- Overview
Date of Birth13 September 1902, Nebraska City, Nebraska, USA Date of Death18 March 1971, Yorktown Heights, New York, USA (stroke) Birth NameWilliam Leland Hayward
Mini Bio
Leland Hayward was born on September 13, 1902 in Nebraska City, Nebraska, USA as William Leland Hayward. He is known for his work on The Sound of Music (1965), Mister Roberts (1955) and The Old Man and the Sea (1958). He was married to Pamela Harriman, Mary Raye "Nancy" Gross, Margaret Sullavan and Inez (Lola) Gibbs. He died on March 18, 1971 in Yorktown Heights, New York, USA.
Spouse
Pamela Harriman (4 May 1960 - 18 March 1971) (his death) Mary Raye "Nancy" Gross (10 June 1949 - 4 May 1960) (divorced) Margaret Sullavan (15 November 1936 - 28 April 1949) (divorced) (3 children) Inez (Lola) Gibbs (14 February 1930 - 27 November 1934) (divorced) Inez (Lola) Gibbs (28 March 1921 - 7 May 1924) (divorced)
Trivia
Won four Tony Awards: in 1948 as best producer for Mister Roberts; in 1949 as best producers (musical) with co-producers Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan, for South Pacific; and two in 1960, as best producer (musical) with co-producer Richard Halliday, for ;The Sound of Music in a tie with 'Robert Griffith (IV)' and Harold Prince for ;Fiorello!; and as one of the co-producers in a best musical win, also in a tie with ;Fiorello!.
Former father-in-law of Peter Duchin.
Father of actress Brooke Hayward.
Former father-in-law of Dennis Hopper; grandfather of Marin Hopper.
As a theatrical producer, Hayward was active and extraordinarily successful on Broadway between 1944-1971. Many of his Broadway productions were adapted into highly successful films. These include Mister Roberts (1955), South Pacific (1958) and the blockbuster hit The Sound of Music (1965).
An aviation enthusiast, in 1941, with financial backing from several in the Hollywood entertainment industry, he co-founded Southwest Airways, a regional carrier that linked several cities in California, Nevada and Oregon. In 1958, it became known as Pacific Air Lines and after a series of mergers, became part of Northwest Airlines, which was then bought by Delta in 2008.
Began as a publicist for United Artists and a writer for First National before becoming a successful agent.
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