Sidney Harmon Explained

Sidney Harmon (April 30, 1907 – February 29, 1988) was a movie producer and screenwriter. Harmon was nominated for the 1942 Academy Award for Best Story for the movie The Talk of the Town. He began his career working as a writer for radio and the theater during the 1930s. Harmon produced Sidney Kingsley's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Men In White.^[1]

Biography

Born in Poughkeepsie, New York in 1907,^[2] Harmon produced Broadway plays throughout the 1930s (1931-1937).^[3] Harmon was one of many members of the Group Theatre to become involved with movie production.^[4] He married artist Lily Harmon (née Perlmutter) in 1934; they divorced in 1940.^[5] He worked with movies from the 1940s to the 1960s. In 1959, he co-founded the Theatre Group at the University of California at Los Angeles with John Houseman and Robert Ryan.^[6]

Harmon, with Ryan and others, initiated the Oakwood School in California in 1951.^[7]

During retirement, Harmon was active in the cultural life of Palm Springs, California; he was the first director emeritus of the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert.^[8] The Desert Theatre League's Sidney Harmon Award honored members "in recognition of the advancement of theatrical excellence both on and off the stage".^[9]

Harmon died in Rancho Mirage, California^[10] on February 29, 1988.

Career

Writer (1940s-1960s)

• The Talk of the Town (1942) (story) ... aka George Stevens' The Talk of the Town
• Drums in the Deep South (1951) (screenplay)
• Mara Maru (1952) (story)
• Mutiny (1952) (writer)
• Man Crazy (1953) (writer)
• Hand in Hand (1960) (story)

Producer (1950s-1960s)

• Man Crazy (1953) (producer)
• The Big Combo (1955) (producer)
• The Wild Party (1956) (producer)
• Men in War (1957) (producer)
• God's Little Acre (1958) (producer)
• Anna Lucasta (1958) (producer)
• Day of the Outlaw (1959) (producer)
• The Thin Red Line (1964) (producer)
• Battle of the Bulge (1965) (executive producer)

Miscellaneous Crew

• Men in War (1957) (presenter)

Notes and References

1. News: Sidney Harmon, 80; Producer. Los Angeles Times. March 26, 1988.
2. Web site: Sidney Harmon, 29 Feb 1988. California Death Index, 1940-1997. Department of Public Health Services. Sacramento. Birth Date: 31 August 1907..
3. Web site: The Broadway League. Sidney Harmon – Broadway Cast & Staff. IBDB Internet Broadway Database. 3 November 2016.
4. Book: Buhle. Paul. Wagner. Dave. Hide in Plain Sight: The Hollywood Blacklistees in Film and Television, 1950-2002. 2003. Palgrave Macmillan. New York. 978-1-40396-144-0. 13. registration.
5. https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/14/nyregion/lily-harmon-85-portraitist-and-book-illustrator.html "Lily Harmon, 85, Portraitist and Book Illustrator,"
6. Book: Jarlett. Franklin. Robert Ryan: A Biography and Critical Filmography. 1997. McFarland. 978-0-7864-0476-6. 271.
7. Web site: The Oakwood Story - Oakwood School. Oakwood School. 3 November 2016.
8. News: Fessier. Bruce. Paul Anka delivers McCallum benefit show his way. 3 November 2016. Desert Sun. December 3, 2015.
9. Web site: Desert Theater League nominations for four area theater companies. KCDZ 107.7 FM News. 3 November 2016. August 2, 2016.
10. News: Sidney Harmon, 80; Producer . 8 September 2021 . Los Angeles Times . 26 March 1988.