Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After he dropped out of Pennsylvania College in the early 20s, he entered films as a production assistant and began making headway in the industry after becoming the son-in-law of MGM boss Louis B. Mayer. He joined Fox in 1930 as an associate producer and became a vice-president of 20th Century-Fox when the two companies joined in 1933. In 1942 he was elected to the company's board of directors and for two years substituted for Darryl F. Zanuck as production chief. He later formed International Pictures, and when the company merged with Universal in 1946, he became head of production for Universal-International. In 1954 he formed William Goetz Productions and became an independent producer, releasing through Columbia, and later held executive positions with Columbia and Seven Arts. He was among the first Hollywood producers to take up the now common practise of paying leading stars a percentage of the profits of their pictures in lieu of a salary. Notable associate producer credits include THE BOWERY (1933), MOULIN ROUGE, THE AFFAIRS OF CELLINI and THE HOUSE OF ROTHSCHILD (all 1934), CARDINAL RICHELIEU, LES MISÉRABLES and THE CALL OF THE WILD (all 1935). Producer credits include THE GANG'S ALL HERE (1943, exec. producer), JANE EYRE (1944), THE MAN FROM LARAMIE (1955), AUTUMN LEAVES (1956), SAYONARA (1957), SONG WITHOUT END (1960), CRY FOR HAPPY (1961) and ASSAULT ON A QUEEN (1966).    Nominated for Best Picture 1934: HOUSE OF ROTHSCHILD - Associate Producer at 20th Century-Fox    Nominated for Best Picture 1957: SAYONARA - Producer at Goetz 2 nominations