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| children = 4 }} Frank Russell Capra (May 18, 1897September 3, 1991) was an Italian-American film director, producer and writer who became the creative force behind some of the major award-winning films of the 1930s and 1940s. Born in Italy and raised in Los Angeles from the age of five, his rags-to-riches story has led film historians such as Ian Freer to consider him the "American dream personified."〔Freer 2009, pp. 40–41.〕 Capra became one of America's most influential directors during the 1930s, winning three Oscars as Best Director. Among his leading films was ''It Happened One Night'' (1934), which became the first film to win the "Big Five Academy Awards", including Best Picture. Other leading films in his prime included ''You Can't Take It With You'' (1938) and ''Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' (1939). During World War II, Capra served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps and produced propaganda films, such as the ''Why We Fight'' series. After World War II Capra's career declined as his later films like ''It's a Wonderful Life'' (1946) were critically derided as being "simplistic" or "overly idealistic".〔Poague 2004, p. viii.〕 In succeeding decades, however, his films have been favorably reassessed. Outside of directing, Capra was active in the film industry, engaging in various political and social issues. He served as President of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, worked alongside the Screenwriters Guild, and was head of the Directors Guild of America. ==Early life== Capra was born Francesco Rosario Capra in Bisacquino, Sicily, a village near Palermo. He was the youngest of seven children of Salvatore Capra, a fruit grower, and the former Rosaria "Serah" Nicolosi. Capra's family was Roman Catholic.〔De Las Carreras, Maria Elena. ("The Catholic Vision of Frank Capra." ) ''Crisis, 20'', no. 2, February 2002. Retrieved: May 31, 2011.〕 The name "Capra", notes Capra's biographer Joseph McBride, represents his family's closeness to the land, and means "goat".〔McBride 1992, p. 16.〕 He notes that the English word "capricious" derives from it, "evoking the animal's skittish temperament", adding that "the name neatly expresses two aspects of Frank Capra's personality: emotionalism and obstinacy."〔 In 1903, when he was five, Capra emigrated to the United States with his family, who traveled in the steerage section of the boat, which was the cheapest way to gain passage. For Capra, the journey, which took 13 days, remained in his mind for the rest of his life as one of his worst experiences: Capra remembers the ship's arrival in New York Harbor, where he saw "a statue of a great lady, taller than a church steeple, holding a torch above the land we were about to enter". He recalls his father's exclamation at the sight: The family settled in Los Angeles's East Side (today Chinatown) which Capra described in his autobiography as an Italian "ghetto." 〔McBride (1992, p. 34. )〕 Capra's father worked as a fruit picker and young Capra sold newspapers after school for 10 years, until he graduated from high school. Instead of working after graduating, as his parents wanted, he enrolled in college. He worked through college at the California Institute of Technology, playing banjo at nightclubs and taking odd jobs, which included working at the campus laundry facility, waiting tables, and cleaning engines at a local power plant. He studied chemical engineering and graduated in the spring of 1918.〔("Distinguished Alumni Award: 1966 Recipients." ) ''Caltech Alumni Association''. Retrieved: December 18, 2010.〕 Capra later wrote that his college education had "changed his whole viewpoint on life from the viewpoint of an alley rat to the viewpoint of a cultured person".〔 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「Frank Capra」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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