Sam Amico
Elliott Silverstein, perhaps best known for directing Jane Fonda and Lee Marvin in the 1965 comedy-Western Cat Ballou, has died. He was 96.
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Silverstein’s death was confirmed by family members.
Deadline reports:
Born August 3, 1927, in Boson, Silverstein launched his directing career during television’s 1950s on such programs as Omnibus and the Alfred Hitchcock-produced mystery series Suspicion, Silverstein stayed busy with episodic series throughout the 1960s. Among his credits from the era: Route 66, Have Gun – Will Travel, Naked City, Dr. Kildare, The Defenders and four episodes of The Twilight Zone, including the fan-favorite, Rod Serling-penned 1961 installment titled The Passersby, a mournful ghost story set at the end of the American Civil War.
Silverstein’s TV career would continue, sporadically, through the 1990s when he directed four episodes of Tales From The Crypt and an episode of Picket Fences, but his highest profile projects were feature films, including his first, Cat Ballou.
In 1967, he directed The Happening Anthony Quinn in a decidedly ’60s-era comedy now remembered largely for being the feature debut of a (slightly) pre-Bonnie and Clyde Faye Dunaway and for giving The Supremes a hit single with the title track.
Silverstein went on to direct the 1970 hit A Man Called Horse.
“Every director today owes a debt of gratitude to Elliot Silverstein. No one ever worked harder or was more passionate about protecting artists from having their work and vision altered than Elliot, said Directors Guild of America President Lesli Linka Glatter. “He knew how deeply intertwined the end product was with a director’s authority to execute their vision, and that these rights were essential for their best work to shine through. Almost sixty years ago, Elliot successfully led the charge to secure the right to a director’s cut — something that had been a DGA goal for years. And through his work and determination he helped codify and negotiate a list of creative necessities with producers through the development of the Bill of Creative Rights — something which governs the rights of DGA members to this day.”
