April 28, 2018 9:41AM PT
Michael Anderson, `Logan's Run' Director, Dies at 98
By Erin Nyren

Staff Editor
@ecnyren

FILM DIRECTOR MICHAEL ANDERSON - 1965VARIOUS
CREDIT: Denis Cameron/REX/Shutterstock

Michael Anderson, the British director who was nominated for an Academy Award for his direction on "Around the World in 80 Days," died in Vancouver Wednesday. He was 98.

Anderson's career began in the '40s as an assistant director before he joined the Royal Signal Corps during the war. After Anderson was discharged, he signed
a contract with Associated British Picture Corporation, for whom he directed five films.

The third film, 1955's "The Dam Busters," starring Richard Todd, which was the biggest film of the year for Britain at the box office. The film will be presented at the Royal Albert Hall in London and simulcast into 400 theatres throughout the UK on May 17 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Royal Air Force's most daring operation of World War II.

Anderson was asked to direct "Around the World in 80 Days" after the original director John Farrow had a falling out with producer Mike Todd. Anderson also received a Golden Globe nod in addition to his Oscar nom for his work in the film, which won best picture in 1956. The film starred David Niven, Shirley Maclaine, Robert Newton and Cantinflas, with dozens of cameo appearances by other well-known names, including Marlene Dietrich, Frank Sinatra, Buster Keaton, Red Skelton, and Edward R. Murrow.

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Anderson worked with numerous big-name actors of the era, including James Cagney on "Shake Hands with the Devil" and Gary Cooper and Charlton Heston on "The Wreck of the Mary Deare." He reunited with Cooper on "The Naked Edge," Cooper's last film.

He also worked with notable British stars, including Michael Redgrave, Alec Guinness, Peter Ustinov, Richard Todd, and Laurence Olivier.

"Logan's Run" debuted in 1976 as one of the most expensive films of the year and earned $50 million at the box office for Metro Goldwyn Mayer. The film starred Michael York, Jenny Agutter, Richard Jordan, Roscoe Lee Browne, Farrah Fawcett, and Peter Ustinov and won a Special Academy Award for its innovative special effects.

Anderson is survived by his wife of 40 years, Adrianne Ellis, and his stepchildren, actress Laurie Holden ("The Walking Dead," "The X-Files," "The Shield," "The Americans"), Christopher Holden, and his namesake, Michael Anderson, Jr.


Regards,

Roger

--- Klaatu barada Nickto
* Origin: NCS BBS -Houma, LoUiSiAna (1:3828/7)