Gene Reynolds
Encyclopedia
Gene Reynolds is a former American actor turned award-winning television writer, director
, and producer
.
, he was raised in Detroit, Michigan
, where his father Frank was a businessman and entrepreneur
.
short
Washee Ironee
, and for the next three decades made numerous appearances in films such as In Old Chicago
(1937), Love Finds Andy Hardy
(1937), Captains Courageous (1937), Boys Town (1938), Eagle Squadron
(1942) and The Country Girl
(1954) and on television series like I Love Lucy
, Armstrong Circle Theatre
, Whirlybirds
, and Hallmark Hall of Fame
.
and James Brooks to create Tales of Wells Fargo
for NBC. During the program's five-year run he wrote and directed numerous episodes. Additional directing credits include multiple episodes of Leave It to Beaver
, The Andy Griffith Show
, The Farmer's Daughter
, F Troop
, Hogan's Heroes
, Room 222
, and Many Happy Returns
.
As a writer, director, and producer, Reynolds was involved with two highly successful CBS series in the 1970s and early 1980s. Between 1972 and 1983, he produced 121 episodes of M*A*S*H, for which he wrote eleven episodes and directed twenty-four. During that same period, he produced twenty episodes of Lou Grant
, for which he wrote 111 episodes and directed eleven.
Reynolds has been nominated for twenty-four Emmy Award
s and won six times, including Outstanding Comedy Series
for M*A*S*H and Outstanding Drama Series
twice for Lou Grant, which also earned him a Humanitas Prize
. He won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Direction of a Comedy Series
twice for his work on M*A*S*H and the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Direction of a Drama Series
once for his work on Lou Grant.
Reynolds was elected President of the Directors Guild of America
in 1993, a post he held for four years until 1997.
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
, and producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
.
Early life
He was born Eugene Reynolds Blumenthal on April 4, 1923 to Frank Eugene Blumenthal and Maude Evelyn Blumenthal in Cleveland, OhioCleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, he was raised in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, where his father Frank was a businessman and entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
.
Acting career
He made his screen debut in the 1934 Our GangOur Gang
Our Gang, also known as The Little Rascals or Hal Roach's Rascals, was a series of American comedy short films about a group of poor neighborhood children and the adventures they had together. Created by comedy producer Hal Roach, the series is noted for showing children behaving in a relatively...
short
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
Washee Ironee
Washee Ironee
Washee Ironee is a 1934 Our Gang short comedy film directed by James Parrott. It was the 131st Our Gang short that was released.-Plot:...
, and for the next three decades made numerous appearances in films such as In Old Chicago
In Old Chicago
In Old Chicago is a 1937 American drama film directed by Henry King. The screenplay by Sonya Levien and Lamar Trotti was based on the Niven Busch story, "We the O'Learys." The film is a fictionalized account about the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and stars Alice Brady as Mrs. O'Leary, the owner of...
(1937), Love Finds Andy Hardy
Love Finds Andy Hardy
Love Finds Andy Hardy is a 1938 romantic comedy film which tells the story of a teenage boy who becomes entangled with three different girls all at the same time. It stars Mickey Rooney, Lewis Stone, Fay Holden, Cecilia Parker, Judy Garland, Lana Turner, Ann Rutherford, Mary Howard and Gene...
(1937), Captains Courageous (1937), Boys Town (1938), Eagle Squadron
Eagle squadron
The Eagle Squadrons were 3 fighter squadrons of the Royal Air Force formed during World War II with volunteer pilots from the United States...
(1942) and The Country Girl
The Country Girl (1954 film)
The Country Girl is a 1954 drama film adapted by George Seaton from a Clifford Odets play of the same name, which tells the story of an alcoholic has-been actor struggling with the one last chance he's been given to resurrect his career. It stars Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly and William Holden. Seaton,...
(1954) and on television series like I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
, Armstrong Circle Theatre
Armstrong Circle Theatre
Armstrong Circle Theatre is an American anthology drama television series which ran from 1950 to 1957 on NBC, and then until 1963 on CBS. It alternated weekly with The U.S. Steel Hour.-Synopsis:...
, Whirlybirds
Whirlybirds
Whirlybirds is an American drama television series....
, and Hallmark Hall of Fame
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Hallmark Hall of Fame is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City based greeting card company. The second longest-running television program in the history of television, it has a historically long run, beginning in 1951 and continuing into 2011...
.
Behind the Scenes career
In 1957, Reynolds joined forces with Frank GruberFrank Gruber (writer)
Frank Gruber was an American writer, best known for his Westerns and his detective stories. He sometimes wrote under the pen names Stephen Acre, Charles K. Boston and John K...
and James Brooks to create Tales of Wells Fargo
Tales of Wells Fargo
Tales of Wells Fargo is an American Western television series that ran from March 18, 1957 to June 2, 1962 on NBC. Produced by Revue Productions, the series aired in a half-hour format until its final season when it expanded to an hour.-Synopsis:...
for NBC. During the program's five-year run he wrote and directed numerous episodes. Additional directing credits include multiple episodes of Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver is an American television situation comedy about an inquisitive but often naïve boy named Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver and his adventures at home, in school, and around his suburban neighborhood...
, The Andy Griffith Show
The Andy Griffith Show
The Andy Griffith Show is an American sitcom first televised by CBS between October 3, 1960, and April 1, 1968. Andy Griffith portrays a widowed sheriff in the fictional small community of Mayberry, North Carolina...
, The Farmer's Daughter
The Farmer's Daughter (TV series)
The Farmer's Daughter is an American situation comedy series that was produced by Screen Gems Television and aired on ABC from September 20, 1963 to April 22, 1966. It was sponsored by Lark cigarettes and Clairol for whom the two leading stars often appeared at show's end promoting the products...
, F Troop
F Troop
F Troop is a satirical American television sitcom that originally aired for two seasons on ABC-TV. It debuted in the United States on September 14, 1965 and concluded its run on April 6, 1967 with a total of 65 episodes. The first season of 34 episodes was filmed in black-and-white, but the show...
, Hogan's Heroes
Hogan's Heroes
Hogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to March 28, 1971, on the CBS network. The show was set in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War. Bob Crane had the starring role as Colonel Robert E...
, Room 222
Room 222
Room 222 is an American comedy-drama television series produced by 20th Century Fox Television. The series aired on ABC from September 17, 1969, to January 11, 1974, for 112 episodes...
, and Many Happy Returns
Many Happy Returns (TV series)
Many Happy Returns is a situation comedy television series that ran on CBS for twenty-six episodes, from September 21, 1964 to April 12, 1965, under the sponsorship of General Foods.-Cast:The show starred character actor John McGiver...
.
As a writer, director, and producer, Reynolds was involved with two highly successful CBS series in the 1970s and early 1980s. Between 1972 and 1983, he produced 121 episodes of M*A*S*H, for which he wrote eleven episodes and directed twenty-four. During that same period, he produced twenty episodes of Lou Grant
Lou Grant (TV series)
Lou Grant is an American television drama series starring Ed Asner in the titular role as a newspaper editor. Unusual in American television, this drama series was a spinoff from a sitcom, The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Aired from 1977 to 1982, Lou Grant won 13 Emmy Awards, including "Outstanding Drama...
, for which he wrote 111 episodes and directed eleven.
Reynolds has been nominated for twenty-four Emmy Award
Primetime Emmy Award
The Primetime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American primetime television programming...
s and won six times, including Outstanding Comedy Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series is an Emmy given to the best television comedy series of the year.-Winners and nominees:...
for M*A*S*H and Outstanding Drama Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series
This page lists the winners and nominees for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series, since its institution in 1951. The award is often cited as one of the "main awards" at the Emmys ceremonies, and has changed names many times in its history. It was first called Best Dramatic Show...
twice for Lou Grant, which also earned him a Humanitas Prize
Humanitas Prize
The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing intended to promote human dignity, meaning, and freedom. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser — also the founder of Paulist Productions — but is generally not seen as specifically directed toward religious...
. He won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Direction of a Comedy Series
Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing - Comedy Series
The Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series is one of the annual awards given by the Directors Guild of America.-1970s:*1971: John Rich - All in the Family...
twice for his work on M*A*S*H and the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Direction of a Drama Series
Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing - Drama Series
The Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series - Night is one of the annual awards given by the Directors Guild of America.-1970s:*1971: Daniel Petrie - The Man and the City for "Hands of Love"...
once for his work on Lou Grant.
Reynolds was elected President of the Directors Guild of America
Directors Guild of America
Directors Guild of America is an entertainment labor union which represents the interests of film and television directors in the United States motion picture industry...
in 1993, a post he held for four years until 1997.