Cunning |
| children | 2 |
| :: |
| name = Jack Smight | image = Jack Smight.webp | caption = Jack Smight | birth_name = John Ronald Smight | birth_date = | birth_place = Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | occupation = Theatre director, film director, film producer | spouse = Joyce Cunning | children = 2
John Ronald Smight (March 9, 1925 – September 1, 2003) His film credits include Harper (1966), No Way to Treat a Lady (1968), Airport 1975 (1974), Midway (1976), and Fast Break (1979).
Biography
Early years
Smight was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the son of Irish Catholic immigrants. He graduated from Cretin High School with future actor Peter Graves. They acted together in summer stock productions, and Graves played in a 15-piece band that Smight led.
He joined the Army Air Forces, flying missions in the Pacific during World War II, He then sought work as an actor. He worked as a radio actor and had a bit part in a stage production of Anna Lucasta in 1949.
Career
He became stage manager for TV's The Good Egg of the Week and then assistant director on The Colgate Comedy Hour and The Dennis Day Show. He said a big break was working on Visit to a Small Planet with Cyril Ritchard.
In 1959, he won an Emmy Award for his direction of the hour-long play Eddie, which starred Mickey Rooney. He directed the 1960 Broadway play The 49th Cousin. He directed episodes for The Twilight Zone and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour.
Smight's first feature film was I'd Rather Be Rich (1964), a remake of It Started with Eve (1941). Smight said "it was not a particularly good script but it opened up a whole new life for me."Hollywood Kind to TV Directors Los Angeles Times 17 May 1966: c9.
Smight then signed a contract with Warners to make six films in one a year. He produced and directed The Third Day (1965) and then directed the Paul Newman vehicle Harper (1966).Smight makes best of both: Go anywhere By Kimmis Hendrick. The Christian Science Monitor 3 Aug 1965: 6. He followed that with the British action comedy, Kaleidoscope (1966) with Warren Beatty.
In 1966, he signed a three-picture deal with Mirisch Brothers and bought the rights to the book The Illustrated Man.MOVIE CALL SHEET: Jack Smight Signs Contract Los Angeles Times 12 Dec 1966: D25. In 1968, he directed the cult classic comedic thriller No Way to Treat a Lady, starring Rod Steiger and George Segal. Other notable films directed by Smight include Airport 1975 (1974) and Midway (1976), back-to-back box office hits.
In 1976, Smight was hired to direct the technically-complex Damnation Alley, expected to be another box office hit upon release. After the director's cut was delivered, and Smight moved on to other projects, studio meddling and re-editing resulted in a drastically altered film, which was released and failed at the box office.
Smight's last film, The Favorite (1989), also known as La Nuit du serail, was a co-production of the United States and Switzerland.
Personal life and death
Smight was married to actress Joyce Cunning, and he had two sons. He died of cancer on September 1, 2003, in Los Angeles.
Filmography
Film
::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | I'd Rather Be Rich | |
| 1965 | The Third Day | |
| 1966 | Harper | |
| 1966 | Kaleidoscope | |
| 1968 | The Secret War of Harry Frigg | |
| 1968 | No Way to Treat a Lady | |
| 1969 | The Illustrated Man | |
| 1969 | Strategy of Terror | |
| 1970 | Rabbit, Run | |
| 1970 | The Traveling Executioner | |
| 1974 | Airport 1975 | |
| 1976 | Midway | |
| 1977 | Damnation Alley | |
| 1979 | Fast Break | |
| 1980 | Loving Couples | |
| 1987 | Number One with a Bullet | |
| 1989 | The Favorite | |
| :: |
Television
Television Series ::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1949 | One Man's Family | TV series |
| 1955 | Repertory Theatre | 2 episodes |
| 1955 | Goodyear Playhouse | 2 episodes |
| 1956-57 | Climax! | 13 episodes |
| 1956-58 | General Electric Theater | 2 episodes |
| 1957 | The Seven Lively Arts | Episode: "The Sound of Jazz" |
| 1957-58 | Studio One in Hollywood | 4 episodes |
| 1957-58 | Suspicion | 3 episode |
| 1958 | Alcoa Theatre | Episode: Eddie |
| 1959 | Oldsmobile Music Theatre | Episode: "A Nice Place to Hide" |
| 1959 | The DuPont Show with June Allyson | 2 episodes |
| 1959-61 | The Twilight Zone | 4 episodes |
| 1960 | The United States Steel Hour | Episode "Shadow of a Pale Horse" |
| 1960-61 | Art Carney Special | 2 episodes |
| 1960-61 | Sunday Showcase | 2 episodes |
| 1960-61 | Our American Heritage | 4 episodes |
| 1961 | Naked City | Episode: "Dead on the Field of Honor" |
| 1961 | Route 66 | Episode: "Goodnight Sweet Blues" |
| 1961 | The Law and Mr. Jones | Episode: "Lincoln" |
| 1962 | The Defenders | 2 episodes |
| 1962 | The DuPont Show of the Week | 5 episodes |
| 1962 | Alcoa Premiere | Episode: "Broken Year" |
| 1963 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | 4 episodes |
| 1963 | East Side/West Side | 2 episodes |
| 1963 | Arrest and Trial | 5 episodes |
| 1963-64 | Dr. Kildare | 3 episodes |
| 1964-65 | Kraft Suspense Theatre | 4 episodes |
| 1971 | Columbo | Episode: "Dead Weight" |
| 1971-72 | McCloud | 2 episodes |
| 1972 | Banacek | 2 episodes |
| 1972 | Madigan | 2 episodes |
| 1986 | Code of Vengeance | 2 episodes |
| :: |
Television Films ::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Victor Borge's Comedy in Music III | TV movie |
| 1959 | The Ten Commandments | TV movie |
| 1959 | The Sound of Miles Davis | TV movie |
| 1960 | Destiny, West! | TV movie |
| 1961 | Westinghouse Presents: Come Again to Carthage | TV movie |
| 1961 | The Enchanted Nutcracker | TV movie |
| 1962 | Westinghouse Presents: That's Where the Town Is Going | TV movie |
| 1972 | The Screaming Woman | TV movie |
| 1972 | The Longest Night | TV movie |
| 1973 | Partners in Crime | TV movie |
| 1973 | Double Indemnity | TV movie |
| 1973 | Linda | TV movie |
| 1973 | Frankenstein: The True Story | TV movie |
| 1973 | Legend in Granite | TV movie |
| 1974 | The Man from Independence | TV movie |
| 1978 | Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | TV movie |
| 1982 | Remembrance of Love | TV movie |
| :: |
Awards and nominations
::data[format=table]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Directing for a Drama Series | Alcoa Theatre Episode: Eddie | ||
| 1962 | Westinghouse Presents: Come Again to Carthage | ||||
| 1970 | Hugo Award | Best Dramatic Presentation | The Illustrated Man | ||
| :: |
References
References
- (2008). "Jack Smight". [[The New York Times]].
- Myers, JP. (March 8, 2018). "This is the story of Director Jack Smight's life in entertainment written by himself".
- Canby, Vincent. (October 19, 1974). "Airport 1975 (1974) Screen:'Airport 1975' Is a Silly Sequel With a 747". [[The New York Times]].
- (March 18, 1949). "956 Get degrees in 'U' graduation". Minneapolis Morning Tribune.
- (September 16, 2003). "Jack Smight: Director specialising in the macabre". The Independent.
- (June 13, 1949). "'Anna Lucasta' Still Too Early". The Mirror.
- (September 12, 2003). "Jack Smight, TV, film director, dies at 78". Star Tribune.
- Bergan, Ronald. (19 September 2003). "Jack Smight. Down-to-earth director whose stars included Bacall, Steiger and Newman". [[The Guardian]].
- "Jack Smight".
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