Zoltán Korda
Zoltán Korda (
June 3,
1895 â€"
October 13,
1961) was a
Hungarian-born
motion picture screenwriter,
director and
producer.
Born Zoltán Kellner in
Pusztatúrpásztó,
Túrkeve in
Austria-Hungary (now
Hungary), he was the middle brother of filmmakers
Alexander and
Vincent Korda.
Zoltán Korda went to work with his brother Alexander in their native Hungary and in the
United Kingdom for his
London Films production company. Initially Zoltán Korda functioned as a camera operator then for a time worked in film editing and as a screenwriter. In 1918 and 1920 in Hungary, he directed two
silent film shorts and a feature-length silent film in Germany in 1927. In London, he made his English-language directorial debut in 1933 with the
sound drama
"Men of Tomorrow" then two years later gained wide respect for the
adventure film Sanders of the River starring
Paul Robeson and
Leslie Banks. The film proved a significant commercial and critical success, giving Korda the first of his four nominations for "Best Film" at the
Venice Film Festival. In 1937, Korda won the Venice festival's "Best Director" award for
Elephant Boy.
A former cavalry officer, Korda made a number of military action/adventure films, many of which were filmed in
Africa or
India. As someone with a social conscience, his film projects often reflected that perspective when dealing with the conquered
indigenous peoples of the
British Empire. Of his directorial efforts, 1939's
The Four Feathers starring
Sir Ralph Richardson is considered his greatest cinematic accomplishment. Of lasting significance, the film was nominated for the
Palme d'Or at the 1939
Cannes Film Festival and was presented again by the Festival committee in 2002 in retrospective.
In 1940, Zoltán Korda joined brother Alexander in
Hollywood. Working through
United Artists, he served as executive producer of Alexander Korda's masterpiece,
The Thief of Bagdad. Zoltán Korda spent the rest of his life in southern Califiornia, making another seven films including the acclaimed 1943
World War II drama,
Sahara for which he wrote the screenplay and which starred
Humphrey Bogart.
Poor health, brought on years earlier from a battle with
tuberculosis, forced Zoltán Korda's retirement in 1955. He died in 1961 in Hollywood after a lengthy illness and was interred there in the
Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery.
Storm over the Nile (1955)
Cry, the Beloved Country (1951)
The Macomber Affair (1947)
A Woman's Vengeance (1947)
Counter Attack (1945)
Sahara (1943)
Jungle Book (1942)
The Four Feathers (1939)
The Drum (1938)
Elephant Boy (1937)
Sanders of the River (1935)
