Milton H. Bren (June 14, 1904 – December 14, 1979) was a

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

movie producer and real estate developer.

Biography

Bren was born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 1904 to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family,Ronnie and Nancy: Their Path to the White House – 1911 to 1980 By Bob Colacello
retrieved January 14, 2012 the son of Sadie (née Simon) and Harry Bren. He first worked as a talent agent. In 1937, he accepted a job at

Hal Roach Studios Hal Roach Studios was an American motion picture and, through its TV production subsidiary, Hal Roach Television Corporation, television production studio. Known as ''The Laugh Factory to the World'', it was founded by producer Hal Roach and busin ...

as an associate producerHistory of the Hal Roach Studios By Richard Lewis Ward
retrieved March 7, 2013 where he produced the film ''Topper'', the studio's first feature film, which was wildly successful. In 1938, he was elevated to producer. In March 1939, he accepted a job at

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

as a producer eventually becoming an Executive Vice President. From 1939–1940 he maintained a home in

Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

. He later served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as a lieutenant commander.Orange County Register: "Marion Jorgensen, Don Bren's mother, dead at 96"
by Jon Lansner; June 20, 2008; retrieved April 13, 2014. Milton Bren later became a real estate developer known for developing part of

Sunset Strip The Sunset Strip is the stretch of Sunset Boulevard that passes through the city of West Hollywood, California, United States. It extends from West Hollywood's eastern border with the city of Los Angeles near Marmont Lane to its western bord ...

Select filmography

* '' Topper'' (1937) – associate producer * ''

Merrily We Live ''Merrily We Live'' is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Norman Z. McLeod and written by Eddie Moran and Jack Jevne. It stars Constance Bennett and Brian Aherne and features Ann Dvorak, Bonita Granville, Billie Burke, Tom Brown, Alan M ...

'' (1938) – producer * ''

Swiss Miss Swiss Miss is an American brand name for cocoa powder and pudding products created by Charles Sanna and sold by American food company Conagra Brands. History In the 1950s, the company sold its original hot cocoa product for commercial use, dis ...

'' (1938) – production supervisor (uncredited) * '' There Goes My Heart'' (1938) – producer * ''

Topper Takes a Trip ''Topper Takes a Trip'' is a 1938 supernatural film directed by Norman Z. McLeod. It is a sequel to the 1937 film '' Topper''. Constance Bennett, Roland Young, Billie Burke, and Alan Mowbray reprised their roles from the earlier film; only Ca ...

'' (1938) – producer * '' Remember?'' (1939) – producer * ''

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

'' (1940) – producer * '' Free and Easy'' (1941) – producer (uncredited) * ''

Barnacle Bill Barnacle Bill may refer to: * Barnacle Bill (theme tune), the theme tune of the BBC children's TV programme ''Blue Peter'' *William Bernard (sailor), subject of the song *Barnacle Bill (Martian rock), a 40-cm rock on Mars in Ares Vallis *Barnacle ...

'' (1941) – producer * ''

Tars and Spars ''Tars and Spars'' is a 1946 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Alfred E. Green and starring Alfred Drake, Janet Blair, and Marc Platt. Plot Howard Young is a coast guardsman who has been on shore duty for three years despite ...

'' (1946) – producer * '' Borderline'' (1950) – producer and presenter * ''

Three for Bedroom "C" 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...

'' (1952) – Writer and director

Personal life

In 1930, at age 27, Bren married 18-year-old Marion Newbert who was of partial Irish descent. They divorced in 1948. (Newbert remarried in 1953 to steel businessman Earle M. Jorgensen and became a prominent philanthropist). They had two sons:

Donald Donald is a Scottish masculine given name. It is derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinter ...

, who became chairman of the

Irvine Company The Irvine Company LLC is an American private company focused on real estate development. It is headquartered in Newport Beach, California, with a large portion of its operations centered in and around Irvine, California, a planned city of more ...

Newport Beach, California Newport Beach is a coastal city of about 85,000 in southern Orange County, California, United States. Located about southeast of downtown Los Angeles, Newport Beach is known for its sandy beaches. The city's harbor once supported maritime indu ...

, and Peter, chairman of KBS Realty Advisors, Inc. in New York City at the time of his death in 2019.Businessweek: "Peter Milton Bren – Co-Founder, KBS Companies"
retrieved March 7, 2013;https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/person/17715265' retrieved January 22, 2023; In 1948, Bren remarried, to

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

-winning actress

Claire Trevor Claire Trevor (née Wemlinger; March 8, 1910April 8, 2000) was an American actress. She appeared in 65 feature films from 1933 to 1982, winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in '' Key Largo'' (1948), and received no ...

; they remained married until his death. Bren's grandson,

Steve Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form ( hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen. Notable people A–D * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Abel (born 1970), New Zealand politician * Steve Adams (disambiguation) ...

, is a former professional auto racing driver.

Death

Milton Bren died on December 14, 1979, aged 75, in

Orange, California Orange is a city located in northern Orange County, California, United States. It is approximately north of the county seat, Santa Ana, California, Santa Ana. Orange is unusual in this region because many of the homes in its Old Town District ...

from a brain tumor.

References

External links

Milton Bren profile
IMDb.com; retrieved March 7, 2013 {{DEFAULTSORT:Bren, Milton H. 1904 births 1979 deaths Jewish American military personnel Film producers from California American businesspeople in real estate Businesspeople from Los Angeles People from Greater Los Angeles People from Palm Springs, California Deaths from brain cancer in California 20th-century American businesspeople United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy officers 20th-century American Jews Military personnel from California Jewish American film people