James C. McKay (1894–1971) was an American

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

and

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...

. His directorial debut was the 1916

Fox Film 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 C ...

release '' The Ruling Passion'' shot in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

under the supervision of

Herbert Brenon Herbert Brenon (born Alexander Herbert Reginald St. John Brenon; 13 January 1880 – 21 June 1958) was an Irish-born U.S. film director, actor and screenwriter during the era of silent films through the 1930s. Brenon was among the early film ...

. He directed several

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 ...

s for

Tiffany Pictures Tiffany Pictures, which also became Tiffany-Stahl Productions for a time, was a Hollywood motion picture studio in operation from 1921 until 1932. It is considered a Poverty Row studio, whose films had lower budgets, lesser-known stars, and overal ...

in the mid-1920s. He was hired by

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

to shoot ''

Tarzan Escapes ''Tarzan Escapes'' is a 1936 Tarzan film based on the character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs. It was the third in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer ''Tarzan'' series to feature Johnny Weissmuller as the "King of the Apes". Previous films were ''Tarzan t ...

'' in 1935, but the studio was dissatisfied with his efforts and he was replaced by

Richard Thorpe Richard Thorpe (born Rollo Smolt Thorpe; February 24, 1896 – May 1, 1991) was an American film director best known for his long career at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Biography Born Rollo Smolt Thorpe in Hutchinson, Kansas, Richard Thorpe began his en ...

.Taliaferro p.298

Selected filmography

Director

* '' The Ruling Passion'' (1916) * ''

A Sinless Sinner ''A Sinless Sinner'' is a 1919 British silent drama film directed by James C. McKay and starring Marie Doro, Godfrey Tearle and Sam Livesey. It was distributed in the United States the following year under the alternative title ''Midnight Gambo ...

'' (1919) * ''

Souls for Sables ''Souls for Sables'' is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by James C. McKay and starring Claire Windsor. It was produced and released by Tiffany Pictures. Plot As described in a film magazine reviews, Fred Garlan is devoted to his wif ...

'' (1925) * ''

Fools of Fashion ''Fools of Fashion'' is a 1926 silent society drama film directed by James C. McKay. It was produced and released by Tiffany Pictures. Cast Preservation A print of ''Fools of Fashion'' survives in the BFI National Archive The BFI Nation ...

'' (1926) * ''

Lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...

'' (1927) * ''

The Broken Gate ''The Broken Gate'' is a lost 1920 American silent drama film directed by Paul Scardon and starring Bessie Barriscale. It was distributed jointly by W. W. Hodkinson and Pathé Exchange. Cast *Bessie Barriscale as Aurora Lane *Joseph Kilgour as ...

'' (1927) * ''

'' (1936)

Editor

* ''

The Eternal Sin ''The Eternal Sin'' is a lost 1917 American silent historical drama film directed by Herbert Brenon and starring Florence Reed. Brenon produced and Lewis J. Selznick handled the distribution. Cast *Florence Reed - Lucretia Borgia *William E. Shay ...

'' (1917) * ''

The Lone Wolf The Lone Wolf may refer to: * ''The Lone Wolf'', a 1914 novel by Louis Joseph Vance ** The Lone Wolf (character), a recurring eponymous character in Vance's novels and various film adaptations ** ''The Lone Wolf'' (1917 film), a silent film bas ...

'' (1917) * ''

Merry-Go-Round A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...

'' (1923) * ''

Zander the Great ''Zander the Great'' is a 1925 American silent comedy drama film directed by George W. Hill, in his first directing role for MGM. The film stars Marion Davies. The screenplay by Frances Marion is based upon the Edward Salisbury Field 1923 play ...

'' (1925) * ''

Morals for Men Morality () is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper (right) and those that are improper (wrong). Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of cond ...

'' (1925) * '' Soul Mates'' (1925) * '' Out of the Storm'' (1926) * '' Lost at Sea'' (1926) * '' College Days'' (1926) * ''

That Model from Paris ''That Model from Paris'' is a 1926 American silent comedy film directed by Louis J. Gasnier and starring Marceline Day, Bert Lytell, and Eileen Percy Eileen Percy (August 1902 – 29 July 1973) was an Irish-born American actress of the ...

'' (1926) * ''

The First Night "The First Night" is a song by American singer Monica for her second studio album, '' The Boy Is Mine'' (1998). It was written by Tamara Savage and Jermaine Dupri, featuring production and additional vocals from the latter. Built around a sample ...

'' (1927) * ''

One Hour of Love ''One Hour of Love'' is a 1927 American silent romantic drama film directed by Robert Florey and starring Jacqueline Logan, Robert Frazer and Montagu Love.Munden p.568 It is now considered to be a lost film. The film's sets were designed by the ...

'' (1927) * ''

Cheaters Cheater or Cheaters may refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''The Cheaters'' (1930 film), an Australian silent film * ''Cheaters'' (1934 film), an American film directed by Phil Rosent * ''The Cheaters'' (1945 film), directed by Joseph Ka ...

'' (1927) * ''

The Princess from Hoboken ''The Princess from Hoboken'' is a 1927 American silent comedy film directed by Allen Dale and featuring Boris Karloff. This is now considered to be a lost film. Cast * Edmund Burns as Terence O'Brien * Blanche Mehaffey as Sheila O'Toole * Eth ...

'' (1927) * ''

The Beauty Shoppers ''The Beauty Shoppers'' is a 1927 American silent comedy film directed by Louis J. Gasnier and starring Mae Busch, Doris Hill and Ward Crane.Munden p.46 Cast * Mae Busch as Mabel Hines * Doris Hill as Peggy Raymond * Ward Crane as Sloane Madd ...

'' (1928) * '' Beware of Blondes'' (1928) * ''

Dream of Love ''Dream of Love'' is a 1928 American silent biographical drama film directed by Fred Niblo, and starring Joan Crawford and Nils Asther. The film is based on the 1849 French tragedy ''Adrienne Lecouvreur'' by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé ...

'' (1928) * ''

Marianne Marianne () has been the national personification of the French Republic since the French Revolution, as a personification of liberty, equality, fraternity and reason, as well as a portrayal of the Goddess of Liberty. Marianne is displayed i ...

'' (1929) * ''

They Learned About Women ''They Learned About Women'' is a 1930 American Pre-Code sports drama musical film directed by Jack Conway and Sam Wood, and starring Van and Schenck in their final film appearance together. Although predominantly a black and white film, the ...

'' (1930) * ''

Good Sam Good Sam may refer to: * ''Good Sam'' (1948 film), an American romantic comedy starring Gary Cooper and Ann Sheridan * ''Good Sam'' (2019 film), an American drama starring Tiya Sircar * ''Good Sam'' (TV series), an American medical drama starrin ...

'' (1948) * ''

Black Magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 145 ...

'' (1949)

References

Bibliography

* Soister, John T., Nicolella, Henry & Joyce, Steve. ''American Silent Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Feature Films, 1913-1929''. McFarland, 2014. * Taliaferro, John. ''Tarzan Forever: The Life of Edgar Rice Burroughs the Creator of Tarzan''. Simon and Schuster, 2002.

External links

* 1894 births 1971 deaths American film editors American film directors People from New York City {{US-film-bio-stub