Garson Kanin

Infobox Actor
bgcolour = silver
name = Garson Kanin
birthdate = birth date|1912|11|24|mf=y
location = Rochester, New York, USA
deathdate = death date|1999|3|13|mf=y (aged age|1912|11|24|1999|3|13)
deathplace = New York City, New York
spouse = Ruth Gordon (1942-1985)
Marian Seldes (1990-1999)

Garson Kanin (November 24 1912 – March 13, 1999) was an American writer and director of plays and films. Born in Rochester, New York, he is most notable for

* his first film "A Man to Remember" (1938), listed as one of the best top ten films in 1938 by "The New York Times".
* writing, in collaboration with his wife, actress Ruth Gordon (whom he married in 1942), the classic Spencer Tracy/Katharine Hepburn film comedies, the 1949 "Adam's Rib" and the 1952 "Pat and Mike", both directed by George Cukor.
* writing and staging the 1946 play "Born Yesterday", which ran for 1642 performances; and with George Cukor helped work out the screenplay of the 1950 film adaptation (see Garson Kanin's "Hollywood" page 326).
* directing the 1955 play "The Diary of Anne Frank", which ran for 717 performances.
* directing the 1964 musical "Funny Girl", which ran for 1348 performances.

He was a colleague of Thornton Wilder, who mentored him, and an admirer of the work of Frank Capra. Kanin said "I'd rather be Capra than God, if there is a Capra."

In 1990, the widower Kanin married the actress Marian Seldes, who survives him. Kanin died at age 86 in New York City of undisclosed causes.

Trivia

Kanin and Katharine Hepburn were the only witnesses to Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh's wedding in California on 31 August 1940.

In 1941, he and Katharine Hepburn worked with his brother Michael Kanin and Ring Lardner, Jr. on the early drafts of what would become "Woman of the Year", right before Garson went into the army.

He is quoted in saying "When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt"

publications

"Remembering Mr Maugham", with an inroduction by Noel Coward, 1966

External links

*imdb name|id=0437717
*findagrave|6001435

Persondata
NAME= Kanin, Garson
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Film director
DATE OF BIRTH= 1912-11-24
PLACE OF BIRTH= Rochester, New York, USA
DATE OF DEATH= 1999-3-13)
PLACE OF DEATH= New York City, New York