Michael Curtiz
Michael Curtiz (December 24, 1886 - April 10, 1962) was a film director, whose films include The Adventures of Robin Hood, Casablanca, and White Christmas.
Born Manó Kertész Kaminer in Budapest, Hungary, (then Austria-Hungary), he ran away from home at age 17 to join a circus, then trained for an acting career at the Royal Academy for Theater and Art. In 1912 he began his acting and directing career as Mihály Kertész in Hungary (43 films) and, after World War I, continued his work (another 21 titles) first in Vienna, Austria (e.g. with the monumental 1922 silent film Sodom und Gomorrha) and then in Germany.
In 1926 Curtiz emigrated to the United States. The interesting thing about his Hollywood career is that he did not specialize in any one genre. His lifelong struggle with the English language has been confirmed in numerous anecdotes: David Niven, for example, took the title of his memoir Lucy Dorraine,actress
- Lili Damita, actress
- Bess Meredyth, actress/screenwriter
On his passing, Michael Curtiz was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.
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