Profile via TMDB · Courtesy of TMDB
William A. Wellman
Sign in to saveAlso known as William Wellman, Wild Bill Wellman, William Augustus Wellman
American director, actor (1896-1975)
OverviewAI-generated
William A. Wellman was an American film director, actor, screenwriter, and aircraft pilot. Born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on February 29, 1896, he began his professional work period in 1919 and concluded it in 1958. His notable works include *Wings*, *Stingaree*, *The public enemy*, and *Beggars of life*. He was married to Helene Chadwick and Dorothy Rae Coonan, and had a son named William Wellman, Jr.
Wellman received the Academy Award for Best Story and the National Board of Review Award for Best Film. He was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director. His works are held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, and he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He died of leukemia from natural causes in Los Angeles on December 9, 1975.
Synthesized by Vinony from 38 facts across 8 sources: Wikidata, Open Library, Crossref, MusicBrainz, Last.fm, TMDb, Vinony collections, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Person · Open Library
- Born
- 1896
- Died
- 1975
- Works
- 4
Top works
- Wings
- Stingaree
- The public enemy
- Beggars of life
via Open Library + Wikidata
Film & TV
Brookline, Massachusetts, USA
William Augustus Wellman was an American film director. Although Wellman began his film career as an actor, he worked on over 80 films, as director, producer and consultant but most often as a director, notable for his work in crime, adventure and action genre films, often focusing on aviation themes, a particular passion. He also directed several well regarded satirical comedies. Wellman…
Known for
- You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story — Self (archive footage)2008
- Filmmakers in Action — Self (archive footage)2006
- Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick — Self (archive footage)1995
- Gable: The King Remembered — Himself1975
- The Men Who Made the Movies1973
- Island in the Sky — Narrator (voice) (uncredited)1953
- This Is Your Life — Self1952
- Frisco Jenny — Reporter (uncredited)1933
- The Star Witness — Company Workman (uncredited)1931
- Screen Snapshots (Series 10, No. 8) — Self1931
via TMDB
Key facts
- Born
- William Augustus Wellman , ( 1896-02-29 ) February 29, 1896, Brookline, Massachusetts , U.S.
- Died
- December 9, 1975 (1975-12-09) (aged 79), Los Angeles, California , U.S.
- Occupations
- Director producer writer actor pilot
- Years active
- 1919 – 1958
- Children
- 7, including William Jr.
- Allegiance
- France , United States
- Branch
- Foreign Legion Lafayette Flying Corps French Air and Space Force United States Army Army Air Service
- Service years
- 1917–1918 (FR), 1918–1919 (U.S.)
- Rank
- Maréchal des logis
- Unit
- Escadrille Spa.87
- Conflicts
- World War I Western Front
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Given name
- Augustus
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- United States
- Place of birth
- Brookline
- Place of death
- Los Angeles
- Child
- William Wellman, Jr.
- Occupation
- film producer
- Languages spoken
- English language
- Native language
- English language
- Image
- First Lieutenant William Augustus Wellman.png
Show 12 more facts
- cause of death
- leukemia
- date of birth
- 1896-02-29
- date of death
- 1975-12-09
- Commons category
- William A. Wellman
- manner of death
- natural causes
- nominated for
- Academy Award for Best Story
- related category
- Category:Films directed by William A. Wellman
- end of work period
- 1958-00-00
- start of work period
- 1919-00-00
- writing language
- English language
- birth name
- William Augustus Wellman
- Commons Creator page
- William A. Wellman
Sources (7)
via Wikidata · CC0
~14 min read
Encyclopedic overview
William Augustus Wellman (February 29, 1896 – December 9, 1975) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and military pilot. He was known for his work in crime, adventure, and action genre films, often focusing on aviation themes, a particular passion. He also directed several well-regarded satirical comedies. His 1927 film, Wings, was the first film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture at the 1st Academy Awards ceremony.
Beginning his film career as an actor, he went on to direct over 80 films, at times co-credited as producer and consultant, from the silent era through the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was nominated for four Academy Awards: three Best Director Oscars for the original A Star Is Born (1937), Battleground (1949), and The High and the Mighty (1954) and one in Best Original Story for A Star Is Born, which he won. In 1973, he received the Directors Guild of America's Lifetime Achievement Award. He was previously a decorated combat pilot during World War I, serving in the Lafayette Flying Corps of the French Air Force, and earning a Croix de Guerre with two palms for valorous action.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “William A. Wellman” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.