In memory of Richard Zanuck who died today at 77. Here is his father, Darryl, shown as a young filmmaker being interviewed by my grandmother Mitzi Cummings, who in this instance was writing for Photoplay Magazine.
As a niece of Louis B Mayer she was no doubt aware of interviewing the “competition” but she was dedicated to covering Hollywood, which enabled her to meet hardworking filmmakers like Zanuck, and the stars they made, from all of the studios.
My condolences to the Zanuck family and to young Dean Zanuck, Richard’s son, with whom I shared this photo some months ago as I went through the family’s photo collection.
Copyright Alicia Mayer 2012.
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I remember telling my A Level Film Studies class about Darryl Zanuck. I told the pupils about the time when the classic film adaptation of John Steinbeck’s ‘The Grapes of Wrath’ (1941) was being made. I mentioned that Darryl was a republican but he went out of his way to explore the nature of the Great Depression and how it had affected the ordinary person. He genuinely did care about the project and worked very closely with the director (John Ford). As for Richard, many directors spoke very highly of him especially Steven Spielberg who worked with him on the classic blockbuster ‘Jaws’ (1975). These great people have left a massive mark on the development of film.