The Resume

(September 17, 1904-September 30, 1972)
Born in Olmutz, Austria-Hungary (now Olomouc, Czech Republic)
Directed 'The Black Cat' (1934), 'Moon Over Harlem' (1939), 'Tomorrow We Live' (1942), 'Bluebeard' (1944), 'Detour' (1945), 'Carnegie Hall' (1947), 'Ruthless' (1948), 'The Man from Planet X' (1951), 'The Naked Dawn' (1955), 'The Amazing Transparent Man' (1960) and 'The Cavern' (1964)

Why he might be annoying:

He said he was the set designer on several films -- including 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' (1919), 'Metropolis' (1927) and 'M' (1931) -- for which his claims are not supported by the credits. Or the production stills. Or the recollections of the people who did work on the films.
One critic said, 'In the field of fabrication, he neatly beats his main competitor, Howard Hawks.'
The first film he directed in America was 'Damaged Lives' (1933), a 'social hygiene' film about the dangers of syphilis.
After the success of 'The Black Cat,' he could have had a steady career at Universal, but he began an affair with (and later married) Shirley Alexander, the wife of the nephew of Universal studio head Carl Laemmle, resulting in his being blackballed by the major studios.
Most of the films he cranked out for 'Poverty Row' studios have been forgotten.

Why he might not be annoying:

His horror film 'The Black Cat' and film noir 'Detour' have strong cult followings.
Peter Bogdanovich said, 'Nobody ever made good pictures faster or for less money.'
Francois Truffaut praised his films as consistently 'fresh, sincere and inventive.'
He said, 'I didn't want to be ground up in the Hollywood hash machine.'

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• Artsy/Fartsy Directors
• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 57]
• Celebrities Born on the Same Date [September] (Ranked: 9171904)
• I Attended the Premiere of 'Mary Poppins' [1964]
• I Died in 1972 (Ranked: 68)
• I Had a Stroke [Cerebral Vascular Accident]
• I'm Buried at Hollywood Forever Cemetery [Calif]
• Look at Me, Yes You! - Finger Pointers
• Profiles 36501-36750 (Ranked: 36584)
• Stars of Horror Films
• Stars of Universal Monster Movies
• Wife Thieves

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 17 Votes: 5.88% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 90.91% Annoying
In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2017, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
In 2015, Out of 13 Votes: 30.77% Annoying