A Tribute to Robert Wise
September 10th 1914 - September 14th 2005

Robert Wise died on Wednesday in Los Angeles. The 91 year old director was responsible for the Oscar winning films 'The Sound of Music' (1965) and 'West Side Story' (1961)
Throughout his career, Robert Wise crossed into many categories of movie, from science fiction to westerns. His science fiction films include: first in The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), then in The Andromeda Strain (1971), and in Star Trek - the Motion Picture. Horror films included: The Curse of the Cat People (1944), and The Body Snatcher (1945); The Haunting (1963) and Audrey Rose (1977). He assisted Orson Welles on 'Citizen Kane', where he put his hand to editing.

In an interview he said, "I'd rather do my own thing, which has been to choose projects that take me into all different kinds of genres," he once said. "I don't have a favorite kind of film to make. I just look for the best material I can find."
During his career that spanned over 50 years, Robert Wise achieved 7 Oscar nominations, of which he won 4. The Sound of Music and West Side Story both achieved two Oscars, for Best Director and Best Producer. The director then went on to earn the highest acclaim from the Directors Guild of America, of which he later became a president, the DW Griffith Award in 1998.

A retrospective of Wise's work at the San Sebastian Film festival is to run throughout the 10-day festival.

The president of the Directors Guild of America said in a statement
"Bob's devotion to the craft of filmmaking and his wealth of head-and-heart knowledge about what we do and how we do it was a special gift to his fellow directors" .
Wise's work and contribution to film will be greatly missed by friends and scholars alike.

Published By: Helen Gillilan