Alan Smithee

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BIOGRAPHY

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Pseudonym designated by the Directors Guild of America to replace the actual names of directors who wish to not be credited for a particular film. The name seems to have been first used for "Death of a Gunfighter" (1969) which was actually directed by, among others, Don Siegel. Other Smithee credits include the severely edited TV version of "Dune", the original theatrical version of which was directed by David Lynch, and "Let's Get Harry" (1987), directed by Stuart Rosenberg but released with nearly half an hour cut out. In 1998, Joe Eszterhas scripted "Burn, Hollywood, Burn", an insider comedy about a British director named Alan Smithee who wants to remove his name from a film he directed. Ironically, the film was credited to Alan Smithee (in reality Arthur Hiller who clashed with the screenwriter over the final cut).

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Headlines

EXTRA: 'Supernova': A Film By ... Who?!?

Jan. 15, 2000

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 14, 2000 -- It's always a bad omen when Alan Smithee directs a movie. But what about one directed by Thomas Lee? As every student of show-biz minutiae knows, "Smithee" is the pseudonym Hollywood typically uses when a filmmaker wants his or her real name removed from the final credits. "Thomas Lee," on the other hand, is a newcomer. Lee makes his fir...

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