Biografia
Spanning over fifty years of entertainment history, Joel Freeman has established a remarkable reputation, contributing to projects from the original Shaft to Love at First Bite, Camelot to Soapdish, across top-grossing films, television, and the Internet.
Born on June 12, 1922, in Irvington, New Jersey, USA, he was the son of Louis Freeman, a baker and inventor, and Frances Schary. After his mother passed away when he was four, he was primarily raised by his fraternal grandparents.
Freeman began his Hollywood career at age 20 at MGM as a messenger. Within six weeks, he was promoted to the Short Subjects department, later moving to the Production Planning Office.
Eighteen months later, he was drafted into the Air Force and served three years, two of which were with the First Motion Picture Unit (AAF), working as a script supervisor and assistant director on about thirty training films.
Returning to civilian life, Freeman immediately became an assistant director at RKO. Over the next two years, he alternated between RKO and Selznick, contributing to films such as The Farmer's Daughter, The Paradine Case, The Bachelor and The Bobby Soxer, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, and The Setup. He then returned to MGM as an assistant director and eventually associate producer, gaining experience on top films including Madame Bovary, Battleground, Bad Day at Black Rock, Blackboard Jungle, The Tender Trap, Tea & Sympathy, and Something of Value.
As an independent production supervisor, Freeman worked on features like Lonelyhearts and television series such as The Californians and Highway Patrol. Later, he joined Dore Schary at Warner Brothers, serving as production supervisor and associate producer on Sunrise at Campobello, which led to The Music Man at the same studio.
Another collaboration with Schary on Act One brought Freeman to New York City, where he produced The Reporter, a CBS television series for Richelieu Productions, and became head of program development for the company.
Freeman returned to California as associate producer and production supervisor on Warner Brothers' A Big Hand for a Little Lady and Not With My Wife You Don't! Impressed with his work, Jack Warner appointed him as his associate on Camelot. Following the film's success, Freeman rose to become one of Warner Brothers' top three executives until the studio was sold to Seven Arts.
He served as associate producer and production supervisor on Francis Ford Coppola's second film, Finian's Rainbow. Subsequently, Ken Hyman, head of worldwide production for Warner Brothers/Seven Arts, asked Freeman to reactivate and executive produce The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter. The critically acclaimed film earned two Oscar nominations.
Afterward, Joel Freeman Productions Inc. was established, and Freeman signed a producing contract with WB/7Arts, developing Tom Sawyer, The Musical. Simultaneously, he acted as executive consultant to Ken Hyman until the studio’s sale.
Returning to independent production, Freeman successfully navigated both features and television. He produced the ABC Movie of the Week Weekend of Terror. Collaborating with Gordon Parks and Isaac Hayes, he produced the groundbreaking feature Shaft for MGM. Its success led to a partnership with Fox, producing Trouble Man, followed by Fuzz Brothers, a television pilot created with MGM/ABC. He also executive produced It Happened One Christmas for Universal Television.
Freeman’s next film, the comedy Love At First Bite, became Melvin Simon Productions' biggest hit and one of AIP's top box-office successes. He produced The Octagon for American Cinema, executive produced The Kindred for Feldman/Meeker, and served as Senior Vice President, Production at New Century/New Visions Entertainment for two years until December 1988. During this period, he supervised films like The Gate, Russkies, Split Decision, and Rooftops.
Shortly after, The Completion Bond Company, having previously consulted him, invited Freeman to produce Next of Kin and supervise The Guardian. He co-produced Soapdish for Paramount, supervised Ricochet, and handled troubleshooting in England on The Power of One—both latter projects for The Completion Bond Company.
Freeman engaged in various development and pre-production phases on projects including Love at Second Bite (a sequel), To Have and Have Not (a remake), Mr. Shaft (a sequel), Someone Could Get Killed, Woof, Jekyll, Skyjack! Skyjack!, The James Barry Story, Mace, Piper, Stagecoach Mary, Stick and Ball, and Harp.
He spent six months in Lithuania producing thirteen hour-long episodes of The New Adventures of Robin Hood. Upon returning, he developed and optioned numerous screenplays such as Booker; 44 Sunset; Anais: The Opposite of Innocence; The Fairy Godfather; Shattered Image; Maternal Instinct; Romantics, Misfits and Fools; Bloodthirsty; Air Med; Marti; Monte; and Return of the Vin Fiz. Additionally, he produced Cover to Cover, a live show for Hollywood Broadcasting.com.
Freeman received the Directors Guild Award for Bad Day at Black Rock and the NAACP Image Award as Producer of the Year for Shaft. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America, the Producers Guild of America (honored with the Lifetime Membership Award), and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. He also served for many years on the Board of the Entertainment Industry Foundation.
