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J. Lee Thompson

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Filmmaker

The Resume

    (August 1, 1914-August 30, 2002)
    Born in Bristol, England, United Kingdom
    Birth name was John Lee Thompson
    Directed 'Murder Without Crime' (1950), 'The Yellow Balloon' (1953), 'An Alligator Named Daisy' (1955), 'Ice-Cold In Alex' (1958), 'Tiger Bay' (1959), 'The Guns of Navarone' (1961), 'Cape Fear' (1962), 'Taras Bulba' (1962), 'What a Way to Go!' (1964), 'Mackenna's Gold' (1969), 'Conquest of the Planet of the Apes' (1972), 'Battle for the Planet of the Apes' (1973), 'The White Buffalo' (1977), 'The Greek Tycoon' (1978), 'Caboblanco' (1980), 'Happy Birthday to Me' (1981), 'The Evil That Men Do' (1984), 'King Solomon's Mines' (1985), 'Murphy's Law' (1986), 'Firewalker' (1986), 'Death Wish 4: The Crackdown' (1987) and 'Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects' (1989)

Why he might be annoying:

    Two of his marriages broke up over his drinking and violent outbursts.
    His 'The Yellow Balloon' was the second British film to be given an X certificate limiting it to adult-only audiences.
    His career peaked artistically in the early 60s after which he admitted to 'selling out' to Hollywood for large paychecks.
    His justification was, 'The critical acclaim was wonderful, but no one went to see my films,' even though his biggest box office success, 'The Guns of Navarone,' garnered seven Oscar nominations.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was an RAF tailgunner and radar operator during World War II.
    He quit drinking with the help of his final wife, Penny Thompson.
    His movies won International Critics Awards at three consecutive Berlin Film Festivals (1957-59).
    He had a reputation for coming to the set prepared and getting films done on time and within budget.
    John Mills said he could 'make a scene out of nothing.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 4 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 15 Votes: 53.33% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 10 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying