# Samuel Goldwyn
**Samuel Goldwyn** (born Szmuel Gelbfisz; August 27, 1879 – January 31, 1974) was a Polish-born American motion picture producer who became one of Hollywood's leading independent producers, co-founded the company whose name and lion logo survive in [Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer](https://www.edgepedia.org/metro-goldwyn-mayer), and produced films including *Wuthering Heights* (1939), *The Little Foxes* (1941), and the nine-Academy-Award-winning *The Best Years of Our Lives* (1946)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/) • [2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974). His birth year is disputed: IMDb gives August 27, 1879, the Golden Globes profile says ca. July 1879, and the *Encyclopedia Judaica* entry gives 1882[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/) • [3](https://goldenglobes.com/person/samuel-goldwyn/) • [4](https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-goldfish-samuel).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | Szmuel (Schmuel) Gelbfisz, August 27, 1879, Warsaw; died January 31, 1974, Los Angeles, of heart failure[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/) |
| First production | General manager of the Jesse Lasky Feature Play Company from 1913; its first release was Cecil B. DeMille's *The Squaw Man* (1914), one of the first feature-length films made in Hollywood[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [5](https://www.silentera.com/people/executives/Goldwyn-Samuel.html) |
| Goldwyn Pictures | Formed November 1916 with the Selwyn brothers; its "Leo the Lion" logo survived the 1924 merger into Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [3](https://goldenglobes.com/person/samuel-goldwyn/) |
| Signature films | *Dodsworth* (1936), *Wuthering Heights* (1939), *The Little Foxes* (1941), *The Best Years of Our Lives* (1946), *Guys and Dolls* (1955), *Porgy and Bess* (1959)[3](https://goldenglobes.com/person/samuel-goldwyn/) • [6](https://jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Samuel_Goldwyn.html) |
| Awards | Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award (1947), Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (1958), Cecil B. DeMille Award (1973), Hollywood Walk of Fame star (1960)[7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/awards/) |
| Output | Credited with 139 films[8](https://time.com/3845745/best-years-of-our-lives-time-history/) |
## From Warsaw to the glove counter
Goldwyn was born in the Jewish section of Warsaw, then in the [Russian Empire](https://www.edgepedia.org/russian-empire), the eldest of six children of a used-furniture dealer[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/). He left Warsaw young and made his way to England, where relatives Anglicized his name to Samuel Goldfish, and then to the United States[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/) • [6](https://jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Samuel_Goldwyn.html). [In New York](https://www.edgepedia.org/in-new-york) state he worked as a glovemaker and became a partner in the Elite Glove Company, ranking among the top glove salesmen in the world by age 18[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974).
The glove trade also brought him into the Lasky family. After Blanche Lasky's brother Jesse Lasky married a woman Goldfish had courted, Goldfish married Blanche, making him Jesse Lasky's brother-in-law[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [5](https://www.silentera.com/people/executives/Goldwyn-Samuel.html).
## Entry into filmmaking, 1913–1916
In 1913 Goldfish turned to motion pictures, first thinking of owning theaters before deciding to produce[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974). He persuaded his brother-in-law to enter the industry as well, and the Jesse Lasky Feature Play Company was formed with Goldfish as general manager and [Cecil B. DeMille](https://www.edgepedia.org/cecil-b-demille) directing[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [5](https://www.silentera.com/people/executives/Goldwyn-Samuel.html). The company's first release, *The Squaw Man* (1914), was an instant success and one of the first feature-length films made in Hollywood[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [9](https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/sam-goldwyn-about-sam-goldwyn/697/).
The partnership did not last. After a falling out with Lasky, Goldfish was briefly chairman of the board at Famous Players-Lasky before being forced to resign at the end of 1916[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974).
## Goldwyn Pictures and the making of MGM
In November 1916 Goldfish formed a partnership with Edgar and Archibald Selwyn to create the Goldwyn Pictures Corporation[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974). The company name combined the first syllable of Goldfish and the last of Selwyn; "Goldfish" was considered as a combination but "Goldwyn" was judged more practical, and Goldfish eventually adopted Goldwyn as his own surname[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [10](https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/biography/samuel-goldwyn/). Goldwyn Pictures selected the original Leo the Lion as its logo[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974).
Goldwyn broke away from his own company in 1922 after a contract dispute, so he was only a stockholder when Goldwyn Pictures merged with Metro Pictures and Louis B. Mayer Productions in 1924 to form Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [11](https://www.tcm.com/articles/021897/tcm-spotlight-mgm-100th). TIME summarizes the resulting irony: he is best known as the G in MGM, but he had nothing to do with the running of the company, which resulted from the 1924 acquisition of his Goldwyn Pictures[8](https://time.com/3845745/best-years-of-our-lives-time-history/).
## The independent producer, 1924–1959
After leaving Goldwyn Pictures, Goldwyn formed Samuel Goldwyn Productions in 1923, producing independently and distributing at various times through [United Artists](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-artists) and, after 1940, RKO[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [6](https://jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Samuel_Goldwyn.html) • [19](https://www.businesshalloffame.org/samuel-goldwyn). His first success as an independent producer was *The Dark Angel* (1925), starring [Ronald Colman](https://www.edgepedia.org/ronald-colman), the only star he kept under contract, who also appeared in *Bulldog Drummond* (1929), *Stella Dallas* (1929), and *Dodsworth* (1936)[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974).
His most cited failure came in the early 1930s, when he signed the Swedish actress Anna Sten, convinced he had found a rival to [Greta Garbo](https://www.edgepedia.org/greta-garbo); after several years and several unsuccessful films he released her from her contract[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974). In 1930 or 1931 he also invited Gabrielle Chanel to Hollywood to dress film stars such as [Gloria Swanson](https://www.edgepedia.org/gloria-swanson), an episode still cited in the fashion house's cinema connections[12](https://apnews.com/article/c44e7e30e3342d3841b6c25581cb42dc).
The peak of his producing career ran from *Wuthering Heights* (1939), starring [Laurence Olivier](https://www.edgepedia.org/laurence-olivier) and [Merle Oberon](https://www.edgepedia.org/merle-oberon), through *The Little Foxes* (1941) with [Bette Davis](https://www.edgepedia.org/bette-davis), to *The Best Years of Our Lives* (1946)[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [3](https://goldenglobes.com/person/samuel-goldwyn/). The idea for *The Best Years of Our Lives* came from an August 7, 1944 TIME feature, "The Way Home," which followed Marines returning home by train after 27 months of combat; the finished film examined how veterans readjusted to civilian life and won nine Academy Awards[8](https://time.com/3845745/best-years-of-our-lives-time-history/) • [2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974).
In 1954 Goldwyn paid $1 million plus 10 percent of the profits for the film rights to the Broadway musical *Guys and Dolls*, the largest sum paid to that time; the 1955 film and his final film, *Porgy and Bess* (1959), a screen version of the [George Gershwin](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-gershwin) opera, were minor successes, and he retired from production[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [6](https://jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Samuel_Goldwyn.html).
## Reputation and style
Contemporary accounts describe Goldwyn as driven by relentless ambition, a bad temper, and a genius for publicity, and note that his partners rarely tolerated him for long[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/). His mangled English gave rise to "Goldwynisms," such as "a verbal agreement isn't worth the paper it's written on," which remain attached to his name[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974).
He received substantial institutional recognition: the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award in 1947, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1958, a [Hollywood Walk of Fame](https://www.edgepedia.org/hollywood-walk-of-fame) star at 1631 Vine Street on February 8, 1960, and the Golden Globes' Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1973; the Globes also named a Samuel Goldwyn International Film Award after him, given from 1959 to 1964[7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/awards/) • [3](https://goldenglobes.com/person/samuel-goldwyn/).
## Family and legacy
Goldwyn married the actress Frances Howard in 1925; their son **Samuel Goldwyn Jr.** was born September 7, 1926, in Los Angeles[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974) • [13](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/goldwyn-samuel-jr-1926-sam-goldwyn). Goldwyn Sr. died January 31, 1974, in Los Angeles, at age 94[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/) • [6](https://jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Samuel_Goldwyn.html).
The producer's name lives on in several institutions. [Samuel Goldwyn Jr.](https://www.edgepedia.org/samuel-goldwyn-jr) led The Samuel Goldwyn Company (founded, by the Academy Film Archive's account, in 1979), which held a library of classic American films from the original Samuel Goldwyn Productions; in 2012 the Goldwyn Company moved about 55 titles, over 350 materials of 16mm and 35mm duplicate negatives, to the Academy Film Archive, covering films produced between 1929 and 1955 including *The Best Years of Our Lives*, *Up in Arms* (1944), and *Wuthering Heights*[14](https://www.oscars.org/film-archive/collections/samuel-goldwyn-collection). The company's successor, Samuel Goldwyn Films, remains an independently owned distributor whose releases include the 2021 Academy Award-winning *Another Round*[15](https://www.samuelgoldwynfilms.com/about/).
**The Samuel Goldwyn Foundation** is a private foundation in [West Hollywood, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/west-hollywood-california), incorporated as a California public benefit nonprofit on February 5, 1947, with federal tax exemption issued in August 1948 (EIN 95-6006859)[16](https://ca.ltddir.com/companies/the-samuel-goldwyn-foundation/) • [17](https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/956006859). In fiscal year 2024 it reported $4 in revenue, $1,095 in expenses, and net assets of $221,853; its officers are John Goldwyn (president), Anthony Goldwyn (vice president and secretary), and Paul Frimmer (treasurer), none of whom receive compensation[17](https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/956006859). In 1991 Peggy and Samuel Goldwyn Jr. created the Samuel Goldwyn Foundation Children's Center at the Motion Picture & Television Fund, with an endowment set up to protect its future[18](https://mptf.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/MPTF-Annual-Report-2020.pdf).
## References
1. [Samuel Goldwyn – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/bio/)
2. [Goldwyn, Samuel (1879–1974), St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-samuel-1879-1974)
3. [Samuel Goldwyn, Golden Globes](https://goldenglobes.com/person/samuel-goldwyn/)
4. [Goldwyn (Goldfish), Samuel, Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/goldwyn-goldfish-samuel)
5. [Samuel Goldwyn, Silent Era People](https://www.silentera.com/people/executives/Goldwyn-Samuel.html)
6. [Samuel Goldwyn, Jewish Virtual Library](https://jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Samuel_Goldwyn.html)
7. [Samuel Goldwyn – Awards, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0326418/awards/)
8. [The True Story That Inspired One of the Biggest Films of the 1940s, TIME](https://time.com/3845745/best-years-of-our-lives-time-history/)
9. [Samuel Goldwyn: About Sam Goldwyn, American Masters, PBS](https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/sam-goldwyn-about-sam-goldwyn/697/)
10. [Samuel Goldwyn, EBSCO Research Starters](https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/biography/samuel-goldwyn/)
11. [MGM 100th Anniversary, Turner Classic Movies](https://www.tcm.com/articles/021897/tcm-spotlight-mgm-100th)
12. [Chanel event brings Oscar nominees together the night before the big show, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/c44e7e30e3342d3841b6c25581cb42dc)
13. [Goldwyn, Samuel, Jr. 1926– (Sam Goldwyn), Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/goldwyn-samuel-jr-1926-sam-goldwyn)
14. [Samuel Goldwyn Collection, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences](https://www.oscars.org/film-archive/collections/samuel-goldwyn-collection)
15. [About Samuel Goldwyn Films](https://www.samuelgoldwynfilms.com/about/)
16. [The Samuel Goldwyn Foundation, California Companies Directory](https://ca.ltddir.com/companies/the-samuel-goldwyn-foundation/)
17. [The Samuel Goldwyn Foundation, Nonprofit Explorer, ProPublica](https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/956006859)
18. [Children's Center, MPTF Annual Report 2020](https://mptf.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/MPTF-Annual-Report-2020.pdf)
19. [Global Business Hall of Fame](https://www.businesshalloffame.org/samuel-goldwyn)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen production organizations › Production companies and industry people › Production founders and executives › American production company founders*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license