Jack Gold | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jacob M. Gold (1930-06-28)28 June 1930 London, England |
| Died | 9 August 2015(2015-08-09) (aged 85) London, England, UK |
| Occupation | Director |
| Spouse | Denyse Alexander (m. 1957) |
Jacob M. Gold (28 June 1930 – 9 August 2015) was a British film andtelevision director. He was part of theBritish realist tradition which followed theFree Cinema movement.[1][2]
Jacob M. Gold was born on 28 June 1930, in North London, the son of Charles and Minnie (née Elbery) Gold.[3][4]
He studied Economics and Law atUniversity College London.[5] After leaving UCL, he began his career as a film editor on the BBC'sTonight programme. Gold became a freelance documentary filmmaker, making dramas as a platform for his social and political observations.[citation needed]
For television, his best known work isThe Naked Civil Servant (1975), based onQuentin Crisp's1968 book of the same name and starringJohn Hurt, which won the Grand Prize at the San Remo Film Festival.[2][6] He had previously directed the 1964 crime seriesCall the Gun Expert for the BBC.
Other television credits includeThe Visit (1959), theBBC Television Shakespeare productions ofThe Merchant of Venice (1980) andMacbeth (1983) - the latter starringNicol Williamson - as well as the made-for-TV adaptation ofGraham Greene'sThe Tenth Man (1988), starringAnthony Hopkins andCharlie Muffin (1979, USA:A Deadly Game). In 1998, he directed an award-winning-adaption of the 1981 children's bookGoodnight Mister Tom byMichelle Magorian, featuringJohn Thaw in the lead. He also directed films such asThe National Health (1973),Man Friday (1975),[7]Aces High (1976),The Medusa Touch (1978),The Chain (1985) andEscape from Sobibor (1987).[8]
Gold directed the final episode ofITV's televisiondetective dramaInspector Morse. Other work includes the television drama seriesKavanagh QC andThe Brief.[8]
Gold was an Honorary Associate ofLondon Film School.
Gold married actressDenyse Alexander (née Macpherson) in 1957, with whom he shared a birthday - she was born in 1932. The couple had three children: Jamie, Kathryn and music producerNick Gold.[9][4]
