Allen, Irwin (1916–1991)
American writer, producer, and director in both film and television, responsible
for such series as Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Lost
In Space, Time Tunnel, and Land of the Giants.
Allen began his career in journalism before moving into radio. Work in television
followed, as did work as a literary agent (P. G. Wodehouse being among his
clients for a while). Later he became involved in the packaging of movies,
which inevitably led to film production. His first movie was Double
Dynamite (1951), which he co-produced with Irving Cummings, Jr. He
won an oscar for producing The Sea Around Us (1952). His other
credits during this period include The Animal World (another documentary
feature), The Story of Mankind (1957, one of the worst movies ever
made), and The Big Circus, after which he turned to fantasy subjects
in both film and television. In the 1970s he produced a number of highly
successful disaster movies (The Poseidon Adventure, The Towering
Inferno), a genre he also exploited to less success in television.
His other credits include Five Weeks in a Balloon, City Beneath
the Sea, The Swarm, Beyond the Poseidon Adventure,
and When Time Runs Out.
Related category
• SCIENCE
FICTION
Source: The A-Z of
Science Fiction and Fantasy Films by Howard Mexford
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