Born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary (now Austria). Director Fred Zinnemann had an outstanding career spanning six decades, during which he directed 22 features, 19 short subjects and won four Oscars. Two of his films appeared on the American Film Instute's list of "100 Years - 100 Movies." Perhaps his best known work is HIGH NOON (1952), one of the first 25 American film classics chosen in 1989 for the National Film Registry. With its psychological and moral examinations of its lawman hero, played by Gary Cooper, its allegorical political commentary (on McCarthy-era witch-hunting) and its innovative chronology whereby screen time approximated the tense 80-minute countdown to the confrontational hour, HIGH NOON shattered the mold of the formulaic shoot-em-up Western. The director's other eminent films, all compelling dramas of lone and principled individuals tested by tragic events, include FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1953); THE NUN'S STORY (1959); A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS (1966); and JULIA (1977). Regarded as a consummate craftsman, Zinnemann traditionally endowed his work with meticulous attention to detail, an intuitive gift for brilliant casting and a preoccupation with the moral dilemmas of his characters. Zinnemann's penchant for realism and authenticity is evident in his first feature THE WAVE (1935)/REDES, shot on location in Mexico with mostly non-professional actors recruited among the locals, which is one of the earliest examples of realism in narrative film. Earlier in the decade, in fact, Zinnemann had worked with documentarian Robert Flaherty, an association he considered "the most important event of my professional life." The filmmaker also used authentic locales and extras in THE SEARCH (1948), which won an Oscar for screenwriting and secured his position in the Hollywood establishment. Shot in war-ravaged Germany, the film stars Montgomery Clift in his screen debut as a G.I. who cares for a lost Czech boy traumatized by the war. In the critically acclaimed THE MEN (1950), starring newcomer Marlon Brando as a paraplegic vet, Zinnemann filmed many scenes in a California hospital where real patients served as extras. Besides Clift and Brando, other Zinnemann discoveries included Pier Angeli and John Ericson, who co-starred in TERESA (1951), with Rod Steiger and Ralph Meeker debuting in secondary roles. And in OKLAHOMA! (1955), Zinnemann's version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, the wide screen format Todd-AO made its debut, as did the film's young star Shirley Jones. Zinnemann's casting choices were often as daring as they were judicious. For his screen adaptation of the play THE MEMBER OF THE WEDDING (1952), Zinnemann chose the 26-year-old Julie Harris as the film's 12-year-old protagonist. In FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1953), which brought Zinnemann his first Oscar for feature directing, he cast Frank Sinatra, who was at the lowest point of his popularity. As the likable loser Maggio, Sinatra won an Oscar for best supporting actor. FROM HERE TO ETERNITY also featured Deborah Kerr, best known for prim and proper roles, as a philandering Army wife. And Audrey Hepburn, previously cast in delightful comedic roles, gave the performance of her career as the anguished Sister Luke in the highly acclaimed THE NUN'S STORY. Throughout his career Zinnemann favored a protagonist morally impelled to act heroically in defense of his or her beliefs. Hepburn in THE NUN'S STORY and Cooper in HIGH NOON, determined to confront savage outlaws hungry for revenge, are two prominent examples. Paul Scofield as Sir Thomas More in A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS (1966), which earned Zinnemann his second Oscar for feature film direction, gave a brilliant portrayal of a man driven by conscience to his ultimate fate. And in JULIA (1977), another of Zinnemann's crowning achievements, Vanessa Redgrave is a doomed American heiress who forsakes the safety and comfort of great wealth to devote her life to the anti-Nazi cause in Germany. Perhaps the most unusual and perversely engaging loner in Zinnemann's films is Edward Fox as the cold-blooded anti-hero assassin in the taut thriller THE DAY OF THE JACKAL (1973), a man who is impelled by greed rather than politics to try to kill French president DeGaulle. In spite of the many consistencies and high quality that characterize his work, Zinnemann has been perceived by some critics -- citing the many different genres he has embraced -- to be a director for all seasons rather than an "auteur." Even his less sure-footed forays into film noir, melodrama, musicals and panoramic romance cannot outweigh Zinnemann's major efforts, which assure his reputation as one of America's most accomplished directors. Zinnemann received the Directors Guild of America, USA Lifetime Achievement Award in 1970. He published an autobiography, Fred Zinnemann on Cinema, in 1992. He was married to Renee Bartlett from 1936 until his death in 1997.  Nominated for Directing 1948: THE SEARCH  Documentary (Short Subjects) 1951: BENJY - Producer  Nominated for Directing 1952: HIGH NOON  Directing 1953: FROM HERE TO ETERNITY  Nominated for Directing 1959: THE NUN'S STORY  Nominated for Best Picture 1960: THE SUNDOWNERS - Producer at Warner Bros.  Nominated for Directing 1960: THE SUNDOWNERS  Best Picture 1966: A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS - Producer at Highland  Directing 1966: A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS  Nominated for Directing 1977: JULIA 10 nominations, 4 Awards