Walter Wood (producer)

Walter Wood (August 4, 1921 – April 20, 2010) was an American film producer and businessman.

Walter Wood
Born(1921-08-04)August 4, 1921
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedApril 20, 2010(2010-04-20) (aged 88)
Palm Springs, California, U.S.
OccupationFilm producer
Years active1962–1983

Career

Wood served as an aide to Dwight D. Eisenhower in the U.S. Army and received a Purple Heart for his service during World War II and the Korean War.[1] After the military he worked as a publicist for RKO and an advertising executive in New York.[2][3]

His first credit as a film producer was for The Hoodlum Priest, a 1961 film directed by Irvin Kershner, based on the life of Father Charles "Dismas" Clark. The Hoodlum Priest was the first venture for Murray-Wood Productions, a company Wood established with the film’s star, Don Murray.[4] Wood’s wife, Cindi Wood, co-starred in the film.[4] It screened in competition at the Cannes Film Festival.[5]

Wood reunited with Don Murray for Escape from East Berlin, a 1962 film directed by Robert Siodmak. The film is based on a news story of twenty-eight people who tunneled to freedom under the Berlin Wall earlier that same year.[6]

He served as executive producer on the 1971 film, The Todd Killings. The film, directed by Barry Shear, is based on murders committed by Charles Schmid in Tucson in the 1960s.[7]

In 1974, the Mayor of New York, Abraham Beame set up the Mayor Advisory Council on Motion Pictures and Television and Wood was appointed its first director.[8] Wood’s job was to help attract investment in New York’s film industry, which had been lagging, and to negotiate around demand for facilities in the city, particularly in relation to filming in exterior locations.[9] Film and television production in New York increased significantly during his time as director.[10]

In 1978 Wood acquired the rights to the stock-car racing novel Stand On It by William Neely and Robert K. Ottum.[11] The film was released in 1983 as Stroker Ace and was produced by Wood’s second wife, Laurel Goodwin.[12] It was the final collaboration between director Hal Needham and star Burt Reynolds and was a critical and financial flop.[13]

Filmography

References
  1. "'Hoodlum Priest' producer dies". The Hollywood Reporter. 14 May 2010. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  2. Chase, Chris (8 July 1983). "At the Movies; A job for fans of Burt Reynolds". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  3. Brown, Dennis (10 March 2011). "Repudiated upon its 1961 release by the tough-talking clergyman who inspired it, The Hoodlum Priest remains as obscure and intriguing as ever". Riverfront Times. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  4. "The Hoodlum Priest (1961)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  5. "In Competition – Feature Films: The Hoodlum Priest". Festival De Cannes. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  6. Mitchell, Greg (27 October 2016). "The Story Behind MGM's 1962 Flop 'Escape From East Berlin'". Signature. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  7. Lentz, Robert J. (2011). Gloria Grahame, Bad Girl of Film Noir: The Complete Career. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company. p. 229. ISBN 9780786434831.
  8. "MOME Office History". City of New York. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  9. Shepard, Richard F. (21 December 1974). "Liaison on Films Named By Beame". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  10. Eder, Richard (8 November 1976). "Making Movies in New York City Now Bigger and Better Than Ever". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  11. "Stroker Ace (1983)". American Film Institute. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  12. Lisanti, Tom (2003). Drive-in Dream Girls: A Galaxy of B-Movie Starlets of the Sixties. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland. p. 43. ISBN 9780786493425.
  13. Pollack, Dale (14 July 1983). "Summer Films: The Why of Those Red-Ink Blues: Summer Movies: Box-Office Blues". Los Angeles Times.
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