Image: Wikimedia CommonsFrank Capra
Italian-born American film director (1897–1991)
- Born May 18, 1897
- 5 movies
Frank Capra (18 May 1897 to 3 September 1991) was an Italian-born American director, producer and screenwriter. Born Francesco Rosario Capra in Bisacquino, Sicily, he emigrated with his family to Los Angeles at five and studied chemical engineering before drifting into film. In the 1930s he became one of Hollywood's most influential directors, winning three Academy Awards for Best Director from six nominations, with films such as It Happened One Night, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, You Can't Take It with You and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. It's a Wonderful Life disappointed on release but was later reappraised.
Frank Capra appears in 5 films in The Rerun, from 1934 to 1961. That includes 5 titles as director. Most of that work is in comedy, romance and drama. Frequent collaborators in The Rerun: Ellen Corby (3), Thomas Mitchell (2).
Known for
- It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), Director. Performed poorly on release but was later reassessed favourably by critics.
- It Happened One Night (1934), Director. One of the leading films of his influential 1930s run.
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Director. Another of his leading films of the 1930s.
- State of the Union (1948), Director. Directed the 1948 film after the war.
- Pocketful of Miracles (1961), Director. Directed the 1961 film as his output slowed.
Career
Capra talked his way into directing a one-reel silent short in San Francisco in the early 1920s and learned his craft in silent comedy before joining Columbia, where his films of the 1930s turned a minor studio into a serious contender. It Happened One Night (1934), with Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert, set the template for screwball romance, and his populist fables about decent individuals facing money and power, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), defined his style.
During the Second World War he served in the Army Signal Corps and produced the Why We Fight series. Afterwards It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) underperformed, and his output slowed through State of the Union (1948) and his last feature, Pocketful of Miracles (1961). He served as president of the Academy and led the Directors Guild, and later decades restored his reputation.
Where to start
- It’s a Wonderful Life (1946): the holiday perennial and his most personal film.
- It Happened One Night (1934): the road-trip romance that swept the major Oscars.
- State of the Union (1948): Tracy and Hepburn in a sharp political comedy.
- Pocketful of Miracles (1961): his final feature, a remake of his own Lady for a Day.
Movies
Quick answers
- What movies and TV shows has Frank Capra been in?
- Frank Capra appears in Pocketful of Miracles (1961), Here Comes the Groom (1951), State of the Union (1948), It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) and It Happened One Night (1934) on The Remote.
- When was Frank Capra born?
- Frank Capra was born on 18 May 1897.
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