---
name: "Paul Krasny"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/paul-krasny"
roles: ["Director","Editor"]
born: "8 August 1935"
died: "12 November 2001"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
updated: "2026-09-16T18:10:03.979379+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Paul Krasny

Director and editor. Born 8 August 1935 in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. Died 12 November 2001.

## Details

- **Work:** Director, Editor
- **Born:** 8 August 1935, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
- **Died:** 12 November 2001
- **Active:** 1966–1985
- **Works often with:** Gerald Perry Finnerman, John Llewellyn Moxey, Lee H. Katzin, Michael O'Herlihy, Robert Butler, Virgil W. Vogel

## Fi1m on Paul Krasny

> Paul Krasny's clearest claim on our attention is the purposeful editing he brought to *Mission: Impossible*. We value that practical skill, while treating his extensive directing credits as a reason to look further rather than proof of distinction.

In *Mission: Impossible* (1966), the next step in a deception can hold our attention before we understand the whole plan. The disguises and the team's composure help, but so does the care taken to keep the operations legible. Paul Krasny is among the editors responsible for that clarity, and it gives us a useful starting point for considering his direction. We were absorbed because the cutting made each new stage of the work worth our attention.

Krasny worked in post-production on *Mannix* (1967) and *Mission: Impossible* before directing his first episode of the latter in 1968. He went on to direct 13 episodes of *Mission: Impossible* and 24 of *Mannix*, substantial contributions to programmes made by many hands. That progression makes sense when we watch how much these operations depend on getting information to the audience at the right moment. It gives us a firmer basis for valuing his contribution than the sheer length of his credits.

*Mission: Impossible* also shows why the credit needs sharing. Cinematographers including Fred Koenekamp and John Alton limit us to a character's view, making a deception engaging before everything is clear. Donald R. Rode is among the other editors keeping the operations comprehensible, within Bruce Geller's caper format. The series earns our recommendation for its ingenuity, although repeated viewing makes the formula easier to recognise. Krasny's contribution deserves attention without making him responsible for every pleasure or limitation of the programme.

His later assignments included the action-adventure feature *Joe Panther* (1976) and episodes of the miniseries *Centennial* (1978). He also worked repeatedly with Robert Conrad, on *The D.A.*, *Assignment: Vienna* and television films. The career does not fit neatly into one type of programme, and we are wary of turning that variety into praise without examining the individual work. Start with *Mission: Impossible*, where the clarity is there to see, and space the episodes out if the formula begins to feel too familiar.

## Biography

Paul Krasny was an American television director and editor. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, he began his career as a film editor in the mid-1960s, working on series including *Rawhide* and *The Patty Duke Show* before joining *Mission: Impossible* (1966) as supervising editor.

Krasny directed numerous episodes of *Mission: Impossible* from 1968 to 1973, as well as episodes of *Mannix*, *CHiPs*, *Hart to Hart*, *Miami Vice*, *MacGyver* and *Moonlighting*. He also directed television films and miniseries episodes, including parts of *Centennial* (1978–1979). He received a Primetime Emmy Award for film and sound editing on *Mission: Impossible*.

*Sources: imdb.com, lasvegassun.com, variety.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Mission: Impossible* (1966), Fi1m 82, Director, Editor — [page](https://film.one/tv/mission-impossible-1966.md)

## Also credited on (not yet reviewed)

- *Moonlighting* (1985), Director
- *Miami Vice* (1984), Director

## Also known for

- *MacGyver* (1985), Director
- *Police Squad!* (1982), Director
- *V* (1984), Director
- *CHiPs* (1977), Director
- *Hart to Hart* (1979), Director
- *T. J. Hooker* (1982), Director
- *Man from Atlantis* (1977), Director
- *The Equalizer* (1985), Director

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© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/paul-krasny