My journey ends here...
ZANUCK Darryl
Darryl Francis Zanuck
Date of birth : September 5, 1902, Wahoo, Nebraska.
Date of death : December 22, 1979, Palm Springs, California.
He was buried at the Westwood Memorial Park.
Profession director of production at the Warner Bros.
co-founder of the Fox in 1935; director of production until 1956.
1956 : he resigned from the Fox and became independent producer in Europe.
1962 : he became again director of production at the Fox until beginning of 1970.
Portrait 
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,
Story
In 1918 
After having gone on many jobs, he started in the movie industry as screenwriter.
From 1923 to 1933 he was screenwriter at the Warner and known his first success by creating the concept of the TV serie "Rin-tin-tin" (1920).
On January 12, 1924 in Los Angeles, he married Virginia Oglesby Fox (April 19, 1906, West Virginia-October
14, 1982, Los Angeles)(
-
).
They had 3 children :
* Darrylin (August 28, 1933-August 10, 2015)(
,
)
* Susan (August 30, 1933, Los Angeles-June 10, 1980, California)(
)
* Richard Darryl (December 13, 1934, Los Angeles-July 13, 2012, Los Angeles)(
)
;
;
He proceeded to production and was the head of the production at the Warner Brothers hardly aged 23 (1925).
,
,
In 1933, he founded the Twentieth Century Film with Joe Schenck 
;
In 1935 he made the studio merge with the Fox, at that time, in a bad patch. The Twentieth Century Fox was born.
In addition to his decision-maker position in
terms of production, he personally produced more than 150 movies
during his long career : "The Grapes of Wrath" (1940), "How Green Was
My Valley" (1942), "Gentleman's Agreement" (1947), "All About Eve"
(1950). Under his leadership, the Fox reaped more than 33 Academy Awards.
He had the reputation to treat the human beings with the
same implacable authority than the one he exerted on dogs. As many
directors of production whose good will could make or undo a career, he
was strict in working, but he allowed himself many eccentricities in
his personal life.
He met Marilyn at his home in Palm Springs, where she came with Joe Schenck.
Every biographers emphasized his constant skepticism about
Marilyn's talent; he was skeptical when the Fox engaged her, and
remained in the same position even after she had had an eminent part
in 1953, thanks to the big commercial success of "Niagara", "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and "How to Marry a Millionaire?".
One of the reasons was that Marilyn wasn't "his" protégé; her benefactors at the Fox were Joe Schenck and
In 1946 he produced the movie about anti-Semitism "Gentlemen's Agreement", directed by Elia Kazan.
Zanuck supervised the screenplays, the budgets, the distribution and
the film editing of about 50 movies a year, he also gave his agreement
for each new contract signed by the firm.
He saw Marilyn's first screen-test, shot in July 1946 by Ben Lyon. He wasn't convinced at all by Marilyn but gave in to Ben Lyon's enthusiasm, in charge of the recruitement, and to Leon Shamroy, director of
photography. She signed her first contract on August 26, 1946.
When her one-year contract ended, she tried to get hold of him but didn't manage to.
).In 1948, family pictures
,
Two years passed before Johnny Hyde managed to restore the contact with the Fox. Marilyn's appearance in "The Asphalt Jungle" (1950) offered her a 6-months contract which was stretched to 7 years, until May 1951.
In spite of Schenck and Skouras requests, Zanuck refused to confide her a big part, despite her success at each of her appearances.
The following movie given to her, "Niagara" (1953) confirmed her as a first level movie star. But if she seemed not to "touch" him, he couldn't ignore the effect she had on other people, particularly the other heads of the studios.
He made her play the diaphanous blondes in every productions of the Fox : "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" (1963), "How to Marry a Millionaire?" (1953), "River of No Return" (1954) and "There's No Business Like Show Business" (1954).On April 7, 1953, he attended the birthday party of Walter Winchell, which Marilyn attended too
,
,
,
,
,
On November 6, 1954, Charles Feldman organized a party on Marilyn's honor at Romanoff, finally consacrating
her as a star 
,
,
,
,
She started to rebel against the severe terms of her contract, her lack of power on her roles and the meagre sum she earned compared with the other stars.
She had the courage to fight against the studio, and founded with Milton Greene, the Marilyn Monroe Productions.
She came back in Hollywood to shot "Bus Stop" in February 1956.
However, he signed an agreement with the Fox through which the studio would release the movies he would produced as independent.
the vice president in charge of the production
His reign ended in 1975, when he was supplanted at his position, last tycoon of the old school to overcome
Interview by Hedda Hopper 
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