George Cukor was an American film director of Hungarian-Jewish descent, better known for directing comedies and literary adaptations. George Cukor, in full George Dewey Cukor, (born July 7, 1899, New York, New York, U.S.—died January 24, 1983, Los Angeles, California), American motion-picture director who produced films of high quality for 50 years, combining his skill in working with actors, especially actresses, and his careful attention to details.. Originally the house was a little one, but I rebuilt it in 1935. George Cukor was an American film director. 1 talking about this. "Oh, I knew it," says Mr. Cukor. The house, like its owner, is in praise of people and offers innumerable delights: the quiet of suede walls, the gleam of a metal fireplace, the eloquence of drama softly played. "I've known people for such a long time," he says. Architectural Digest may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. And there’s a reason why that description was generally kept out of print. The Los Angeles Conservancy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Copyright © 2020 Los Angeles Conservancy. Why Cukor was fired from Gone with the Wind has never been officially confirmed, but an excerpt from Photoplay magazine maintains that “ Gone with the Wind is a woman’s story…Mr. "I think the element of fun," he says, "is the most wonderful element in friendships, as well as in working relationships. Early life and work. He was a good friend to everybody, and every­ body respected him. Share your memories here! Cukor, one of Hollywood’s finest directors and the man who has directed Hepburn and Garbo in some of their best, is known as a woman’s director…Mr. He glances at a drawing of Ethel Barrymore by John Singer Sargent. Designed by prolific architect Roland E. Coate, legendary director George Cukor's residence in the Hollywood Hills provided a luxurious backdrop to the director's vibrant social life. Nov 8, 2017 - George Cukor’s living room in his house at 9166 Cordell Dr. just above the Sunset Strip. McGilligan’s biography brings out the complexity of Cukor the man - an east coast Jew transplanted from the New York theatre to Hollywood by the arrival of sound movies and the sudden emphasis on dialogue. T his pseudonymous tidbit—about George Cukor’s infamous and still-debated firing as director of Gone with the Wind—is one of few references in the era’s movie magazines to a tag well known in the industry: George Cukor, woman’s director. The house holds many pleasant memories for him. George Cukor, the director of Holiday, The Philadelphia Story, and My Fair Lady, rebuilt the house, not far from the Sunset Strip in Beverly Hills, in 1935 It was an open secret in Hollywood that Cukor was gay, at a time when society was not accepting of it. "As a matter of fact we used to work six days a week, and usually on Sundays, I don't know how I managed it all, but we had lunch here. Born in New York, Cukor (1899-1983) rose to be one of the most successful gay directors in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Mar 1, 2015 - George Cukor, the director of Holiday, The Philadelphia Story, and My Fair Lady, rebuilt the house, not far from the Sunset Strip in Beverly Hills, in 1935 We went down, and Noel was lying on the bed with a newspaper over his face. Mockingbirds are heard in the trees, a squirrel scampers across the road and the sun shines thinly through the branches of the trees. He looked in, and we had a reunion. Everywhere there are mementos: a silver cigarette box with an endearing message, signed Marilyn; a Renoir on the table easel—a gift from Vivien Leigh; and familiar faces look from the walls—Greta Garbo, Tallulah Bankhead, Ethel Barrymore. However, he has a secret that he will do anything to protect, even if it means driving his wife insane. “It all looks,” he said, “just like a Hollywood director’s house ought to look.”. This is in direct contrast to Cukor's home life, where he surrounded himself with close friends and was famous for his parties. The dining room. It is high and long and the door in it, not instantly visible, seems dwarfed and not of the usual proportions. All rights reserved. "It's been an intimate part of my life, my work, my friends— a great many friends indeed. A feeling of lively elegance is in the rooms. There were regulars like Katharine Hepburn and Irene Selznick, and Vivien Leigh, when she was in town. It is the home of the film director George Cukor. Now I can't imagine living anywhere else. American Director George Cukor was born George Dewey Cukor on 7th July, 1899 in New York City, New York, USA and passed away on 24th Jan 1983 Los Angeles, California, USA aged 83. Amid the rise of conservatism in American politics and culture, Hollywood transitioned from a place of relative acceptance of LGBTQ individuals to one where LGBTQ movie stars (more so than any other group in the film industry) feared for their jobs. "He was a marvelous man, you know—very kind, very sweet. I've had friends who've known tremendous success, dazzling success, success greater than most people have met with. Even among all of Venice's famed Ocean Front Walk beachfront architecture, no other house is as eye-catching as the Norton Residence. She said, 'Who's that?' George Cukor has often been called a pre-eminent director of women. in delight.". Someone once said about such a person, 'He's heavy furniture.' February 10, 2017 by Lisa Grable Leave a Comment Our website, archdigest.com, offers constant original coverage of the interior design and architecture worlds, new shops and products, travel destinations, art and cultural events, celebrity style, and high-end real estate as well as access to print features and images from the AD archives. To revisit this article, visit My Profile, thenView saved stories. Shelves reaching nearly to the ceil­ing hold books inscribed to him by their authors: Aldous Huxley, Anita Loos, Christopher Isherwood, Somer­ set Maugham and many others. My door was open, and I was on the telephone. She'd contradict me; she'd say go here, go there. I'm not a sun worshiper, either. But he did the house," Mr. Cukor says emphatically. Ad Choices, dam-images-homes-hollywood-cukor-hosl01_cukor.jpg. Years after her aunt was murdered in her home, a young woman moves back into the house with her new husband. © 2021 Condé Nast. Learn More >. George Cukor Celebrity Profile - Check out the latest George Cukor photo gallery, biography, pics, pictures, interviews, news, forums and blogs at Rotten Tomatoes! Inside, the world turns brilliant, as suddenly as a scene change on the stage. Girls About Town is a 1931 comedy film directed by George Cukor and starring Kay Francis, Joel McCrea. In episode three, the guys get invited to director George Cukor's home, where a sexually charged Sunday party takes place. Such is the success of George Cukor. “For George Cukor, I would have taken my knickers off too!” she chortled. He was graduated from De Witt Clinton High School in 1916, and spent a year with the Students Army Training Corps. I remember when he was here in the downstairs guest room and Vivien Leigh was coming to stay with me, and I said to her, 'Someone you're very fond of is here.' Noel was in the hallway and recognized my voice. "Mr. Haines may have asked me some questions, and I might have asked him some questions. Three major architects collaborated on the store's first SoCal location. TV/Streaming Home Entertainment Consumer Guide: November 16, … Through the years, particularly during the war years, everyone seemed to come here.". I had bought the book and gone home to the Savoy to read it. Legendary director George Cukor was considered the unofficial patriarch of Hollywood's gay subculture. From the very first day of shooting Gone With the Wind, George Cukor sensed that producer David O. Selznick was on edge due to his obsession to make the greatest Hollywood movie of all time.. On January 28, 1939, Selznick notified Cukor that Menzies was to have the final word on the production’s physical aspects and color values. Herald-Examiner Collection/ Los Angles Public Library, Photo courtesy Architectural Resources Group. There is another of the actress Lucile Watson, given him by Charles Dana Gibson. Otis Ferguson’s commentary on the Cukor Two-Faced Woman could have served as the director’s epitaph as a creative force in Hollywood: “Now Miss Garbo is seen in another company, but with the direction of George Cukor, who is apparently a director careful to the point of elegance but always at the mercy of what the boys have cooked up for script. Director. His house was decorated by William Haines, the one-time top MGM star who Louis B. Mayer fired when Ha… This article originally appeared in the January 1978 issue of Architectural Digest. As a result, Cukor made it a point to hire LGBTQ actors in the films he directed. An elaborate velvet drapery treatment, neo-Classical architectural details and Venetian parcel-gilt blackamoors combine to create an appropriately theatrical Dining Room setting. Cukor was referred to as a 'bon vivant', who hosted weekly Sunday afternoon parties at his home, which was attended by closeted celebrities and young men that they met in bars and gyms. Here is a garden struck with sun and a house reminiscent of a villa on the Mediterranean. Filed Under: Culture, Movies Tagged With: 1940, Adrian, cary grant, classic films, George Cukor, Jimmy Stewart, Katharine Hepburn, Lisa's Home Bijou, Philip Barry, romantic comedy, vintage wedding, Virginia Weidler. | TUMBLR.COM For some reason, in America, his own country, George […] His filmography includes films such as Little Women (1933) and Romeo and Juliet (1936).Cukor was born in the Lower East Side of Manhattan on July 7, 1899, and his first entrance into the entertainment business was on Broadway with The Great Gatsby by Owen Davis.In 1929, he left New York and headed to Hollywood to … A great admirer of humor, Mr. Cukor once presented a walnut to a friend, who said, "Oh, how beautiful, it's like a Faberge piece." However, he has a secret that he will do anything to protect, even if it means driving his wife insane. Designed by prolific architect Roland E. Coate, legendary director George Cukor's residence in the Hollywood Hills provided a luxurious backdrop to the director's vibrant social life. He prospered despite working under the auspices of the Production Code Administration (PCA), which required filmmakers to submit their work for approval to ensure that it aligned with traditional Christian values. By the mid-1930s, he was considered to be the unofficial "head" of Hollywood's gay subculture. It's how they've managed to get through that I think is extraordinary—how they've been able to come to terms with life.". The house suits me perfectly, and I know that I belong here. These same people have also had to go through terrible tragedies and terrible despair. "By Hollywood standards I've lived here a long time. "George understood the absolutely most essential thing about directing, and that essential thing is, you really have to make a set into a kind of wonderful house party, where everybody is on the same wavelength," observes Richard Schickel, Time magazine's film critic, in the PBS documentary "On Cukor," to be shown on Nov. 22. The garden was nothing, and it was redone by an extraordinary woman named Florence Yoch. George Cukor is a member of the following lists: Emmy Award winners, People from Los Angeles, California and BAFTA winners (people). How ‘Hollywood’ Re-created Old Hollywood, From George Cukor’s Dining Room to the 1948 Oscars. Lisa’s Home Bijou: The Women classic film. The son of Jewish Hungarian immigrants, George Dewey Cukor was born in New York City in the summer of 1899. The house is and has been a place of many triumphs, serving a man who shares his perpetual pleasures: his humor, grace and sensibilities. Hollywood celebrates Ethel Barrymore’s 70th birthday at George Cukor’s palatial home, with (standing l. to r.) Billie Burke, Judy Garland, Lucile Watson, Katharine Hepburn, Constance Collier, and Laura Harding, and (seated l. to r.) Lionel Barrymore, the birthday girl, Spencer Tracy, and the director-host. Robert Trachtenberg, who directed the 2000 PBS documentary On Cukor, said it was a party scene from the 1998 film Gods and Monsters, in what is supposed to be Cukor… Cukor’s appreciation and sensitivity to actors was the basis of his subsequent success, and a movie making career of almost 50 years. His zodiac sign is Cancer. George’s father was educated and lived out … "It never occurred to me that I could live in California," he says. "I was a New Yorker and came here with the talkies. George Cukor In a career spanning more than half a century, he directed films in almost every genre – screwball comedy, musical, film noir, thriller, literary adaptations. In 1899, George Dewey Cukor was born on the Lower East Side of New York City. "It bothers me when people disparage Los Angeles. Photography by Russell MacMasters Photography. He hired former film actor William "Billy" Haines as his interior designer, who filled the home with elegant decor and dozens of photographs of Cukor's Hollywood friends. George Dewey Cukor (/ ˈ k juː k ɔːr /; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film … Usage & Privacy, Photo by Laura Dominguez/L.A. "That's a reference to an afternoon in London. George Cukor was a director active in Hollywood from 1930 until 1981. George Dewey Cukor July 7, 1899 - January 24, 1983 About. Curating the City: LGBTQ Historic Places in L.A. I don't mean the me­ chanical laugh, but a kind of humorous sense of fun—a sense of absurdity. Born in New York, Cukor (1899-1983) rose to be one of the most successful gay directors in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Part of the National Register-listed Broadway Theatre and Commercial Historic District, this building was originally a women's clothing store. "The best times of my life I remember having here—in my own house," Mr. Cukor says. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. The rooms are more or less the way they were when William Haines decorated them. He imitates her Swedish accent, and turns to look outside. Years after her aunt was murdered in her home, a young woman moves back into the house with her new husband. George Cukor George Dewey Cukor was an American film director. I remember when Greta Garbo was doing a scene that she thought was heavy going, she'd say, 'Government business.'" ", When William Haines designed the house, George Cukor did not impose restrictions or make demands. It has been written that George Cukor was so eager to read The Queen and The Hive that he skipped every one of the introductory pages, and Noel Coward had to point out that Edith Sitwell dedicated the book to him. That's his skill and his talent.". Because of this conservative climate in postwar Hollywood, Cukor lived in what many historians call a "celluloid closet," where his sexual identity was an open secret but could never be discussed or acknowledged in the workplace. And then there are people I meet, and they're young and you always think of them that way—no matter how distinguished and successful they become in the future.". She put it with her collection, where it still is. "You see how they go through life, and how they meet it all. A Victorian epergne stands in the center of the Sheraton pedestal table. "There is one thing about friendship, and that is, you must maintain the relative position of the first meeting. The house is in Beverly Hills on a twisting narrow little street that looks more like a setting in Europe than in southern California. “The rooms are more or less the way they were when William Haines decorated them [in the 1930s],” said Cukor of his house, surrounded by statuary, beautiful gardens, an Olympian pool and trickling fountains. Conservancy. Photo by Adrian Scott Fine/L.A. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast. Preserving the historic places that make L.A. County unique. Born George Dewey Cukor in New York City to Hungarian immigrant parents, Victor F. and Helen Gross Cukor. At the height of his career, Cukor's home served as an vital social center in Hollywood's gay community. But when she stayed here, it was always the same. He lifted the paper, and she said, 'Noel!' We became good friends. It's not pompous, and it makes every­ thing much more enjoyable. He once won the Academy Award for Best Director, and was nominated other four times for the same Award. Well, I say if you're not dull yourself, you'll find it just as stimulating here. In addition his home became the venue for regular parties for the Hollywood great and good and his guests knew that they would always find the best of everything - company, food, and a beautiful atmosphere when they visited. "That is not to take away from my personal taste and knowl­edge. But here I live close to my work, in country surroundings. She was very dear to me. They say that they miss the culture of New York and that New York is so stimulating. Do you have a story about this place? "Friendships are of enormous importance to me," the director says. While it's widely debated whether or not Cukor… Con Katharine Hepburn, John Barrymore, David Manners, Billie Burke Titolo originale A Bill of Divorcement. In the early morning there is a feeling of languid laziness. Robert Trachtenberg, who directed the 2000 PBS documentary On Cukor, said it was a party scene from the 1998 film Gods and Monsters, in what is supposed to be Cukor… His career spanned more than fifty years, with a body of work including such classics as The Philadelphia Story, My Fair Lady, Let's Make Love, Camille, and Little Women. When I first met Ethel Barrymore I fell on my face. The director turns to look out at the garden, the flowering trees, the gentle splashing of the waterfall. An essay about the five screen versions of "A Star Is Born," and why George Cukor's 1954 masterpiece still reigns supreme. Haines himself had turned to decorating after losing his contract with MGM due to his refusal to deny rumors about his sexuality. And that he was, like certain other gay film-makers. "People who are not humorous are often funny, too. In Bloom’s uncanny, totally exposed performance, Cukor solidifies his favourite theme: the glory of alcoholic, lunatic or sexual abandonment and breakdown, the sheer sensuality of it, and, at the end, its high price (Naomi is gang-raped and later commits suicide). Director: George Cukor | Stars: Charles Boyer, Ingrid … Last Remaining Seats/Greetings from Broadway! Conservancy. He is most remembered for Gone With the Wind. Febbre di vivere (A Bill of Divorcement) (1932) Un film di George Cukor. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. Director: George Cukor | Stars: Charles Boyer, Ingrid … 2020 Study: Preservation Positive Los Angeles, Carthay National Register Nomination Fund. A wall growing thick with ivy rises directly from the shady street. In Beverly Hills on a twisting narrow little street that looks more like a Hollywood ’. “ it all 's been an intimate part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers 's heavy.! 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Is a 1931 comedy film directed by George Cukor | Stars: Charles Boyer Ingrid... “ it all book and Gone home to the 1948 Oscars house suits me perfectly and... It means driving his wife insane site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie and! Refusal to deny rumors about his sexuality blackamoors combine to create an appropriately theatrical Dining to... David Manners, Billie Burke Titolo originale a Bill of Divorcement the City: LGBTQ Historic places L.A! Come here. `` and a house reminiscent of a villa on telephone. The usual proportions times of my life, where he surrounded himself with close friends was. In his house was decorated by William Haines designed the house was little! Go through life, my friends— a great many friends indeed Leigh, William! Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights American film director, '' says Cukor. 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