Harry Joe Brown (September 22, 1890 – April 28, 1972) was an American film producer, and earlier a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and film director.

Biography

Harry Joe Brown was born in 1890 in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

, Pennsylvania. As a producer, he had a partnership with director Budd Boetticher, actor Randolph Scott and screenwriter

Burt Kennedy Burton Raphael Kennedy (September 3, 1922 – February 15, 2001) was an American screenwriter and director known mainly for directing Westerns. Budd Boetticher called him "the best Western writer ever." Biography Kennedy was born in 1922 i ...

, which generated a series of five westerns between 1957 and 1960 (''

The Tall T ''The Tall T'' is a 1957 American Western film directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Randolph Scott, Richard Boone, and Maureen O'Sullivan. Adapted by Burt Kennedy from the 1955 short story "The Captives" by Elmore Leonard, the film is a ...

, Decision at Sundown, Buchanan Rides Alone,

Ride Lonesome ''Ride Lonesome'' is a 1959 American CinemaScope Western film directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Randolph Scott, Karen Steele, Pernell Roberts, Lee Van Cleef, and James Coburn in his film debut. This Eastmancolor film is one of Boetticher ...

Comanche Station ''Comanche Station'' is a 1960 American CinemaScope Western film directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Randolph Scott. The film was the last of Boetticher's late 1950s ''Ranown Cycle''. It was filmed in the Eastern Sierra area of Central Ca ...

'') via a company he created with Scott which eventually became known as Ranown Pictures Corp. He produced the American debut films of both

Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...

in '' Captain Blood'' and Sean Flynn in ''Son of Captain Blood''. Brown earlier directed a number of films, among them '' Knickerbocker Holiday'', '' Sitting Pretty'' and '' Madison Square Garden''.

Personal life

He was married to actress

Sally Eilers Dorothea Sally Eilers (December 11, 1908 – January 5, 1978) was an American actress. Early life Eilers was born in New York City to a Jewish-American mother, Paula (or Pauline) Schoenberger, and a German-American father, Hio Peter Eilers ( ...

.Victoria Talbot, "Beverly Hills Cultural Heritage Commission Splits 2 To 2 on Mountain Drive Landmark Vote", ''The Beverly Hills Courier'', October 3, 2014, Vol. XXXXVIIII, No. 39, p. 4 They resided in a mansion located at 625 Mountain Drive, Beverly Hills, California. Brown died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

on April 28, 1972, aged 81, in Palm Springs, California.

Selected filmography

* '' North of Nevada'' (1924) * '' Galloping Gallagher'' (1924) * ''

The Mask of Lopez ''The Mask of Lopez'' is a 1924 American silent Western film directed by Albert S. Rogell, and starring Fred Thomson, Wilfred Lucas Wilfred Van Norman Lucas (January 30, 1871 – December 13, 1940) was a Canadian American stage actor who fo ...

'' (1924) * ''

The Silent Stranger ''The Silent Stranger'' (Italian: ''Lo straniero di silenzio''), also known as ''The Horseman and the Samurai'' and ''The Stranger in Japan'', is a 1968 Spaghetti Western jidaigeki film directed by Luigi Vanzi. It is the second sequel to '' A St ...

'' (1924) * '' The Dangerous Coward'' (1924) * '' The Fighting Sap'' (1924) *'' Bashful Buccaneer'' (1925) * ''

The Fear Fighter ''The Fear Fighter'' is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by Albert S. Rogell and starring Billy Sullivan, Ruth Dwyer and J.P. McGowan.Munden p.234 Cast * Billy Sullivan as Billy Griffin * Ruth Dwyer as Catherine Curtis * J.P. ...

'' (1925) * '' Youth's Gamble'' (1925) *'' Fighting Fate'' (1925) * ''

Goat Getter ''Goat Getter'' is a 1925 American silent action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourcefu ...

'' (1925) * ''

The Patent Leather Pug ''The Patent Leather Pug'' is a 1925 American silent sports drama film directed by Albert S. Rogell and starring Billy Sullivan, Ruth Dwyer, and J.P. McGowan.Munden p. 593 Completed in 1925, it first premiered in London under the alternative t ...

'' (1925) * '' Rapid Fire Romance'' (1926) *''

Moran of the Mounted ''Moran of the Mounted'' is a 1926 American silent western film directed by Harry Joe Brown and starring Reed Howes, Sheldon Lewis and Virginia Warwick.Connelly p.388 A northern, it was distributed by the independent Rayart Pictures, the foreru ...

'' (1926) * '' The High Flyer'' (1926) * '' Racing Romance'' (1926) * '' The Night Owl'' (1926) * ''

Kentucky Handicap ''Kentucky Handicap'' is a 1926 American silent action film directed by Harry Joe Brown and starring Reed Howes, Alice Calhoun and Robert McKim. It is also known by the alternative title ''Kentucky Luck''. Cast * Reed Howes * Alice Calhoun ...

'' (1926) * '' The Winner'' (1926) * '' Broadway Billy'' (1926) * '' Stick to Your Story'' (1926) * '' The Self Starter'' (1926) * '' One Punch O'Day'' (1926) * '' The Dangerous Dude'' (1926) * '' Gun Gospel'' (1927) *''

The Scorcher ''The Scorcher'' is a 1927 American silent action film directed by Harry Joe Brown and starring Reed Howes, Thelma Parr and Hank Mann.Connelly p.688 It was distributed by the independent Rayart Pictures, the forerunner of Monogram Pictures. Sy ...

'' (1927) * '' The Royal American'' (1927) * '' The Racing Fool'' (1927) * '' The Lost Limited'' (1927) * '' Romantic Rogue'' (1927) * ''

The Wagon Show ''The Wagon Show'' is a 1928 American silent Western film directed by Harry Joe Brown and written by Ford Beebe and Don Ryan. The film stars Ken Maynard, Ena Gregory, Maurice Costello, Fred Malatesta, George Davis and May Boley. The film w ...

'' (1928) *'' The Glorious Trail'' (1928) * ''

The Code of the Scarlet ''The Code of the Scarlet'' is a 1928 American silent western film directed by Harry Joe Brown and starring Ken Maynard, Gladys McConnell and Ed Brady.Munden p.136 The title is also sometimes written as just ''Code of the Scarlet''. A northern, ...

'' (1928) *''

The Squealer ''The Squealer'' is a 1930 American pre-Code crime film directed by Harry Joe Brown and starring Jack Holt, Dorothy Revier and Davey Lee.Stumpf, p. 129 The film's sets were designed by the art director Edward C. Jewell. Cast * Jack Holt as ...

'' (1930)

References

External links

*
Harry Joe Brown filmography
tcmdb.com; accessed February 5, 2016 1890 births 1972 deaths Businesspeople from Pittsburgh Film producers from Pennsylvania American film directors 20th-century American businesspeople {{US-film-director-stub