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Andy Sidaris

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Andy Sidaris
Born
Andrew William Sidaris

(1931-02-20)February 20, 1931
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedMarch 7, 2007(2007-03-07) (aged 76)
Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Alma materSouthern Methodist University
Occupations
  • Director
  • producer
  • screenwriter
Years active1950–1998
SpouseArlene Sidaris
Children3
Websitewww.andysidaris.com

Andrew William Sidaris (February 20, 1931 – March 7, 2007) was an American television and film director, producer, screenwriter. After a pioneering career directing televised sports beginning in the 1960s, Sidaris wrote and directed a successful series of action B-movies from 1985 to 1998—dubbed the "Bullets, Bombs, and Babes" series—that featured Playboy Playmates and Penthouse Pets in starring roles. In 2014, Paste magazine named one such picture, Hard Ticket to Hawaii, the best B-movie of all time.

Early life

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Andrew William Sidaris was born in 1931 in Chicago, Illinois, to first-generation Greek immigrants.[1][2][3] He grew up in Shreveport, Louisiana, where he played halfback and quarterback on the football team at Byrd High School.[4] He graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1955 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in speech and theater.[1][5]

Career

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Television

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Sidaris began his television career in 1950, working as a stage manager for WFAA in Dallas, Texas, before being promoted to director six months later. In 1959, he moved to Los Angeles to work for ABC Sports, beginning with directing AFL football games in 1960. Sidaris also directed the first telecast of the Wide World of Sports in 1961, Monday Night Football games, as well as ABC's coverage of every Olympics from the 1964 Winter Games in Grenoble to the 1988 Winter Games in Calgary, winning several Emmy Awards in the process.[5]

While directing college football games on ABC, Sidaris pioneered what became known as the "honey shot," close-ups of cheerleaders and attractive female fans in the stands at sporting events.[6] He was also at the forefront of the development of instant replay, slow-motion replays, and split-screen views.[5]

Sidaris entered the field of scripted television in the mid-1970s, directing episodes of programs such as Kojak and The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries.[5]

Film

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In 1973, Sidaris expanded into film, directing the exploitation picture Stacey, followed by the action film Seven in 1979.[4]

Beginning with 1985's Malibu Express, Sidaris wrote and directed a series of lighthearted B-movie action pictures that featured buxom, gun-toting Playboy Playmates and Penthouse Pets in starring roles.[5] Most of the "Bullets, Bombs, and Babes" films chronicled the adventures of a team of secret agents—frequently played by Dona Speir, Hope Marie Carlton, Cynthia Brimhall, Roberta Vasquez, and Julie Strain—working in exotic tropical locations. The series' trademarks included frequent displays of female nudity, muscled male co-stars, and over-the-top, tongue-in-cheek death scenes,[7] such as in 1987's Hard Ticket to Hawaii, where a skateboard-riding assassin is blown up by a rocket launcher while he clutches a blowup doll.[3] In 2014, Paste magazine named Hard Ticket to Hawaii the best B-movie of all time.[8]

Personal life and death

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Sidaris had three children—Drew, Alexa, and Stacey—with his wife and production partner Arlene.[4][9] They resided in Beverly Hills, California, where Sidaris died of throat cancer on March 7, 2007, aged 76.[5]

Selected filmography

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Film
Year Film Notes
1969 The Racing Scene Director
1970 MASH Football choreographer (uncredited)[10]
1973 Stacey Director, producer, writer
1979 Seven Director
1985 Malibu Express Director, producer, writer
1987 Hard Ticket to Hawaii Director, writer
1988 Picasso Trigger Director, writer
1989 Savage Beach Director, producer, writer
1990 Guns Director, writer
1991 Do or Die Director, writer
1992 Hard Hunted Director, producer, writer
1993 Fit to Kill Director, writer
Enemy Gold Producer
1994 The Dallas Connection Executive producer
1996 Day of the Warrior Director, writer
1998 L.E.T.H.A.L. Ladies: Return to Savage Beach Director, writer
Television
Year Title Notes
1975 Kojak Director, 1 episode
1976 Gemini Man Director, 1 episode
1977 The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries Director, 1 episode

References

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  1. ^ a b "Fortieth Annual Convocation: Commencement Exercises and Conferring of Degrees". Southern Methodist University. May 30, 1955. p. 12. Retrieved January 27, 2024. Andrew William Sidaris...Speech and Theater.
  2. ^ Carter, David; Heath Jr., Glenn (August 6, 2012). "Bullets, Bombs, and Babes: The Films of Andy Sidaris". NotComing. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Vorel, Jim (June 3, 2020). "Bullets, Bombs & Babes: A Guide to the Hilarious, Sleazy Action Films of Andy Sidaris". Paste. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c McIntyre, Bill (April 11, 1981). "TV Director Andy Sidaris Calling His Own Plays". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. p. 5-C. ...Shreveport native son Andy Sidaris...
  5. ^ a b c d e f "Andy Sidaris, 76; ABC sports director went on to make B-movies". The Los Angeles Times. March 10, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  6. ^ Levin, Josh (July 7, 2014). "The Man Who Invented Sports Television's "Honey Shot"". Slate. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  7. ^ Briggs, Joe Bob (March 27, 1988). "'Picasso Trigger' a Sidaris Work of Art". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
  8. ^ Vorel, Jim (May 9, 2014). "The 100 Best "B Movies" of All Time". Paste. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  9. ^ McIntyre, Bill (March 10, 2007). "TV Sports Pioneer, Filmmaker Andy Sidaris Dead at 76". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. p. 3B.
  10. ^ Susman, Gary (March 9, 2007). "Andy Sidaris, RIP". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on June 15, 2007. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
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