Since he was a child Stanley Donen attended dance classes and debuted on Broadway at age 17. With the help of the producer Arthur Freed and the actor Gene Kelly he got the chance to direct the musicals On the Town, Singin' in the Rain and Love Is Better Than Ever which revolutionized the genre. Another important work of his own was the musical version of the book of 'Antoine De Saint-Exupery' 's _The Little Prince (1974)_ . As producer he turned to the genre of comedy, with Surprise Package, but he also produced some films of other genres.
Father of Peter Donen, Joshua Donen and Mark Donen. His classic film, Singin' in the Rain, was adapted for a musical in the West End and was awarded Outstanding Musical Production in 2001 (2000 season) at the Laurence Olivier Theatre Awards. Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume Two, 1945-1985". Pages 273-282. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1988. His first wife Jeanne Coyne later married Gene Kelly; his second wife Marion Marshall was a former girlfriend of the director Howard Hawks and later married the actor Robert Wagner; his third wife Adelle, Countess Beatty was the second wife of the 2nd Earl Beatty and his fourth wife Yvette Mimieux was a successful actress. Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1984 Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1969 Was dubbed by David Quinlan as "the king of the Hollywood musical."