Stanley Kramer (1913-2001) was born in New York and came to cinema as an independent producer, backing Champion (1949), Home of the Brave (1949), The Men (1950) and High Noon (1952). He turned to directing with Not as a Stranger (1955) and became known for the so-called message picture: big, star-filled studio films about the issues of his day. The Defiant Ones (1958) tackled racism, On the Beach (1959) nuclear war, Inherit the Wind (1960) the teaching of evolution, Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) the trials of Nazi judges and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) interracial marriage. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Director and received the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award in 1961. He also made the huge comedy It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963).
Filmography
- Not as a Stranger (1955)
- The Pride and the Passion (1957)
- The Defiant Ones (1958)
- On the Beach (1959)
- Inherit the Wind (1960)
- Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
- It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)
- Ship of Fools (1965)
- Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
- The Secret of Santa Vittoria (1969)