Frank J. Perry, Jr.^[1] (August 21, 1930 – August 29, 1995) was an American stage and film director, producer and screenwriter. His directorial debut, the 1962 film David and Lisa, earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director. The film was written by Perry's first wife, Eleanor Perry. They would go on to collaborate on five further films, before their divorce in 1971. His later films include the Joan Crawford bio drama Mommie Dearest and the documentary On The Bridge, about his struggle with prostate cancer.

Early life[link]

Perry was born in New York City, of Portuguese and German ancestry, the son of Pauline (née Schwab), who worked at Alcoholics Anonymous, and Frank J. Perry, a stockbroker.^[1] His mother was a niece of Charles M. Schwab, who founded the Bethlehem Steel Corporation.^[2] As a teenager, Perry began pursuing his interest in the theater with a job as a parking lot attendant for the Westport Country Playhouse in nearby Westport, Connecticut. He attended the University of Miami. He produced several plays at Westport and then turned for a time to producing television documentaries.

Career[link]

A veteran of the Korean War, he returned to the entertainment industry after being discharged and made his directorial debut in 1962 with the low-budget drama film David and Lisa. Based on the novel by Theodore Isaac Rubin, the screenplay was written by his wife, Eleanor Perry, who received a nomination for an Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay. A character study of two emotionally disturbed teenagers, the film was successful at the box office and met with much critical acclaim, earning him a nomination for an Academy Award for Directing.

Perry went on to direct and produce a number of films, including The Swimmer (1968) based on a John Cheever story, Last Summer (1969) and Trilogy (1969), written by Truman Capote. Frank and Eleanor Perry divorced in 1971.

Perry is most regarded for his character studies involving a dysfunctional family, such as that in his wife's script of the Sue Kaufman novel Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970). That film earned a Best Actress Oscar nomination for Carrie Snodgress, and Play It As It Lays (1972), starring Tuesday Weld, brought her a Golden Globe Best Actress nomination. Both of these films Perry produced and directed, but he is probably best remembered for directing the controversial 1981 biographical drama Mommie Dearest, an adaptation of a biography by actress Joan Crawford's adoptive daughter, which portrayed the famous movie star as a cruel, sadistic tyrant.

Certain of his film related material and personal papers are contained in the Wesleyan University Cinema Archives to which scholars and media experts from around the world may have full access.^[3]

Personal life[link]

Perry married his first wife, Eleanor Perry (née Rosenfeld) in 1958.^[4] They divorced in 1971 on grounds of incompatibility.^[2] Following the divorce from his second wife, author Barbara Goldsmith, he married his Aspen ski instructor, 22-year-younger Virginia Brush Ford, on June 15, 1992.^[5] He was pop singer Katy Perry's uncle, who has repeatedly declared herself to be a fan of his classic film Mommie Dearest.^{[citation needed]}

Death[link]

Perry died on August 29, 1995, eight days after his 65th birthday, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan after lengthy battle with prostate cancer.^[6] His final film, 1992's On the Bridge, is an autobiographical documentary dealing with the illness. His ashes were scattered on the mountains of Aspen, Colorado, where he lived the last three years of his life.^[7]

Filmography[link]

• David and Lisa (1962)
• Ladybug Ladybug (1963)
• The Swimmer (1968)
• Last Summer (1969)
• Trilogy (1969)
• Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970)
• Doc (1971)
• Play It As It Lays (1972)
• Man on a Swing (1974)
• Rancho Deluxe (1975)
• Mommie Dearest (1981)
• Monsignor (1982)
• Compromising Positions (1985)
• Hello Again (1987)
• On the Bridge (1992)

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Jim Beaver. "Frank Perry", Films in Review, November 1981.
• Bilge Ebiri. "Domestic Disturbances. The unsung cinema of Frank and Eleanor Perry" August 25, 2008
• Matthew Mandarano. "Along the Bridge: The Films of Frank Perry"

External links[link]

• Frank Perry at the Internet Movie Database
• Frank Perry at the Notable Names Database