# Andrew L. Stone > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Andrew_L._Stone > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Andrew_L._Stone.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_L._Stone > Source revision: 1355059955 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) American film director (1902–1999) Andrew L. Stone Stone (left) on set of Song of Norway with Florence Henderson and Edward G. Robinson, 1969. Born Andrew Lysander Stone (1902-07-16)July 16, 1902 Oakland, California, U.S. Died June 9, 1999(1999-06-09) (aged 96) Los Angeles, California, U.S. Occupations Screenwriter Film director Film producer Spouse(s) Anne Harrington McCrary (m. 1929-1946; divorced) Virginia L. Stone (m. 1946–1970; divorced) Audrey Stone (m. 19??–1999; his death) Children 4, including Christopher[1] **Andrew Lysander Stone** (July 16, 1902 – June 9, 1999) was an [American](/source/Americans) screenwriter, film director and producer. He was nominated for an [Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Original_Screenplay) for the film *[Julie](/source/Julie_(1956_film))* in 1957 and received a star on the [Hollywood Walk of Fame](/source/Hollywood_Walk_of_Fame) in 1960. Known for his hard-hitting, realistic films, Stone frequently collaborated with his second wife, editor and producer [Virginia Lively Stone](/source/Virginia_L._Stone) (m. 1946). Though few of his films achieved mainstream success, Stone was nominated for an [Academy Award](/source/Academy_Awards) for [Best Original Screenplay](/source/Academy_Award_for_Writing_Original_Screenplay) for his [1956](/source/1956_in_film) [thriller](/source/Thriller_(genre)) *[Julie](/source/Julie_(1956_film))*. Stone's stories frequently featured characters called Cole, Pringle and Pope, usually in law enforcement and interchangeably played by the same actors—[Jack Kruschen](/source/Jack_Kruschen), [Barney Phillips](/source/Barney_Phillips) and [John Gallaudet](/source/John_Gallaudet). Roles with those names were included in *A Blueprint for Murder*, *The Night Holds Terror*, *Julie*, *Cry Terror!* and *The Decks Ran Red*. ## Career Born in Oakland, California, Andrew L. Stone attended the University of California. He built a movie theater in his back yard, with two projectors and seats for 50 kids. Films were bought at a dollar a reel. Stone worked for a film exchange for Universal after school and on Sundays. "I wanted anything I could get to do with films - rewinding, splicing, projecting," he once said.[2] In the mid-'20s, he moved to Hollywood and worked in a laboratory. He also worked in Universal's prop department. ### Early movies In 1926, Stone financed his first directorial effort *The Elegy* (1926), a two-reel movie. It cost $3,200, which he had raised himself and was made on sets left over from *Scaramouche*.[3] His first full-length feature was *[Dreary House](/source/Dreary_House)* (1928). He worked as director on *[Shadows of Glory](/source/Shadows_of_Glory)* (1930), *[Hell's Headquarters](/source/Hell's_Headquarters)* (1932) and *[The Girl Said No](/source/The_Girl_Said_No_(1937_film))* (1937). ### Paramount Stone said that MGM offered him a contract in the mid-1930s but he was reluctant to take it. He later said, “I’d have had to pacify the stars and keep them happy – like a priest who doesn’t believe a word of what he says. Then there was a Paramount contract — no big stars, but freedom. That’s the one I went for. It didn’t take me long to see I’d never make a nickel, but I didn’t give a damn.”[2] Stone signed a contract at Paramount for whom he made *[Stolen Heaven](/source/Stolen_Heaven_(1938_film))* (1938), *[Say It in French](/source/Say_It_in_French)* (1938) with [Ray Milland](/source/Ray_Milland), *[The Great Victor Herbert](/source/The_Great_Victor_Herbert)* (1939), and *[The Hard-Boiled Canary](/source/The_Hard-Boiled_Canary)* (1941). He was meant to make *Manhattan Rhapsody* for the studio.[4] At 20th Century Fox he earned acclaim for directing the 1943 film *[Stormy Weather](/source/Stormy_Weather_(1943_film))*, starring [Lena Horne](/source/Lena_Horne).[5] ### United Artists Stone formed his own production company, Andrew L Stone Productions, with his then-wife Virginia. They signed a deal with [United Artists](/source/United_Artists) to make two films: *[Hi Diddle Diddle](/source/Hi_Diddle_Diddle)* (1943) and *[Sensations of 1945](/source/Sensations_of_1945)* (1944). United Artists were pleased enough to offer him a deal to make four more films over eighteen months:[6] *[Bedside Manner](/source/Bedside_Manner_(film))* (1945), *[The Bachelor's Daughters](/source/The_Bachelor's_Daughters)* (1946), and *[Fun on a Weekend](/source/Fun_on_a_Weekend)* (1947). They left United Artists in 1947. He did some uncredited directing on *[The Countess of Monte Cristo](/source/The_Countess_of_Monte_Cristo_(1948_film))* (1948). ### Thrillers Stone went to Warner Bros for *[Highway 301](/source/Highway_301_(film))* (1950). *Highway 301* was a crime film and ushered in a series of movies from Stone in that genre. "I had to talk Bernie Foy at Warners into letting me do a melodrama," Stone said later. "I made it practically for nothing to establish myself in that field."[3] It would be Stone's last film shot in a studio. He did *[Confidence Girl](/source/Confidence_Girl)* (1952), and two with Joseph Cotten, *[The Steel Trap](/source/The_Steel_Trap)* (1952) and *[A Blueprint for Murder](/source/A_Blueprint_for_Murder)* (1953). He did *[The Night Holds Terror](/source/The_Night_Holds_Terror)* (1955) at Columbia.[3] ### MGM Stone signed a two-picture deal at MGM for whom he made *[Julie](/source/Julie_(1956_film))* (1956), a thriller with [Doris Day](/source/Doris_Day) and [Louis Jourdan](/source/Louis_Jourdan), and *[Cry Terror!](/source/Cry_Terror!)* (1958), with [Rod Steiger](/source/Rod_Steiger). (He had intended to follow Julie with a film about smoking, *The Last Puff*, but it was not made.[7]) *Julie* was a hit so MGM signed them to make four more movies: *[The Decks Ran Red](/source/The_Decks_Ran_Red)* (1959), *[The Last Voyage](/source/The_Last_Voyage)* (1960), *[Ring of Fire](/source/Ring_of_Fire_(1961_film))* (1961), and *[The Password Is Courage](/source/The_Password_Is_Courage)* (1962) with [Dirk Bogarde](/source/Dirk_Bogarde).[8][9][10] He did *[Never Put It in Writing](/source/Never_Put_It_in_Writing)* (1964) with [Pat Boone](/source/Pat_Boone) for Allied Artists, filmed in England and Ireland. He signed a new two-picture deal with MGM. The first was *[The Secret of My Success](/source/The_Secret_of_My_Success_(1965_film))* (1965). The second was meant to be a history of aviation written by [Ernest Gann](/source/Ernest_Gann), *The Winning of the Sky*, but it was never made.[11] ### Later movies Stone made a musical for ABC Pictures titled *[Song of Norway](/source/Song_of_Norway_(film))* (1970), a $3.5 million musical biopic of [Edvard Grieg](/source/Edvard_Grieg).[3] The film performed reasonably well, but his next film *[The Great Waltz](/source/The_Great_Waltz_(1972_film))* (1972) was a big flop.[12] In 1977, he did some work for Universal on the action and disaster sequences for *Rollercoaster*. ## Personal life Stone was married three times: - Anne Harrington McCrary (m.1927-1946; divorced)[13] They had two sons, Andrew Lysander Stone and Bruce Harrington Stone.[14] - Virginia Lively (m.1946-1970; divorced)[15] They had two sons, Lively Andrew Stone and [Christopher L. Stone](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Christopher_L._Stone&action=edit&redlink=1). The latter of whom is a television and film composer[1] - Audrey (m. 19??-1999; his death) In her memoir, [Evelyn Keyes](/source/Evelyn_Keyes) claimed that during production on [*Say It In French*](/source/Say_It_in_French) (1938), Stone raped her, which resulted in a pregnancy. Keyes aborted the pregnancy, leaving her weakened and permanently unable to have children. Rather than postponing production, Stone had her fired and replaced with [Olympe Bradna](/source/Olympe_Bradna).[16] ## Selected filmography - *The Elegy* (1927) (short) - writer, director - *Fantasy* (1927) (short) - director - *Adoration* (1927) (short) - writer, director - *Liebensraum* (1928) -director - *[Dreary House](/source/Dreary_House)* (1928) - writer, director - *[Shadows of Glory](/source/Shadows_of_Glory)* aka *Sombras de gloria* (1930) - director - *[Hell's Headquarters](/source/Hell's_Headquarters)* (1932) - director - *[The Girl Said No](/source/The_Girl_Said_No_(1937_film))* (1937) - director, writer, producer - *[With Words and Music](/source/With_Words_and_Music)* (1937) director - *[Stolen Heaven](/source/Stolen_Heaven_(1938_film))* (1938) - director, writer - *[Say It in French](/source/Say_It_in_French)* (1938) - director, producer - *[The Great Victor Herbert](/source/The_Great_Victor_Herbert)* (1939) - director, writer, producer - *[The Hard-Boiled Canary](/source/The_Hard-Boiled_Canary)* (1941) - director, producer, writer - *[Stormy Weather](/source/Stormy_Weather_(1943_film))* (1943) - director - *[Hi Diddle Diddle](/source/Hi_Diddle_Diddle)* (1943) - director, producer, original story - *[Sensations of 1945](/source/Sensations_of_1945)* (1944) - director, writer, producer - *[Bedside Manner](/source/Bedside_Manner_(film))* (1945) - director, producer - *[The Bachelor's Daughters](/source/The_Bachelor's_Daughters)* (1946) - director, writer, producer - *[Fun on a Weekend](/source/Fun_on_a_Weekend)* (1947) - director, writer, producer - *[The Countess of Monte Cristo](/source/The_Countess_of_Monte_Cristo_(1948_film))* (1948) - director, uncredited - *[Highway 301](/source/Highway_301_(film))* (1950) - director, writer - *[Confidence Girl](/source/Confidence_Girl)* (1952) - director, writer, producer - *[The Steel Trap](/source/The_Steel_Trap)* (1952) - director, writer - *[A Blueprint for Murder](/source/A_Blueprint_for_Murder)* (1953) - director, writer - *[The Night Holds Terror](/source/The_Night_Holds_Terror)* (1955) - director, writer, producer - *[Screen Directors Playhouse](/source/Screen_Directors_Playhouse)* episode "The Final Tribute" (1955) - writer, director - *[Julie](/source/Julie_(1956_film))* (1956) - director, writer - *[Cry Terror!](/source/Cry_Terror!)* (1958) - director, writer, producer - *[The Decks Ran Red](/source/The_Decks_Ran_Red)* (1958) - director, writer, producer - *[The Last Voyage](/source/The_Last_Voyage)* (1960) - director, writer, producer - *[Ring of Fire](/source/Ring_of_Fire_(1961_film))* (1961) - director, writer, producer - *[The Password Is Courage](/source/The_Password_Is_Courage)* (1962) - director, writer, producer - *[Never Put It in Writing](/source/Never_Put_It_in_Writing)* (1964) - director, writer, producer - *[The Secret of My Success](/source/The_Secret_of_My_Success_(1965_film))* (1965) - director, producer - *[Song of Norway](/source/Song_of_Norway_(film))* (1970) - director, writer, producer - *[The Great Waltz](/source/The_Great_Waltz_(1972_film))* (1972) - director, writer, producer ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Film_and_television_composer_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Film_and_television_composer_1-1) ["Christopher Lively Stone - Genealogy"](https://www.geni.com/people/Christopher-Stone/6000000029619839151). *geni.com*. Retrieved 2024-01-07. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-kevin_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-kevin_2-1) Obituary: Andrew L. Stone Brownlow, Kevin. Variety; Los Angeles Vol. 381, Iss. 2, (Nov 27-Dec 3, 2000): 71. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-song_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-song_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-song_3-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-song_3-3) Movies: A 'Song of Norway' With Verisimilitude Scheuer, Philip K. Los Angeles Times 8 Nov 1970: t16. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** SCREEN NEWS HERE AND IN HOLLYWOOD: Andrew Stone to Be Director of 'Manhattan Rhapsody' New York Times 16 Sep 1940: 21. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-NYT_Obit_5-0)** Pace, Eric (December 2, 2000). ["Andrew Stone, 96, Director, Writer and Producer of Films"](https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/02/nyregion/andrew-stone-96-director-writer-and-producer-of-films.html). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. Retrieved 2018-03-04. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** BRACKEN TO STAR IN STONE COMEDY New York Times 16 Mar 1946: 9. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Andrew Stone to Smoke Up Controversy Los Angeles Times 11 July 1957: C11. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Andrew Stone Will Produce War Tale: Los Angeles Times 1 May 1961: C11. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** COUPLE MAY MAKE MORE M-G-M FILMS: Andrew and Virginia Stone Negotiating Pact Extension New York Times 25 Feb 1958: 23. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-bach_10-0)** Vagg, Stephen (5 July 2025). ["Forgotten British Film Moguls: Lawrence P. Bachmann"](https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-british-film-moguls-lawrence-p-bachmann/?). *Filmink*. Retrieved 5 July 2025. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** Andrew Stones Tell 'Secret of Success' Los Angeles Times 29 Nov 1963: C29. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** IN TOTAL CONTROL: Stone Directing 'Waltz', Thomas, Bob. Los Angeles Times 31 May 1972: h11. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Marriage_1_13-0)** ["Film Director Weds"](https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-andrew-stone-marri/138254966/). *[Los Angeles Times](/source/Los_Angeles_Times)*. April 11, 1929. Retrieved 2024-01-07. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-ALS_III_obituary_14-0)** ["Andrew L. Stone Jr"](https://www.newspapers.com/article/los-angeles-evening-citizen-news-obituar/138257369/). *Los Angeles Citizen News*. May 6, 1961. Retrieved 2024-01-07. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Marriage_2_15-0)** ["Oakland Producer Weds Film Worker"](https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-oakland-post-enquirer-andrew-stone-m/138262434/). *Oakland Post Enquirer*. September 10, 1946. Retrieved 2024-01-07. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-16)** Keyes, Evelyn (1977). *Scarlett O'Hara's Younger Sister*. Lyle Stuart. pp. 26–27. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0818402432](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0818402432). ## External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Andrew L. Stone](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Andrew_L._Stone). - [Andrew L. Stone](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0831720/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier)) - [Andrew L Stone papers](https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8p84dj4/) at Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - [Andrew L Stone](https://letterboxd.com/director/andrew-l-stone/) at Letterbox DVD - [Andrew L Stone](https://web.archive.org/web/20180531140009/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba0708697) at BFI - [Article on Andrew and Virginia Stone](https://brightlightsfilm.com/andrew-and-virginia-stone-noir-to-the-bone/#.XTGgbXt7nOQ) at Bright Lights Film Journal v t e Films directed by Andrew L. Stone Dreary House (1928) Shadows of Glory (1930) Hell's Headquarters (1932) The Girl Said No (1937) Stolen Heaven (1938) Say It in French (1938) The Great Victor Herbert (1939) The Hard-Boiled Canary (1941) Stormy Weather (1943) Hi Diddle Diddle (1943) Sensations of 1945 (1944) Bedside Manner (1945) The Bachelor's Daughters (1946) Fun on a Weekend (1947) The Countess of Monte Cristo (1948) Highway 301 (1950) Confidence Girl (1952) The Steel Trap (1952) A Blueprint for Murder (1953) The Night Holds Terror (1955) Julie (1956) Cry Terror! (1958) The Decks Ran Red (1958) The Last Voyage (1960) Ring of Fire (1961) The Password Is Courage (1962) Never Put It in Writing (1964) The Secret of My Success (1965) Song of Norway (1970) The Great Waltz (1972) Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND FAST WorldCat National United States France BnF data Spain Netherlands Korea Poland Israel People Deutsche Biographie Other IdRef SNAC Yale LUX --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Andrew L. Stone](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_L._Stone) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_L._Stone?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.