Nicolas Noxon
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Nicolas Lane Noxon (July 29, 1936 – May 3, 2016) was an American documentary filmmaker. He specialized in television programs dealing with history, science, and the natural world. Noxon produced television specials and series in association with
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David Wolper David Lloyd Wolper (January 11, 1928 – August 10, 2010) was an American television and film producer, responsible for shows such as ''Roots'', ''The Thorn Birds'', and '' North and South'', and the theatrically-released films ''Willy Wonka & the ...
,
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MGM 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 ...
, Survival Anglia,
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, and
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...
Television.


Early life

Noxon was born in 1936 in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, to a Canadian father, the writer and filmmaker Gerald Forbes Noxon, and an American mother, the painter Betty Lane. He emigrated to the United States when he was less than a year and a half. Noxon graduated from the private boarding school
The Putney School The Putney School is an independent high school in Putney, Vermont. The school was founded in 1935 by Carmelita Hinton on the principles of the Progressive Education movement and the teachings of its principal exponent, John Dewey. It is a co-e ...
. In 1959, he received his B.A. from
Antioch College Antioch College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1850 by the Christian Connection and began operating in 1852 as a non-secta ...
.


Career

Noxon began his work on the
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...
Specials in the mid-60s, producing and writing three of the first programs when they premiered on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
. In 1967 he was co-founder of the Documentary Department at
MGM 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 ...
, the first such organization in a major movie studio. There he produced and supervised many natural history documentaries as well as films on such diverse subjects as archaeology, forest fires, the history of the movies and early child development. In 1978 Noxon returned to Geographic where he wrote and produced the
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
winning documentary "The Great Whales" and "The Sharks", one of the highest rated programs ever aired on PBS. He wrote and produced "Last Stand in Eden" about the conflict between wildlife and humans in Kenya, which aired in 1979. In 1982 he became a writer-producer on the series ''
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'' which ran for four years on ABC. In 1986, he took part in
Robert Ballard Robert Duane Ballard (born June 30, 1942) is an American retired Navy officer and a professor of oceanography at the University of Rhode Island who is noted for his work in underwater archaeology (maritime archaeology and archaeology of ...
's expedition to explore the wreck of the ''
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''. The film that resulted, ''
Secrets of the Titanic ''Secrets of the Titanic'' is a documentary, made and filmed over 1985, 1986, and 1987. Produced by the National Geographic Society, it was a ''National Geographic'' Video exclusive, narrated by Martin Sheen, written and produced by Nicolas Nox ...
'', was for years the best-selling documentary released on videocassette and the original inspiration for
James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker, who resides in New Zealand. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a Classical Hollywood cinema, classical filmmaking styl ...
's feature film. In 1991 Noxon became Executive Producer of the National Geographic Specials and head of Geographic's West Coast production facility. Productions he supervised there have included "Wolves Of The Sea" and "Dragons Of Galapagos" both winners of the prestigious Golden Panda at the Wildscreen Film Festival, "Heroes of the High Frontier", awarded the
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
for best informational or cultural special of 1999-2000 and "Adventures in Time", the two-hour National Geographic Millennium Special which achieved winning ratings and critical acclaim on NBC. Noxon has long been associated with the
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...
Specials, a series which has aired on the major television networks and which have been considered among the most popular group of programs aired on
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
.


Honors

His productions won many awards in television including several Emmys and numerous international honors. In 2009 he received the International Documentary Association Pioneer Award, which is presented annually to an individual who has made an indelible impression on the evolving art and craft of nonfiction filmmaking. Over the years the specials have won more than 400 awards including 58
Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
, four
George Foster Peabody George Foster Peabody (; July 27, 1852 – March 4, 1938) was an American banker and philanthropist. Early life He was born to George Henry Peabody and Elvira Peabody (''née'' Canfield) as the first of four children. Both parents were New En ...
awards and two Dupont Columbia awards for Broadcast Journalism.


Personal life

In 1974, Noxon divorced Mary Straley, with whom he had had four children. In 1978, Noxon married Nicky Nicholass.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Noxon, Nicholas 1936 births 2016 deaths American documentary filmmakers