Al Daff

Alfred Edward "Al" Daff (18 August 1902 – 19 Feb 1991) was an Australian born executive who became head of Universal Pictures.

Alfred Edward "Al" Daff
Born(1902-08-02)August 2, 1902
North Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
DiedFebruary 19, 1991(1991-02-19) (aged 88)
Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA
EmployerUniversal Pictures
SpouseViolet Wardle (married 1930-1938)

Opal Petrausch (married 1939-1946) Joan McDonald (married 1948-1955)

Annalisa Nilsson (married 1956)

Biography

Daff was born in North Melbourne to Alfred Ernest Daff (1867-1924) and Ruth Shearer (1867-1942).

Al entered motion pictures as office boy at Progressive Films, and worked at night as an assistant projectionist at Moonee Ponds Theatre.

Aged 18 on March 17, 1920, he joined the Melbourne office of Universal Pictures under Dan Casey, general manager in Australasia. In 1922 he took early aerial newsreel footage of New Guinea.

In 1924 he made a 20-minute send-up of wrestling called Who's Who In The Wrestling World - And Why?.

In 1935 he visited the Universal Studios in Hollywood. The following year he was appointed in charge of Universal's Japanese territories; two years after that he became Far East supervisor, then also the Middle East. In 1942 Al became a naturalized U.S. citizen. In 1943 he became Universal Foreign Supervisor, covering all markets outside the US.

In 1949 he became President of Universal International Films, the overseas subsidiary of Universal Pictures Company. In 1952 he became Executive Vice President of Universal Pictures Company, signing a 7-year contract. He retired in 1958 but continued working as a consultant until the 1970s.

Al was married four times. He first married Violet Wardle on 11 Mar 1930 in South Yarra; they divorced in 1938 in Victoria. Violet subsequently married her affair partner Dr. Eric Vio. Al's second marriage was to Opal Petrausch on 1 Jan 1939 in Bombay. They had one daughter and divorced in 1946. His third marriage was to Joan McDonald on 14 July 1948 in Westminster , and they divorced in 1955. Al's fourth marriage was to Annalisa Nilsson on 16 Aug 1956 in Los Angeles.

Al died in Beverly Hills on 19 Feb 1991.

Media

Daff was the topic of a 1975 documentary Al Daff. The documentary consists of Daff being interviewed by Ken G. Hall. He offered advice for Australian filmmakers and reminisced about his own career.

In 1978 he appeared on This is Your Life (ep. 4/038, Al Daff).

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Top Film Job To Australian". The Sunday Times. Perth. 23 November 1952. p. 6 Section: Sporting Section. Retrieved 29 November 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ↑ Richard Dyer MacCann (1 March 1956). "Executive Discusses Films Aimed at World Audience: Hollywood Letter". The Christian Science Monitor. p. 6.
  3. 1 2 3 Daff, Alfred Edward (1921), Papers of Alfred Edward Daff, 1921–1976, retrieved 7 April 2016
  4. ↑ 19161 / 1902. BDM Victoria. https://www.bdm.vic.gov.au/research-and-family-history/search-your-family-history.
  5. 1 2 "Insider on film". The Canberra Times. Vol. 51, no. 14, 817. 1 July 1977. p. 21. Retrieved 7 April 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ↑ "Top Film Job To Australian". Sunday Times (Perth). No. 2855. Western Australia. 23 November 1952. p. 6 (Sporting Section). Retrieved 7 April 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ↑ "MAN IN THE PUBLIC EYE THE ALL-AMERICAN". The Sun-Herald. New South Wales, Australia. 19 December 1954. p. 22. Retrieved 7 April 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ Victoria, Australia, Marriage Index, 1837-1962, #642/1930
  9. ↑ Victoria, Australia, Divorce Records, 1860-1940, Case Number 307
  10. 1 2 Montana, U.S., Divorce Records, 1943-1988 Marriage Date 1 Jan. 1939 Marriage Place Bombay, India Divorce Date 11 Jun. 1946 Divorce Place Townsend, Broadwater, Montana, USA Spouse Opal Elizabeth Daff Certificate Number Br. 211
  11. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1916-2005, Registration Date Jul. 1948 Registration Quarter Jul-Aug-Sep Registration District Westminster Inferred County Middlesex Spouse Joan M Mcdonald Volume Number 5c Page number 1184
  12. ↑ "THE ARGUS Woman's Parade". The Argus. No. 33, 182. Melbourne. 8 January 1953. p. 7. Retrieved 7 April 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. ↑ Idaho, U.S., Divorce Records, 1947-1971 Name Alfred Edward DaffDivorce Date 9 May 1955Divorce Place Gooding, Idaho, USASpouse Joan May DaffCertificate Year 1955 Certificate Number 00000799
  14. ↑ California, U.S., Marriage Index, 1949-1959
  15. ↑ U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 Social Security Number 119-14-2430 Birth Date 18 Aug. 1902 Issue year Before 1951 Issue State New York Last Residence 90212, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA Death Date 19 Feb. 1991
  16. ↑ Curators notes on Al Daff at Australian Screen Online
  17. ↑ "NFSA Pro". pro.nfsa.gov.au. Retrieved 26 October 2026.