Irwin Allen Biography (1916-1991)
Born June 12, 1916, in New York, NY; died following a heart attack, November2, 1991, in Santa Monica, CA; son of Joseph (a designer of men's clothing) and Eva (Davis) Allen.
- Nationality
- American
- Gender
- Male
- Birth Details
- June 12, 1916
- New York, New York, United States
- Death Details
- November 2, 1991
- Santa Monica, California, United States
Famous Works
- Credits; FILM WORK; PRODUCER,EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED
- (And director) The Sea around Us (feature documentary), RKO Radio Pictures, 1951.
- (With Irving Cunningham) A Girl in Every Port, RKO Radio Pictures, 1952.
- Dangerous Mission, RKO Radio Pictures, 1954.
- Director, The Animal World (feature documentary), Warner Bros., 1956.
- (And director) The Story of Mankind (also see below), Warner Bros., 1957.
- The Big Circus (also see below), Allied Artists, 1959.
- (And director) The Lost World (also see below), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1960.
- (And director) Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (also see below), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1961.
- (And director) Five Weeks in a Balloon (also see below), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1962.
- The Ambushers, Columbia, 1967.
- The Poseidon Adventure, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1972.
- (And director with John Guillermin) The Towering Inferno, Twentieth Century-Fox/Warner Bros., 1974.
- (And director) The Swarm, Warner Bros., 1978.
- (And director) Beyond the Poseidon Adventure, Warner Bros., 1979.
- When Time Ran Out, Warner Bros., 1980.
- TELEVISION SERIES; PRODUCER,EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED Lost in Space, CBS, 1965-68.
- (And director with Jerry Hopper, Herschel Daugherty, Paul Stanley, and others) The Time Tunnel, ABC, 1966-67.
- Producer (with Bruce Fowler), and director (with Harry Harris and Sobey Martin), Land of the Giants, ABC, 1968-70.
- Executive producer, Swiss Family Robinson, ABC, 1975-76.
- The Return of Captain Nemo, CBS, 1978.
- Code Red (also see below), ABC, 1981-82.
- Also producer and co-director of the series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, 1964-68.
- TELEVISION PILOTS; PRODUCER,EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED Executive producer, Matt Helm, ABC, 1975.
- Swiss Family Robinson, ABC, 1975.
- Code Red, ABC, 1981.
- TELEVISION MOVIES; PRODUCER,EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED (And director) City beneath the Sea (also known as One Hour to Doomsday; also see below), NBC (somesources say CBS), 1971.
- Adventures of the Queen, CBS, 1975.
- Flood, NBC, 1976.
- Time Travelers, ABC, 1976.
- Fire!, NBC, 1977.
- Hanging by a Thread, NBC, 1979.
- The Memory of Eva Ryker, CBS, 1980.
- Cave-In!, NBC, 1983.
- The Night the Bridge Fell Down, NBC, 1983.
- Also producer of the television movies Alice in Wonderland, 1985, and Outrage!, 1986.
- Writings;SCREENPLAYS
- (With Charles Bennett) The Story of Mankind (based on a book by Hendrik Willem Van Loon), Warner Bros., 1957.
- (With Bennett and Irving Wallace) The Big Circus (based on a story by Allen), Allied Artists, 1959.
- (With Bennett) The Lost World (based on the novel by Arthur Conan Doyle),Twentieth Century-Fox, 1960.
- (With Bennett) Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (based on a story by Allen), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1961.
- (With Bennett and Albert Gail) Five Weeks in a Balloon (based on the novel by Jules Verne), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1962.
- Other Works
- Adaptations: The television movie City beneath the Sea (also known as OneHour to Doomsday), NBC (some sources say CBS), 1971, was adapted by John Meredyth Lucas from a story by Allen. The television movie Adventures of the Queen, broadcast in 1975, was also based on a story by Allen.
Further Reference
PERIODICALS
- Hollywood Reporter, December 31, 1991, p. 32.
- New York Times, December 29, 1974.
- Time, November 18, 1991, p. 17.
- Variety, November 11, 1991, p. 69.