Lynn Stalmaster, Legendary Casting Director, Dies at 93
Lynn StallmasterThe famous casting director, who worked in nearly 200 films ranging from “West Side Story” to “Harold and Maud” to “Tussi”, has died. He was 93.
The stallmaster died in Los Angeles on Friday morning, confirmed by Casting Society of America executive Laura Adler.
Stallmaster was a pioneer as an independent casting director who worked on a freelance basis. He was noted for his skills in recognizing new talents and getting actors in the right roles. He was also a champion for elevating the position of casting directors in the industry. In 2016, he became the first casting professional to be awarded an Oscar when he received a Governors Award tribute from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
“A pioneer of our craft, Lynn was a trailblazer with over half a century of world-class film and television casting credits. He was a friend and mentor to many of us, ”Russell Boast and Rich Mento, co-presidents of the Casting Society of America, said in a statement. “Thanks for showing us the way, Lynn.”
From the mid-1950s to the mid-1990s, the Stallmaster made an influential collaborator with filmmakers such as Norman Jewison, Blake Edwards, Arthur Hiller, John Frankheimer, Hal Ashby, John Cassavits, Mike Nichols, and Sidney Pollack Worked as.
The stallmaster attributed his success and longevity in the industry to the sympathy and understanding of the actors, who made his debut at UCLA as an actor, such as Sam Fuller’s “The Steel Helmet” (1951) and Nicholas Ray’s “Flying Leathernecks” (1951) opposite John Wayne. He was also a regular in the 1952–55 TV drama “Big Town”.
“You know, I care about actors a lot,” he told Variety In 2016. “After sitting on the other side of the desk for four-five years, I wanted to treat actors with respect and dignity. It’s hard [being an actor]. if I knew [an actor] Had a bad day, I will always be sensitive to their needs. “
According to his biography on Oscar.com, the stallmaster was born in Omaha, Neb., But his family moved to the Beverly Hills area when he was a child to help with his severe asthma.
He became active as an artist in radio and theater while attending Beverly Hills High School. He served in the US Army and studied theater arts at UCLA. After working as an actor, he returned to a master’s degree at UCLA and worked as a production assistant for TV producers Grosse-Curson, setting him on the path to a casting career.
He took the innovative step of raising his flag as an independent casting director and began working on TV series such as “GunSmoke” and “Have Gun Will Travel”.
In 1956, director Robert Wise recruited the stallmaster to work on “I Want to Live”, the story of a prisoner’s death for which Susan Hayward won a Best Actress Oscar. In 1968, Stalmaster became the first casting supporter to receive a separate title card on a feature, according to 1968’s “The Thomas Crown Affair”, Oscars.org.
Stalmaster’s credits over the years of his six-decade career include “Inherit the Wind,” Judgment in Nuremberg, “” Thomas Crown Affair, “” The Great Escape, “” In the Heat of the Night, “” Graduate. ” “They shoot the horse, don’t they ?,” “Deliverance,” “Going there,” “Coming home,” “The right stuff.
Other TV credits include “Wearbirds,” “My Favorite Martian,” “Detective,” “The Untouchables,” “Ben Casey,” “Hogan’s Hero” and “Rat Patrol.”
He received the Casting Society of America’s Career Achievement Award in 2003.
The stallmaster is survived by his son Lincoln, daughter Lara and her husband Darin, grandchildren Nick and Kayla, brother Hal and his wife Carol, nieces Cindy and Lee and Terry Morse.
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