About Don Siegel
Donald Siegel ( SEE-gəl; October 26, 1912 – April 20, 1991) was an American film and television director, producer, and editor. He was described by The New York Times as "a director of tough, cynical and forthright action-adventure films whose taut plots centered on individualistic loners". Siegel directed the science fiction horror film Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), as well as five films with Clint Eastwood, including the action thriller Dirty Harry (1971) and the prison thriller Escape from Alcatraz (1979). He also directed John Wayne's final film, the Western The Shootist (1976). Siegel's earlier film Riot in Cell Block 11 (1954) was noted as an influence on the development of auteur theory and the French New Wave. One critic described him as "Hollywood's greatest genre director." In 1945, two shorts he directed, Star in the Night and Hitler Lives, won Academy Awards, which launched his career as a feature director. Schifrin composed and recorded what would have been his sixth score for Siegel on Jinxed! (1982), but it was rejected by the studio despite Siegel's objections. Siegel attended schools in New York and later graduated from Jesus College, Cambridge in England.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.