Norman Foster
Born: 1903-12-13 in Richmond, Indiana, USA
Died: 1976-07-07
Known For: Directing
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Norman Foster (December 13, 1903 - July 7, 1976) was an American film director and actor. Born John Hoeffer in Richmond, Indiana, Foster originally became a cub reporter on a local newspaper in Indiana before going to New York in the hopes of getting a better newspaper job but there were no vacancies. He tried a number of theatrical agencies before getting stage work and later appeared on Broadway in the George S. Kaufman / Ring Lardner play June Moon in 1929. He has also acted in London, England. He started working in crowd scenes in films before moving to bigger parts. His film acting credits include Prosperity (1932), Pilgrimage (1933), Rafter Romance (1933) with Ginger Rogers and State Fair (1933). He has written several plays. He gave up acting in the late 1930s to pursue directing, although he occasionally appeared in movies and television programs. Some of Foster's directorial efforts include The Sign of Zorro (1958), and the stylish films noir Kiss the Blood Off My Hands (1948), Woman on the Run (1950) and Journey into Fear (1943). Foster directed Rachel and the Stranger and the Davy Crockett segments of Disneyland that were edited into feature films Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier and Davy Crockett and the River Pirates where he did not accept any interference from Walt Disney. In 1967, he directed Brighty of the Grand Canyon, based on a children's novel by Marguerite Henry about a burro in the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. The film starred Joseph Cotten, Karl Swenson, Dick Foran, and Pat Conway. It was rumored that Orson Welles took over direction of Journey Into Fear, which Welles later denied. Foster was the director of the "My Friend Bonito" segment of Orson Welles' Pan-American anthology film It's All True until RKO aborted the project. Foster directed a number of Charlie Chan and Mr. Moto mysteries, including Charlie Chan in Panama (1940), Charlie Chan at Treasure Island (1939), Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation (1939), Charlie Chan in Reno (1939), Mr. Moto's Last Warning (1939), Mysterious Mr. Moto (1938), Mr. Moto Takes a Chance (1938), Thank You, Mr. Moto (1937), and Think Fast, Mr. Moto (1937). Foster was married to Claudette Colbert from 1928 until their divorce in 1935. In 1937, he wed actress Sally Blane, an older sister of Loretta Young. The couple remained married until his death in 1976 from cancer in Santa Monica at the age of 75. They had two children, Robert and Gretchen. He is buried in Culver City's Holy Cross Cemetery. Description above from the Wikipedia article Norman Foster, licensed under CC-BY-SA,full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
2018
- The Other Side of the Wind as Billy Boyle
- They'll Love Me When I'm Dead as Self (archive footage)
2005
- The Green Hornet ... (Director)
1993
- It's All True ... (Director)
1990
- Crazy Horse and Custer: The Untold Story ... (Director)
1976
- Woman in the Rain as Assistant Director for HighShine
1974
- The Green Hornet ... (Director)
- The Deathhead Virgin ... (Director)
- Double Solitaire as Ernest Potter
1972
- Play It as It Lays as Abortionist
1971
1968
- The Legend of Custer ... (Director)
1967
- Custer ... (Director)
1966
- Batman ... (Director)
- The Green Hornet ... (Director)
- The Monroes ... (Director)
- Brighty of the Grand Canyon ... (Writer)
1965
- The Loner ... (Director)
- Indian Paint ... (Director)
1962
- The New Loretta Young Show ... (Director)
- Hans Brinker, or the Silver Skates ... (Director)
1961
- The Wonderful World of Disney ... (Director)
1959
- Adventures in Paradise ... (Director)
1958
- Bat Masterson ... (Director)
- The Sign of Zorro ... (Screenplay)
- The Nine Lives of Elfego Baca ... (Director)
1957
- Zorro ... (Director)
- Tombstone Territory ... (Director)
1956
- Davy Crockett and the River Pirates ... (Director)
1955
- Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier ... (Director)
- Davy Crockett Goes to Congress ... (Director)
- Davy Crockett's Keelboat Race ... (Director)
- Davy Crockett at the Alamo ... (Director)
1954
- The Wonderful World of Disney ... (Director)
- Davy Crockett ... (Director)
- Davy Crockett, Indian Fighter ... (Director)
- The Disneyland Story as Self
1953
- Letter to Loretta ... (Director)
- Sombrero ... (Director)
1952
- Cavalcade of America ... (Director)
- Sky Full of Moon ... (Director)
- Navajo ... (Writer)
1950
- Woman on the Run ... (Director)
- Father Is a Bachelor ... (Director)
1949
- Tell It to the Judge ... (Director)
- The Bewitched House ... (Original Story)
1948
- Rachel and the Stranger ... (Director)
- Kiss the Blood Off My Hands ... (Director)
- El canto de la sirena ... (Director)
1946
- El ahijado de la muerte ... (Director)
1945
- The Hour of Truth ... (Director)
1944
- La Fuga ... (Director)
1943
- Journey into Fear ... (Director)
- Santa ... (Director)
- It's All True ... (Director)
1941
- Scotland Yard ... (Director)
- Ride, Kelly, Ride ... (Director)
1940
- Charlie Chan in Panama ... (Director)
- Viva Cisco Kid ... (Director)
1939
- Mr. Moto's Last Warning ... (Director)
- Charlie Chan in Reno ... (Director)
- Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation ... (Director)
- Charlie Chan at Treasure Island ... (Director)
- 20,000 Men a Year ... (Assistant Director)
1938
- Mysterious Mr. Moto as Hoodlum in Tavern
- Mr. Moto Takes a Chance ... (Director)
- Walking Down Broadway ... (Director)
1937
- Thank You, Mr. Moto ... (Director)
- Think Fast, Mr. Moto ... (Director)
- Sunday Night at the Trocadero as Norman Foster
- Fair Warning ... (Director)
1936
- High Tension as Eddie Mitchell
- Fatal Lady as Phillip Roberts
- Everybody's Old Man as Ronald Franklin
- I Cover Chinatown as Eddie Barton
- The Leavenworth Case as Detective Bob Grice
1935
- Suicide Squad as Larry Barker
- The Hoosier Schoolmaster as Ralph Hartsook
- Behind the Green Lights as Detective Lt. Dave Britten
- The Bishop Misbehaves as Donald Meadows
- Ladies Crave Excitement as Don Phelan
- Escape from Devil's Island as Andre Dion
- Super Speed as Randy Rogers
- Behind the Evidence as Tony Sheridan
- The Fire-Trap as Bill Farnsworth
1934
- Elinor Norton as Bill Foster
- Strictly Dynamite as Fleming
- Orient Express as Carlton Myatt
1933
- State Fair as Wayne Frake
- Rafter Romance as Jack
- Pilgrimage as Jim 'Jimmy' Jessop (Hannah's son)
- Professional Sweetheart as Jim
- Walls of Gold as Barnes Ritchie
1932
- Under Eighteen as Alf
- Prosperity as John Warren
- Skyscraper Souls as Tom Shepherd
- Alias the Doctor as Stephan Brenner
- The Cohens and Kellys in Hollywood as Maurice Cohen
- Steady Company as Jim
- Week-End Marriage as Ken Hayes
- Play Girl as Wallace 'Wally' Dennis
- Girl of the Rio as Johnny Powell
- Strange Justice as Wally Baker
1931
- No Limit as Douglas Thayer
- Confessions of a Co-Ed as Hal Evans
- It Pays to Advertise as Rodney Martin
- Men Call It Love as Jack
- Reckless Living as Doggie
- Up Pops the Devil as Steve Merrick
1930
- Young Man of Manhattan as Toby McLean
1929
- Gentlemen of the Press as Ted Hanley
- Love at First Sight