Fred Fleck

Fred Fleck (June 6, 1892 – November 9, 1961), also known as Fred A. Fleck, Frederick Fleck, or Freddie Fleck, was an American assistant director and production manager. Born in New York City on June 4, 1892, he broke into the film business as an assistant director on the 1928 silent film The Riding Renegade, directed by Wallace Fox. During his 30-year career, he would work on some notable films, with some notable directors. Those films included the epic Hell's Angels, directed by Howard Hughes; Bird of Paradise (1932), directed by King Vidor; Tom, Dick and Harry (1941), directed by Garson Kanin, starring Ginger Rogers; The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), directed by Orson Welles, starring Joseph Cotten and Anne Baxter; Born to be Bad (1950), directed by Nicholas Ray, starring Joan Fontaine and Robert Ryan; and Jet Pilot (1957), directed by Josef von Sternberg, starring John Wayne. Fleck was also one of the aerial cameramen on George Archainbaud's classic 1932 film, The Lost Squadron.

Fleck was also production manager on several notable films, including: Sylvia Scarlett (1935), directed by George Cukor, starring Katharine Hepburn; the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers vehicle, Swing Time (1936), directed by George Stevens; Stage Door (1937), directed by Gregory La Cava, starring Hepburn, Rogers and Adolphe Menjou; and The Las Vegas Story (1952), directed by Robert Stevenson, starring Jane Russell and Victor Mature.

Although Jet Pilot was released in 1957, it was produced in 1949–50, and sat on the shelf for seven years. The last film Fleck worked on was Son of Sinbad (1955), for which he was a production manager. He would die on November 9, 1961, in North Hollywood, California.

Filmography

(as per AFI's database) Year Title Role Notes 1928 The Riding Renegade Assistant director 1930 Dixiana Assistant director 1930 Hell's Angels Assistant director 1930 Hit the Deck Assistant director 1930 Hook, Line and Sinker Assistant director 1930 Leathernecking Assistant director 1931 Cracked Nuts Assistant director 1932 Bird of Paradise Assistant director 1932 Aerial photography 1932 Unit manager 1937 Sylvia Scarlett Production manager 1936 Swing Time Production manager 1937 Stage Door Production manager 1938 Carefree Unit manager 1939 That's Right – You're Wrong Assistant director 1940 You'll Find Out Assistant director 1941 Playmates Assistant director 1941 Tom, Dick and Harry Assistant director 1941 Citizen Kane Assistant 1942 Assistant director 1943 Assistant Director 1943 Flight for Freedom Supervisor overwater aviation shots 1944 My Pal Wolf Assistant director 1945 Assistant director 1945 George White's Scandals Assistant director 1946 Production manager 1947 They Won't Believe Me Unit manager 1948 If You Knew Susie Production manager 1948 Production manager 1949 Bride for Sale Assistant director 1949 Assistant director 1950 Born to Be Bad Assistant director 1950 Walk Softly, Stranger Production manager 1951 Two Tickets to Broadway Assistant director 1952 Unit manager 1953 Angel Face Assistant director 1953 Split Second Assistant director 1954 She Couldn't Say No Assistant director 1955 Son of Sinbad Unit manager 1957 Jet Pilot Assistant director