About Joseph Sargent
Joseph Sargent (born Giuseppe Danielle Sorgente; July 22, 1925 – December 22, 2014) was an American director, producer, and actor of film and television. His directing career spanned nearly 50 years, between 1959 and 2008, and over 90 productions. He was a four-time Primetime Emmy Award and Directors Guild of America Award recipient. Sargent's directing credits included the science-fiction film Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970), the Burt Reynolds action film White Lightning (1973), the thriller The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974), the biopic MacArthur (1977) starring Gregory Peck, and the horror anthology Nightmares (1983). On television, he was known as a prolific director of telefilms and miniseries, winning the Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series or Movie three times. He was the father of voice actress Lia Sargent. He appeared in an uncredited role as a soldier in the film From Here to Eternity (1953) where he also met his first wife Mary Carver on the set. In 1974, he won his first Directors Guild of America Award for The Marcus-Nelson Murders (1973), which was the TV movie pilot for the Kojak series. Early in his career, he won a Directors Guild of America Award for the Kojak pilot.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.