By Bruce Dettman

If producer Robert Maxwell was the individual most responsible for the overall dark texture, tough thematic philosophy and atmospherically noirish approach to the first year of TAOS, it was certainly director Tommy Carr then who took these hard-edged guidelines and molded them into the successful and highly memorable formula that characterized so many notable episodes in the first and second seasons. Carr, who had co-directed with Spencer Bennett the first Columbia serial Superman in 1948, would helm some of the very best  1951 episodes including Superman On Earth, The Haunted Lighthouse, Rescue, The Deserted Village and The Evil Three. When in 1953 Maxwell was replaced by Whitney Ellsworth who would bring a softer, less violent tone to the series, Carr stayed onboard to create more memorable offerings such as Five Minutes To Doom,  Superman In Exile, The Defeat of Superman and Panic In The Sky. He then dropped his association with the series, moving onto other projects save when he returned to the show for the sixth season’s The Last Knight.

Born in 1907 in Philadelphia to a show biz family, it would be hard to imagine his having pursued any career path other than one in the entertainment industry. Both his parents (Mary and William) were actors and his siblings, brother Stephen (a familiar face in many of the first year TAOS shows) and sisters Louella and Marybeth would also pursue acting careers.

Carr made his acting debut as an infant at the famous Selig Studios. As a juvenile, he appeared in a number of memorable silent movies including Wings, The Dawn Patrol and Hell’s Angels. His acting chores would continue until the late 1930s (his final film as a performer was the 1937 Three Mesquiteers western Range Defenders). After this, he left the performance part of his career behind and secured a position as dialog director with Republic Studios which eventually led to directorial assignments for the studio and a twenty odd year career turning out mostly B westerns such as Oregon Trail, Days of Buffalo Bill, The El Paso Kid, Rio Grande Raiders  as well as cliffhangers such as Brick Bradford, Bruce Gentry, Congo Bill, Jesse James Rides Again, and, of course, the 1948 serial Superman with Kirk Alyn.

Like most journeymen directors of the period, the switch to TV was predictable and fairly effortless. There was lots of work waiting for him and he remained active and busy helming dozens and dozens of shows including Annie Oakley, Lineup, Wild Bill Hickok, Dick Tracy, Trackdown, Zane Gray Theatre, Wanted Dead or Alive, Bonanza Honey West, Daniel Boone and Gunsmoke, while occasionally still directing an occasional feature film such as Dino, Bobby Ware is Missing and The Tall Stranger.

His last recorded credit was directing an episode of The Guns of Will Sonnett with Walter Brennan in 1967. He would die thirty years later, April 23^rd, in Ventura, California.