Larry Darmour

Lawrence J. Darmour (1895–1942) was an American film producer, operator of Larry Darmour Productions from 1927, and a significant figure in Hollywood's Poverty Row.

Career

Darmour was born in Flushing, Queens. In September 1927 he released the first entry in the Mickey McGuire series of short subjects, starring a young Mickey Rooney. The series ran for seven years, through about 23 silent shorts and another 40 sound shorts. They were released through Joseph P. Kennedy's FBO, then RKO Radio Pictures. From 1927 to 1929, Darmour also produced the ''Toots and Casper'' series, co-starring Thelma Hill and Bud Duncan.

Rooney's popularity provided a base for Darmour to expand into short subjects featuring Karl Dane, Alberta Vaughn, Louise Fazenda, and others, and eventually into low-budget features, using owned studio space at 5821 Santa Monica Boulevard. The company's first feature was '' Sea Devils'' (1931), starring Molly O'Day.

Into the 1930s the company began producing a stream of formulaic westerns, serials, and mystery film series like ''The Whistler'', the ten '' Crime Doctor'' films, and ''Ellery Queen''. Simultaneously Darmour also began producing for the higher-budget Majestic Pictures until 1935, when Majestic was absorbed into Republic Pictures. Darmour then arranged a releasing deal with Columbia Pictures and completely took over its serial unit in 1938.

Darmour died unexpectedly in 1942. He is buried alongside his wife Alice at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City. The production company continued operations until 1949.

Filmography

In addition to numerous shorts and serials, Darmour produced the following feature films:

* '' Sea Devils'' (1931)
* ''Defenders of the Law'' (1931)
* ''Air Eagles'' (1931)
* ''The Vanishing Frontier'' (1932)
* '' The Crusader'' (1932)
* '' The Unwritten Law'' (1932)
* '' Manhattan Tower'' (1932)
* '' Law and Lawless'' (1932)
* ''Outlaw Justice'' (1932)
* ''Via Pony Express'' (1933)
* ''Gun Law'' (1933)
* ''The Vampire Bat'' (1933)
* ''Trouble Busters'' (1933)
* ''What Price Decency'' (1933)
* ''The World Gone Mad'' (1933)
* ''Cheating Blondes'' (1933)
* '' Sing Sinner Sing '' (1933)
* ''Curtain at Eight'' (1933)
* ''Gigolettes of Paris'' (1933)
* ''The Sin of Nora Moran'' (1933)
* ''Unknown Blonde'' (1934)
* ''The Scarlet Letter'' (1934)
* ''She Had to Choose'' (1934)
* ''Night Alarm'' (1934)
* ''The Fire Trap'' (1935)
* ''The Awakening of Jim Burke'' (1935)
* '' The Perfect Clue'' (1935)
* ''Shadows of the Orient'' (1935)
* ''Reckless Roads'' (1935)
* ''Western Frontier'' (1935)
* ''Heir to Trouble'' (1935)
* '' Motive for Revenge'' (1935)
* ''Western Courage'' (1935)
* ''Lawless Riders'' (1935)
* '' Mutiny Ahead'' (1935)
* ''Heroes of the Range'' (1936)
* ''Avenging Waters'' (1936)
* ''Ranger Courage'' (1936)
* ''The Cattle Thief'' (1936)
* '' North of Nome'' (1936)
* ''The Fugitive Sheriff'' (1936)
* ''Rio Grande Ranger'' (1936)
* ''The Unknown Ranger'' (1936)
* '' Trouble in Morocco'' (1937)
* ''Law of the Ranger'' (1937)
* '' Reckless Ranger'' (1937)
* '' Roaring Timber'' (1937)
* '' The Rangers Step In'' (1937)
* ''Outlaws of the Orient'' (1937)
* '' Under Suspicion'' (1937)
* ''Trapped by G-Men'' (1937)
* ''Rolling Caravans'' (1938)
* ''Making the Headlines'' (1938)
* '' Phantom Gold'' (1938)
* ''Crime Takes a Holiday'' (1938)
* ''The Strange Case of Dr. Meade'' (1938)
* '' Pioneer Trail'' (1938)
* ''Flight into Nowhere'' (1938)
* ''Stagecoach Days'' (1938)
* ''Reformatory'' (1938)
* ''In Early Arizona'' (1938)
* ''Frontiers of '49'' (1939)
* '' Whispering Enemies'' (1939)
* ''The Law Comes to Texas'' (1939)
* ''Hidden Power'' (1939)
* ''Fugitive at Large'' (1939)
* ''Trapped in the Sky'' (1939)
* '' Passport to Alcatraz'' (1940)
* '' The Great Plane Robbery'' (1940)
* '' Outside the Three-Mile Limit'' (1940)
* '' Ellery Queen, Master Detective'' (1940)
* ''Fugitive from a Prison Camp'' (1940)
* '' The Great Swindle'' (1941)
* ''Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery'' (1941)
* ''Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime'' (1941)
* '' Ellery Queen and the Murder Ring'' (1941)
* ''A Close Call for Ellery Queen'' (1942)
* '' A Desperate Chance for Ellery Queen'' (1942)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darmour, Larry
1895 births
1942 deaths
Film producers from New York (state)
Defunct American film studios
People from Queens, New York