Donald Richie Taylor was an American actor and film director. He co-starred in 1940s and 1950s classics, including the 1948 film noirThe Naked City, Battleground, Father of the Bride, Father's Little Dividend and Stalag 17. He later turned to directing films such as Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Tom Sawyer , and .
After discharge from the AAF, Taylor was cast in a lead role as the young detective, Jimmy Halloran, working alongside veteran homicide detective Dan Muldoon in Universal's 1948 screen version of The Naked City, which was notable for being filmed entirely on location in New York. Taylor was later part of the ensemble cast in MGM's classic World War II drama Battleground. He then appeared as the husband of Elizabeth Taylor in the comedies Father of the Bride and its sequel Father's Little Dividend, starring Spencer Tracy. Another memorable role was Vern "Cowboy" Blithe in Flying Leathernecks. In 1952, Taylor played a soldier bringing his Japanese war-bride back to small-town America in Japanese War Bride. In 1953, Taylor had a key role as the escaping prisoner Lt. Dunbar in Billy Wilder'sStalag 17. His last major film role came in I'll Cry Tomorrow.
Directorial career
From the late 1950s through the 1980s, Taylor turned to directing movies and TV shows, such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, the short-lived Steve Canyon, starring Dean Fredericks, and Rod Serling's Night Gallery. One of his memorable efforts, in 1973, was the musical film Tom Sawyer, which boasted a Sherman Brothers song score. Other films that Taylor directed are Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Echoes of a Summer, The Great Scout & Cathouse Thursday, The Island of Dr. Moreau starring Burt Lancaster, with William Holden, and The Final Countdown with Kirk Douglas. Taylor occasionally performed both acting and directing roles simultaneously, as he did for episodes of the TV detective series Burke's Law.
Writing career
Taylor "wrote one-act plays, radio dramas, short stories, and the 1985 TV movie ''My Wicked, Wicked Ways... The Legend of Errol Flynn."
Personal life
Taylor was married twice.
His first wife was Phyllis Avery, whom he married in 1944; they divorced in 1955, but not before the births of their daughters Anne and Avery.
His second wife was Hazel Court, whom he married in 1964 and stayed with until his death; they had a son, Jonathan, and a daughter, Courtney.
In addition to his Hollywood credits, Taylor directed 27 television movies and episodes for 53 television series including Cannon, Rod Serling's Night Gallery, Mod Squad, It Takes a Thief, The Big Valley, The Flying Nun, Vacation Playhouse, The Tammy Grimes Show, The Wild Wild West, Burke's Law, The Rogues, The Farmer's Daughter, The Lloyd Bridges Show, The Dick Powell Theatre, Dr. Kildare, Checkmate, 87th Precinct, Zane Grey Theater, The Rifleman, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Honky Tonk, and others.
