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Sir Michael Elias Balcon (19 May 1896 – 17 October 1977) was an English film producer known for his leadership of Ealing Studios in west London from 1938 to 1955. Under his direction, the studio became one of the most important British film studios of the day.
Sir Michael Balcon was a motion-picture producer and a leader in the British cinema industry. He began his career as a producer in 1922, founded and directed Gainsborough Pictures, Ltd., in 1928, and became the director of production for Gaumont-British Pictures, Ltd., in 1931.
Dating from 1902, Ealing Studios ‘can claim to be the oldest film studio in the world’. It enjoyed a golden era under the leadership of Sir Michael Balcon, whose much-loved ‘Ealing comedies’ began in 1947. They included The Ladykillers, The Lavender Hill Mob and Passport to Pimlico. These premises are now named after him.
When the world was entering into a period dominated by creeds that worshipped a cruel heroism, Balcon hit the precise note of the British response, with his kind, and passionately humdrum heroes; anarchists, struggling against an oppressive, but vague, system.
Michael Balcon. Producer: The Ladykillers. Michael Balcon started in films as a distributor, then a producer from the early 1920s, helping to launch the career of Alfred Hitchcock.
Sir Michael Balcon was a British film producer, perhaps best known for his work with Ealing Studios. Michael Elias Balcon was born in Birmingham, the son of Polish tailor Louis Balcon and his Russian wife Laura.
Oct 13, 2017 · Sir Michael Balcon is pictured above in 1952 presenting an Oscar to screenplay writer T.E.B Clarke for the best film story of that year, The Lavender Hill Mob. Born in Birmingham in 1896, Balcon began his career in films just after the First World War.
Oct 19, 2016 · The late Sir Michael Balcon - former head of Ealing Studios - produced more than 350 films including The Lodger and 39 Steps. He is credited with giving Alfred Hitchcock his first film role and...
Oct 18, 1977 · Sir Michael Balcon became a lengendary figure in the history of the British cinema, playing a leading role in many its great enterprises. His film career began in his native Birmingham.
In an industry short of Hollywood-style moguls, Balcon emerges, along with Alexander Korda and J. Arthur Rank, as a key figure, and an obdurately British one too, in his benevolent, somewhat headmasterly approach to the running of a creative organisation.
