Nicolas Noxon facts for kids

Nicolas Lane Noxon (born July 29, 1936 – died May 3, 2016) was an American filmmaker. He made documentaries for television. Nicolas Noxon was known for creating shows about history, science, and the natural world. He worked with big companies like ABC, MGM, and National Geographic Television.

Early Life

Nicolas Noxon was born in 1936 in London, England. His father, Gerald Forbes Noxon, was a writer and filmmaker from Canada. His mother, Betty Lane, was an American painter. Nicolas moved to the United States when he was very young, less than two years old.

He went to a private boarding school called The Putney School. Later, in 1959, he earned his college degree from Antioch College.

Career in Filmmaking

Nicolas Noxon started working on the National Geographic Specials in the mid-1960s. He produced and wrote three of the very first shows when they first aired on CBS.

In 1967, he helped start the Documentary Department at MGM. This was the first time a major movie studio had a special department just for documentaries. There, he made and oversaw many films about nature. He also made films on topics like archaeology, forest fires, movie history, and how young children develop.

In 1978, Noxon went back to National Geographic. He wrote and produced "The Great Whales," which won an Emmy Award. He also made "The Sharks," which was one of the most-watched shows ever on PBS. In 1982, he became a writer and producer for the TV series Ripley's Believe It or Not!. This show was on ABC for four years.

In 1986, he joined Robert Ballard's trip to explore the wreck of the Titanic. The film that came from this trip was Secrets of the Titanic. For many years, this was the best-selling documentary on video. It also inspired James Cameron's famous movie about the Titanic.

In 1991, Nicolas Noxon became the Executive Producer of the National Geographic Specials. He also became the head of Geographic's production office on the West Coast. He oversaw many successful productions there. These included "Wolves Of The Sea" and "Dragons Of Galapagos," which both won the Golden Panda award. He also supervised "Heroes of the High Frontier," which won an Emmy Award in 1999-2000. Another big project was "Adventures in Time," a two-hour special for the new millennium. This show got great ratings and good reviews on NBC.

Nicolas Noxon was connected to the National Geographic Specials for a long time. This series aired on major TV networks. It was known as one of the most popular groups of programs on PBS.

Awards and Honors

Nicolas Noxon's films won many awards in television. These included several Emmy Awards and many international honors. In 2009, he received the International Documentary Association Pioneer Award. This award is given each year to someone who has greatly influenced nonfiction filmmaking.

Over the years, the specials he worked on won more than 400 awards. This includes 58 Emmy Awards, four George Foster Peabody awards, and two Dupont Columbia awards for Broadcast Journalism.

Personal Life

Nicolas Noxon had four children with his first wife, Mary Straley. In 1978, he married Nicky Nicholass.