Editing Michael Balcon (section)

==Ealing Studios==
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[[File:Michael Balcon blue plaque.jpeg|thumb|left|upright|[[English Heritage]] [[blue plaque]] on the front wall of the White Lodge at [[Ealing Studios]], [[Ealing]] Green.<ref>{{openplaque|111}}</ref>]]
When Balcon was invited by an old associate of his, [[Reginald Baker (film producer)|Reginald Baker]], to head [[Ealing Studios]] in 1938, he readily agreed. Under his benevolent leadership and surrounded by a reliable team of directors, writers, technicians and actors, Ealing became the most famous British studio in the world, despite turning out no more than six feature films a year.{{cn|date=February 2024}}

''[[Went the Day Well?]]'', ''[[Dead of Night]]'', ''[[Undercover (1943 film)|Undercover]]'' (1943), and the [[Ealing Comedies]] were released during his time there. Other films from the studio include ''[[Dance Hall (1950 film)|Dance Hall]]'' (1950) with [[Petula Clark]] and [[Diana Dors]]; and ''[[The Blue Lamp]]'' (also 1950), whose lead character, George Dixon, was named after Balcon's grammar school. This character was later used in the long-running television drama ''[[Dixon of Dock Green]]''.

In his 1969 autobiography, ''Michael Balcon Presents… A Lifetime of Films'', he wrote that his years at Ealing Studios were "the most rewarding years in my personal career, and perhaps one of the most fruitful periods in the history of British film production."{{page needed|date=January 2018}}

Besides Hitchcock, Balcon worked with [[Basil Dearden]], [[Michael Relph]] and many other significant figures of British film. He was [[Knight Bachelor|knighted]] in 1948 for his services to the industry.

In 1944, Ealing Studios was taken over by the [[Rank Organisation]]. In 1955 Rank sold the studio to the [[BBC]]. As a result, Balcon left Rank in 1956 and set up the production company Ealing Films, striking a distribution and production deal with [[MGM]]. Balcon's company would shoot films at [[MGM-British Studios]] in [[Borehamwood]] and MGM would handle the worldwide distribution of the films.

In 1959, Balcon became chairman of [[Bryanston Films (UK)|Bryanston Films]], a subsidiary of [[British Lion Films]].<ref>p. 220 Barr, Charles. ''Ealing Studios'', University of California Press, 1998</ref> The firm went bankrupt in 1963. Balcon took over British Lion Films.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/447085/index.html|title=BFI Screenonline: Balcon, Michael (1896-1977) Biography|website=screenonline.org.uk|access-date=12 February 2024}}</ref>

He was proud to be associated with the [[British New Wave]]; the last film on which he worked as executive producer was ''[[Tom Jones (1963 film)|Tom Jones]]'' (1963), after which he continued to encourage young directors, serving as chairman of the [[British Film Institute]] production board and funding low-budget experimental work. He was later appointed to the Board of Governors of the British Film Institute.<ref>{{cite Hansard|title=Written Answers to Questions - Government Directors on Company Boards|jurisdiction=[[Parliament of the United Kingdom]]|house=[[House of Lords]]|date=13 March 1967|volume=281|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199394/cmhansrd/1994-02-08/Writtens-1.html|column_start=161|column_end=162}}</ref> 

=== Famous Ealing Studios films ===
*''[[San Demetrio London]]'' (d. [[Charles Frend]], 1943)
*[[Champagne Charlie (1944 film)|''Champagne Charlie'']] (d. [[Alberto Cavalcanti]], 1944)
*''The Overlanders'' (1946)
*[[Hue and Cry (film)|''Hue and Cry'']] (d. [[Charles Crichton]], 1946)
*''[[Saraband for Dead Lovers]]'' (d. [[Basil Dearden]], 1948)
*[[Scott of the Antarctic (film)|''Scott of the Antarctic'']] (d. [[Charles Frend]], 1948)
*''[[The Blue Lamp]]'' (d. [[Basil Dearden]], 1949)
*''[[Kind Hearts and Coronets]]'' (d. [[Robert Hamer]], 1949)
*''Eureka Stockade'' (1949)<ref name="stockade">{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/wrecking-australian-stories-eureka-stockade/|access-date=15 March 2025|date=15 March 2025|title=Wrecking Australian stories: Eureka Stockade}}</ref>
*''[[The Man in the White Suit]]'' (d. [[Alexander Mackendrick]], 1951)
*[[The Cruel Sea (1953 film)|''The Cruel Sea'']] (d. [[Charles Frend]], 1952)
*''[[The Ladykillers (1955 film)|The Ladykillers]]'' (d. [[Alexander Mackendrick]], 1955)