Morton Da Costa

Morton Da Costa, born Morton Tecosky on March 7, 1914, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was an American actor, theatre and film director, film producer, and writer. He died of heart failure on January 26, 1989, in Redding, Connecticut, and was known throughout his career by the nickname Tec.

Da Costa entered the Broadway stage as an actor in 1942, appearing in Thornton Wilder's The Skin of Our Teeth, which starred Tallulah Bankhead. His additional Broadway acting credits include War President, It's a Gift, Hamlet, and Man and Superman, with his performing career spanning from 1942 to 1949.

He transitioned to directing with his stage debut on The Grey-Eyed People and went on to build a notable record of Broadway productions through the 1950s. His directing credits from that decade include Plain and Fancy, No Time for Sergeants, Auntie Mame, and The Music Man. Further Broadway directing work encompassed Sherry!, The Women, Saratoga, and Maggie Flynn, and he also wrote the books for Saratoga and Maggie Flynn. The Music Man earned Da Costa a Tony Award nomination for Best Director of a Musical in 1958.

Da Costa extended his work into film as both a director and producer. His feature directorial debut, the 1958 film version of Auntie Mame, received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. He followed that with the 1962 film adaptation of The Music Man, for which he received a Best Director nomination from the Directors Guild of America and a Best Director nomination from the Golden Globe Awards, as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture as the film's producer. He also directed the 1963 film Island of Love. His papers from 1929 to 1978 are held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.