Frank Joseph Perry, Jr. (August 21, 1930 – August 29, 1995) was an
American stage director and
filmmaker. The 1962 independent film
David and Lisa was nominated for two
Academy Awards for best director (Frank Perry) and best screenplay (written by his then-wife,
Eleanor Perry). The couple would go on to collaborate on five more films including cult classic,
The Swimmer, starring
Burt Lancaster,
Diary of a Mad Housewife starring
Carrie Snodgress and the
Emmy award-nominated
A Christmas Memory which was based on a short story by
Truman Capote, and also adapted by Frank's Emmy-award-winning wife, screenwriter Eleanor. Frank Perry went on to form Corsair Pictures, which was privately financed by
United Artists, producing two film flops
Miss Firecracker and
A Shock to the System, before folding. His later films include the
Razzie Award-nominee
Joan Crawford bio drama
Mommie Dearest and the documentary
On The Bridge, about his struggle with
prostate cancer.