George Schaefer

George Schaefer

Yale Drama School alumnus George Schaefer built his reputation as producer/director of several Hallmark Hall of Fame TV productions of the 1950s and 1960s. One of these, Macbeth (starring Maurice Evans and Judith Anderson), was expanded and released as a theatrical feature in 1963. Schaefer's subsequent non-TV films were as forgettable as his TV work was memorable; arguably the best of his Hollywood efforts was An Enemy of the People, a 1978 labor of love co-conceived by Schaefer and star Steve McQueen. Schaefer returned to television after 1978, garnering several industry awards to add to his already impressive trophy collection. Among George Schaefer's Emmy-winning TV productions were Little Moon of Alban (1959), the aforementioned MacBeth (1960), The Magnificent Yankee (1965), Elizabeth the Queen (1967), and A War of Children (1972). Schaefer died September 10, 1997, after a lengthy illness at the age of 76. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide