Don Taylor

The Face of New York Realism

Don Taylor had the face Hollywood needed after World War II. He was the boy next door, but with a shadow of fatigue in his eyes that suited the new film noir. In 1948 he starred in The Naked City, and his image became tied to that aesthetic of asphalt and crime, shot on real locations in New York.

Before that success, he had already worked in theater and in minor radio roles. But it was his performance as a rookie detective that convinced the studios Taylor could carry a film on his shoulders. He worked under directors such as Billy Wilder on Stalag 17 during 1953.

It was a period of constant learning.

In 1950 he appeared in Father of the Bride alongside Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor. There he realized comedy required a different technical precision than crime drama. And although his acting career was solid, Taylor felt his place was behind the camera, shaping the rhythm of the storytelling.

The Craftsman of Impossible Sequels

In the late 50s, he began directing episodes of television series to hone his craft. In 1958 he signed his first directing jobs and discovered that he preferred the logistics of the set to makeup. So he stopped accepting major acting roles to focus on staging.

Money ruled the offices at Fox.

In 1971, he was tasked with directing Escape from the Planet of the Apes. The franchise seemed worn out after two installments, but Taylor made the third film work thanks to a lighter tone and a heartbreaking ending. The film grossed 12 million dollars on a budget that barely topped two million.

That result made him the ideal director for genre projects with tight budgets. In 1977 he took on The Island of Dr. Moreau, where he had to handle a difficult cast under extreme shooting conditions. The film held its own at the box office despite comparisons with the classic version.

The Discipline of Final Footage

In 1978 he replaced Mike Hodges on the set of Damien: Omen II. He joined the production with the work already underway and had to unify the visual style without delaying the schedule. At that time, studios did not forgive a single day of delay on major horror franchises.

His biggest logistical challenge came in 1980 with The Final Countdown. Production moved to the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, and Taylor had to coordinate hundreds of military extras with the needs of the film crew. He managed to shoot real aerial sequences that are still studied for their technical clarity.

He wasn't after artistic glory but the efficiency of the shot.

During the 80s, he took refuge almost exclusively in television, directing films for the small screen and miniseries. In 1987 he shot Ghost of a Chance, and a year later he delivered The Diamond Trap. Don Taylor died on December 29, 1998, in Los Angeles of heart failure at the age of 78.