Buzz Kulik

Seymour "Buzz" Kulik (July 23, 1922 – January 13, 1999) was an American film director and producer. He directed 72 films and television shows, including the landmark CBS television network anthology series Playhouse 90 and several episodes of The Twilight Zone. Kulik went on to direct made-for-TV movies, such as Brian's Song. After leaving the army as a first lieutenant after World War II, Kulik went to work in the mail room at J. Walter Thompson Advertising Agency in New York. He eventually saw a notice at work that they were looking for people to direct programs for a new medium called television, and Kulik responded. A lifelong baseball fan, he started directing the cameras at Yankee Stadium before starting a career directing live television programming such as Playhouse 90 and Lux Video Theater. He moved to Los Angeles in 1953 and eventually began directing some of the landmark series of the 1950s and 1960s including Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, Have Gun Will Travel, Wagon Train, Rawhide, Dr. Kildare and The Defenders (for which he directed the pilot episode). He directed a dozen episodes of Twilight Zone, which brought him lasting fame and recognition among the legion of fans who religiously watch the Twilight Zone marathons that continue to air on holidays to this day. Kulik also began directing feature films in the 1960s including Explosive Generation with William Shatner, Warning Shot with David Jansen, Villa Rides with Robert Mitchum, Yul Brynner, and Charles Bronson, and Riot with Gene Hackman and Jim Brown. He directed the first television mini-series, Vanished, with Richard Widmark and James Farentino. In 1971, he directed what many critics and fans feel is the greatest television film ever made, Brian's Song, for which he received "Best Director" honors from the Directors Guild of America. For several years in a row the lead actors in the films he directed won "Best Actor" of the year including Peter Ustinov for A Storm in Summer, James Caan for Brian's Song, Alan Alda for Kill Me if You Can, Susan Clark for Babe, and Anthony Hopkins for The Lindbergh Kidnapping. Some of the prominent long-form mini series he directed were From Here to Eternity with Natalie Wood and William Devane, Around the World in 80 Days with Pierce Brosnin and Peter Ustinov, and Kane and Abel with Peter Strauss. In the 1970s and 1980s he also directed feature films including To Find a Man, Shamus with Burt Reynolds, and The Hunter with Steve McQueen. Over the course of a career that lasted more than 40 years, Buzz Kulik established himself, and is remembered today, as one of the greatest television directors of all time.

Buzz Kulik, eigentlich Seymour Kulik, war ein US-amerikanischer Filmregisseur und -produzent. Kulik zog 1953 nach Los Angeles und führte schließlich bei einigen der prägendsten Serien der 1950er und 1960er Jahre Regie, darunter Perry Mason, Rauchende Colts, Have Gun Will Travel, Wagon Train, Rawhide, Dr. Kildare und The Defenders (bei der er die Pilotfolge inszenierte). Er führte bei zwölf Folgen von Twilight Zone Regie, was ihm dauerhaften Ruhm und Anerkennung bei den zahlreichen Fans einbrachte, die die Twilight-Zone-Marathons, die bis heute an Feiertagen ausgestrahlt werden, regelmäßig verfolgen. In den 1960er Jahren begann Kulik auch Spielfilme zu drehen, darunter „Frühreife Generation“ mit William Shatner, „Der Todesschuß“ mit David Jansen, „Pancho Villa reitet“ mit Robert Mitchum, Yul Brynner und Charles Bronson sowie „Ausbruch der Verdammten“ mit Gene Hackman und Jim Brown. Er inszenierte die erste Fernseh-Miniserie, „Vanished“, mit Richard Widmark und James Farentino. 1971 führte er Regie bei dem von vielen Kritikern und Fans als bester Fernsehfilm aller Zeiten gefeierten Film „Freunde bis in den Tod“, für den er von der Directors Guild of America als „Bester Regisseur“ ausgezeichnet wurde. Zu den bekanntesten Miniserien, bei denen er Regie führte, zählen „Verdammt in alle Ewigkeit“ mit Natalie Wood und William Devane, „In 80 Tagen um die Welt“ mit Pierce Brosnin und Peter Ustinov sowie „Kane & Abel“ mit Peter Strauss. In den 1970er- und 1980er-Jahren inszenierte er außerdem Spielfilme wie „To Find a Man“ mitPamela Sue Martin, „Der Spürhund“ mit Burt Reynolds und „Jeder Kopf hat seinen Preis“ mit Steve McQueen in seiner letzten Rolle.