Norman Jewison directed some of the most influential films of the 1960s, 70s and 80s. (photo courtesy of the Internet Movie Database)

While he was born on July 21, 1926, in Toronto, Canada, Norman Jewison will live on in history as one of the most influential filmmakers in American history.

After working for the BBC in London, Jewison helped launch CBC Television in Canada. He continued his work in TV in New York in the late-1950s. His work on Judy Garland’s television “comeback” in 1961 led to a job as a director and producer of her weekly series, “The Judy Garland Show,” which was produced at Television City in Los Angeles.

During this period, his TV work was noticed by Tony Curtis, who suggested he direct movies and hired him for his comedy “40 Pounds of Trouble.” Jewison followed this with similar, lighter fare, including “The Thrill of It All” and “Send Me No Flowers” with Doris Day.

The intense Steve McQueen-poker drama “The Cincinnati Kid” in 1965 put the director on the map, and he followed that up with the critically acclaimed “The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming.” It was 1967’s “In the Heat of the Night,” however, that made Jewison one of the most sought-after filmmakers of his time.

The legendary Best Picture Oscar-winner, introduced audiences to Sidney Poitier’s Mr. Virgil Tibbs, a Philadelphia homicide detective who helps to solve a murder in rural Mississippi. The quote, “They call me Mister Tibbs,” along with Poitier’s defiant, elegant slap-back when a plantation owner slaps him, became lexicon in cinema history and iconic images in the Civil Rights Movement.

Jewison followed this success with the sensual, stylish classic “The Thomas Crown Affair,” starring McQueen and Faye Dunaway.

His musical “Fiddler on the Roof,” from 1971, is considered one of the defining films in the genre, and his follow-up musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” was also successful at the box office. His successive movies, “Rollerball,” “…And Justice for All” and “Best Friends,” which covered the genre gamut from science fiction to comedy, were similarly popular with audiences.

His 1984 mystery “A Solider’s Story” was nominated for Best Picture, while Anne Bancroft and Meg Tilly received Oscar nominations for their performances in his 1985 neo-noir “Agnes of God.”

His greatest financial success, however, was “Moonstruck,” which earned more than $100 at the box office in 1987 and landed Cher an Oscar for Best Actress. Another iconic slapping scene occurred in this film, when Cher slaps Nicholas Cage imploring him to, “Snap out of it!”

Later movies included “Other People’s Money” with Danny DeVito and “The Hurricane” with Denzel Washington. His last film, in 2003, was “The Statement” with Michael Caine.

He was nominated for the Best Director Academy Award on three occasions, receiving four additional nominations for his efforts as a producer. While he never won a competitive Oscar, he received the Academy’s Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award in 1999. In his career, he also won a BAFTA Award and was nominated for an Emmy and three Golden Globes.

He founded the Canadian Film Centre in 1988, was chancellor of Victor University in the University of Toronto, from which he graduated in 1949, from 2004-10. He received lifetime achievement honors from the Directors Guild of America and the Directors Guild of Canada. Canada also awarded Jewison the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award in 2003. He also received orders from both Canada and the state of Ontario.

Jewison was married to Margaret Ann Dixon from 1953 until her death in 2004. The couple had three children. He married Lynne St. David in 2010.

Jewison died on Jan. 20 at his home in Los Angeles. He was 97.