Career
Born Székely István, he was known by several names, based on his changing professional and immigration status, including Stefan Szekely. He directed films in Hungarian, German, and English. He worked as a newspaper journalist in Germany, before returning to Hungary in the early 1930s.
He directed one of the most famous classic Hungarian films, the frequently revived comedy Hyppolit, a lakáj (1931).
That film was remade in 2000 and the original was later digitally restored and released on Digital Video Disc. He worked in Hollywood for much of his subsequent career, directing mostly B movies and early episodic television, although he directed his best-known English language film, the cult science fiction thriller The Day of the Triffids in the United Kingdom and returned to Hungary to direct his final film, The Girl Who Liked Purple Flowers, which was released in 1973.
