Michael White (producer)
Michael White (born 16 January 1936 in Glasgow, Scotland) is a prolific British theatrical impresario and film producer.
Early life
Michael White was born to Eastern European Jewish-immigrant parents in Glasgow, Scotland. His father ran a glove making business, whilst his mother became successful in property development and management. As White suffered from asthma as a boy, his parents decided he would be educated as a boarder at the Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz in Switzerland from aged 7, where he was the only boy who didn't speak the French language. He then graduated from the Sorbonne in Paris.[1]
Career
After working as a Wall Street runner in New York City in the 1950s, White took an interest in theatre, spending five years as assistant to Sir Peter Daubeny at the World Theatre in London.
At 26, White produced his first West End play, a production of Jack Gelber's The Connection.[2] It was the start of a career that has since seen White produce 101 stage productions and 27 films over 50 years.
Famed for bringing the risqué to the stage his productions include Sleuth,[3] The Doll's House, Oh! Calcutta!,[4] Two Gentlemen of Verona, the original Theatre Upstairs production of the cult The Rocky Horror Show.
In the 1980s and 1990s, White focused on films, producing the film version of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. He also produced the cult classic film Monty Python and the Holy Grail and is responsible for starting the popular TV show The Comic Strip Presents... with Peter Richardson.
However, losses on films mounted, and after being conned out of hundreds of thousands of pounds in the early 2000s, he was declared bankrupt in 2005 after suffering a heart attack at the Mondrian Hotel in Los Angeles.[1]
Media
White's autobiography, Empty Seats, was published in 1985.[5]
White's life story was the subject of the 2013 documentary film The Last Impresario, directed by Gracie Otto. The film made its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival in October 2013,[6][7] where it was positively received by critics.[8][9][10]
Personal life
White has been married twice. With his first wife, the 1960s model and designer Sarah Hillsdon (1965-1972), he had three children. With his second wife, Louise, an heiress 26 years his junior, he has a son. His ex-girlfriends include film director Lyndall Hobbs.[1]
Selected theatrical productions
This list is incomplete, currently listing only White's most notable theatre works:
Musicals
As producer:
- Oh! Calcutta! (1970, West End)
- Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (1973, West End)
- The Rocky Horror Show (1973, West End)
- Two Gentlemen of Verona (1973, West End)
- A Chorus Line (1976, West End)
- Annie (1978, West End)
- She Loves Me (1994, West End revival)
Plays
As producer:
Filmography
As producer or executive producer:
- Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1974)
- The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
- Jabberwocky (1977)
- The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978)
- Going With The Wind (1981)
- My Dinner With Andre (1981)
- Polyester (1981)
- Shock Treatment (1981)
- Countryman (1982)
- Moonlighting (1982)
- Urgh! A Music War (1982)
- The Comic Strip Presents... (1982)
- Dead on Time (1983)
- Heat and Dust (1983)
- The Ploughman's Lunch (1983)
- Strangers Kiss (1983)
- The Supergrass (1985)
- High Season (1987)
- Eat the Rich (1987)
- White Mischief (1987)
- The Deceivers (1988)
- Nuns on the Run (1989)
- The Pope Must Die (1991)
- Robert's Movie (1994)
- Widows' Peak (1994)
- Enigma (2001)
Appearing as himself:
- The Last Impresario (2013)
References
- 1 2 3 Kennaway, Guy (5 October 2008). "Michael White's celebrity photo album". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
- ↑ Bygrave, Mike; Joan Goodman; John Fordham (1973). The Other Careers: earning a living in the arts and media. Wildwood House. p. 159. ISBN 978-0-7045-0052-5.
- ↑ Morley, Sheridan (1974). Theatre. Hutchinson. p. 30. ISBN 978-0-09-122290-1.
- ↑ Alan Travis (23 December 2000). "How two dames saved Oh! Calcutta!". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
- ↑ White, Michael (1984). Empty Seats (1st ed.). H.Hamilton. ISBN 978-0-241-11348-6. ISBN 0-241-11348-2.
- ↑ Oliver Pfeiffer, "Gracie Otto's The Last Impresario to premiere at London Film Festival", SBS.com.au, 10 September 2013.
- ↑ Cara Nash, "'The Last Impresario' to premiere at BFI London Film Festival", FilmInk.com.au, 5 September 2013.
- ↑ Charles Gant, "London Film Review: 'The Last Impresario'", Variety Magazine, 29 October 2013.
- ↑ Stephen Dalton, "The Last Impresario: London Review", The Hollywood Reporter, 13 October 2013.
- ↑ "Review: The Last Impresario", WizardRadio.co.uk, 14 October 2013.
External links
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