John Houseman
JOHN HOUSEMAN - Born Jacques Haussmann on September 22, 1902 in Bucharest, Romania, he was educated in England and emigrated to America, establishing himself in New York City, where he directed Four Saints in Three Acts for the theater in 1934. He founded the Mercury Theatre along with Orson Welles whose successes included a modern-dress version of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. As a producer assigned to Unit 891 of the Federal Theater Project funded by the government's Works Progress Administration, he produced the legendary production Cradle Will Rock, a musical about the tyranny of capitalism, with music by Marc Blitzstein, creative input from Welles, and starring leftists Howard Da Silva and Will Geer. This unit also produced landmark production of Macbeth, set in the Haitian court of King Henri Christophe (and with voodoo witch doctors for the three Weird Sisters). Jack Carter played Macbeth. The incidental music was composed by Virgil Thomson. On Broadway, apart from the Mercury Theatre and the WPA, Houseman directed The Devil and Daniel Webster (1939) and Liberty Jones and produced Native Son (1941). During World War II, Houseman went to work for the Office of War Information and was involved in broadcasting radio propaganda for the Voice of America. After the war, Houseman returned to directing and produced Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's 1953 version of Julius Caesar (1953). He produced a score of major films and was involved in three television series before devoting his life to teaching. Houseman helped establish the acting program at New York's Julliard School for the Arts. He wrote three volumes of memoirs, Run-Through (1972), Front and Center (1979) and Final Dress (1983). He died in 1988. Bio as of June, 2009. American Theatre Wing programs, interviews and/or credits include: SDCF Masters of the Stage (audio) Geraldine Fitzgerald and John Houseman - September, 1985 - Listen Now. Internet Broadway Database Listing (IBDB.com)