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Jack Donohue (director)

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Years active  1927-1980
Name  Jack Donohue

Role  Film actor
Children  Jill Donahue
Jack Donohue (director) Pictures of Jack Donohue director Pictures Of Celebrities

Full Name  John Francis Donohue
Born  November 3, 1908 (1908-11-03) Brooklyn New York, U.S.
Occupation  Actor, choreographer, composer, dancer, director, producer, screenwriter
Died  March 27, 1984, Marina del Rey, California, United States
Spouse  Georgine Darcy (m. 1955), Tutta Rolf (m. 1936–1950)
Nominations  Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special
Movies  Assault on a Queen, Babes in Toyland, Marriage on the Rocks, Lucky Me, Watch the Birdie
Similar People  Tutta Rolf, Tommy Sands, Richard Conte, Tommy Kirk, Errol John

John Francis "Jack" Donohue (November 3, 1908 – March 27, 1984) was an American film actor, screenwriter, director, producer, composer, and choreographer.

Contents

Jack Donohue (director) Pictures of Jack Donohue director Picture 198655 Pictures Of

Some of his movie directing roles include Babes in Toyland (1961), Marriage on the Rocks, (1965), and Assault on a Queen, (1966). Some of his television directing roles include The Frank Sinatra Show, The Colgate Comedy Hour, The Red Skelton Show, and The Dean Martin Show.

Career

Donohue began his career in the 1930s as a dancer in the Ziegfeld Follies act. This all resulted when he broke his leg while working as an iron worker. Doctors suggested that he exercise, such as dancing, to strengthen his broken limbs. He did and started dancing with Ziegfeld in 1927. Shortly after his gig with Ziegfeld, he went on to dance in Vaudeville until the 1930s when he went to Hollywood.

During the 1930s and the 1940s, Donohue switched between Hollywood and Broadway. In Broadway, some of his most memorable performances were as the choreographer of the musicals Top Banana and Mr. Wonderful.

He made his film directing debut in the 1948 movie Close-Up which was a well known film at the time because the whole film was shot entirely on location in New York City. He directed many other films throughout his career that spanned more than five decades.

He made his television directing debut on the 1950s variety program The Frank Sinatra Show. His directing got him closely associated with some of the biggest entertainers of the day such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Red Skelton. Some of his most recent work in the years prior to his death in 1984 were those on Chico and the Man in the 70s and The Lucy Show and The Jim Nabors Hour.

He also had an acting career which consisted of only eleven acting credits.

Personal life and Death

Donohue married stage star Marilyn Miller in 1928. The date of their divorce remains uncertain.

Donohue met and married Norwegian actress Tutta Rolf in 1936. Rolf had been married once before to the Swedish actor Ernst Rolf who died in 1932. The year prior Tutta and Ernst gave birth to Ernst Rolf, Jr. better known as the Swedish-American film editor Tom Rolf.

The two had a daughter of their own, actress Jill Donohue.

Rolf and Donohue divorced in 1950. Donohue died on March 27, 1984 of a heart attack in Marina del Rey at the age of 75. He was cremated thereafter.

As Writer

  • Suns o' Guns (1936)
  • Rhythm in the Air (1936)
  • Close-Up (1948)
  • As Composer

  • Lost in a Harem (1944) (soundtrack composer)
  • Neptune's Daughter (1949) (soundtrack composer)
  • Calamity Jane (1953) (soundtrack composer)
  • References

    Jack Donohue (director) Wikipedia