Marshall Flaum | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1925-09-13)September 13, 1925 Brooklyn,New York City, U.S. |
| Died | October 1, 2010(2010-10-01) (aged 85) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Years active | 1948–2003 |
Marshall Allen Flaum (September 13, 1925 – October 1, 2010) was an AmericanEmmy Award-winningdocumentary andtelevision director,producer andscreenwriter. In addition to his five Emmy Awards, Flaum earned twoAcademy Award nominations for his work on thedocumentary filmsThe Yanks Are Coming in 1963 andLet My People Go: The Story of Israel in 1965.[1]
Flaum was born inBensonhurst, Brooklyn,New York, on September 13, 1925, and was raised inUnion City, New Jersey.[2] He enlisted in theUnited States Army duringWorld War II.[1] Flaum earned abachelor's degree in acting from theUniversity of Iowa in 1948.[1]
He pursued a career as astage actor following his graduation from Iowa. Flaum returned toNew York City, where he studied with acting teacherLee Strasberg while appearing onBroadway.[1] His Broadway credits during the period he studied under Strasberg included the 1950 production ofRomeo and Juliet, which starredOlivia de Havilland, andJulius Caesar in 1951, in which he appeared oppositeBasil Rathbone.[1]
In 1957, Flaum joined the staff of theCBS documentarytelevision series,Twentieth Century, hosted byWalter Cronkite, as astory editor, producer and writer.[1] He won his first two Emmy Awards for his work as a writer for segments on the show.[1]
He relocated to theLos Angeles area in 1962, where he took a position inDavid L. Wolper'sproduction company.[1] His credits at Wolper's company includedHollywood: TheSelznick Years andThe Battle of Britain.[1] Flaum produced Hollywood documentaries covering such notables asHumphrey Bogart andBing Crosby.[2]
His 1963 Academy Award-nominated documentaryThe Yanks are Coming told the story of the military history of the United States inWorld War I, integrating music of the time with historical footage. His 1965 documentaryLet My People Go: The Story of Israel provided a history of the creation of the State of Israel in the wake ofThe Holocaust, earning an Academy Award nomination in 1965.[2]Let My People Go was described by critic Donald Kirkley ofThe Baltimore Sun as being "one of those rare programs which remind us of the heights to which television can soar when it is at its best.".[3]
He earned a pair of Emmy Awards in 1972 for segments ondolphins andsea otters that were broadcast as part ofThe Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau. In 1975 and 1976, all along withCousteau and Cousteau's son,Philippe Cousteau, he codirectedVoyage to the Edge of the World. His fifth Emmy Award came the following year, when he was recognized for producingJane Goodall and the World of Animal Behavior: The Wild Dogs of Africa.[2]
Flaum died at the age of 85 on October 1, 2010, in Los Angeles due to complications of hip surgery. He was survived by his wife, the former Gita Miller, as well as by a daughter, a son and two grandchildren. Both of his children arefilm editors.[2]
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