REST IN PEACE

‘Singin’ in the Rain’ Director Stanley Donen Dead at 94

Donen also directed classics including “Royal Wedding” and “On the Town.”

Stanley Donen, the renowned director of classics including Singin’ in the Rain and Royal Wedding, died Thursday at the age of 94, The New York Times reports. Donen’s son confirmed the death, the Times notes, but did not elaborate on how his father died. Donen spent the 40s and 50s working with Hollywood mega-stars including Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, and Audrey Hepburn, and directed Kelly’s iconic Singin’ in the Rain musical number. In 1998, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences gave him a lifetime achievement award for “a body of work marked by grace, elegance, wit and visual innovation.” Acclaimed director Steven Spielberg paid homage to Donen in a Saturday statement, labeling him “a friend and an early mentor.” Spielberg added that “His generosity in giving over so many of his weekends in the late 60’s to film students like me to learn about telling stories and placing lenses and directing actors is a time I will never forget.”