
Samuel Goldwyn
Samuel Goldwyn (born Szmul Gelbfisz), also known as Samuel Goldfish, was a Polish American film producer. He was most well known for being the founding contributor and executive of several motion picture studios in Hollywood. In 1916, Goldwyn partnered with Broadway producers Edgar and Archibald Selwyn, using a combination of both names to call their movie-making enterprise Goldwyn Pictures. Seeing an opportunity, Samuel Gelbfisz then had his name legally changed to Samuel Goldwyn, which he used for the rest of his life. Goldwyn Pictures proved successful but it is their Leo the Lion trademark for which the organization is most famous. On April 10, 1924, Goldwyn Pictures was acquired by Marcus Loew and merged into his Metro Pictures Corporation. Despite the inclusion of his name, Goldwyn had no role in the management or production at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Before the sale and merger of Goldwyn Pictures in April 1924, Goldwyn had established Samuel Goldwyn Productions in 1923 as a production-only operation (with no distribution arm). Their first feature was Potash and Perlmutter, released in September 1923 through First National Pictures. Some of the early productions bear the name Howard Productions, named for Goldwyn's wife Frances Howard. For 35 years, Goldwyn built a reputation in filmmaking and developed an eye for finding the talent for making films. William Wyler directed many of his most celebrated productions, and he hired writers such as Ben Hecht, Sidney Howard, Dorothy Parker, and Lillian Hellman. (According to legend, at a heated story conference Goldwyn scolded someone —in most accounts Mrs. Parker, who recalled he had once been a glove maker— with the retort: “Don't you point that finger at me. I knew it when it had a thimble on it!” During that time, Goldwyn made numerous films and reigned as the most successful independent producer in the US. Many of his films were forgettable; his collaboration with John Ford, however, resulted in Best Picture Oscar nomination for Arrowsmith (1931). William Wyler was responsible for most of Goldwyn's highly lauded films, with Best Picture Oscar nominations for Dodsworth (1936), Dead End (1937), Wuthering Heights (1939), The Little Foxes (1941) and The Best Years of Our Lives (1948). The leading actors in several of Goldwyn films, especially those directed by William Wyler, were also Oscar-nominated for their performances. Throughout the 1930s, Goldwyn released all his films through United Artists, but beginning in 1941, and continuing almost through the end of his career, Goldwyn released his films through RKO Radio Pictures. Goldwyn died at his home in Los Angeles in 1974 from natural causes, at the probable age of 94. He was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California. In the 1980s, Samuel Goldwyn Studio was sold to Warner Bros. There is a theater named after him in Beverly Hills and he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1631 Vine Street.
- Known ForProduction
- Born17 August 1879 (age 146)
- Place of BirthWarsaw, Poland
Samuel Goldwyn

- Known ForProduction
- Born17 August 1879 (age 146)
- Place of BirthWarsaw, Poland

Salinger
2013

Goldwyn: The Man and His Movies
2001

Porgy and Bess
1959

Small world: Vivien Leigh
1958

Guys and Dolls
1955

Hans Christian Andersen
1952

I Want You
1951

Edge of Doom
1950

My Foolish Heart
1950

Our Very Own
1950

Roseanna McCoy
1949

A Song Is Born
1948

Enchantment
1948

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
1947

The Bishop's Wife
1947

The Best Years of Our Lives
1946

The Kid from Brooklyn
1946

Wonder Man
1945

Up in Arms
1944

The Princess and the Pirate
1944

They Got Me Covered
1943

The North Star
1943

The Pride of the Yankees
1942

The Little Foxes
1941

Ball of Fire
1941

The Westerner
1940

Wuthering Heights
1939

The Real Glory
1939

They Shall Have Music
1939

Raffles
1939

The Goldwyn Follies
1938

The Adventures of Marco Polo
1938

The Cowboy and the Lady
1938

Woman Chases Man
1937

Stella Dallas
1937

Dead End
1937

The Hurricane
1937

Strike Me Pink
1936

These Three
1936

Dodsworth
1936

Come and Get It
1936

Beloved Enemy
1936

The Wedding Night
1935

The Dark Angel
1935

Barbary Coast
1935

Splendor
1935

Nana
1934

We Live Again
1934

Kid Millions
1934

The Masquerader
1933

Roman Scandals
1933

Arsène Lupin
1932

The Greeks Had a Word for Them
1932

The Kid from Spain
1932

Cynara
1932

Street Scene
1931

Palmy Days
1931

The Unholy Garden
1931

Arrowsmith
1931

Tonight or Never
1931

Whoopee!
1930

Raffles
1930

The Devil to Pay!
1930

One Heavenly Night
1930

Bulldog Drummond
1929

This Is Heaven
1929

Condemned!
1929

The Awakening
1928

Two Lovers
1928

The Magic Flame
1927

The Night of Love
1927

The Devil Dancer
1927

The Winning of Barbara Worth
1926

Partners Again
1926

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
1925

A Thief in Paradise
1925

Stella Dallas
1925

Cytherea
1924

In Hollywood with Potash and Perlmutter
1924

Lost and Found on a South Sea Island
1923

Potash and Perlmutter
1923

The Eternal Three
1923

Unseeing Eyes
1923

The Day of Faith
1923

The Eternal City
1923
Slave of Desire
1923

His Back Against the Wall
1922

Mr. Barnes of New York
1922

Remembrance
1922

A Blind Bargain
1922

Hungry Hearts
1922

Guile of Women
1921

Boys Will Be Boys
1921

A Tale of Two Worlds
1921

Don't Neglect Your Wife
1921

Oh Mary Be Careful
1921

The Ace of Hearts
1921

Doubling for Romeo
1921

Partners of the Night
1920

Jes' Call Me Jim
1920

The Slim Princess
1920

Cupid the Cowpuncher
1920

The Penalty
1920

The Truth
1920

Honest Hutch
1920

The Great Lover
1920

What Happened To Rosa
1920

Pinto
1920

Water, Water, Everywhere
1920

Sis Hopkins
1919

Upstairs
1919

Lord and Lady Algy
1919

Jubilo
1919

The Floor Below
1918

The Turn of the Wheel
1918

Peck's Bad Girl
1918

Laughing Bill Hyde
1918

Thirty a Week
1918

A Perfect 36
1918

A Perfect Lady
1918

The Racing Strain
1918

The Beloved Traitor
1918

The Face in the Dark
1918
