John Cromwell (director)
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John Cromwell (born Elwood Dager; December 23, 1886 – September 26, 1979) was an American film and stage director and actor. His films spanned the early days of sound to '' film noir'' in the early 1950s, by which time his directing career was almost terminated by the
Hollywood blacklist The Hollywood blacklist was an entertainment industry blacklist, broader than just Hollywood, put in effect in the mid-20th century in the United States during the early years of the Cold War. The blacklist involved the practice of denying empl ...
.


Early life and education

Born as Elwood Dager in
Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...
to an affluent Scottish-English family, executives in the steel and iron industry, Cromwell graduated from private high school at
Howe Military Academy Howe Military Academy was a private, co-educational and college preparatory boarding school located on a campus in Howe, Indiana Howe is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Lima Township, LaGrange County, Indiana. As ...
in 1905, but never pursued higher education.


Early acting career, 1905–1912

Upon leaving school, Cromwell immediately began his stage career touring with stock companies in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
, then made his way to New York City in his early 20s. Billed as Elwood Dager in his youth, he changed his name to John Cromwell at the age of 26 following a 1912 New York stage appearance. Cromwell made his Broadway debut in the role of John Brooke in '' Little Women'' (1912) an adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's novel. The production was an immediate hit and ran for 184 performances. Throughout Cromwell's stage career, he worked in close collaboration with one of the outstanding Broadway producers of the day, William A. Brady. Indeed, virtually all of the stage productions Cromwell participated in before he began his film career were produced by Brady. ''The Painted Woman'' (1913) marked Cromwell's first assignment as stage director. Written by
Frederic Arnold Kummer Frederic Arnold Kummer Sr. (August 5, 1873 – November 22, 1943) was an American author, playwright and screenwriter. He also wrote under the pseudonym Arnold Fredericks. Several of his works were made into films. A caricature of him is on the w ...
, the play closed in two days. By 1914, he was acting in and co-directing productions, including "Too Many Cooks" (1914), which ran for 223 performances. In 1915, he joined the New York Repertory Company and performed in the American premieres of two
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 ...
plays:
Major Barbara ''Major Barbara'' is a three-act English play by George Bernard Shaw, written and premiered in 1905 and first published in 1907. The story concerns an idealistic young woman, Barbara Undershaft, who is engaged in helping the poor as a Major in ...
in 1916, as character "Charles Lomax", and in a revival of
Captain Brassbound's Conversion ''Captain Brassbound's Conversion'' (1900) is a play by G. Bernard Shaw. It was published in Shaw's 1901 collection ''Three Plays for Puritans'' (together with '' Caesar and Cleopatra'' and '' The Devil's Disciple''). The first American producti ...
. Cromwell's stage career was interrupted by a brief stint in the U.S. Army during
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 ...
. By the 1920s, he had become a respected Broadway director, often in collaboration with co-directors
Frank Craven Frank Craven (August 24, 1875September 1, 1945) was an American stage and film actor, playwright, and screenwriter, best known for originating the role of the Stage Manager in Thornton Wilder's ''Our Town''. Early years Craven's parents, John T ...
or William Brady. Cromwell frequently performed on stage in this period which included works by future Pulitzer-Prize-winners
Sidney Howard Sidney Coe Howard (June 26, 1891 – August 23, 1939) was an American playwright, dramatist and screenwriter. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1925 and a posthumous Academy Award in 1940 for the screenplay for ''Gone with the Wind''. ...
and
Robert E. Sherwood Robert Emmet Sherwood (April 4, 1896 – November 14, 1955) was an American playwright and screenwriter. He is the author of '' Waterloo Bridge, Idiot's Delight, Abe Lincoln in Illinois, Rebecca, There Shall Be No Night, The Best Years of Our ...
. In 1927, Cromwell directed and played the lead in the gangster drama, ''The Racket'', with newcomer Edward G. Robinson debuting in a tough guy role of the type for which Robinson would become known in his film career. In 1928, Cromwell moved to Hollywood to serve as a dialogue director during the movie industry's transition to
Sound film 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 ...
s. Though Cromwell would return to Broadway in later years, his primary occupation after 1928 was as a movie director.


Early film career


Paramount Famous Lasky, 1929

Paramount Famous Lasky film producer Ben Schulberg signed the 42-year-old Cromwell as a screen actor in October 1928 at the time of the industry-wide transition from silent productions to the new
sound technology In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
. After a satisfactory ''début'' performance in the 1929 early talkie ''
The Dummy "The Dummy" is episode 98 of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone'' starring Cliff Robertson as a ventriloquist. It is not to be confused with a similar episode "Caesar and Me", in which Jackie Cooper plays a ventriloquis ...
'' which featured
Ruth Chatterton Ruth Chatterton (December 24, 1892 – November 24, 1961) was an American stage, film, and television actress, aviator and novelist. She was at her most popular in the early to mid-1930s, and in the same era gained prominence as an aviator, ...
,
Fredric March Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated, versatile stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary '' Variety'', April 16, 1975, ...
,
Jack Oakie Jack Oakie (born Lewis Delaney Offield; November 12, 1903 – January 23, 1978) was an American actor, starring mostly in films, but also working on Theatre, stage, radio and television. He portrayed Napaloni in Charlie Chaplin, Chaplin's ''T ...
and
ZaSu Pitts Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...
, Cromwell was invited to share directorial duties with
Edward Sutherland Albert Edward Sutherland (January 5, 1895 – December 31, 1973) was a film director and actor. Born in London, he was from a theatrical family. His father, Al Sutherland, was a theatre manager and producer and his mother, Julie Ring, was a vaud ...
, an experienced filmmaker. Though Cromwell had never worked behind a camera, Paramount was eager to hire experienced stage directors "because of their presumed knowledge in handling dialogue." However erroneous this assumption, Cromwell and Sutherland enjoyed a productive collaboration completing two early talkies, both in 1929: ''
Close Harmony A chord is in close harmony (also called close position or close structure) if its notes are arranged within a narrow range, usually with no more than an octave between the top and bottom notes. In contrast, a chord is in open harmony (also c ...
'', a jazz-band romance, and ''
The Dance of Life ''The Dance of Life'' is a 1929 American pre-Code musical film. It is the first of three film adaptations of the popular 1927 Broadway play ''Burlesque'', with the others being '' Swing High, Swing Low'' (1937) and '' When My Baby Smiles at Me ...
'', based on the George Mankers Watters play Burlesque (Sutherland's co-direction went uncredited in ''The Dance of Death''). Cromwell had a minor acting role in each of these productions. In a 1973 interview with
Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fi ...
, Cromwell offered a frank assessment of his difficulties adapting to the new medium as a movie director: During Cromwell's early films with Paramount, he was tasked with directing stage and film star
George Bancroft George Bancroft (October 3, 1800 – January 17, 1891) was an American historian, statesman and Democratic politician who was prominent in promoting secondary education both in his home state of Massachusetts and at the national and internati ...
, the studio's top property. Bancroft had performed in a number successful silent films with Paramount's rising director Josef von Sternberg, culminating in a Best Actor nomination for Bancroft in ''
Thunderbolt A thunderbolt or lightning bolt is a symbolic representation of lightning when accompanied by a loud thunderclap. In Indo-European mythology, the thunderbolt was identified with the 'Sky Father'; this association is also found in later Hel ...
'' (1930). ''
The Mighty ''The Mighty'' is a 1998 American coming of age buddy comedy-drama film directed by Peter Chelsom and written by Charles Leavitt. Based on the book ''Freak the Mighty'' by Rodman Philbrick, the film stars Sharon Stone, Gena Rowlands, Gillian A ...
'' (1930) was Cromwell's first of four pairings with Bancroft, and his first solo debut as director. On his next film, '' The Street of Chance'', Cromwell formed a personal and professional bond with producer David O. Selznick in his first production, then an assistant to B.P. Schulberg. The picture, starring
William Powell William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor. A major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the '' Thin Man'' series based on the Nick and Nora Charles characters cr ...
,
Kay Francis Kay Francis (born Katharine Edwina Gibbs; January 13, 1905 – August 26, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 an ...
and
Jean Arthur Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American Broadway and film actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s. Arthur had feature roles in three F ...
, was a success at the box office. A curious coda to Cromwell's last credited picture with Paramount entitled '' Seven Days Leave'' (1930) is that he denies directing the film. According to biographer Kingsley Canham: "Cromwell disputes the credit. Claiming he was hired to work trictlyon dialogue... ein fact contributed nothing to the finished film."


Paramount-Publix, 1930–1931

In 1930, Paramount Famous Lasky Corporation changed its name to Paramount Publix Corporation because of the growing importance of the Publix Theater chain. '' The Texan'' (1930) was Cromwell's adaptation of the O. Henry short story " A Double-Dyed Deceiver" and starring Paramount's rising star
Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, ...
. Paramount again enlisted actors Powell and Francis in Cromwell's '' For the Defense'' (also 1930), a legal drama involving a lawyer and his criminal fiancée. He directed the second cinematic version of Mark Twain's ''
Tom Sawyer Thomas Sawyer () is the titular character of the Mark Twain novel ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876). He appears in three other novels by Twain: '' Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884), '' Tom Sawyer Abroad'' (1894), and '' Tom Sawyer, ...
'' (also 1930) with Jackie Coogan starring as the eponymous Tom. During 1931-1932, Cromwell fulfilled his commitments to direct Bancroft in three more films. Indeed, Cromwell had agreed to continue working with Bancroft only if Paramount arranged to let him direct Gary Cooper and Helen Hayes in an adaption of
Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fi ...
's novel '' A Farewell to Arms'', a project that never materialized. The Bancroft films include ''
Scandal Sheet Tabloid journalism is a popular style of largely sensationalist journalism (usually dramatized and sometimes unverifiable or even blatantly false), which takes its name from the tabloid newspaper format: a small-sized newspaper also known as ...
'', with co-star
Clive Brook Clifford Hardman "Clive" Brook (1 June 1887 – 17 November 1974) was an English film actor. After making his first screen appearance in 1920, Brook emerged as a leading British actor in the early 1920s. After moving to the United States ...
, ''
Rich Man's Folly ''Rich Man's Folly'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by John Cromwell and written by Edward E. Paramore Jr. and Grover Jones. The film stars George Bancroft, Frances Dee, Robert Ames, Juliette Compton, David Durand, Dorothy Pe ...
'' (both 1931), an adaption of
Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
' ''
Dombey and Son ''Dombey and Son'' is a novel by English author Charles Dickens. It follows the fortunes of a shipping firm owner, who is frustrated at the lack of a son to follow him in his footsteps; he initially rejects his daughter's love before eventual ...
'' and ''
The World and the Flesh ''The World and the Flesh'' is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film directed by John Cromwell and written by Oliver H.P. Garrett. The film stars George Bancroft, Miriam Hopkins, Alan Mowbray, George E. Stone, Mitchell Lewis, Max Wagner and Ha ...
'' (also 1931), a romance set in revolutionary Russia. Cromwell's professional view of Bancroft's performance in
Rich Man's Folly ''Rich Man's Folly'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by John Cromwell and written by Edward E. Paramore Jr. and Grover Jones. The film stars George Bancroft, Frances Dee, Robert Ames, Juliette Compton, David Durand, Dorothy Pe ...
elicited these remarks: Cromwell made three more pictures for Paramount-Publix, all released in 1931: ''
Scandal Sheet Tabloid journalism is a popular style of largely sensationalist journalism (usually dramatized and sometimes unverifiable or even blatantly false), which takes its name from the tabloid newspaper format: a small-sized newspaper also known as ...
'', with Bancroft, '' Unfaithful'', with
Ruth Chatterton Ruth Chatterton (December 24, 1892 – November 24, 1961) was an American stage, film, and television actress, aviator and novelist. She was at her most popular in the early to mid-1930s, and in the same era gained prominence as an aviator, ...
and ''
The Vice Squad ''The Vice Squad'' is a 1931 American Pre-Code drama film directed by John Cromwell, written by Oliver H.P. Garrett, and starring Paul Lukas, Kay Francis, Judith Wood, William B. Davidson, Rockliffe Fellowes, Esther Howard and Monte Carter. ...
'' with
Paul Lukas Paul Lukas (born Pál Lukács; 26 May 1894 – 15 August 1971) was a Hungarian actor. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor, and the first Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama for his performance in the film '' Wat ...
and
Kay Francis Kay Francis (born Katharine Edwina Gibbs; January 13, 1905 – August 26, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 an ...
. During pre-production of the 1932 ''The World and the Flesh'', a tale of the
Bolshevik Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...
of 1917, Cromwell became disgusted with both the quality of the scenario, as well as the Paramount's sharp curtailment in rehearsal time. Cromwell's historical outlook and stage experience informed these following comments: In the early sound films the studios, having experience only with dialogue-free (silent) pictures, deferred to the Broadway dialogue-savvy stage directors, like Cromwell, who they enlisted during the transition to "talkies". In early production of '' For the Defense'', Cromwell reports he was informed about a change in policy concerning rehearsals: Cromwell bargained with the producer, and they agreed to trade shooting days in exchange for rehearsal days. Cromwell recalled: "I think I ended up with four days rehearsal ycutting two days off the shooting schedule. Incredible! I couldn't believe it years afterwards."


Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO): 1933–1935

Cromwell's disaffection from Paramount led him to "walk off the lot" after ''The World and the Flesh'', and with the help of his agent
Myron Selznick Myron Selznick (October 5, 1898 – March 23, 1944) was an American film producer and talent agent. Life and career Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Selznick was the son of film executive Lewis J. Selznick and brother of renowned producer ...
, he moved to
RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...
. At the time, David O. Selznick was running RKO, and Cromwell recalled his professional experience there fondly: "RKO was always an endearing place to me; it had a distinct feeling of independence and individuality it never lost." Cromwell was initially assigned by RKO to direct "a series of soap operas and films about family strife". Among these were ''
Sweepings ''Sweepings'' is a 1933 American pre-Code drama film directed by John Cromwell, written by Lester Cohen, and starring Lionel Barrymore, Eric Linden, William Gargan, Gloria Stuart and Alan Dinehart. It was released on April 14, 1933, by RKO Pictu ...
'' (1933), starring Lionel Barrymore in an unusually "restrained" performance. Cromwell made a fine adaptation of a play he directed in 1926, ''The Silver Cord''. His 1933 film adaptation concerns a young wife,
Irene Dunne Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she performed in films of other gen ...
, who battles with her interfering mother-in-law,
Laura Hope Crews Laura Hope Crews (December 12, 1879 – November 12, 1942) was an American actress who is best remembered today for her later work as a character actress in motion pictures of the 1930s. Her best-known film role was Aunt Pittypat in ''Gone ...
. The picture, which disparaged "motherhood", was considered audacious in its day. Cromwell finished off this series with ''
Double Harness ''Double Harness'' (1933) is an American pre-Code film starring Ann Harding and William Powell. It was based on the play of the same name by Edward Poor Montgomery. A young woman maneuvers a lazy playboy into marrying her. This was one of sever ...
'' (1933), "a shrewd and sophisticated interior drama" with
Ann Harding Ann Harding (born Dorothy Walton Gatley; August 7, 1902 – September 1, 1981) was an American theatre, motion picture, radio, and television actress. A regular player on Broadway and in regional theater in the 1920s, in the 1930s Harding was ...
and
William Powell William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor. A major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the '' Thin Man'' series based on the Nick and Nora Charles characters cr ...
.


''Ann Vickers'' (1933)

Cromwell filmed a then-controversial adaptation of the
Sinclair Lewis Harry Sinclair Lewis (February 7, 1885 – January 10, 1951) was an American writer and playwright. In 1930, he became the first writer from the United States (and the first from the Americas) to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, which was ...
novel, '' Ann Vickers'' (1933).
Irene Dunne Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she performed in films of other gen ...
played the eponymous character, a young social reformer who exposes the degrading conditions in American prisons and has an affair with a jurist
Walter Huston Walter Thomas Huston ( ;According to the Province of Ontario. ''Ontario, C ...
.
Jane Murfin Jane Murfin (October 27, 1884 – August 10, 1955) was an American playwright and screenwriter. The author of several successful plays, she wrote some of them with actress Jane Cowl—most notably '' Smilin' Through'' (1919), which was adapted ...
's screenplay reflected the characterizations in the Lewis novel, where Vickers is a "birth control advocate" who engages in an extramarital affair. The script drew the ire of the Production Code Administration and the Catholic Church. The Studio Relations Committee (SRC) chairman James Wingate called the script "vulgarly offensive". The SRC, overseeing the
MPPDA The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is an American trade association representing the five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service Netflix. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Picture Producers and Distribu ...
, demanded an overhaul of the Murfin's script. RKO managers protested, and a compromise was reached when Dunne's character was relieved of adultery charges by a change in her marital status. Though awarded approval, the film helped spur the formation of the Production Code Administration, which would later rigorously censor films for almost a quarter-century, largely under Catholic moral crusader Joseph Ignatius Breen.


''Spitfire'' and ''This Man Is Mine'' (1934)

Cromwell's first two pictures of 1934 are considered "largely forgettable" according to author Michael Barson, beginning with a "miscast" Katharine Hepburn in ''
Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Grif ...
''. RKO's 26-year-old Hepburn as "Spitfire" (her pejorative sobriquet) was conceived as a "character study" rather than a genuine narrative, to showcase the rising young star. Based on the play ''Trigger'' by Lula Vollmer, Hepburn is improbably tasked with portraying an anti-social hillbilly-tomboy and faith healer in a rural backcountry community. Cromwell admitted that he was skeptical as to Hepburn's suitability for the part and objected to her contrived country accent. Hepburn herself tried unsuccessfully to get out of the film. Cromwell, struggling with setting up his shots and conscious of avoiding cost overruns, disputed with Hepburn as to re-shooting of a key scene. The ''contretemps'' led to Cromwell's emphatic rejection of her requests and the director, "who did not like the film much", recalled that "I think those isputeswere reflected in the picture." Nonetheless, Cromwell's visual compositions, along with the work of his cinematographer
Edward Cronjager Edward Cronjager (21 March 1904 – 15 June 1960) was an American cinematographer whose career spanned from the silent era through the 1950s. He came from a family of cinematographers, with his father, uncle, and brother all working in the film ...
showcase Hepburn's "exuberant" performance, in which "her physical celebrations of the joys of life make this an eccentric and likeable film." Surprisingly, the film was successful at the box office. Cromwell completed another soap opera with Irene Dunne and
Ralph Bellamy Ralph Rexford Bellamy (June 17, 1904 – November 29, 1991) was an American actor whose career spanned 65 years on stage, film, and television. During his career, he played leading roles as well as supporting roles, garnering acclaim and ...
, '' This Man is Mine'' (1934).


''Of Human Bondage'' (1934)

Cromwell embarked on a film that proved to be highly offensive to the censors, but immensely popular among moviegoers: ''
Of Human Bondage ''Of Human Bondage'' is a 1915 novel by W. Somerset Maugham. The novel is generally agreed to be Maugham's masterpiece and to be strongly autobiographical in nature, although he stated, "This is a novel, not an autobiography; though much in i ...
''. Although film historian John Baxter considers Cromwell's adaption of
W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...
's novel ''
Of Human Bondage ''Of Human Bondage'' is a 1915 novel by W. Somerset Maugham. The novel is generally agreed to be Maugham's masterpiece and to be strongly autobiographical in nature, although he stated, "This is a novel, not an autobiography; though much in i ...
'' "overrated", critic Jon Hopwood posited that the director "made his name" in Hollywood with this picture. The film dramatizes forms of personal tyranny and obsession, in which an unsophisticated and heartless waitress, Mildred (
Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...
) employs low-cunning to win the affection of a club-footed and self-effacing young medical student, Philip (
Leslie Howard Leslie Howard Steiner (3 April 18931 June 1943) was an English actor, director and producer.Obituary ''Variety'', 9 June 1943. He wrote many stories and articles for ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', and ''Vanity Fair'' and was one o ...
). The scenes are shot with great efficiency and effect in which "the camera movement seems to represent the emotional state of the characters." Cromwell adapted to studio budget limitations, employing the spartan interior sets to good effect in emphasizing the "unreality" of medical student's daily routines. Bette Davis' Mildred saw the emergence of the actress in a "breakthrough" performance and "her first truly great film role." Davis' rendition fully conveys "the vulgarity and venality" of the character, impressing studios executives and audiences. Like Cromwell's 1933 ''Ann Vickers'', ''Of Human Bondage'' was received the disapproval of the Production Code Administration (PCA), led by Catholic activist
Joseph Breen Joseph Ignatius Breen (October 14, 1888 – December 5, 1965) was an American film censor with the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America who applied the Hays Code to film production.Staff report (December 8, 1965). Joseph I ...
. The PCA demanded a number of alterations to the scenario, among them that Mildred's diagnosis of syphilis be changed to
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
, and that the coarseness of Davis' interpretation of the "slatternly waitress" be toned down. RKO readily complied under threat of a $25,000 fine per violation. Despite studio executives' submitting to the censorship, ''Of Human Bondage'' was picketed in the major cities in the
Mid-west The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...
by the Catholic
National Legion of Decency The National Legion of Decency, also known as the Catholic Legion of Decency, was a Catholic group founded in 1934 by Archbishop of Cincinnati, John T. McNicholas, as an organization dedicated to identifying objectionable content in motion pictur ...
. Perhaps in response to the reputation the film acquired by these demonstrations, the picture broke attendance records at Chicago's Hippodrome Theater with hundreds of moviegoers turned away. Nationwide, the movie enjoyed a tremendous box-office success. As to Cromwell's successful handling of Davis' role, he was never labelled a "woman's director" (as were directors such as
George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head ...
). Nevertheless, his extensive experience as a stage performer endowed him a sympathy which elicited fine performances from his players, especially the women. Davis' performance was an early manifestation of this salutary influence. The last film released in 1934 directed by Cromwell was a post-WWI romantic drama ''
The Fountain ''The Fountain'' is a 2006 American epic romantic drama film written and directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. Blending elements of fantasy, history, spirituality, and science fiction, the film consists of t ...
'' concerning an Englishwoman who must tell her devoted German husband returning from the war that she has fallen in love with her childhood sweetheart. Film historian Kingsley Canham considers this a "key" film in Cromwell's oeuvre, showcasing the director's "elegance" and "assurance" in his handling of the ''décor'' and its relationship to performances. The "restlessness and soul searching" of the expatriate wife Julie (
Ann Harding Ann Harding (born Dorothy Walton Gatley; August 7, 1902 – September 1, 1981) was an American theatre, motion picture, radio, and television actress. A regular player on Broadway and in regional theater in the 1920s, in the 1930s Harding was ...
) and her lover interned British flyer Lewis (
Brian Aherne William Brian de Lacy Aherne (2 May 190210 February 1986) was an English actor of stage, screen, radio and television, who enjoyed a long and varied career in Britain and the United States. His first Broadway appearance in '' The Barretts of ...
) is conveyed through camera movements, and with a minimum of dialogue. The "metaphysical" nature of this romance is made explicit by Cromwell's insertion of an excerpt from the English poet
Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake ...
's poem " Dejection". Canham praises ''The Fountain'' as "undoubtedly one of Cromwell's most outstanding achievements..." After finishing ''Of Human Bondage'', Cromwell enjoyed a pleasant interlude making ''
Village Tale ''Village Tale'' is a 1935 American drama film directed by John Cromwell and starring Randolph Scott, Kay Johnson, Arthur Hohl, and Robert Barrat. The screenplay by Allan Scott was adapted from author and scenarist Phil Stong in his 1934 novel ...
'' (1935), "one of Cromwell's favorite projects." Comprising a series of character studies, the picture features
Guinn "Big Boy" Williams Guinn Terrell Williams Jr. (April 26, 1899 – June 6, 1962) was an American actor who appeared in memorable westerns such as '' Dodge City'' (1939), ''Santa Fe Trail'' (1940), and '' The Comancheros'' (1961). He was nicknamed "Big Boy" ...
and Ann Dvorak. '' Jalna'' and '' I Dream Too Much''(both 1935), represent a return to Cromwell's "soap opera" depictions of familial relations and marital strife. The director's wife
Kay Johnson Catherine Townsend Johnson (November 29, 1904 – November 17, 1975) was an American stage and film actress. Family Johnson was born in Mount Vernon, New York. Her father was architect Thomas R. Johnson, who worked in the firm of Cass Gil ...
was featured in ''Jalna'', and
Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor. He had a career that spanned five decades on Broadway and in Hollywood. He cultivated an everyman screen image in several films considered to be classics. Born and ra ...
starred in ''I Dream too Much''.


United Artists and 20th Century Fox, 1936–1939

After his recent collaborations with
Pandro S. Berman Pandro Samuel Berman (March 28, 1905July 13, 1996), also known as Pan Berman, was an American film producer. Early life Berman was born to a Jewish family in Pittsburgh in 1905. His father Henry was general manager of Universal Pictures durin ...
and other producers, Cromwell reunited with David O. Selznick, following him to
United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...
and
20th Century Fox 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 ...
to make five films: ''
Little Lord Fauntleroy ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'' is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was published as a serial in ''St. Nicholas Magazine'' from November 1885 to October 1886, then as a book by Scribner's (the publisher of ''St. Nicholas'') in 1886. The ill ...
'' (1936), '' To Mary – with Love'' (1936), '' Banjo on My Knee'' (1936), ''
The Prisoner of Zenda ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' is an 1894 adventure novel by Anthony Hope, in which the King of Ruritania is drugged on the eve of his coronation and thus is unable to attend the ceremony. Political forces within the realm are such that, in orde ...
'' (1937) and '' Algiers'' (1938). David O. Selznick enlisted Cromwell to make a heavily invested re-make of the silent era film ''
Little Lord Fauntleroy ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'' is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was published as a serial in ''St. Nicholas Magazine'' from November 1885 to October 1886, then as a book by Scribner's (the publisher of ''St. Nicholas'') in 1886. The ill ...
'' (1921) The casting of child actor
Freddy Bartholomew Frederick Cecil Bartholomew (March 28, 1924 – January 23, 1992), known for his acting work as Freddie Bartholomew, was an English-American child actor. One of the most famous child actors of all time, he became very popular in 1930s Cinema of ...
in the title role, according to Canham, was a masterstroke by Selznick and Cromwell's direction showcases the "sheer professionalism" of Bartholomew's acting abilities. Cromwell wisely selected his supporting cast from Hollywood's renowned "English Colony" of British expatriates. A film that emphasizes characterization over incident, Cromwell's handling of the camera endows the picture with a cinematic quality that avoids the impression of "filmed literature." The first film created under
Selznick International Pictures Selznick International Pictures was a Hollywood motion picture studio created by David O. Selznick in 1935, and dissolved in 1943. In its short existence the independent studio produced two films that received the Academy Award for Best Picture— ...
, ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'' was his most profitable production until ''
Gone With the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind may also refer to: Music * ''Gone with the Wind'' ...
'' (1939).


''Banjo on My Knee'' (1936)

Selznick tasked Cromwell with filming "another marital drama" released by 20th Century Fox studios with
Claire Trevor Claire Trevor ( Wemlinger; March 8, 1910April 8, 2000) was an American actress. She appeared in 65 feature films from 1933 to 1982, winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in ''Key Largo'' (1948), and received nomina ...
the interloper and
Myrna Loy Myrna Loy (born Myrna Adele Williams; August 2, 1905 – December 14, 1993) was an American film, television and stage actress. Trained as a dancer, Loy devoted herself fully to an acting career following a few minor roles in silent films. ...
and
Warner Baxter Warner Leroy Baxter (March 29, 1889 – May 7, 1951) was an American film actor from the 1910s to the 1940s. Baxter is known for his role as the Cisco Kid in the 1928 film ''In Old Arizona'', for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor at ...
as the happy couple. '' Banjo on My Knee'' (1936), set in the
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
and a comedy-of-errors interspersed with musical productions, included a fulsome rendition of
W. C. Handy William Christopher Handy (November 16, 1873 – March 28, 1958) was an American composer and musician who referred to himself as the Father of the Blues. Handy was one of the most influential songwriters in the United States. One of many musici ...
's "
St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...
". The film bears similarities in setting and staging to director
James Whale James Whale (22 July 1889 – 29 May 1957) was an English film director, theatre director and actor, who spent the greater part of his career in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood. He is best remembered for several horror films: ''Fran ...
's ''
Show Boat ''Show Boat'' is a musical with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on Edna Ferber's best-selling 1926 novel of the same name. The musical follows the lives of the performers, stagehands and dock worke ...
'' released the same year. Cromwell, according to Canham, fails to cinematically develop the characters of co-stars Barbara Stanwyck and
Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he bec ...
and reduces the plebeian denizens of the Mississippi River Delta to caricatures.
Walter Brennan Walter Andrew Brennan (July 25, 1894 – September 21, 1974) was an American actor and singer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances in '' Come and Get It'' (1936), ''Kentucky'' (1938), and '' The Westerner ...
, was cast as the rural patriarch Newt Holley, who emerges as welcome comedy relief in a picture writes Canham where "nothing ever comes easily to the people in Cromwell's films and ambition often cloaks failure or death for commoners or even
Ruritania Ruritania is a fictional country, originally located in central Europe as a setting for novels by Anthony Hope, such as ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1894). Nowadays the term connotes a quaint minor European country, or is used as a placeholder name f ...
n royalty."


''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1937)

In reviving novelist
Anthony Hope Sir Anthony Hope Hawkins, better known as Anthony Hope (9 February 1863 – 8 July 1933), was a British novelist and playwright. He was a prolific writer, especially of adventure novels but he is remembered predominantly for only two books: '' T ...
's swashbuckler ''
The Prisoner of Zenda ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' is an 1894 adventure novel by Anthony Hope, in which the King of Ruritania is drugged on the eve of his coronation and thus is unable to attend the ceremony. Political forces within the realm are such that, in orde ...
'', David O. Selznick took a calculated risk as to popular taste. That leading man Ronald Colman was under contract to Selznick was the key factor in proceeding with the project. The decision to pick John Cromwell as director was based on his demonstrated ability to handle actors, and his disciplined observance of budgetary restraints. Despite Cromwell's skill with both male and female actors, an amusing ''contretemps'' arose during script and storyboard development. Ronald Colman (like screen actor
John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly att ...
) favored presenting just one facial profile to the camera to conceal his "bad side". Co-star
Madeleine Carroll Edith Madeleine Carroll (26 February 1906 – 2 October 1987) was an English actress, popular both in Britain and America in the 1930s and 1940s. At the peak of her success in 1938, she was the world's highest-paid actress. Carroll is rememb ...
soon approached Cromwell, claiming a facial defect on the same side as Colman, meaning any face-to-face on-screen close-up would put one actor at disadvantage. As director Cromwell remembered: Despite the generally "fluid style of the finished work" the authorship of several of the action scenes remain in question. Selznick was adamant about engaging directors
George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head ...
and
Woody van Dyke Woodbridge Strong Van Dyke II (Woody) (March 21, 1889 – February 5, 1943) was an American film director and writer who made several successful early sound films, including '' Tarzan the Ape Man'' in 1932, '' The Thin Man'' in 1934, ''San Franc ...
to instill a sharper expressive element into the acting or to provide a more graphic presentation of the action episodes. Cromwell's widely recognized "visual elegance" may have influenced Selznick's "poor opinion of him as an action director." Both Cukor and Van Dyke went uncredited as was customary under Director's Guild rules. Film critic Michael Barson considers Cromwell's ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' as the beginning of his "golden age" among Hollywood directors, and a production that deserves designation as a "classic".


''Algiers'' (1938)

''Algiers'' (1938), Cromwell's re-make of director Julien Duvivier's French thriller ''
Pepe Le Moko Pepe is a pet form of the Spanish name José (Josep). It is also a surname. * People Mononyms *Pepe (footballer, born 1935), real name José Macia, Brazilian footballer *Pepe (footballer, born 1983), real name Képler Laveran Lima Ferreira, ...
'' (1936), launched the Hollywood careers of two European actors:
Charles Boyer Charles Boyer (; 28 August 1899 – 26 August 1978) was a French-American actor who appeared in more than 80 films between 1920 and 1976. After receiving an education in drama, Boyer started on the stage, but he found his success in American fi ...
and
Hedy Lamarr Hedy Lamarr (; born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler; November 9, 1914 January 19, 2000) was an Austrian-born American film actress and inventor. A film star during Hollywood's golden age, Lamarr has been described as one of the greatest movie actress ...
. Cromwell elicited a fine performance from Boyer as an international thief who matches wits with the local police inspector played by
Joseph Calleia Joseph Calleia ( ; born Joseph Alexander Caesar Herstall Vincent Calleja, August 4, 1897 – October 31, 1975) was a Maltese-born American actor and singer on the stage and in films, radio and television. After serving in the British Transport ...
, attempting to lure the French fugitive from his refuge in the "Casbah", the native quarter of Algiers. The dialogue, "tight and logical", was crafted by
John Howard Lawson John Howard Lawson (September 25, 1894 – August 11, 1977) was an American writer, specializing in plays and screenplays. After starting with plays for theaters in New York City, he worked in Hollywood on writing for films. He was the first pres ...
, with contributions from novelist-screenwriter James M. Cain. Cromwell and his cinematographer
James Wong Howe Wong Tung Jim, A.S.C. (; August 28, 1899 – July 12, 1976), known professionally as James Wong Howe (Houghto), was a Chinese-born American cinematographer who worked on over 130 films. During the 1930s and 1940s, he was one of the most soug ...
successfully manufactured a "polished" facsimile of Duvivier's original for producer
Walter Wanger Walter Wanger (born Walter Feuchtwanger; July 11, 1894 – November 18, 1968) was an American film producer active from the 1910s, his career concluding with the turbulent production of '' Cleopatra,'' his last film, in 1963. He began at Para ...
. Cromwell strained to extract an impressive American acting debut from the Austrian Lamarr, whom Wanger wished to mold into a "second Garbo". Cromwell recalled: Cromwell made an aborted attempt to direct producer
Sam Goldwyn Samuel Goldwyn (born Szmuel Gelbfisz; yi, שמואל געלבפֿיש; August 27, 1882 (claimed) January 31, 1974), also known as Samuel Goldfish, was a Polish-born American film producer. He was best known for being the founding contributor a ...
's ''
The Adventures of Marco Polo ''The Adventures of Marco Polo'' is a 1938 adventure film directed by Archie Mayo and starring Gary Cooper, Sigrid Gurie, and Basil Rathbone. It was one of the most elaborate and costly of Samuel Goldwyn's productions. Plot Nicolo Polo shows t ...
'' (ultimately completed by director
Archie Mayo Archibald L. Mayo (January 29, 1891 – December 4, 1968) was a film director, screenwriter and actor. Early years The son of a tailor, Mayo was born in New York City. After attending the city's public schools, he studied at Columbia Unive ...
and
John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...
in 1938), followed briefly by a return to the stage to direct
Fredric March Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated, versatile stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary '' Variety'', April 16, 1975, ...
and
Florence Eldridge Florence Eldridge (born Florence McKechnie, September 5, 1901 – August 1, 1988) was an American actress. She was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play in 1957 for her performance in '' Long Day's Journey into Night''. E ...
.


''Made for Each Other'' and ''In Name Only'': Carole Lombard, 1939

While Selznick was deeply immersed in pre-production for ''
Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind may also refer to: Music * ''Gone with the Wind'' ...
'' (1939), he engaged Cromwell to direct Carole Lombard and James Stewart in the romantic comedy '' Made for Each Other'' (1939). The simple narrative of young newlyweds struggling with both "the trivial and the traumatic" provided a platform to showcase Cromwell's adept handling of the cast. Lombard was eager for a role with dramatic potential (she had been designated as "The Queen of the
Screwball comedy Screwball comedy is a subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1940s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary characteristi ...
" in her earlier roles). She benefited from the straightforward script "that allowed for a great deal of insight into the characters, and for an unusual amount of flexibility in the cast's playing." Lombard's dramatic interpretation of wife Jane Mason emerges as "casual and very human." Stewart is perfectly suited to the role of the unassertive yet endearing young husband in need of the tactful guidance of his more mature spouse. A distinct critical success, but undistinguished at the box-office, Cromwell was delighted to have the opportunity to direct Lombard in his next feature film: ''
In Name Only ''In Name Only'' is a 1939 romantic film starring Cary Grant, Carole Lombard, and Kay Francis, directed by John Cromwell. It was based on the 1935 novel ''Memory of Love'' by Bessie Breuer. The fictional town where it is set, Bridgefield, Co ...
'' (1939). Another production in a genre that Cromwell was well-equipped to present—the marital melodrama—Lombard plays "the other woman" to the wealthy
Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...
, trapped in an unhappy marriage with the possessive
Kay Francis Kay Francis (born Katharine Edwina Gibbs; January 13, 1905 – August 26, 1968) was an American stage and film actress. After a brief period on Broadway in the late 1920s, she moved to film and achieved her greatest success between 1930 an ...
. Lombard's Julie, a widow, suffering from "shattered illusions" of ever possessing Grant, must first abandon all hope before Fate intervenes on her behalf. Grant retains his "natural flippancy" to deliver a number of comic scenes which avoids undermining his character's credibility, and Kay Francis' obsessive matron agrees to give Grant a divorce with this malignant invective: "I hope you'll both be miserable!" Cromwell's overall grasp of the dramatic atmosphere serves to blend the performances and "nearly brings it off." Historian Kingley Canham offers an insight into Cromwell's handling of "romantic illusions" inherent to melodramatic narratives:


''Abe Lincoln in Illinois'' (1940)

RKO executives tasked Cromwell with adapting playwright Robert Sherwood's play '' Abe Lincoln in Illinois'', which had been produced to great acclaim on Broadway in 1938. The
Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
-winning stage production concerned the early career of US President
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
, who led the
Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
forces to victory in the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
. The unfolding war in Europe and the Far East gave special resonance to the subject matter. Despite the fact that 20th Century Fox was well-advanced in producing a
John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...
picture starring
Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor. He had a career that spanned five decades on Broadway and in Hollywood. He cultivated an everyman screen image in several films considered to be classics. Born and ra ...
that dramatized the same events in Lincoln's life, this did not deter bids for the film rights to the Sherwood's historical drama and independent producer Max Gordon financed its purchase for $250,000, to be filmed by RKO studios. Stage actor Raymond Massey, who played the role of Lincoln in the Broadway production was selected, with Sherwood's fulsome approval, to perform in the screen role of '' Abe Lincoln in Illinois''. Cromwell's characterization of Lincoln is distinct from that of the Ford's in ''
Young Mr. Lincoln ''Young Mr. Lincoln'' is a 1939 American biographical drama western film about the early life of President Abraham Lincoln, directed by John Ford and starring Henry Fonda. Ford and producer Darryl F. Zanuck fought for control of the film, to ...
'' (1939). Whereas Ford presents a mythological figure who rises from a humble rural lawyer to the most exalted position in the nation, Cromwell's relies less on iconography and emphasizes historic details which reveal Lincoln's early character as less exalted: "Raymond Massey mergesas a far less confident Lincoln than Henry Fonda." The presentation of Lincoln's historical relationship with
Ann Rutledge Ann Mayes Rutledge (January 7, 1813 – August 25, 1835) was allegedly Abraham Lincoln's first love. Early life Born near Henderson, Kentucky, Ann Mayes Rutledge was the third of 10 children born to Mary Ann Miller Rutledge and James Rutledge ...
(played by May Howard) is used by Cromwell to establish aspects of Lincoln's essential character and avoids Ford's romantization of Rutledge in ''Young Abe Lincoln'', which features a sentimental graveside eulogy. Actor
Ruth Gordon Ruth Gordon Jones (October 30, 1896 – August 28, 1985) was an American actress, screenwriter, and playwright. She began her career performing on Broadway at age 19. Known for her nasal voice and distinctive personality, Gordon gained internati ...
, in her debut screen appearance as the future Mrs. Lincoln, provides a key antidote to Cromwell's callow Lincoln who is lazy, skeptical and lacking in ambition. Gordon's Mary Todd forthrightly sets about preparing Lincoln to face his destiny in anticipation of marrying him, providing "a remarkably astute cinematic interpretation." Cinematographer James Wong Howe's lighting and camera work effectively documents the transformation in Lincoln that earned Howe an Oscar nomination.


''Victory'' (1940)

As early as 1919, Cromwell had taken a keen interest in novelist Joseph Conrad's psychological drama '' Victory: An Island Tale'' (1915), concerning an English expatriate who attempts to withdraw as a recluse to a small
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
n island. His solitary existence is undone when he rescues a young woman, leading to the infiltration of his sanctuary by a gang of sociopaths, with tragic results. Cromwell personally contacted Conrad shortly after publication of ''Victory'' to obtain production and dramatic rights to the work, only to discover that permission had been bestowed on producer Laurence Irving and McDonald Hastings, respectively. Cromwell directed a version of their adaptation in the United States in the 1920s that quickly folded. Twenty years later, Cromwell filmed his screen version, ''
Victory The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes ...
'' (1940), for Paramount with Fredrick March as the recluse Hendrik Heyst and Betty Field as Alma, and
Cedric Hardwicke Sir Cedric Webster Hardwicke (19 February 1893 – 6 August 1964) was an English stage and film actor whose career spanned nearly 50 years. His theatre work included notable performances in productions of the plays of Shakespeare and Shaw, and ...
as the pathological Mr. Jones (also serving as narrator). Cromwell's professional relationship with March had commenced on Broadway in 1925 when he directed March in Kay Horton's ''Harvest''. Cromwell was dissatisfied with some of the casting in ''Victory,'' particularly with that of British actor Cedric Hardwicke : Cromwell considered his next project more satisfactory. In Cromwell's film adaptation, ''
So Ends Our Night ''So Ends Our Night'' is a 1941 drama directed by John Cromwell (director), John Cromwell and starring Fredric March, Margaret Sullavan and Glenn Ford. The screenplay was adapted by Talbot Jennings from the novel ''Flotsam (novel), Flotsam'' by G ...
'' (1941), an adaption of the Erich Maria Remarque novel ''Flotsam (novel), Flotsam'' (1939), Fredrick March plays an anti-Nazi fugitive pursued by fascist Austrian authorities. In his flight he encounters other exiles, played by Glenn Ford and Margaret Sullavan, and his freedom is only achieved through an ultimate sacrifice. Erich von Stroheim appears in a supporting role as Nazi SS officer Brenner. Cromwell was particularly pleased with the script by Talbot Jennings, and though the picture was not a commercial success, Cromwell considered ''So Ends the Night'' "one of my best."


''Son of Fury'' (1942)

Cromwell's disparaged his next assignment, ''Son of Fury'', as strictly "a studio project." Financed generously by 20th Century Fox but controlled at every phase to ensure its commercial success, Cromwell was limited to using its "lavish sets" by Darryl F. Zanuck to manufacture "a stock 20th Century Fox costume" period-piece. The protagonist, Benjamin Blake, heir to a baronetcy, is played by child actor Roddy McDowell as a youth, then by Tyrone Power in adulthood. Curiously, though a time lapse shows the juvenile Blake's transformation from boy to man, his uncle Sir Arthur Blake George Sanders shows no discernible signs of aging. Cromwell recalled enjoying his work with leading man Tyrone Power "and particularly with [co-star] Gene Tierney" as he "never saw her in a film I liked until ''Son or Fury'' and I think that was because I worked so hard to get her to stop acting and be simple." Historian Kingsley Canham issued this judgement on Cromwell's direction of the picture:


''Since You Went Away'' (1944)

As part of his promotion of his protégé, 25-year-old Jennifer Jones, Selznick enlisted Cromwell to direct a paean to the American family during wartime, ''Since You Went Away'' (1944). Film historian Kingley Canham describes ''Since You Went Away'' as "undoubtedly one of the most superior, polished and effective wartime propaganda works to emerge from the cinema during the Second World War." Selznick, dissatisfied with the screenplay written by author Margaret Buell Wilder, overhauled it to create a celebration of the American United States home front during World War II, homefront as an “impregnable fortress” sustaining the US war effort. The cast features Claudette Colbert, Shirley Temple, Joseph Cotton, Lionel Barrymore, Robert Walker (actor, born 1918), Robert Walker and Agnes Moorehead. Cromwell's handling of the scenes establish, writes Canham "a warmth and conviction" that surpasses perfunctory performances. Despite Selznick's usual heavy involvement in the production, Cromwell's deployment of the cast and technicians was such that "his reputation as a Hollywood professional could have survived entirely on the strength of ''Since You Went Away''." A commercial as well as critical success, the film received nine Oscar nominations - including Best Picture, virtually the entire cast and all technical credits - but winning only one, for Max Steiner's score.


''The Enchanted Cottage'' (1945) and ''Anna and the King of Siam'' (1946)

Cromwell returned to RKO to make one of his most personally gratifying pictures, ''The Enchanted Cottage (1945 film), The Enchanted Cottage'' (1945), a remake of director John S. Robertson's 1924 silent film production, both based on Arthur Wing Pinero's 1921 play of the same name. A romantic fantasy, “handled with perception and feeling” by Cromwell, tells the story (presented in flashbacks) of a disfigured combat veteran Robert Young (actor), Robert Young returning from the First World War and an "ugly duckling" maiden Dorothy McGuire, who marry and together discover the transformative power of love. Pianist and composer Herbert Marshall, blinded in the war, contributes to their personal triumph. Returning to 20th Century Fox, Cromwell embarked on another satisfying project, ''Anna and the King of Siam (film), Anna and the King of Siam'' (1947), "a demonstration of Cromwell's craftsmanship" earning Oscars for cinematography and art direction. The 1944 story by author Margaret Landon is based on the memoirs of Anglo-Indian Anna Leonowens, who served as governess for King Mongkut of Siam (now Thailand) in the 1860s. The King is played by Rex Harrison and the governess by
Irene Dunne Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she performed in films of other gen ...
. Her task is to tutor his numerous children sired with his harem, and "guide the King in matters of state and household" informed by her petty bourgeois sensibilities. Cromwell avoids both minor comedy relief and spectacle, concentrating on character development of the King and Anna. A success at the box-office and the Academy Awards, the Leonowens tale appeared as a Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway musical in 1951 and on film in ''The King and I'' (1956). RKO assigned Cromwell the drama ''Night Song (1948 film), Night Song'' (1948) starring Dana Andrews and Merle Oberon concerning a wealthy society woman who strives to advance the career of a blind pianist. Termed “a disaster [and] an unbelievable film” the picture's only saving grace is a cameo appearance by Arthur Rubinstein performing at the piano. During the post-World War II period, Cromwell's created a number of films that are considered film noir and reflect the director's frame-up as a Fellow-traveler accused of Communist sympathies by the House Un-American Activities Committee investigators and Hollywood executives during the emerging McCarthyism, McCarthyite era. Cromwell claimed that "I was never anything that suggested a Bolsheviks, Red, and there never was the slightest evidence with which to accuse me of being one." Nevertheless, Cromwell would be Hollywood blacklist, blacklisted by the Hollywood film industry from 1952 to 1958.


''Dead Reckoning'' (1947): Columbia Pictures

Warner Bros. studios, with top film star Humphrey Bogart under contract, reluctantly agreed to an actor exchange with Harry Cohn's Columbia Pictures, making Bogart available for a limited period of time to the rival studio. Bogart had the option of picking his director and screenplay, and settled on Cromwell. Cromwell recalled his earliest encounter with the actor in the 1922 Broadway production of ''Drifting'' in which Bogart was cast in the roles of Ernie Crockett and The Third Husband: In ''Dead Reckoning (1947 film), Dead Reckoning'' (1947), Bogart portrays a hardened WWII veteran who engages in a deadly pursuit to locate the murderer of a comrade-in-arms. Lizabeth Scott serves as the noir ''femme-fatale''. The often incoherent narrative reflects Cromwell's struggle to make sense of the disconcerting script. Cromwell recalled: Despite these conceptual limitations, Cromwell achieves a level of coherency that delivers a vigorous film in the ''noir'' style.


Hollywood and the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

During the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) 1947 investigations into the film industry, John Cromwell was identified as a person of interest linked to supposed Communist subversion in Hollywood. Cromwell described himself as "a 'liberal' Democrat" and avers he did not become politically active until the re-election campaign for US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's third run for the White House in 1940. Most of this, according to Cromwell, was limited to collecting membership dues for the Hollywood Democratic Committee which consisted of "3,000 members". In a 1973 interview with film historian
Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fi ...
for ''Action'' magazine, Cromwell recounted studio efforts to undermine his work during the anti-Communist McCarthyism, witch-hunts: Cromwell's agent had negotiated an excellent film contract, but within weeks RKO was purchased by film producer and virulent anti-Communist Howard Hughes. As Cromwell remembered, "the complete freedom from inter-studio politics went up in smoke." He said that the change in ownership caused an exodus of screenwriters and technicians from the studios whose "reputations" were perceived by Hollywood executives as "tinged" with sympathies for Communism: the writers "knew it was useless to stay there". Remaining under contract, Cromwell decided to persevere at RKO, confident that "they could not harm me much". On the contrary, Cromwell discerned a conscious effort to force him out when RKO executives presented him with an ultimatum: accept studio dictated screenplays and scripts, or violate his contract. Cromwell was convinced that a screenwriter had approached Hughes, urging him to buy the rights of a story that would be so repellent to Cromwell the director would be compelled to reject it—providing RKO grounds for terminating his lucrative agreement. Cromwell describes his dilemma: Cromwell reports that the studio immediately assigned a screenwriter to the pre-production team who was "one of the worst [anti-Communist] 'McCarthyism, witch-hunters' in Hollywood, and I saw that this was pretty deliberate". Multiple screenwriters were tasked with developing a workable script from the flawed story. They came to loggerheads with Cromwell, finally convincing RKO management that it was "logically" impossible to make the picture. When delays in production threatened to trigger the "triple-salary" provision in Cromwell's contract, RKO loaned Cromwell to Warner Bros. to make ''Caged (1950 film), Caged''. The final film, eventually released in 1949, had to be retitled ''The Woman on Pier 13''.


''Caged'' (1950)

Cromwell's ''noir'' picture, ''Caged (1950 film), Caged'' (1950), is an indictment of an American social and sexual hierarchy set in the microcosm of a woman's prison. Among Cromwell's "bitterest films", historian Kingsley Canham describes its formulation: A Warner Brothers production, Cromwell adopted the visual effects, subject matter and dramatic music characteristic of the studio's pictures, including its “hard-boiled” dialogue. At the center of Cromwell's work—and “casting against type”—are the strong performances by Eleanor Parker, Agnes Moorehead, Hope Emerson, Betty Garde and Lee Patrick (actress), Lee Patrick, through whom he “makes his case”. Cromwell returned to RKO (with John Houseman producing) in the studios’ bid to duplicate the success of ''Caged,'' again a crime drama, where Dennis O'Keefe is the love object of Jane Greer and Lizabeth Scott: ''The Company She Keeps'' (1951). Cromwell failed to fully make use of the talented cast and to effectively dramatize the confusing script.


''The Racket'' (1951)

Cromwell's last film before his expulsion by the Hollywood studios under the anti-Communist blacklist was ''The Racket (1951 film), The Racket'' (1951). The play by Bartlett Cormack had been produced on Broadway in 1927, with Cromwell in the leading role of Capt. McQuigg (with future film star Edward G. Robinson in a bit part). In the The Racket (1928 film), 1928 silent film adaption of the play directed by Lewis Milestone and produced by the 22-year-old Howard Hughes, Robinson is elevated to the role of gangster Nick Scanlon for this silent film version. Robert Mitchum reprises the role of the honest police Captain Thomas McQuigg, the same character director Cromwell had performed on Broadway in 1927. Cromwell's film version is a dark and pessimistic ''noir'' that parades the gangsterism of "the business corporation structure…the brainless thugs...the crooked bail bondsmen and cops and corrupt judges to the unseen 'Man' at the top." The film, which includes suspenseful and effective fight scenes delivers "capable entertainment". As familiar with the material as Cromwell was, RKO's Howard Hughes rejected his final cut and enlisted director Nicholas Ray to shoot additional scenes. Cromwell is reported to have walked off the set in disgust. Due to his blacklisting by the Hollywood studios, Cromwell would not work in the film industry again until later in the decade.


''The Goddess'' (1958)

During the years of forced studio inactivity beginning in 1952, Cromwell's only engagement in Hollywood was a small acting role in ''Top Secret Affair ''(1957), directed by H.C. Potter and starring Kirk Douglas and Susan Hayward. Historian Kingsley Canham reports that the erstwhile director was "active in the theater" during these intervening years. Cromwell was enticed to return to film directing when Columbia Pictures promised him the option make "first cut" on the proposed feature. ''The Goddess (1958 film), The Goddess'' (1958) would be his last major cinematic work, and "in many respects one of his best films." The story and script by dramatist Paddy Chayefsky details the tragic rise and fall of a fictitious Hollywood actress, Emily Ann Faulkner/Rita Shawn. Cromwell chose to present the saga in three chronological and dramatic episodes: "Portrait of a Young Girl, Maryland 1930" (Faulkner played by the 9-year-old Patty Duke), "Portrait of a Young Woman," and "Portrait of a Goddess” (the later two performed by Kim Stanley). Cromwell uses the film as a platform on which to "bitterly parody the emotionalism of his earlier films", linking the episodes together by the repetition of fragments of dialogue from the characters that "echo" throughout the film. ''The Goddess'' emerges as Cromwell's reckoning with the Hollywood film industry. The characterization of Emily Ann Faulkner and Rita Shawn emerge as an indictment of the Hollywood system. Film historian Kingsley Canham observes: Cromwell discovered that his “first cut” rights were inadequate to preserve his work, and in subsequent editing effected through the efforts of writer Chayefsky, ''The Goddess'' was reduced to half its original length. Cromwell ultimately walked off the project. Cromwell's film career closed with two lackluster films: ''The Scavengers (1959 film), The Scavengers'' (1959) starring Vince Edwards and Carol Ohmart, made in the Philippines, and a low-budget drama, ''A Matter of Morals'' (1961), made in Swede with Maj-Britt Nilsson and Patrick O'Neal (actor), Patrick O’Neal.


Life after Hollywood

Cromwell devoted the rest of his career primarily to the theater where he had begun. He wrote three plays, all staged in New York; starred opposite Helen Hayes in a revival of ''What Every Woman Knows (play), What Every Woman Knows'', directed the original Broadway company of ''Desk Set'', and eventually found artistic satisfaction in four seasons at the Tyrone Guthrie theater in Minneapolis, founded by the expatriate British director in 1963 when he, like Cromwell, had grown disenchanted with Broadway's increasing commercialism. Cromwell was cast by Robert Altman in the role of Mr. Rose for the film ''3 Women (film), 3 Women'' (1977) starring Shelley Duvall and Sissy Spacek, and as Bishop Martin in ''A Wedding (1978 film), A Wedding'' (1978) starring Desi Arnaz, Jr., Carol Burnett, Geraldine Chaplin, Mia Farrow, Vittorio Gassman and Lillian Gish. His wife Ruth Nelson also appeared in both Altman films.


Personal life

Cromwell married four times. His first wife, stage actress Alice Lindahl died of influenza in 1918. He and stage actress Marie Goff divorced. Cromwell next married actress
Kay Johnson Catherine Townsend Johnson (November 29, 1904 – November 17, 1975) was an American stage and film actress. Family Johnson was born in Mount Vernon, New York. Her father was architect Thomas R. Johnson, who worked in the firm of Cass Gil ...
in 1928, divorcing in 1946. His final marriage, to actress Ruth Nelson (actress), Ruth Nelson in 1947, lasted until his death in 1979. Cromwell and Johnson had two sons; one is actor James Cromwell.


Death

He died at age 92 in Santa Barbara, California of a pulmonary embolism.


Filmography


Stage Career: Actor, Director, Producer, 1912-1928Internet Movie Database (IMDb)


Footnotes


References

* Arnold, Jeremy. TCM. Abe Lincoln in Illinois. Turner Movie Classics.http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/1309/Abe-Lincoln-in-Illinois/articles.html Retrieved 15 August 2020. * Barson, Michael. 2019. ''John Cromwell: American Actor and Director''. Encyclopedia Britannica, inc. https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Cromwell. December 19, 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2020. * Baxter, John. 1970. ''Hollywood in the Thirties''. International Film Guide Series. Paperback Library, New York. LOC Card Number 68-24003. * Canham, Kingsley. 1976. ''The Hollywood Professionals, Volume 5: King Vidor, John Cromwell, Mervyn LeRoy.'' The Tantivy Press, London. * Brottman, Mikita and Sterritt, David. TCM. ''The Goddess (1958)''. Turner Movie Classics. http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/15894/The-Goddess/articles.html Retrieved 17 August 2020. * Hopwood, Jon C. IMDb. John Cromwell: Biography https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0188669/bio?ref_=nm_sa_1 Retrieved 9 August 2020. * Internet Movie Database (IMDb). Date unk. ''John Cromwell: Other works.'' https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0188669/otherworks?ref_=nmbio_ql_2 Retrieved 11 August 2020. * Koszarski, Richard. 1976. ''Hollywood Directors: 1914-1940''. Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Catalog Number: 76-9262. * LoBianco, Lorraine. TCM ''The Company She Keeps (1951)''. Turner Movie Classics. https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/71346/The-Company-She-Keeps/articles.html Retrieved 21 August 2020. * LoBianco, Lorraine. TCM. ''Directed by John Cromwell''. Turner Movie Classics. http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/216307%7C0/Directed-By-John-Cromwell.html Retrieved 11 August 2020. * Miller, Frank. TCM. ''Since You Went Away (1944)''. Turner Movie Classics. http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/90225/Since-You-Went-Away/articles.html Retrieved 15 August 2020. * Passafiume, Andrea. TCM. ''Abe Lincoln in Illinois''. Turner Movie Classics. http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/1309/Abe-Lincoln-in-Illinois/articles.html Retrieved 14 August 2020 * Quin, Eleanor. TCM. ''In Name Only''. Turner Movie Classics. http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/2238/In-Name-Only/articles.html Retrieved 16 August 2020. * Tatara, Paul. TCM. ''THE RACKET (1951)''. Turner Movie Classics. http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/103611%7C0/The-Racket.html Retrieved 21 August 2020. * TSPDT, Date Unk. ''John Cromwell.'' They Shoot Horses Don't They. https://www.theyshootpictures.com/cromwelljohn.htm Retrieved 11 August 2020.


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cromwell, John 1880s births 1979 deaths Male actors from Toledo, Ohio American theatre directors American male film actors American male stage actors American film directors American people of English descent American people of Scottish descent Tony Award winners Presidents of the Directors Guild of America Hollywood blacklist 20th-century American male actors Deaths from pulmonary embolism