James Whale
Born	July 22, 1889 Dudley, Worcestershire, England
Died	May 29, 1957 (aged 67) Hollywood, California
Years active	1930 - 1949

James Whale (July 22, 1889 – May 29, 1957) was a British born film director, best known for his work in the horror movie genre, making such pictures as Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, and The Invisible Man. Events 1099 - First Crusade: Godfrey of Bouillon is elected the first Defender of the Holy Sepulchre of The Kingdom of Year 1889 ( MDCCCLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Dudley ( is a large town in the West Midlands, England, with a population of 194919. Worcestershire (ˈwʊstəʃə abbreviated Worcs) is a county located in the West Midlands region of central England. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian defeats the Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Year 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar) Events Top grossing films Tom Sawyer Whoopee! Common Clay Check The year 1949 in film involved some significant events Events Top grossing films (U Events 1099 - First Crusade: Godfrey of Bouillon is elected the first Defender of the Holy Sepulchre of The Kingdom of Year 1889 ( MDCCCLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian defeats the Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Year 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar) The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A film director, or filmmaker, is a person who directs the making of a Film. Horror films are Movies that strive to elicit Fear, Horror and terror responses from viewers Frankenstein is a Horror film from Universal Pictures directed by James Whale and very loosely based on the novel of the same name Bride of Frankenstein (advertised as The Bride of Frankenstein) is a science fiction / Horror film. The Invisible Man is a 1933 Horror film based on H G Wells ' Science fiction novel The Invisible Man, published ^[1]

Early life

Whale was born in Dudley, England, the sixth of the seven children of a blast furnaceman and a nurse. Dudley ( is a large town in the West Midlands, England, with a population of 194919. A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical Furnace used for Smelting to produce metals generally Iron. A nurse is responsible—along with other Health care Professionals —for the treatment safety and recovery of acutely or chronically He was thought not strong enough to follow his brothers into the local heavy industries and started work as a cobbler. He realized some talent for signwriting and used his additional income to pay for evening classes at the Dudley School of Arts and Crafts. ^[2]

In October 1915, with World War I underway, he enlisted for the Army and was commissioned second lieutenant. Year 1915 ( MCMXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Second Lieutenant is the lowest commissioned officer Military rank in many Armed forces. He was taken a prisoner of war in August 1917 and, while imprisoned, he continued his love of drawing and sketching but discovered a talent for staging theatrical productions. Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year

Beginnings in the theatre

After the armistice he returned to Birmingham and embarked on a professional stage career. An armistice is a situation where the warring parties agree to stop fighting Birmingham ( ˈbɜːmɪŋəm Ber -ming-um In 1928 he was offered the opportunity to direct two fringe performances of R. C. Sherriff's then unknown play Journey's End starring the young, and hardly better known, Laurence Olivier. Year 1928 ( MCMXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Robert Cedric Sherriff ( 6 June 1896 &ndash 13 November 1975) was an English Playwright and Scriptwriter, best Journey's End is the seventh and most famous play by R C Sherriff. Laurence Kerr Olivier Baron The play was a remarkable success and transferred to the West End (now with a young Colin Clive in the lead role) where it played for 600 performances. West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London 's "Theatreland" Colin Clive ( 20 January 1900 &ndash 25 June 1937) was a British stage and screen Actor best remembered for his portrayal Whale also directed the Broadway stage version and a Hollywood film adaptation of the play. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located Clive reprised his role in the film.

Hollywood career

Whale was best known for his work in the horror genre, making such momentous and iconic pictures as Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935) and The Invisible Man (1933). Horror films are Movies that strive to elicit Fear, Horror and terror responses from viewers Frankenstein is a Horror film from Universal Pictures directed by James Whale and very loosely based on the novel of the same name Bride of Frankenstein (advertised as The Bride of Frankenstein) is a science fiction / Horror film. Not to be confused with Invisible Man, a novel written by Ralph Waldo Ellison ^[3]

He was one of the first directors ever to move the camera through the shot (the German silent cinema, and especially the films of F. W. Murnau, have been mentioned as possible influences on Whale in their use of the fluidly moving camera. Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, better known as F W Murnau ( December 28, 1888 &ndash March 11, 1931) was one of the most influential ^[4]) Universal Pictures owed its stellar success in the 1930s much in part to the huge box-office receipts of these three blockbusters. Universal Studios (sometimes called Universal Pictures or Universal City Studios) a subsidiary of NBC Universal, is a major Global American Further, these pictures established the screen careers of Gloria Stuart, Colin Clive, Elsa Lanchester, Boris Karloff and Claude Rains, to name just a few, most of whom Whale had known previously in England and had personally selected for their roles in his films. Gloria Frances Stewart, also known as Gloria Stuart (born July 4, 1910 in Santa Monica California) is an American actress Colin Clive ( 20 January 1900 &ndash 25 June 1937) was a British stage and screen Actor best remembered for his portrayal Elsa Sullivan Lanchester (born October 28, 1902 - December 26, 1986) was an Oscar -nominated English character Boris Karloff ( 23 November, &ndash 2 February,) was an English actor who emigrated to Canada in the 1910s William Claude Rains (10 November &ndash30 May) was an English award-winning Actor and Film star whose career spanned 47 years Whale was also responsible for such major films as the original Waterloo Bridge (1931), The Old Dark House (1932), the 1936 Show Boat (all for producer Carl Laemmle, Jr.), and The Man in the Iron Mask, which he made for independent producer Edward Small. Waterloo Bridge is a 1931 Drama film made by Universal Pictures, directed by James Whale and produced by Carl Laemmle Jr Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Old Dark House is a Horror film directed by James Whale and starring Boris Karloff, produced just one year after their success with Year 1932 ( MCMXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1936 ( MCMXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Show Boat ( 1936) is a film based on the musical by Jerome Kern (music and Oscar Hammerstein II (script and lyrics and Carl Laemmle Jr ( 28 April 1908 &ndash 24 September 1979) was in charge of production at Universal Studios from about 1928 to 1936 Edward Small ( February 1 1891 - January 25 1977) was a film producer from the late 1920s through 1970

For Universal, Whale directed The Road Back in 1937, after the removal of Carl Laemmle and Laemmle Jr. The Road Back (Der Weg zurück is a novel by German author Erich Maria Remarque. This article is about Carl Laemmle the founder of Universal Pictures. , starring Richard Cromwell and Noah Beery, Jr. It was the ill-fated sequel to All Quiet on the Western Front. Richard Cromwell, born LeRoy Melvin Radabaugh ( -) was an American actor Noah Lindsey Beery ( August 10, 1913 – November 1, 1994) known professionally as Noah Beery Jr All Quiet on the Western Front is a War film based on the Erich Maria Remarque novel of the same name. Over Whale's protest, The Road Back was re-cut and shortened to the studio's liking before it was released, reportedly to appease the Nazi regime in Germany, and then when it (not surprisingly) fared poorly at the box-office, Whale was relegated to B-movies at Universal. A B movie is a motion picture made on a low or modest budget Originally the term was used for films intended for distribution as the less-publicized second half of a Double In 1937, he made The Great Garrick at Warner Brothers - his only film there. The Great Garrick ( 1937) is a motion picture directed by James Whale and starring Brian Aherne (as the famous eighteenth century actor David Warner Bros Entertainment Inc (or Warner Bros, Warner Bros Pictures) is one of the world's largest producers of Film and A fictional comedy about the actor David Garrick, it featured an astoundingly detailed reconstruction of the eighteenth century, but was another flop. David Garrick (born 19 February 1717 in Hereford &ndash 20 January 1779) was an English Actor, Playwright, So was Port of Seven Seas, his only film at MGM, a somewhat disguised film version in English of Marcel Pagnol's Fanny trilogy, and Wives Under Suspicion, his next to last film at Universal, a remake of his earlier success The Kiss Before the Mirror. Port of Seven Seas is a 1938 dramatic film starring Wallace Beery and featuring Frank Morgan and Maureen O'Sullivan. Marcel Pagnol ( February 28, 1895 – April 18, 1974) was a French Novelist, Playwright, and Filmmaker Wives Under Suspicion is a 1938 film directed by James Whale and starring Warren William, Gail Patrick, and Constance Moore The Kiss Before the Mirror is a 1933 suspense film directed by James Whale about a prosecutor ( Frank Morgan) who realizes that his own wife ( Whale made only one more successful film - The Man in the Iron Mask (1939) , starring Louis Hayward and Joan Bennett. The Man in the Iron Mask (French L'Homme au Masque de Fer (died November 1703 was a prisoner who was held in a number of jails including the Bastille Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Louis Hayward ( March 19 1909 – February 21 1985) was a British Actor born in South Africa. Joan Geraldine Bennett (February 27 &ndashDecember 7) was an Emmy -nominated American stage film and television actress He then made Green Hell at Universal, an ordinary jungle adventure starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Joan Bennett, and Vincent Price, his last full-length film. Green Hell is a 1940 adventure film directed by James Whale with photography by Karl Freund. Douglas Elton Fairbanks Jr, KBE, DSC ( December 9, 1909 &ndash May 7, 2000) was an American Actor Vincent Leonard Price Jr ( May 27 1911 &ndash October 25 1993) was an American Film Actor, remembered In the 1940's he made a featurette, an adaptation of William Saroyan's one-act play, Hello-out there!, which was never released, and never made another film after that. Featurette is a term used in the American film industry to designate a film whose length is approximately three quarters of a reel or about 20-44 minutes in running time - thus midway William Saroyan ( August 31, 1908 - May 18 1981) was an Armenian American Author. Hello Out There! is a One act play by William Saroyan, written early in August 1941

He lived with producer David Lewis who released Whale's suicide note shortly before his own death in 1987. David Lewis ( 14 December 1903, Trinidad Colorado - 13 March 1987, Los Angeles) born David Levy, was a Whale is the subject of the novel Father of Frankenstein by Christopher Bram which was the basis for the biopic Gods and Monsters (1998). Father of Frankenstein is a 1995 novel by Christopher Bram which speculates on the last days of film director James Whale. Christopher Bram (born 1952 Buffalo New York) is a writer Life and work Bram grew up in Kempsville Virginia (outside Norfolk) A biographical motion picture &mdash often shortened to biopic &mdash is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or people Gods and Monsters is a 1998 Film which recounts the (somewhat fictionalized last days of the life The year 1998 in film involved some significant events Events February 14 - Sharon Stone marries Phil Bronstein The film, which won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, starred Ian McKellen as Whale. "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. The Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay is one of the Academy Awards, the most prominent Film awards in the United States Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE (born 25 May 1939 is an English stage and screen actor the Biographies of Whale have been written by Mark Gatiss (James Whale: A Biography or James Whale: the Would-Be Gentleman) and James Curtis (James Whale: A New World of Gods and Monsters). A biography (from the Greek words bíos (βίος meaning "life" and gráphein (γράφειν meaning "to write" is an account Mark Gatiss (born 17 October, 1966) is an English Actor, Screenwriter and Novelist.

Suicide

In his later days, Whale experienced difficulty with his memory due to a debilitating stroke. A stroke is the rapidly developing loss of brain functions due to a disturbance in the blood vessels supplying blood to the brain He became lonely and suffered from depression and had difficulty putting the war behind him. In the fields of Psychology and Psychiatry, the terms depression or depressed refer to both expected and pathologically chronic or severe He committed suicide by drowning himself in his swimming pool on May 29, 1957 at the age of 67. Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian defeats the Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Year 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar) ^[1] As his suicide note was originally withheld (and first published in James Curtis's biography of the director), circumstances of his death were not known until years later. His suicide note read, "The future is just old age and illness and pain. . . I must have peace and this is the only way. "

Legacy

James Whale was openly gay during his time in Hollywood. The fictionalized film Gods and Monsters featured this aspect of his personality, his amateur painting, his medical condition, his mental health, and his emotional condition. Gods and Monsters is a 1998 Film which recounts the (somewhat fictionalized last days of the life

A memorial statue was erected for Whale in 2002 in the grounds of a new multiplex cinema of his home town, Dudley, England. Cinemaaustraliajpg|thumb|A movie theater in Australia ]]A movie theater, movie theatre, picture theatre or cinema is a venue Dudley ( is a large town in the West Midlands, England, with a population of 194919. The statue depicts a roll of film with the face of Frankenstein's monster engraved into the cells and the names of his most famous films etched into the film-tin shaped base-stone. Frankenstein's monster (or Frankenstein's creature) is a Fictional character that first appeared in Mary Shelley 's novel Frankenstein or

James Whale memorial statue in Dudley, England.

Filmography

• Journey's End (1930)
• Waterloo Bridge (1931)
• Frankenstein (1931)
• The Impatient Maiden (1932)
• The Old Dark House (1932)
• The Kiss Before the Mirror (1933)
• The Invisible Man (1933)
• By Candlelight (1933)
• One More River (1934)
• Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
• Remember Last Night? (1935)
• Show Boat (1936)
• The Road Back (1937)
• The Great Garrick (1937)
• Sinners in Paradise (1938)
• Wives Under Suspicion (1938)
• Port of Seven Seas (1938)
• The Man in the Iron Mask (1939)
• Green Hell (1940)
• They Dare Not Love (1941)
• Hello-out there! (1949) [short film intended for anthology movie, not shown publicly until 1967]

References

External links

• James Whale at the Internet Movie Database
• James Whale at Find A Grave