Elmer Blaney Harris (January 11, 1878 – September 6, 1966) was an American author,

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

, and playwright.

Biography

Harris was born in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

as the youngest of eight children. He moved with his family to

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

, after his father's broom factory burned to the ground. After high school, he attended the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. He graduated in 1901 with a B.S. in writing, and as an actor for the university theater troupe, he had gained a patron,

Phoebe Apperson Hearst Phoebe Elizabeth Apperson Hearst (December 3, 1842 – April 13, 1919) was an American philanthropist, feminist and suffragist. Hearst was the founder of the University of California Museum of Anthropology, now called the Phoebe A. Hearst M ...

, the mother of

William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst Sr. (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American businessman, newspaper publisher, and politician known for developing the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His flamboya ...

. With her financial backing, Harris was able to study in New York City and Europe for the next four years. When he returned to San Francisco, he became a newspaper reporter for the ''San Francisco Call-Bulletin'', and lectured at clubs and universities on authors and playwrights, such as

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

and

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...

. However, this didn't last long: when the

San Francisco earthquake of 1906 At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...

destroyed the newspaper's office and the newspaper, Harris left for New York City. There he wrote feverishly for newspapers and magazines, contributing articles, reviews, and short stories. At the same time he was translating with Cora Older. He began to travel back and forth from

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

to the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

, and in California he helped to found the

Carmel-by-the-Sea Carmel-by-the-Sea (), often simply called Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, United States, founded in 1902 and incorporated on October 31, 1916. Situated on the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel is known for its natural scenery and ric ...

artists' colony. At Carmel he dramatized his first play, ''Sham'', a short story by Geraldine Bonner. Harris was married in 1908, and after his honeymoon he built a summer home in

Fortune Bridge, Prince Edward Island Fortune Bridge is a small unincorporated area on Lot 43, East Parish, King County, Prince Edward Island, Canada. It is located west of the Town of Souris. Author Elmer Blaney Harris built a summer home and founded an artist colony in Fortun ...

, helping to establish a second artists' colony there. At Fortune Bridge he worked on his next three plays, ''The Offenders'' (1908), ''Trial Marriage'' (1909), and ''Thy Neighbor's Wife'' (1911). During this period, he divided his time between Fortune Bridge and New York City. When

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

broke out, he was 39, and so was ineligible for combat. He went to work for the Food Board under

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

, but tired of working with

Graham flour Graham flour is a type of coarse-ground flour of whole wheat named after Sylvester Graham. It is similar to conventional whole-wheat flour in that both are made from the whole grain, but graham flour is ground more coarsely. It is not sifted (" ...

, he took a new position as civil aide to the commander in charge of amusements and morale at

Camp Bowie Camp Bowie is a United States National Guard training center located in west central Texas on the southern outskirts of Brownwood, Texas, Brownwood. History Camp Bowie, named in honor of the Texas patriot James Bowie, was a military training fac ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, as a dramatic director with the

Fosdick Commission The Commission on Training Camp Activities (CTCA) was an umbrella agency within the United States Department of War during World War I that provided recreational and educational activities for soldiers as they trained for combat. Established in ...

. He was also stationed in San Diego. After the war he wrote his first screenplay, ''Lottery Man'', in 1919. For the next twenty years he would be very prolific, collaborating on, directing, adapting, or supervising the production of almost 35 silent and "sound" films. He would live half the time in New York City, writing for the

stage Stage or stages may refer to: Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly British theatre newspaper * Sta ...

, and half in Hollywood, writing for the motion picture industry. In the 1920s, he wrote six screenplays that were produced by Peninsula Studios, including ''Chalk Marks'' (1924), ''The Girl on the Stairs'' (1924), ''The Wise Virgin'' (1924), ''The Awful Truth'' (1925), ''Beauty and The Badman'' (1925), and ''Let Women Alone'' (1925). He was also working on seven original screenplays of his own. He saw the major transitions in the motion picture industry occur, both the move from New York to Hollywood, and the progression from silent films to "

talkies A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

". His best known film was probably '' Johnny Belinda'', released in 1948. He would base the story on the residents of the local area of his summer home in Fortune Bridge, and actual events that occurred there. The title character was based on Lydia Dingwell (1852–1931) of Dingwells Mills,

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has seve ...

. Elmer Blaney Harris died at age 88 in Washington, D.C.

Partial filmography

*''

Pretty Mrs. Smith ''Pretty Mrs. Smith'' is a lost 1915 American comedy silent film directed by Hobart Bosworth and written by Elmer Blaney Harris and Oliver Morosco. The film stars Fritzi Scheff, Louis Bennison, Forrest Stanley, Owen Moore and Lela Bliss. The film ...

'' (1915) *'' Help Wanted'' (1915) *''

The Wild Olive ''The Wild Olive'' is a lost 1915 American drama silent film directed by Oscar Apfel and written by Elmer Blaney Harris, Basil King and Oliver Morosco. The film stars Myrtle Stedman, Forrest Stanley, Mary Ruby, Charles Marriott, Edmund Lowe and ...

'' (1915) *''

Why Smith Left Home ''Why Smith Left Home'' is a 1919 American silent film farce directed by Donald Crisp and starring Bryant Washburn. Famous Players-Lasky produced the film with distribution through Paramount Pictures. This film is based on the turn of the cent ...

'' (1919) *'' It Pays to Advertise'' (1919) *'' An Adventure in Hearts'' (1919) *''

Jack Straw John Whitaker Straw (born 3 August 1946) is a British politician who served in the Cabinet from 1997 to 2010 under the Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. He held two of the traditional Great Offices of State, as Home Secretary ...

'' (1920) *''

Mrs. Temple's Telegram ''Mrs. Temple's Telegram'' is a 1920 American silent comedy film directed by James Cruze and starring Bryant Washburn and Wanda Hawley. It is based on the 1905 Broadway play ''Mrs. Temple's Telegram'' by Frank Wyatt. It was produced by Famous Pla ...

'' (1920) *'' The Sins of St. Anthony'' (1920) *'' What Happened to Jones'' (1920) *'' So Long Letty'' (1920) *''

Miss Hobbs ''Miss Hobbs'' is a 1920 American silent comedy film directed by Donald Crisp and written by Elmer Blaney Harris. The film stars Wanda Hawley, Harrison Ford, Helen Jerome Eddy, Walter Hiers, Julanne Johnston, and Emily Chichester. The film was r ...

'' (1920) *''

The Education of Elizabeth ''The Education of Elizabeth'' is a 1921 American silent comedy romance film produced by Famous Players-Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Edward Dillon and stars stage star Billie Burke in her last silent film. ...

'' (1921) *'' Ducks and Drakes'' (1921) *''

All Soul's Eve ''All Souls' Eve'' is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by Chester M. Franklin and starring Mary Miles Minter. The film is based on the mystical 1920 Broadway play of the same name by Anne Crawford Flexner, with a story by Elmer Blane ...

'' (1921) *'' Sham'' (1921) *'' The March Hare'' (1921) *'' The Speed Girl'' (1921) *'' Her Own Money'' (1922) *''

Her Gilded Cage ''Her Gilded Cage'' is a 1922 American silent drama film directed by Sam Wood and starring Gloria Swanson. The film was based on the play ''The Love Dreams'' by Elmer Harris and Anne Nichols. Plot As described in a film magazine review, in or ...

'' (1922) *'' Tess of the Storm Country'' (1922) * '' Garrison's Finish'' (1923) * '' No More Women'' (1924) * '' The Girl on the Stairs'' (1925) *''

Eve's Leaves ''Eve's Leaves'' is a 1926 American silent romantic comedy film starring Leatrice Joy and William Boyd. The film was produced and distributed by Cecil B. DeMille and directed by Paul Sloane

'' (1926) *'' Sunny Side Up'' (1926) *''

That Certain Thing ''That Certain Thing'' is a 1928 silent film comedy directed by Frank Capra. It was Capra's first film for Harry Cohn's Columbia Pictures. Plot Molly Kelly (Viola Dana) intends to marry a millionaire. When she meets Andy Charles, Jr. (Ralph Gr ...

'' (1928) *'' So This Is Love?'' (1928) *''

The Matinee Idol ''The Matinee Idol'' is a 1928 American silent comedy-drama film directed by Frank Capra, and starring Bessie Love and Johnnie Walker. It was produced and distributed by Columbia Pictures. Prints are in the archives of the Cinémathèque Fran� ...

'' (1928) *''

Ransom Ransom is the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release, or the sum of money involved in such a practice. When ransom means "payment", the word comes via Old French ''rançon'' from Latin ''red ...

'' (1928) * '' A Woman's Way'' (1928) *''

Court Martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

'' (1928) *''

The Spirit of Youth ''The Spirit of Youth'' is a 1929 American silent drama film directed by Walter Lang. A complete print of the film exists. Cast * Dorothy Sebastian as Betty Grant * Larry Kent as Jim Kenney * Betty Francisco as Claire Ewing * Maurice Murphy ...

'' (1929) *'' So Long Letty'' (1929) *'' Stepping Out'' (1931) *'' Young Sinners'' (1931) *''

Skyscraper Souls ''Skyscraper Souls'' is a 1932 American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code romantic drama film starring Warren William, Anita Page, Maureen O'Sullivan, Gregory Ratoff, and Verree Teasdale. Directed by Edgar Selwyn, it is based on the 1931 novel ''Skys ...

'' (1932) *'' The Barbarian'' (1933) *'' Cross Country Cruise'' (1934) *'' Looking for Trouble'' (1934) *'' Red Salute'' (1935) *''

The Three Wise Guys ''The Three Wise Guys'' is a 1936 American drama film directed by George B. Seitz, written by Elmer Blaney Harris, Elmer Harris and Damon Runyon, and starring Robert Young (actor), Robert Young, Betty Furness, Raymond Walburn, Thurston Hall, Bruc ...

'' (1936) *'' Johnny Belinda'' (1948)

External links

Bio @ The Official Elmer Blaney Harris Homepage
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Elmer Blaney 1878 births 1966 deaths Writers from Chicago American male screenwriters Writers from Oakland, California University of California, Berkeley alumni 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from California Screenwriters from Illinois 20th-century American screenwriters