American Cinematographer - November 1998 - 113

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a
after his death. Now there is

second-unit director, most

written

by a
researchers whose affection for their

in A Tale of Two Cities. He directed 20 of

subject is evident. The book is also
impressive filmography.

subjects from 1936-42; these were little
gems, but charismatic narrators such as
John Nesbitt and Pete Smith got the
glory. Tourneur finally broke into feature

taste was

delayed until

half-century
a biography,
pair of excellent

con amor

Chase, whose real name
Parrott, was born in Baltimore and

an

was

was

working in vaudeville when he came to
Hollywood in 1912. As a triple-threat
actor/director/writer for Mack Sennett
and, later, at Hal Roach and Columbia, he
became an important influence in screen
comedy. The careers of Laurel and Hardy,
Thelma Todd, The Three Stooges and
many others were influenced by Chase.
After "talkies" arrived, he added singing,
tap dancing and songwriting to his reper¬
toire. Chases onscreen persona was tall,
thin and full of mischief. Offscreen, his

tragic burdens included alcoholism and
futile attempts to help his narcoticsaddicted younger brother, Jimmy -
himself a brilliant director gone to seed.
Plenty of rare photographs
abound in this long-deserved, fine biog¬
raphy of Charley Chase.

MGMs

celebrated

dramatic

direction. His fifth effort

was

short
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RKO's

modestly budgeted Cat People (1943),
which was followed by / Walked with a
Zombie and The Leopard Man. Even with
these widely praised films, Tourneur was
largely obscured by the shadow of the
producer, Val Lewton. Still, the success
of these pictures kicked Tourneur
upstairs to bigger-budget shows, includ¬
ing Experiment Perilous, Canyon
Passage, Out of the Past, Berlin Express,
Wichita, Nightfall, and Night of the

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Fujiwara has written a fine tribute
to Tourneur, combining biography with
close scrutiny of his films. Stylistic links
between the projects are explored,
beginning with the earliest examples.
Even the short subjects and television
episodes are given expansive coverage
with full casts and credits.

Jacques Tourneur
by Chris Fujiwara
Foreword

man

notably as the
behind the storming of the Bastille

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■

by

Martin Scorsese

Next Month in AC

McFarland & Co.,
328 pps.,

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hardback, $42.50

Director:

Willard Carroll

It's strange that Jacques Tourneur,
a

brilliant director of unusual

sensitivity

and taste, has never received greater

recognition. Perhaps it's because some of
his most distinguished work was done in
the shadows of others. His father

was

the revered French director Maurice

Tourneur, who also made important films
in America. Though a great filmmaker,
Maurice

was a

distant and rather cruel

father. Even his

worshipful assistant,

Clarence Brown, had to admit, "He was

cold. He had
as a

bit

no

heart."

Jacques worked

player and script clerk in Holly¬

wood in the 1920s, but later returned to

France, where he edited

some

of his

father's films and directed four features.
After

returning to Hollywood in
1934, he found work at MGM as a

Cinematographer:
Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC
A

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Sam Raimi

Cinematographer:
Alar Kivilo, CSC
The Wizard of Oz

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Director:
Victor

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Cinematographer:
Harold Rosson, ASC

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American Cinematographer - November 1998

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - November 1998
