Michael Todd facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Michael Todd
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Mike Todd at the Jones Beach Theater on Long Island, 1952.
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| Born |
Avrom Hirsch Goldbogen
June 22, 1909 |
| Died | March 22, 1958 (aged 48) Grants, New Mexico,
United States |
| Spouse(s) | Bertha Freshman (1927–46) Joan Blondell (1947–50) Elizabeth Taylor (1957–58) |
Michael Todd (born June 22, 1909 – died March 22, 1958), also known as Mike Todd, was a famous American theatre and movie producer. He was known for creating exciting movies and new film technologies like Cinerama and Todd-AO. He also made headlines for his marriage to the famous actress Elizabeth Taylor in 1957. His 1956 movie, Around the World in Eighty Days, won an Academy Award for Best Picture, which is a huge honor in filmmaking.
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Michael Todd's Early Life
Michael Todd was born Avrom Hirsch Goldbogen in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His parents, Chaim Goldbogen and Sophia Hellerman, were Polish Jewish immigrants. He was the youngest of nine children in a family that didn't have much money. His brothers and sisters used to call him "Toat" because he had trouble saying the word "coat." This nickname later became "Todd," which he used as his professional name.
His family later moved to Chicago when he was young. Mike Todd was a very energetic kid. He was even asked to leave school in the sixth grade for playing a dice game inside! But he also showed his talent early on. In high school, he produced the school play, The Mikado, which was a big success. He eventually left high school and worked many different jobs, like selling shoes and decorating store windows. He even worked at a soda fountain in a drugstore.
Growing Up and First Jobs
When the drugstore closed, Mike Todd used what he had learned there to get a job at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago. He worked as a kind of "security guard" to make sure visitors didn't bring food that patients weren't allowed to eat. This shows he was always finding new ways to work and learn.
Family and Marriages
When he was 17, Mike Todd married Bertha Freshman in 1927. He had liked Bertha since he was 14! In 1929, they had a son named Michael Todd, Jr. A big change happened for Todd in 1931 when his father passed away. On that very day, Avrom Goldbogen decided to officially change his name to "Michael Todd."
Bertha Todd sadly passed away in 1946 during surgery. At the time, Mike and Bertha were separated. The next year, Todd married actress Joan Blondell in 1947. They divorced in 1950.
Marriage to Elizabeth Taylor
Mike Todd's third marriage was to the famous actress Elizabeth Taylor. Their relationship was often described as very passionate. They got married on February 2, 1957. Todd was 47 years old, and Taylor was 24. She was his third wife. They had a daughter together, Elizabeth Frances (Liza) Todd, who was born on August 7, 1957.
A Tragic Accident
On March 22, 1958, Mike Todd's private plane, named Lucky Liz, crashed near Grants, New Mexico. The plane, a twin-engine Lockheed Lodestar, had an engine problem. It was flying too high in icy weather, which made it hard for the plane to stay in the air with only one working engine. The plane lost control and crashed, and all four people on board died.
Besides Mike Todd, the crash also killed screenwriter Art Cohn, who was writing a book about Todd's life, and the two pilots, Bill Verner and Tom Barclay. Elizabeth Taylor had wanted to fly with her husband, but she stayed home because she had a cold. Just hours before the crash, Todd had told friends on the phone that his plane was safe. He even said he wouldn't let anything happen to it because he was carrying a picture of Elizabeth.
After the Crash
Mike Todd's son, Mike Jr., wanted his father's body to be cremated after it was identified. But Elizabeth Taylor said no, believing Todd wouldn't have wanted that. Todd was buried in Forest Park, Illinois, in a Jewish cemetery.
Later, there was a sad incident where thieves broke into Todd's coffin. They were looking for a very expensive diamond ring that a rumor said Elizabeth Taylor had placed on his finger. The bag with Todd's remains was found near his burial spot. His remains were identified again using dental records, and he was reburied in a secret place to prevent anything like that from happening again.
Mike Todd's Amazing Work
Mike Todd started his career in the construction business. He made a lot of money but also lost it at times. He even opened a school called the College of Bricklaying of America! But the school had to close because the Bricklayers' Union didn't approve of it. Todd and his brother, Frank, then started their own construction company. It was worth a lot of money, but it stopped working when they lost their financial support during the Great Depression. Even though he was not yet 21, Todd had lost a huge amount of money.
From Construction to Broadway
He later worked as a contractor for Hollywood movie studios. At the 1933-1934 Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago, he created a show called the "Flame Dance." This act was very exciting and got the attention of a club in New York City called the Casino de Paris. This was Mike Todd's first taste of Broadway, and he loved it! He decided he wanted to work there.
He came up with the idea of producing the famous operetta The Mikado by Gilbert and Sullivan, but with an all-African-American cast. This show, called The Hot Mikado and starring the famous dancer Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, opened on Broadway in 1939. This success gave him the confidence to take on other big showmen. Todd went on to produce 30 Broadway shows during his career!
New Movie Technologies
Mike Todd's business life was full of ups and downs, and he sometimes faced financial difficulties.
In 1950, Mike Todd helped create The Cinerama Company. This company was formed to use Cinerama, a new movie technology that used three projectors to show a giant picture on a curved screen. The first Cinerama movie, This is Cinerama, came out in 1952.
Before that movie was released, Todd left the Cinerama Company. He wanted to create an even better widescreen movie process that would fix some of Cinerama's problems. The result was the Todd-AO process, which was designed by the American Optical Company. This new technology was first used for the successful 1955 movie Oklahoma!.
Around the World in 80 Days
Todd then produced the movie he is most remembered for: Michael Todd's Around the World in 80 Days. This movie first came out in cinemas on October 17, 1956. It cost $6 million to make, but it earned $16 million at the box office, which was a huge success! In 1957, Around the World in 80 Days won the Best Picture Academy Award, making it one of the most celebrated films of its time.
Selected Broadway Productions
- Call Me Ziggy (Play, Farce, 1937)
- The Hot Mikado (Musical, Operetta, 1939)
- Something for the Boys (Musical, Comedy, 1943)
- Mexican Hayride (Musical, Comedy, 1944)
- Up in Central Park (Musical, Comedy, 1945)
- As the Girls Go (Musical, Comedy, 1948)
