William A. Seiter Biography

Fast Facts

• Was nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Television in 1956
• Was nominated for the Mussolini Cup for Best Foreign Film at the 1937 Venice Film Festival for "This Is My Affair․"
• Started out as a bit player at Mack Sennett's Keystone Studios in 1915, doubling as a cowboy
• Helped nurture the comedy duo Wheeler & Woolsey in the early talkie era
• Was principle director of the Reginald Denny vehicles for Universal Studios in the mid-1920s, many of which co-starred Laura La Plante
• When he was having difficulty working with an actor, he would take out his frustrations by adhering religiously to the script, refusing to let them add any nuance or creativity to the project