Robert Aldrich

Remembering the life of Robert Aldrich for his Birthday! He was born in Cranston, Rhode Island, into a family of wealth and social prominence – "The Aldriches of Rhode Island". His father, Edward Burgess Aldrich (1871–1957) was the publisher of The Times of Pawtucket and an influential operative in state Republican politics. His mother, Lora Elsie (née Lawson) of New Hampshire (1874–1931), died when Aldrich was 13 and was remembered with fondness by her son. Ruth Aldrich Kaufinger (1912–1987) was his elder sister and only sibling. At the age of 23, Aldrich began work at RKO Pictures as a production clerk, an entry-level position, after declining an offer through his Rockefeller connections to enter the studio as an associate producer. Though the smallest of Hollywood's top studios, RKO could boast an impressive roster of directors (George Cukor, John Ford and Howard Hawks) as well as movie stars (Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn and the Marx Brothers). The 23-year-old Aldrich assumed his duties shortly after Orson Welles, at 26, signed a six-movie contract with RKO after the release of the widely acclaimed Citizen Kane (1941).

In just two years he participated on two dozen movies with well-known directors. He was second assistant director on Joan of Paris (1942, directed by Robert Stevenson), The Falcon Takes Over (1942, directed by Irving Reis), The Big Street (1942), directed by Reis, Bombardier (1943, directed by Richard Wallace), Behind the Rising Sun (1943, directed by Edward Dmytryk), A Lady Takes a Chance (1943, directed by William A. Seiter), The Adventures of a Rookie (1943, directed by Leslie Goodwins), Gangway for Tomorrow (1943, directed by John H. Auer), and Rookies in Burma (1943, directed by Goodwins). His first film as a director was Big Leaguer (1953) a sports drama film starring Edward G. Robinson. He was considered iconoclastic and maverick auteur working in many genres during the Golden Age of Hollywood, he directed mainly films noir, war movies, westerns and dark melodramas with Gothic overtones. His most notable credits include Vera Cruz (1954), Kiss Me Deadly (1955), The Big Knife (1955), Autumn Leaves (1956), Attack (1956), The Angry Hills (1959), What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962), 4 for Texas (1963), Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964), The Flight of the Phoenix (1965), The Dirty Dozen (1967), The Legend of Lylah Clare (1968), The Killing of Sister George (1968), Ulzana's Raid (1972), The Longest Yard (1974), Hustle (1975), Twilight's Last Gleaming (1977), The Frisco Kid (1979), and his last film ..All the Marbles (1981).

He directed The Choirboys (1977), based on the best-selling novel by Joseph Wambaugh, which Wambaugh disliked so much he sued to get his name taken off the film. Aldrich's directorial style combined "macho mise-en-scene and resonant reworkings of classic action genres," and were known for pushing the boundaries of violence in mainstream cinema, and for their psychologically complex interpretations of genre film tropes. The British Film Institute wrote that Aldrich's films "subversive sensibility in thrall to the complexities of human behavior." Several of his films later proved influential to members of the French New Wave. Aside from his directorial work, Aldrich was also noted for his advocacy as a member of the Directors Guild of America, serving as its President for two terms, and becoming the namesake for its Robert B. Aldrich Achievement Award. Aldrich died of kidney failure on December 5, 1983, in a Los Angeles hospital. Film critic John Patterson summarized his career in 2012: "He was a punchy, caustic, macho and pessimistic director, who depicted corruption and evil unflinchingly, and pushed limits on violence throughout his career. His aggressive and pugnacious film-making style, often crass and crude, but never less than utterly vital and alive, warrants — and will richly reward — your immediate attention." He was quoted as saying about directing What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? "I wasn't sure whether I was going to produce and direct a motion picture or referee a fight.". In the FX miniseries Feud: Bette and Joan, Aldrich is portrayed by English actor Alfred Molina. The series follows the productions of Baby Jane and Sweet Charlotte.