James Gordon Edwards (June 24, 1867 – December 31, 1925) was a Canadian-born film director, producer, and writer who began his career as a

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 ...

actor and

stage director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

Biography

James Gordon Edwards was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

in 1867 to parents of Scotch-French ancestry. He made his directorial debut with the 1914 film '' St. Elmo''. Edwards went on directing all of the

Fox Film Corporation The Fox Film Corporation (also known as Fox Studios) was an American Independent film production studio formed by William Fox (1879–1952) in 1915, by combining his earlier Greater New York Film Rental Company and Box Office Attractions Film ...

's mega-budget spectacles, including all of actress

Theda Bara Theda Bara ( ; born Theodosia Burr Goodman; July 29, 1885 – April 7, 1955) was an American silent film and stage actress. Bara was one of the more popular actresses of the silent era and one of cinema's early sex symbols. Her femme fatal ...

's productions between 1916 and 1919. Later, he became the production supervisor at Fox, and continued to direct until he died in 1925. One of his biggest projects was ''

The Queen of Sheba The Queen of Sheba ( he, מַלְכַּת שְׁבָא‎, Malkaṯ Šəḇāʾ; ar, ملكة سبأ, Malikat Sabaʾ; gez, ንግሥተ ሳባ, Nəgśətä Saba) is a figure first mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. In the original story, she bring ...

'' (1921), a lost silent film which contained a huge chariot race, four years before '' Ben-Hur'' (1925). Essentially all of his films (other than a few low quality prints) for Fox Studios were lost in the

1937 Fox vault fire The 1937 Fox vault fire was a major fire that broke out in a 20th Century-Fox film-storage facility in Little Ferry, New Jersey, United States, on July 9, 1937. Flammable nitrate film had previously contributed to several fires in film-industr ...

, which claimed 75% of all Fox films made before 1930. He was the stepgrandfather of director

Blake Edwards Blake Edwards (born William Blake Crump; July 26, 1922 – December 15, 2010) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Edwards began his career in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon began writing screenplays and radio s ...

. He was married to actress Angela McCaull, daughter of opera impresario John A. McCaull. Edwards died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

at age 58 in New York City. His widow later commissioned a mausoleum in his honor at

Kensico Cemetery Kensico Cemetery, located in Valhalla, Westchester County, New York was founded in 1889, when many New York City cemeteries were becoming full, and rural cemeteries were being created near the railroads that served the city. Initially , it was ...

, where both of their ashes reside.

Filmography

Production supervisor

* ''

A Daughter of the Gods ''A Daughter of the Gods'' was a 1916 American silent fantasy drama film written and directed by Herbert Brenon. The film was controversial because of the sequences of what was regarded as superfluous nudity by the character Anitia, played by A ...

'' (1916) - lost

Director

*'' St. Elmo'' (1914) - lost *''

Life's Shop Window ''Life's Shop Window'' is a 1914 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Claire Whitney and Stuart Holmes. It is a film adaptation of the 1907 novel of the same name by Annie Sophie Cory. The film depicts the stor ...

'' (1914) - lost *''

A Woman's Resurrection ''A Woman's Resurrection'' is a lost 1915 silent drama based on Leo Tolstoy's 1899 novel ''Resurrection''. William Fox produced the feature. Cast See also * 1937 Fox vault fire *''Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept ...

'' (1915) - lost *''

Anna Karenina ''Anna Karenina'' ( rus, «Анна Каренина», p=ˈanːə kɐˈrʲenʲɪnə) is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Widely considered to be one of the greatest works of literature ever writte ...

'' (1915) - lost *'' Should a Mother Tell'' (1915) - lost *''

The Song of Hate ''The Song of Hate'' is a lost 1915 silent film drama directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Betty Nansen. It was produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. Rex Ingram wrote the script. Cast * Betty Nansen - Floria Tosca *Arthur Hoo ...

'' (1915) - lost *''

The Blindness of Devotion ''The Blindness of Devotion'' is a lost 1915 silent film drama directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Robert B. Mantell and Genevieve Hamper. It was produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. Cast *Robert B. Mantell - Count de Carnay ...

'' (1915) - lost *''

The Unfaithful Wife ''The Unfaithful Wife'' (french: La Femme infidèle) is a 1969 French crime thriller film directed by Claude Chabrol. The film had a total of 682,295 admissions in France. Plot Insurer Charles Desvallées lives in a beautiful house in the countrys ...

'' (1915) - lost *'' The Galley Slave'' (1915) - lost *'' Under Two Flags'' (1916) - lost *'' Her Double Life'' (1916) - lost *''

A Wife's Sacrifice ''A Wife's Sacrifice'' is a lost 1916 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. Cast See also * List of Fox Film films *1937 Fox vault fire The 1937 Fox vault fire was a ...

'' (1916) - lost *'' The Vixen'' (1916) - lost *'' The Green-Eyed Monster'' (1916) - lost *''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...

'' (1916) - lost *'' The Spider and the Fly'' (1916) - lost *'' The Tiger Woman'' (1917) - lost *'' Tangled Lives'' (1917) - lost *''

Her Greatest Love ''Her Greatest Love'' is a 1917 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards, starring Theda Bara, and based on the 1880 novel ''Moths'' by Ouida. This film is now considered to be lost. Cast * Theda Bara as Hazel * Marie Curtis as ...

'' (1917) - lost *'' The Rose of Blood'' (1917) - lost *''

Madame Du Barry Jeanne Bécu, Comtesse du Barry (19 August 1743 – 8 December 1793) was the last ''maîtresse-en-titre'' of King Louis XV of France. She was executed, by guillotine, during the French Revolution due to accounts of treason—particularly being ...

(1917) - lost *'' Heart and Soul'' (1917) - lost *''

The Darling of Paris ''The Darling of Paris'' is a 1917 American silent romantic drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara and Glen White. It was a very loose film adaptation of the 1831 novel ''The Hunchback of Notre-Dame'' by Victor Hugo ...

'' (1917) - lost *''

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

'' (1917) - lost *'' Camille'' (1917) - lost *'' When a Woman Sins'' (1918) - lost *''

Under the Yoke ''Under the Yoke'' ( bg, Под игото - ''Pod Igoto''), with subtitle ''A Romance of Bulgarian Liberty'' is a historical novel by Bulgarian author Ivan Vazov written in 1887-1888 and published in parts between 1889–1890 in a magazine ...

'' (1918) - lost *'' The Soul of Buddha'' (1918) - lost *''

The She Devil ''The She-Devil'' is a 1918 American silent romantic drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara. This was the last film in which Alan Roscoe starred with Theda Bara; they appeared in six films together starting with '' C ...

'' (1918) - lost *'' Salome'' (1918) - lost *'' The Forbidden Path'' (1918) - lost *''

A Woman There Was ''A Woman There Was'' is a 1919 American silent South Seas drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Theda Bara. The film is based on the short story "Creation's Tears", by George James Hopkins (under the name "Neje Hopkins"). Bara ...

'' (1919) - lost *''

Wolves of the Night ''Wolves of the Night'' is a 1919 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring William Farnum, Louise Lovely, and Lamar Johnstone. Cast * William Farnum as Bruce Andrews * Louise Lovely as Isabel Hollins * Lamar Johns ...

'' (1919) - lost *'' Wings of the Morning'' (1919) - lost *'' When Men Desire'' (1919) - lost *'' The Siren's Song'' (1919) - lost *'' The Lone Star Ranger'' (1919) - lost *'' The Light'' (1919) - lost *'' The Last of the Duanes'' (1919) - lost *'' The Orphan'' (1920) - lost *'' Heart Strings'' (1920) - lost *''

If I Were King ''If I Were King'' is a 1938 American biographical and historical film starring Ronald Colman as medieval poet François Villon, and featuring Basil Rathbone and Frances Dee. It is based on the 1901 play and novel, both of the same name, by Jus ...

'' (1920) *''

Drag Harlan ''Drag Harlan'' is a 1920 American silent Western film produced and released by the Fox Film Corporation and directed by J. Gordon Edwards. The film is based on an original story for the screen and stars William Farnum along with Jackie Saunder ...

'' (1920) *'' The Adventurer'' (1920) - lost *'' The Joyous Troublemaker'' (1920) - lost *''

The Scuttlers ''The Scuttlers'' is a lost 1920 American silent drama film produced and distributed by the Fox Film Corporation and directed by J. Gordon Edwards. William Farnum and Jackie Saunders star in this adventure. Cast *William Farnum as Jim Landers * ...

'' (1920) - lost *''

'' (1921) - lost *'' His Greatest Sacrifice'' (1921) *''

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...

'' (1922) - lost *''

The Silent Command ''The Silent Command'' is a 1923 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards featuring Bela Lugosi as a foreign saboteur in his American film debut. The film, written by Anthony Paul Kelly and Rufus King, also stars Edmund Lowe, A ...

'' (1923) *'' The Net'' - lost *''

It Is the Law ''It Is the Law'' is a 1924 American silent mystery film directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Arthur Hohl, Herbert Heyes, and Mona Palma. It is a film adaptation of the 1922 Broadway play of the same name by Elmer Rice, itself based on ...

'' (1924) - lost

Writer

* ''

'' (1921) - lost * ''

'' (1916) - lost * ''

'' (1915) - lost

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, J. Gordon 1867 births 1925 deaths Burials at Kensico Cemetery Canadian emigrants to the United States Film directors from Montreal Writers from Montreal Deaths from pneumonia in New York City