Tommy Lee Wallace

Tommy Lee Wallace
Tommy Lee Wallace
Born	Thomas Lee Wallace; October 8, 1949; Somerset, Kentucky, US
Other names	Tommy L. Wallace, Tom Wallace
Occupation	Film director, screenwriter, producer
Spouse(s)	Nancy Kyes (divorced)
Children	2

Thomas Lee Wallace (born October 8, 1949) is an American film producer, director, editor, and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in the horror genre, directing films such as Halloween III: Season of the Witch, Fright Night Part 2 and the 1990 miniseries, It. He is a long-time friend and collaborator of director John Carpenter, receiving his first credit as art director on Carpenter's directorial debut, Dark Star. Along with Charles Bornstein, he edited both the original Halloween and The Fog.

Early life

Born Thomas Lee Wallace in Somerset, Kentucky to Robert G. and Kathleen Wallace, he has one older sister, Linda. He grew up in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and attended high school at Western Kentucky University teachers training school (College High).

Education

BFA in Design from Ohio University, Athens, Ohio
MFA program (five semesters) in film production at University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California

Early career

Wallace entered the film business while attending USC film school, starting as an art director and film editor for commercials and industrial films. While in school, he began collaborating with childhood friend and fellow student John Carpenter, working on Carpenter's Dark Star (1974), a low-budget, science-fiction comedy that began as a student film. In 1976, he worked as sound effects editor and art director on Carpenter's second film, Assault on Precinct 13. He continued working with Carpenter, serving as production designer and co-editor of Halloween (1978) and The Fog (1980). In addition to his behind-the-scenes duties for these last two films, Wallace also appeared in front of the camera: intermittently as The Shape (the masked Michael Myers in the closet scene) in Halloween, and in The Fog as several different ghosts; his voice was also featured in both films as TV/radio announcers.

Directorial debut

For Halloween II, John Carpenter (who was producing) initially offered directorial responsibilities to Wallace. After careful deliberation, Wallace declined, citing disappointment with the script (the job eventually went to Rick Rosenthal). He did, however, agree to write and direct the third film in the franchise, Halloween III: Season of the Witch, which was the first and only one to deviate from the Michael Myers storyline (Wallace's voice was also featured as the announcer and the munchkin singers in the "Silver Shamrock" commercial).

Later work

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Wallace continued to write and direct for television and film. Notable work includes writing the screenplay for 1982's Amityville II: The Possession; co-writing and directing 1988's Fright Night Part 2 starring Roddy McDowell; and adapting and directing 1990's made-for-television miniseries, It, based on the novel by Stephen King.

Wallace's work in television was varied, including directing episodes of the cult TV series Max Headroom; the 1980s revival of The Twilight Zone; and Baywatch. At the height of television film popularity in the 1990s, Wallace directed several notable films, including an adaptation of the Vincent Bugliosi novel, And the Sea Will Tell (1991), The Comrades of Summer (1992), Steel Chariots (1997), and The Spree (1998).

In 1986, he performed the title song of Carpenter's film Big Trouble in Little China as part of the band The Coup de Villes, alongside Carpenter and another friend, Nick Castle.

Personal life

Wallace is divorced from actress Nancy Kyes, with whom he has two children. He still lives in California and continues to write.

Filmography

Films


Year	Title	Director	Writer	Other	Role	Notes
1974	Dark Star			Yes		Associate art director
1976	Assault on Precinct 13			Yes		Sound effects / art director
1978	Halloween			Yes	Michael Myers	Editor / production designer
1980	The Fog			Yes	Ghost	Editor / production designer
1982	Amityville II: The Possession		Yes
1982	Halloween III: Season of the Witch	Yes	Yes	Yes	Silver Shamrock Commercial Announcer	Voice role
1986	Big Trouble in Little China			Yes		Second unit director
1986	The Boy Who Could Fly			Yes	The Coupe de Villes
1988	Aloha Summer	Yes
1988	Fright Night Part 2	Yes	Yes
1989	Far from Home		Yes
1990	El Diablo		Yes			Television film
1991	And the Sea Will Tell	Yes				Television film
1992	The Comrades of Summer	Yes				Television film
1992	Danger Island	Yes				Television film
1994	Witness to the Execution	Yes				Television film
1994	Green Dolphin Beat	Yes				Television film
1996	Born Free: A New Adventure	Yes				Television film
1996	Once You Meet a Stranger	Yes	Yes			Television film
1997	Steel Chariots	Yes				Television film
1998	The Spree	Yes				Television film
1998	Final Justice	Yes				Television film
2002	Vampires: Los Muertos	Yes	Yes	Yes	Scared Guy
2004	12 Days of Terror		Yes			Television film
2011	The Fields			Yes	Hotel Bar Patron #4	Associate producer
TBA	Helliversity	Yes	Yes

Unproduced screenplay: The Ninja (1983).

Television series

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Notes
1985–1986	The Twilight Zone	Yes	Yes	Director (2 segments) / Director and writer (segment "The Leprechaun-Artist")
1987	Max Headroom	Yes		2 episodes
1989	Tour of Duty	Yes		Episode "Nightmare"
1989	CBS Summer Playhouse	Yes		Episode "Outpost"
1989	A Peaceable Kingdom	Yes		Episode "Elephant"
1989	Baywatch	Yes		Episode "Cruise Ship"
1990	It	Yes	Yes	Miniseries in 2 episodes
1995–1996	Flipper	Yes		3 episodes

Awards

Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
1981	Nominated	Saturn Award	Best Special Effects for The Fog Shared with: Richard Albain James F. Liles
1991	Won	ACE Award	Writing a Movie or Miniseries for El Diablo Shared with: John Carpenter Bill Phillips
1989	Nominated	International Fantasy Film Award	Best Film for Fright Night Part 2

External links

Tommy Lee Wallace on IMDb

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