Jack Clayton facts for kids

Jack Isaac Clayton (born March 1, 1921 – died February 26, 1995) was a British film director and producer. He was famous for turning popular books into movies.

Jack Clayton's Film Career

Jack Clayton started working in the film industry when he was a teenager in 1935. He began as a "tea boy" and slowly worked his way up. His career lasted for almost 60 years. He became very famous as a director with his first full-length movie, Room at the Top (1959). This movie won an Academy Award, also known as an Oscar. After that, he directed the well-known horror film The Innocents (1961). This movie was based on a book called The Turn of the Screw by Henry James.

Many people thought Jack Clayton would have a very bright future. Other directors and critics admired his work. However, some things made his career difficult. He was very careful about which films he chose to direct. He once said he "never made a film I didn't want to make." He even turned down movies like Alien, which later became big hits for other directors. He also had some bad luck. Hollywood studios sometimes thought he was difficult to work with. Many of his planned films in the 1970s were canceled or given to other directors. In 1977, a movie he was about to start filming was canceled just two weeks before it began. A few months later, he had a serious stroke and couldn't speak for five years.

Even though he made fewer films than some other directors, Jack Clayton's movies are still loved today. Famous film critics like Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert praised his work. Other directors like Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg also admired him.

Early Life and Start in Film (1921–1958)

Jack Clayton was born in Brighton, England. He first appeared as a child actor in the film Dark Red Roses (1929). He had wanted to be a speed skater, but he changed his mind. In 1935, at age 14, he joined Alexander Korda's Denham Film Studios. He started as a tea boy and became an assistant director, then a film editor.

In the late 1930s, Clayton worked on many important British films. These included Wings of the Morning (1937), which was the first British film made with Technicolor. He also worked with American directors like Thornton Freeland and Tim Whelan. As an assistant director, he helped coordinate three different film crews for Korda's big fantasy movie, The Thief of Baghdad (1940). He also learned a lot about editing by helping David Lean on the film Major Barbara (1941).

During World War II, Clayton served in the Royal Air Force film unit. There, he directed his first film, a documentary called Naples is a Battlefield (1944). This film showed the problems of rebuilding Naples, a city damaged by bombing during the war. After the war, he worked as a second-unit director and production manager on other films.

In the early 1950s, Clayton became an associate producer. He worked on films like Moulin Rouge (1952) and Beat the Devil (1953), both directed by John Huston. While making Moulin Rouge, he met French actress Katherine Kath, who became his second wife. He also met actor Laurence Harvey during this time. They worked together on The Good Die Young (1954) and I Am a Camera (1955).

In 1956, Clayton directed his second film, a short movie called The Bespoke Overcoat. This film won an Oscar. It was based on a short story by Nikolai Gogol, but Clayton set it in a clothing warehouse in London. He also produced some comedy films and a thriller called The Whole Truth.

Films Directed by Jack Clayton (1959–1992)

Room at the Top (1959)

With money from Romulus Films, Clayton directed his first full-length movie, Room at the Top (1959). It was a drama about society, based on a novel by John Braine. The film was a big success with both critics and audiences. It made Clayton one of the top directors of his time and made Laurence Harvey an international star. The movie won many awards and was nominated for six Oscars. Simone Signoret won Best Actress, and Neil Paterson won for Best Screenplay.

Room at the Top showed the problems of the British class system. It helped start a new style of British films called the British New Wave, which brought a more realistic feel to cinema. After this success, Clayton was offered many important projects. But he turned most of them down, saying they felt like copies of Room at the Top.

The Innocents (1961)

For his second feature film, Clayton chose a very different type of story. He directed and produced The Innocents (1961), a ghost story set in the past. The film was adapted by Truman Capote from Henry James's short story The Turn of the Screw. Clayton had first read the story when he was 10 years old.

He was able to cast Deborah Kerr in the main role as Miss Giddens. She plays a governess who goes to work in a large, old English house. She starts to believe that the two orphaned children she cares for are controlled by evil spirits.

The film received a lot of praise. People loved Kerr's performance, the unsettling acting of the child stars Martin Stephens and Pamela Franklin, the spooky music, and the beautiful black-and-white cinematography. The film was shot in CinemaScope, which Clayton didn't like at first. But the cinematographer, Freddie Francis, used it cleverly to create a feeling of unease.

The Innocents was not a huge box office hit, but it got great reviews. Its reputation has grown over the years. Film critic Pauline Kael called it "one of the most elegantly beautiful ghost movies ever made." Many directors consider it a classic psychological horror film. François Truffaut even said it was "the best English film after Hitchcock goes to America."

The Pumpkin Eater (1964)

The Pumpkin Eater (1964) had a screenplay by the famous British writer Harold Pinter. It was based on a novel by Penelope Mortimer. Clayton worked with his long-time colleague Oswald Morris on the cinematography. This film also marked the first time Clayton worked with French composer Georges Delerue. The movie was set in London and looked at a marriage in trouble. Anne Bancroft played a wealthy woman whose husband, a successful writer, was unfaithful.

Critics praised the film. Harold Pinter won an award for Best British Screenplay. Anne Bancroft won Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival and a BAFTA Award. Despite the good reviews, the film did not do well with audiences. Clayton later felt it was released at the "bad timing."

Our Mother's House (1967)

Clayton's fourth film, Our Mother's House (1967), was his first in color. It was a unique drama about children who hide their mother's death and continue to live in their house. The film was not a commercial success, but Roger Ebert gave it a great review. Dirk Bogarde was nominated for a BAFTA Best Actor award for his role. Steven Spielberg later said he greatly admired the film.

The movie was based on a novel by Julian Gloag. Clayton's third wife, actress Haya Harareet, helped revise the script. The film featured strong performances from Bogarde and the seven child actors, including Pamela Franklin (from The Innocents) and Mark Lester. The music was again composed by Georges Delerue. The film's box-office performance might have been hurt because it received an 'X' Certificate in the UK, meaning only people over 16 could see it. After this film, Clayton faced many challenges and didn't make another movie until 1974.

The Great Gatsby (1974)

The only film Clayton completed between 1968 and 1982 was the big Hollywood production of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby (1974). This was the biggest and most expensive film of Clayton's career. It had a screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola, music by Nelson Riddle, and two of the biggest stars of the time, Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. The supporting cast was also very strong.

Even though it was highly promoted, the film did not get good reviews from critics. Many critics felt it didn't capture the spirit of the book. For example, Vincent Canby from The New York Times said the movie was "as lifeless as a body that's been too long at the bottom of a swimming pool." Critics also said there wasn't enough "chemistry" between Redford and Farrow. Farrow later said it was hard to connect with Redford because he was very focused on the Watergate scandal happening at the time.

Despite the bad reviews, the movie did well at the box office, earning over $26 million. It also won two Oscars (for Costume Design and Music) and three BAFTA Awards. Karen Black won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress.

Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)

After his stroke in 1977, Clayton returned to directing with Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983). This was a project he had wanted to make for over 20 years. The film was based on a novel by Ray Bradbury. Bradbury had first written the story in 1948. Clayton showed interest in directing it around 1959.

The project faced many problems during its making. Clayton and Bradbury reportedly disagreed after Clayton brought in another writer to revise the script. Clayton wanted to make the film a dark thriller, exploring themes he had used before: the supernatural and children facing evil.

When Clayton showed his first version of the film, the Disney studio had concerns. They thought it was too long and might not be popular enough. Disney decided to delay the film's release for almost a year. Clayton was reportedly pushed aside, and Disney spent more money and time changing the film. They cut many scenes, removed the original music (to make it more "family-friendly"), and filmed new scenes. Because of the delays, the two child stars looked noticeably older in the new scenes.

The version of the film released in 1983 was a mix of Disney's desire for a family-friendly movie and Clayton's darker vision. Many of Clayton's original scenes were removed. A pioneering computer-generated animation sequence that was supposed to open the film was almost entirely cut. Another scene with a giant disembodied hand was replaced with a new scene involving spiders because the special effect wasn't realistic enough. The original music by Georges Delerue was replaced with a new score. Delerue's original music was considered his best for Hollywood films, but it wasn't released until 2011.

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1987)

Clayton's last full-length movie was the British film The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1987). He had wanted to make this film since 1961. It was based on a novel by Brian Moore. Maggie Smith starred as a lonely woman struggling with her life. The film's music was again by Georges Delerue. This movie earned Clayton good reviews for the first time in many years.

Memento Mori (1992)

In 1992, Clayton worked with Maggie Smith and Georges Delerue again on his final project. It was a TV movie called Memento Mori, based on a novel by Muriel Spark. This was Clayton's first comedy, and he had wanted to make it since he read the book while filming Room at the Top. The film had a strong cast and explored themes of aging and disappointment. It was shown in April 1992, shortly after Georges Delerue passed away. The film was well-received and won several awards.

Career Challenges and Unfinished Projects

Even though he was highly respected, Jack Clayton faced many problems in his career after Our Mother's House (1967). For about 15 years, he only managed to complete one film, The Great Gatsby (1974). One reason was Clayton's desire for perfection. He was very careful and detailed in his work and didn't want to repeat himself. He turned down many famous films after Room at the Top. For example, in 1969, he turned down They Shoot Horses, Don't They? because he didn't want to take over a project that was already prepared. In 1977, he also turned down Alien, which became a huge hit for another director.

Many projects that Clayton worked on never got made. Some were:

• Sweet Autumn (1966), a script that was never filmed.
• The Walking Stick (1968), which he had to decline because his mother was ill. Another director made it later.
• The Looking Glass War (1968–69). Clayton was supposed to direct this, but he and the writer left the project due to disagreements with the studio.
• Zaharoff, Pedlar of Death (1969), a film about an arms dealer. This was a project Clayton loved, but he could never get it made.
• The Tenant (1969–75). Clayton wanted to make this psychological horror film, but the studio gave it to another director without telling him. Clayton was very angry about this.

Several of Clayton's film projects were canceled just before filming was supposed to start. These failures reportedly upset Clayton greatly and may have contributed to his health problems. In 1977, after a film was canceled, Fox offered him Alien, but he turned it down. A few months later, he had a major stroke and couldn't speak. His wife and friends helped him recover. He kept his condition a secret because he worried he wouldn't get work again. He didn't take on another project for five years.

After Something Wicked This Way Comes, Clayton was hired to direct The Bourne Identity (1983). This film was supposed to star Burt Reynolds. However, the production was delayed many times and never got made with Clayton as director.

Personal Life

Jack Clayton was married three times. His first marriage was to actress Christine Norden in 1947, but they divorced in 1953. The same year, he married French actress Katherine Kath, but this marriage was short. His third marriage was in 1984 to Israeli actress Haya Harareet. They stayed married until his death. Jack Clayton died in a hospital in Slough, England, from a heart attack on February 25, 1995.

A year after his death, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) held a ceremony to celebrate his life. Many of his friends and colleagues shared tributes. Harold Pinter, who wrote the screenplay for The Pumpkin Eater, said that Clayton was a director of "great sensitivity, intelligence and flair."

His former film editor, Jim Clark, became close friends with Clayton. Clark wrote in his memoir that Clayton was a "very complex personality." He could be charming but also had a temper. Clark recalled an incident where Clayton smashed a model of a house in his office and another time when he threw a chair through his office window.

Films Directed by Jack Clayton

• Naples Is a Battlefield (1944) – a short documentary
• The Bespoke Overcoat (1956) – a short film
• Room at the Top (1959)
• The Innocents (1961)
• The Pumpkin Eater (1964)
• Our Mother's House (1967)
• The Great Gatsby (1974)
• Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)
• The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1987)
• Memento Mori (1992) – a TV film