Henry Codman Potter (sometimes II or Jr.; November 13, 1904 – August 31, 1977) was an American theatrical producer and director as well as movie director.

Biography

H.C. Potter was born in New York City, the grandson of the Right Rev.

Henry Codman Potter Henry Codman Potter (May 25, 1834 – July 21, 1908) was a bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States. He was the seventh bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. Potter was "more praised and appreciated, perhaps, than any public man ...

, Episcopal bishop of New York, and son of Alonzo Potter, New York investment banker. He attended St. Marks School and graduated from Yale University in 1926, where he was a member of the

Yale Dramatic Association The Yale Dramatic Association, also known as the "Yale Dramat," is the third oldest college theater company in the United States. Founded in 1901 by undergraduates at Yale University, the Dramat has been producing student theatre in the United ...

and

Scroll and Key The Scroll and Key Society is a secret society, founded in 1842 at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut. It is one of the oldest Yale secret societies and reputedly the wealthiest. The society is one of the reputed "Big Three" societies ...

. He attended the Yale School of Drama in the era of

George Pierce Baker George Pierce Baker (April 4, 1866 – January 6, 1935) was a professor of English at Harvard and Yale and author of ''Dramatic Technique'', a codification of the principles of drama. Biography Baker graduated in the Harvard College class of 1887 ...

, and with George Haight founded the Hampton Players, one of the early summer theaters in America, based in Southampton, Long Island from 1927 to 1933. With Haight as producer, he directed numerous Broadway productions, then moved to Hollywood, where he directed over 20 feature films, earning a reputation as a specialist in "gag" comedy. The films he directed include ''

Beloved Enemy ''Beloved Enemy'' is a 1936 American drama film directed by H.C. Potter and starring Merle Oberon, Brian Aherne, and David Niven. It was loosely based on the life of Michael Collins. Plot During the Irish War of Independence in 1921, Irish re ...

'' (1936), '' Wings Over Honolulu'' (1937), ''

Romance in the Dark ''Romance in the Dark'' is a 1938 American comedy musical film directed by H. C. Potter and starring Gladys Swarthout, John Boles, John Barrymore, and Claire Dodd. It is one of five films produced by Paramount in the 1930s featuring Gladys Swa ...

'', '' The Cowboy and the Lady'', and ''

The Shopworn Angel ''The Shopworn Angel'' is a 1938 American drama film directed by H. C. Potter and starring James Stewart, Margaret Sullavan, and Walter Pidgeon. The MGM release featured the second screen pairing of Margaret Sullavan and James Stewart followin ...

'' (1938), ''

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' is an 1876 novel by Mark Twain about a boy growing up along the Mississippi River. It is set in the 1840s in the town of St. Petersburg, which is based on Hannibal, Missouri, where Twain lived as a boy. In the nov ...

'' (1938), ''

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle ''The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle'' is a 1939 American biographical musical comedy directed by H.C. Potter. The film stars Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edna May Oliver, and Walter Brennan. The film is based on the stories ''My Husband'' and ...

'' and ''

Blackmail Blackmail is an act of coercion using the threat of revealing or publicizing either substantially true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met. It is often damaging information, and it may be revealed to fa ...

'' (1939), ''

Congo Maisie ''Congo Maisie'' is a 1940 comedy-drama film directed by H. C. Potter and starring Ann Sothern for the second time in the ten film Maisie Maisie Ravier is a fictional character, the leading character of ten films (1939–1947) and the radio ...

'' and ''

Second Chorus ''Second Chorus'' is a 1940 Hollywood musical comedy film starring Paulette Goddard and Fred Astaire and featuring Artie Shaw, Burgess Meredith and Charles Butterworth, with music by Artie Shaw, Bernie Hanighen and Hal Borne, and lyrics by J ...

'' (1940), '' Hellzapoppin''' (1941), ''

Victory Through Air Power ''Victory Through Air Power'' is a 1942 non-fiction book by Alexander P. de Seversky. It was made into a 1943 The Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney Animation, animated Victory Through Air Power (film), feature film of the same name. Theories D ...

'' (documentary) and '' Mr. Lucky'' (1943), '' The Farmer's Daughter'' and ''

A Likely Story ''A Likely Story'' is a 1947 film directed by H. C. Potter. It starred real-life husband and wife Bill Williams and Barbara Hale. It is also known as ''A Fascinating Nuisance'' and ''Never Say Die''. Plot Bill Baker ( Bill Williams) has recentl ...

'' (1947), ''

You Gotta Stay Happy ''You Gotta Stay Happy'' is a 1948 American romantic comedy film directed by H.C. Potter and starring Joan Fontaine, James Stewart and Eddie Albert. It was distributed by Universal-International and produced by Karl Tunberg. The film was writt ...

'', ''

Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House ''Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House'' is a 1948 American comedy film directed by H. C. Potter and starring Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, and Melvyn Douglas. Written and produced by the team of Melvin Frank and Norman Panama, it was an adaptation ...

'' and ''

The Time of Your Life ''The Time of Your Life'' is a 1939 five-act play by American playwright William Saroyan. The play is the first drama to win both the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. The play opened on Broadway theatre, Broa ...

'' (1948), ''

The Miniver Story ''The Miniver Story'' is a 1950 American drama film that is the sequel to the 1942 film '' Mrs. Miniver''. Like its predecessor, the picture, made by MGM, stars Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon, but it was filmed on-location in England. The film ...

'' (1950), ''

Three for the Show ''Three for the Show'' is a 1955 Technicolor and in CinemaScope musical comedy remake of ''Too Many Husbands''. It stars actress Betty Grable, in her last musical, opposite Jack Lemmon, Gower Champion and Marge Champion. It is based on the 1919 p ...

'' (1955) and ''

Top Secret Affair ''Top Secret Affair'' is a 1957 American romantic comedy film made by Carrollton Inc. and distributed by Warner Bros. that stars Susan Hayward and Kirk Douglas. It was directed by H. C. Potter and produced by Martin Rackin and Milton Sperling ...

'' (1957). An avid private pilot, he served during World War II as superintendent of operations at Falcon Field near Phoenix, Arizona, training

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

pilots, and later as captain in the Air Transport Command, ferrying cargo in small planes to military bases throughout California. His postwar film career was impeded by a contract with

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 ...

, then controlled and virtually brought to a halt by the eccentric policies of its owner

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...

. In 1958, he retired from film work and moved to New York City, where he opened a stage production office with Richard Meyers, and pursued his hobby of training labrador retrievers for field trials. On February 8, 1960, H.C. Potter's name was placed in the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Californ ...

. His star is located at 6633 Hollywood Blvd. Retirement afforded Potter the opportunity to indulge his passion for writing scholarly monographs about

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

for ''

The Baker Street Journal ''The Baker Street Journal'' is a quarterly journal devoted to Sherlockiana published by The Baker Street Irregulars. Leslie S. Klinger has called it "the leading publication" in the study of Sherlock Holmes. History After the formation of The B ...

''. In 1971 he was awarded membership in

The Baker Street Irregulars The Baker Street Irregulars is an organization of Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts founded in 1934 by Christopher Morley. The nonprofit organization currently numbers some 300 individuals worldwide. The group has published ''The Baker Street Journal' ...

, the New York-based organization that keeps green the memory of Sherlock Holmes. Potter was granted the investiture "The Final Problem". In addition, Potter twice won the Morley-Montgomery Award, one of the highest distinctions given by the BSI, for his articles "Reflections on Canonical Vehicles and Something of the Horse" (1971) and '"John H. Watson, Word Painter" (1976). Potter married Lucilla Annie Wylie in 1926. Their three sons were Daniel J. Potter, M.D., Robert A. Potter, Ph.D., and Earl Wylie Potter, Esq. H.C. Potter died in Southampton, New York on August 31, 1977.

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1936) * ''

'' (1938) * ''

'' (1939) * ''

'' (1940) * '' Hellzapoppin'' (1941) * ''

'' (1943) * '' Mr. Lucky'' (1943) * '' The Farmer's Daughter'' (1947) * ''

'' (1948) * ''

'' (1950)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Potter, H. C. 1904 births 1977 deaths American theatre directors American theatre managers and producers Film directors from New York City Yale School of Drama alumni 20th-century American businesspeople