Bernard Joseph Durning (August 24, 1893 – August 29, 1923) was an American
silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...
director and actor who worked primarily with
Lon Chaney
Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) was an American actor. He is regarded as one of the most versatile and powerful actors of cinema, renowned for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and affli ...
,
Dustin Farnum
Dustin Lancy Farnum (May 27, 1874 – July 3, 1929) was an American singer, dancer, and actor on the stage and in silent films. Although he played a wide variety of roles, he tended toward westerns and became one of the biggest stars of the genre ...
, and
Buck Jones
Buck Jones (born Charles Frederick Gebhart; December 12, 1891 – November 30, 1942) was an American actor, known for his work in many popular Western movies. In his early film appearances, he was credited as Charles Jones.
Early life, milita ...
.
William A. Wellman
William Augustus Wellman (February 29, 1896 – December 9, 1975) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and military pilot. He was known for his work in crime, adventure, and action genre films, often focusing on avi ...
was his assistant director and protégé. His older brother, Harry M. Durning, was the
Collector of Customs for the Port of New York from 1933 to 1953.
Personal life
Bernard J. Durning was born on August 24, 1892, in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, US. He was married to
Shirley Mason. He died on August 29, 1923, in New York City.
Film career
Bernard Durning began at
Edison Studios
Edison Studios was an American film production organization, owned by companies controlled by inventor and entrepreneur, Thomas Edison. The studio made close to 1,200 films, as part of the Edison Manufacturing Company (1894–1911) and then Thom ...
in the Bronx, in 1912, after attending
Fordham University
Fordham University () is a Private university, private Jesuit universities, Jesuit research university in New York City. Established in 1841 and named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the The Bronx, Bronx in which its origina ...
. He rose through the ranks of the studio as assistant to
Charles Brabin
Charles Brabin (April 17, 1882 – November 3, 1957) was a British-American film director.
Biography
Born in Liverpool, England, he was educated at St. Francis Xavier College. Brabin sailed to New York City in the early 1900s and, while hold ...
and
John H. Collins. He was Production Manager at Edison for three years. He stood six foot six and is recognizable in a film still of a Stock Market scene of a 1912 Edison film which appears on page 33 in ''HOLLYWOOD The Pioneers'' by
Kevin Brownlow
Kevin Brownlow (born Robert Kevin Brownlow; 2 June 1938) is a British film historian, television documentary-maker, filmmaker, author, and film editor. He is best known for his work documenting the history of the silent era, having become inter ...
as the face directly below the podium.
William A. Wellman
William Augustus Wellman (February 29, 1896 – December 9, 1975) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and military pilot. He was known for his work in crime, adventure, and action genre films, often focusing on avi ...
said that "''Bernie Durning ...was the handsomest guy I've ever seen in my life.''"
[''A Short Time For Insanity'' by William A. Wellman, Hawthorn Books, Inc., 1974.]
The years of studio training made Bernard Durning a master of technique, acquainted with every angle of filmmaking. Even in his directorial debut at
Edison Studios
Edison Studios was an American film production organization, owned by companies controlled by inventor and entrepreneur, Thomas Edison. The studio made close to 1,200 films, as part of the Edison Manufacturing Company (1894–1911) and then Thom ...
he "invented and carried into execution an entirely new idea in the lighting of night scenes in 'Aliens'. Some very fine silhouette effects were the result..." ''Aliens'' was written by Durning and starred his wife,
Shirley Mason, as Kiku San, a Japanese girl. It was released as ''The Unwritten Code'' in 1919 and was the last film ever made by Edison Studios. "I guess we broke 'em!" Durning quipped.
[''Picture Play'', April 1922]
Durning first met Shirley Mason when he rescued her from a train wreck scene at Edison. Shirley was only five feet tall and had passed out from the smoke pots. "My heart began to pound like everything when I saw who had rescued me!" Shirley said.
Both Shirley and her sister, Viola Dana, had been
child stars on
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
in ''
The Poor Little Rich Girl
''The Poor Little Rich Girl'' is a 1917 American comedy-drama film directed by Maurice Tourneur. Adapted by Frances Marion from the 1913 play by Eleanor Gates. The Broadway play actually starred future screen actress Viola Dana. The film stars ...
''. Their real last name was Flugrath and a third sister,
Edna Flugrath, also starred in films at Edison and each married their director. Edna accompanied Harold Shaw, who had directed her in Edison's ''The Land Beyond the Sunset'' (1912), to the UK as one of the two principal directors at the
London Film Company
The London Film Company was a British film production company active during the silent era. Founded in 1913, the company emerged as one of the dominant forces in production during the First World War. With strong financial backing the company co ...
with
George Loane Tucker
George Loane Tucker (June 12, 1872 – June 20, 1921) was an American actor, silent film director, screenwriter, producer, and editor.
Career
Tucker was born George S. Loane in Chicago to George Loane and stage actress Ethel Tucker. After ...
, and they finally wed when he was brought to
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
in 1917, where the couple made three films, including ''The Rose of Rhodesia'' (1918), the first film to star actual Africans of color. Viola married John Collins, who directed her in ''The Cossack Whip'' (1917) and the still extant
Blue Jeans
Jeans are a type of pants or trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with copper-riveted pockets which were invented by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and paten ...
(1917).
Durning and Mason both worked for
Fox Studios
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
on the corner of
Sunset
Sunset, also known as sundown, is the daily disappearance of the Sun below the horizon due to Earth's rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth (except the North and South poles), the equinox Sun sets due west at the moment of both the spring ...
and
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, starting in 1920. They were called "The Most-Devoted Couple in Hollywood." Viola Dana worked for
Metro Studios
Metro Pictures Corporation was a motion picture production company founded in early 1915 in Jacksonville, Florida. It was a forerunner of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The company produced its films in New York, Los Angeles, and sometimes at leased fac ...
where she met
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent film work, in which his trademark was physical comedy accompanied by a stoic, deadpan expression ...
who became one of the family. "Buster was the original man who came to dinner. He came home one night with Shirley and Bernie and stayed for three years," Viola told Kevin Brownlow.
Durning was a top director of action-packed
melodrama
A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...
s starring Dustin Farnum and Buck Jones when William Wellman became his assistant director in 1921. Wellman called his two years with Durning "the greatest school a director ever had." "Wild Bill" Wellman and "Big Bernie" Durning had wild adventures making movies, such as their film company's fight with lumberjacks up in
Eureka, California
Eureka (Wiyot: ''Jaroujiji'', Hupa: ''do'-wi-lotl-ding'', Karuk: ''uuth'') is the principal city and county seat of Humboldt County in the Redwood Empire region of California. The city is located on U.S. Route 101 on the shores of Humboldt ...
, which William A. Wellman, Jr. describes in ''The Man and His Wings''. In ''Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick'' by
Todd Robinson, Wellman biographer Frank T. Thompson theorizes that Wellman may have based his 1937 classic ''
A Star Is Born'' on his own relationship with Durning
Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick"Quite frankly, he was my God." Wellman declared of Durning.
Durning also taught Wellman a valuable lesson about true love in Hollywood. "Keep your chasing out of the business entirely," Durning told Wellman of "this fakey love nest". It was his second Cardinal rule after Loyalty. When Big Bernie caught Wild Bill in the arms of the starlette of their picture in Buck Jones' dressing room, he proceeded to beat the heck out of him. Wellman then adds how
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983), nicknamed Kid Blackie and The Manassa Mauler, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1914 to 1927, and reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926. ...
, the boxing Heavyweight Champion, and Durning were great friends who used to "knock the heck out of each other in Tom Mix's handball court...Durning stood up to Dempsey."
Wellman put what he had learned from Durning to practical use when he finally found his true love in the form of a
Busby Berkeley
Busby Berkeley (born Berkeley William Enos; November 29, 1895 – March 14, 1976) was an American film director and musical choreographer. Berkeley devised elaborate musical production numbers that often involved complex geometric patterns. Berke ...
dancer named
Dorothy Coonan whom he married and had six children. "I was still a champion of the Bernie Durning system. I had learned that long-ago lesson well."
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...
mirrored this advice in an interview with ''
People
A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...
'' in 1983 while filming ''
Winds of War'': "I always took the advice of
irectorWilliam Wellman: 'keep your ---- out of the business.'
Robert Mitchum ''
People
A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...
'', 1983
Bernard Durning also starred as the leading man in four films directed by Oliver L. Sellers--''When Bearcat Went Dry'' (1919), ''The Gift Supreme'' (1920), both with Lon Chaney as his nemesis, and ''Diane of Star Hollow'' (1921).
Dick Grace
Richard Virgil Grace (October 1, 1898 – June 25, 1965), known as Dick Grace, was an American stunt pilot who specialized in crashing planes for films. Films that he appeared in include ''Sky Bride'', ''The Lost Squadron'', '' Lilac Time'', and '' ...
the
stuntman
A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...
describes working on two of Durning's films in his book ''Squadron Of Death'', ''The Eleventh Hour'' (1923) and ''The Fast Mail'' (1922). In the latter, Buck Jones was severely burned when someone tried dousing him with a pail of gasoline, thinking that it was water.
Adolphe Menjou
Adolphe Jean Menjou (February 18, 1890 – October 29, 1963) was an American actor. His career spanned both silent films and talkies. He appeared in such films as Charlie Chaplin's ''A Woman of Paris'', where he played the lead role; Stanley Ku ...
called it "the action picture to end all action pictures" which nearly ended the entire cast. Menjou put the blame on "Wild Willie Wellman." "Let's just say, 'we played rough.'" Wellman wrote in his autobiography, ''A Short Time For Insanity''. It was during the filming of ''The Eleventh Hour'' that Durning went on a drinking binge and told Wellman to direct it for him. "It's all yours, Willie." When
Sol Wurtzel
Solomon Max Wurtzel (September 12, 1890 – April 9, 1958) was an American film producer.
Life and career
Born in New York City, the second of five brothers; his parents were both Polish Jews from the village of Ulanow (Surname ''Wurtzel'' i ...
and
Winfield Sheehan
Winfield R. Sheehan (September 24, 1883 – July 25, 1945) was a film company executive. He was responsible for much of Fox Film Corporation's output during the 1920s and 1930s.
As studio head, he won an Academy Award for Best Picture for the film ...
, the Fox Studio heads, saw the finished film, Durning confessed and told them to make Wellman a director. "Dusty (Dustin Farnum) is nuts about him and so am I!"
Marriage
Durning married silent film actress
Shirley Mason on June 19, 1917. The union was happy and they stayed married for six years until his premature death on August 29, 1923.
Death and aftermath
Durning was directing a big special for Fox, called ''Around The Town'', starring
Gallagher and Shean
Gallagher & Shean was a highly successful musical comedy double act in vaudeville and on Broadway in the 1910s and 1920s, consisting of Ed Gallagher (1873–1929) and Al Shean (1868–1949); Shean was the maternal uncle of the Marx Brothers.
C ...
in the summer of 1923 when he drank some bad water in Brooklyn and got
typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
. He died in
St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan, with Shirley Mason by his side. "The Heart of Hollywood is Broken" declared the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''.
''When Bearcat Went Dry'' (1919) was found in 1995 and is in the
Nederlands Filmmuseum
Eye Filmmuseum is a film archive, museum, and cinema in Amsterdam that preserves and presents both Dutch and foreign films screened in the Netherlands.
Location and history
Eye Filmmuseum is located in the Overhoeks neighborhood of Amsterdam in t ...
. ''The Gift Supreme'' (1920) the first reel exists on film.
Filmography
* ''The Stock Market'' Edison Film (1912) (actor)
* ''
The Unwritten Code
''The Unwritten Code'' is a 1944 American drama film directed by Herman Rotsten and written by Leslie T. White and Charles Kenyon. The film stars Ann Savage, Tom Neal, Roland Varno, Howard Freeman, Mary Currier and Bobby Larson. The film was r ...
'' (1919) (writer, director)
* ''
Blackie's Redemption
''Blackie's Redemption'', also known by its working title ''Powers That Pray'', is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by John Ince. It stars Bert Lytell, Alice Lake, and Henry Kolker, and was released on April 14, 1919.
Plot
Boston Bla ...
'' (1919) (actor) Directed by
John Ince
* ''
When Bearcat Went Dry
''When Bearcat Went Dry'' is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by Oliver L. Sellers from the novel by Charles Neville Buck, and starring Lon Chaney as Kindard Powers. The title refers to a character nicknamed "Bearcat" ( Bernard J. Durn ...
'' (1919) (leading man) Directed by
Oliver L. Sellers
* ''
The Gift Supreme
''The Gift Supreme'' is a 1920 American silent drama film starring Bernard Durning, Seena Owen, Lon Chaney (in a villainous bit role) and Tully Marshall. The film was directed by Ollie Sellers and based on the 1916 novel of the same name by ...
'' (1920) (leading man) Directed by Oliver L. Sellers
* ''
The Scoffer
''The Scoffer'' is a surviving 1920 American silent drama film produced and directed by Allan Dwan and starring Mary Thurman. It was released through Associated First National Pictures.
Plot
As described in a film magazine, Dr. Stannard Wayne ...
'' (1920) (actor) Directed by Alan Dwan
* ''
Seeds of Vengeance
''Seeds of Vengeance'' is an American film released in 1920. It was directed by Ollie Sellers. It was an adaptation of Margaret Prescott's ''The Sowing of Alderson Cree''. The film starred Bernard Durning. It was a C. R. Macauley Photoplay.
It ...
'' (1920) (actor) Directed by Oliver L. Sellers.
* ''
Diane of Star Hollow'' (1921) (leading man) Directed by Oliver L. Sellers
*''
The Devil Within'' (1921) (actor, director)
* ''The Primal Law'' (1921) (director)
* ''
Partners of Fate'' (1921) (director)
* ''The One Man Trail'' (1921) (director)
* ''Straight from the Shoulder'' (1921) (director)
* ''To a Finish'' (1921) (director)
* ''
While Justice Waits
''While Justice Waits'' is a 1922 American silent Western film directed by Bernard J. Durning, and starring Dustin Farnum, Irene Rich, Earl Metcalfe, Junior Delameter, and Frankie Lee. The film was released by Fox Film Corporation on November 1 ...
'' (1922) (director)
* ''
The Yosemite Trail
''The Yosemite Trail'' is a lost 1922 American silent Western film directed by Bernard J. Durning and starring Dustin Farnum, Irene Rich and Walter McGrail.Solomon p.279
Cast
* Dustin Farnum as Jim Thorpe
* Irene Rich as Eve Marsham
* Walt ...
'' (1922) (director)
* ''
Iron to Gold
''Iron to Gold'' is a lost 1922 American silent Western film produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. Based on a short story by Max Brand, writing as George Owen Baxter, the film starred Dustin Farnum and was directed by Bernard J. Du ...
'' (1922) (director)
* ''
Oath-Bound
''Oath-Bound'' is a 1922 American silent drama film directed by Bernard J. Durning and starring Dustin Farnum, Ethel Grey Terry, and Fred Thomson.Solomon p. 278
Cast
* Dustin Farnum as Lawrence Bradbury
* Ethel Grey Terry as Constance Hasting ...
'' (1922) (director)
* ''
Strange Idols
''Strange Idols'' is a 1922 American drama film directed by Bernard Durning and written by Jules Furthman. The film stars Dustin Farnum, Doris Pawn, Philo McCullough, and Richard Tucker. The film was released on May 28, 1922, by Fox Film Corpora ...
'' (1922) (director)
* ''
The Fast Mail'' (1922) (director)
* ''
The Eleventh Hour'' (1923) (director) Directed by
William A. Wellman
William Augustus Wellman (February 29, 1896 – December 9, 1975) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and military pilot. He was known for his work in crime, adventure, and action genre films, often focusing on avi ...
* ''Around The Town'' (1923) (unfinished direction)
* ''The Arizona Express'' (1924) (A Bernard J. Durning Production)
* ''Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick'' (documentary, photo of Wellman and Durning)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Durning, Bernard
1890s births
1923 deaths
American film directors
Silent film directors
Year of birth uncertain