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Elia Kazan (born Elias Kazantzoglou, September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003) was an American director, producer, writer and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history".〔 He was born in Istanbul, to Cappadocian Greek parents. After studying acting at Yale, he acted professionally for eight years, later joining the Group Theater in 1932, and co-founded the Actors Studio in 1947. With Robert Lewis and Cheryl Crawford, his actor's studio introduced "Method Acting" under the direction of Strasberg. Kazan acted in a few films, including ''City for Conquest'' (1940).〔("Scenes from "City for Conquest" with Elia Kazan" ) clips with Elia Kazan〕 Noted for drawing out the best dramatic performances from his actors, he directed 21 actors to Oscar nominations, resulting in nine wins. He directed a string of successful films, including ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' (1951), ''On the Waterfront'' (1954), and ''East of Eden'' (1955). During his career, he won two Oscars as Best Director and received an Honorary Oscar, won three Tony Awards, and four Golden Globes. His films were concerned with personal or social issues of special concern to him. Kazan writes, "I don't move unless I have some empathy with the basic theme."〔 His first such "issue" film was ''Gentleman's Agreement'' (1947), with Gregory Peck, which dealt with anti-Semitism in America. It received 8 Oscar nominations and 3 wins, including Kazan's first for Best Director. It was followed by ''Pinky'', one of the first films in mainstream Hollywood to address racial prejudice against black people. In 1954, he directed ''On the Waterfront'', a film about union corruption on the New York harbor waterfront. ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' (1951), an adaptation of the stage play which he had also directed, received 12 Oscar nominations, winning 4, and was Marlon Brando's breakthrough role. In 1955, he directed John Steinbeck's ''East of Eden'', which introduced James Dean to movie audiences. A turning point in Kazan's career came with his testimony as a witness before the House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1952 at the time of the Hollywood blacklist, which brought him strong negative reactions from many liberal friends and colleagues. His testimony helped end the careers of former acting colleagues Morris Carnovsky and Art Smith, along with ending the work of playwright Clifford Odets.〔("A McCarthy Era Memory That Can Still Chill ) ''New York Times'', January 16, 1997〕 Kazan later justified his act by saying he took "only the more tolerable of two alternatives that were either way painful and wrong."〔("Scorsese gets personal in his A Letter to Elia" ) ''Gulf News'', September 6, 2010〕 Nearly a half-century later, his anti-Communist testimony continued to cause controversy. When Kazan was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1999, dozens of actors chose not to applaud as 250 demonstrators picketed the event.〔("Amid Protests, Elia Kazan Receives His Oscar ) ''New York Times'', March 22, 1999〕 Kazan influenced the films of the 1950s and '60s with his provocative, issue-driven subjects. Director Stanley Kubrick called him, "without question, the best director we have in America, () capable of performing miracles with the actors he uses."〔Ciment, Michel. ''Kubrick: The Definitive Edition'', Faber and Faber, Inc. (1980; 1999)〕〔''International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers – 2: Directors'', St. James Press (1997) pp. 519–522〕 Film author Ian Freer concludes that "if his achievements are tainted by political controversy, the debt Hollywood—and actors everywhere—owes him is enormous."〔Freer, Ian. ''Movie Makers: 50 Iconic Directors'', Quercus Publishing (London) (2009) pp. 84–85〕 In 2010, Martin Scorsese co-directed the documentary film ''A Letter to Elia'' as a personal tribute to Kazan.〔("Scorsese Film Defends Anti-Communist Informer Kazan" ) ABC News, September 4, 2010〕〔("A Letter to Elia" ) ''Variety'', September 4, 2010〕 ==Early life== Elia Kazan was born in the Fener district of Istanbul, to Cappadocian Greek parents originally from Kayseri in Anatolia. His parents, George and Athena Kazantzoglou (''née'' Shishmanoglou), immigrated to the United States when he was four years old. He was named after his paternal grandfather, Elia Kazantzoglou. His maternal grandfather was Isaak Shishmanoglou. Elia's brother, Avraam, was born in Berlin and later became a psychiatrist.〔 As a young boy, he was remembered as being shy, and his college classmates described him as more of a loner. Much of his early life was portrayed in his autobiographical book, ''America America'', which he made into a film in 1963. In it, he describes his family as "alienated" from both their parents' Greek Orthodox values and from those of mainstream America.〔 His mother's family were cotton merchants who imported cotton from England, and sold it wholesale. His father became a rug merchant after emigrating to the United States, and expected that his son would go into the family business.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Elia Kazan Biography (1909–) )〕 After attending public schools in New York, he enrolled at Williams College in Massachusetts, where he helped pay his way by waiting tables and washing dishes, although he still graduated cum laude. He also worked as a bartender at various fraternities, but never joined one. While a student at Williams, he earned the nickname "Gadg," for Gadget, because, he said, "I was small, compact, and handy to have around." The nickname was eventually taken up by his stage and film stars. In ''America America'' he tells how, and why, his family left Turkey and moved to America. Kazan notes that much of it came from stories that he heard as a young boy. He says during an interview that "it's all true: the wealth of the family was put on the back of a donkey, and my uncle, really still a boy, went to Istanbul ... to gradually bring the family there to escape the oppressive circumstances... It's also true that he lost the money on the way, and when he got there he swept rugs in a little store."〔Young, Jeff. ''Kazan: The Master Director Discusses his Films'', Newmarket Press N.Y. (1999) pp. 272–273〕 Kazan notes some of the controversial aspects of what he put in the film. He writes, "I used to say to myself when I was making the film that America was a dream of total freedom in all areas."〔 To make his point, the character who portrays Kazan's uncle Avraam kisses the ground when he gets through customs, while the Statue of Liberty and the American flag are in the background. Kazan had considered whether that kind of scene might be too much for American audiences: :"I hesitated about that for a long time. A lot of people, who don't understand how desperate people can get, advised me to cut it. When I am accused of being excessive by the critics, they're talking about moments like that. But I wouldn't take it out for the world. It actually happened. Believe me, if a Turk could get out of Turkey and come here, even now, he would kiss the ground. To oppressed people, America is still a dream."〔 Before undertaking the film, Kazan wanted to confirm many of the details about his family's background. At one point, he sat his parents down and recorded their answers to his questions. He remembers eventually asking his father a "deeper question: 'Why America? What were you hoping for?'" His mother gave him the answer, however: "A.E. brought us here." Kazan states that "A.E. was my uncle Avraam Elia, the one who left the Anatolian village with the donkey. At twenty-eight, somehow—this was the wonder—he made his way to New York. He sent home money and in time brought my father over. Father sent for my mother and my baby brother and me when I was four.''〔Kazan, Elia. ''Kazan on Directing'', Vintage Books (Jan. 2010) pp. 218–219〕 Kazan writes of the movie, "It's my favorite of all the films I've made; the first film that was entirely mine."〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Elia Kazan」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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