William Wellman

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  • 2khs.jpgWILLIAM A. WELLMAN
    INFORMATION FROM IMDb


    Date of birth
    29 February 1896
    Brookline, Massachusetts, USA


    Date of death
    9 December 1975
    Los Angeles, California, USA. (leukemia)


    Sometimes Credited As:
    William Wellman


    Birth name
    William Augustus Wellman


    Nickname
    Wild Bill
    Wild Bill Wellman


    Spouse
    Dorothy Coonan Wellman (1933 - 9 December 1975) (his death) 7 children
    Marjorie Crawford (22 December 1931 - ?) (divorced)
    Margery Chapin (? - ?) (divorced)
    Helene Chadwick (? - 5 September 1923) (divorced)


    Trivia
    A great-great-great grandson of Francis Lewis of New York, one of the signaturies to the Declaration of Independence


    Father-in-law of James Franciscus
    Father of actor Michael Wellman.
    Father of actor William Wellman Jr.
    Father of actress Gloria Wellman.


    Salary
    Wings (1927) $250/week
    The Cat's Pajamas (1926) $210/week
    You Never Know Women (1926) $210/week
    The Boob (1926) $210/week
    When Husbands Flirt (1925) $200/week


    Mini Biography
    Biography from Leonard Maltin's Movie Encyclopedia:
    Prolific, workmanlike director of mainstream Hollywood fare whose output includes some remarkable films.
    He helped kick off the gangster movie cycle (and James Cagney's career) with The Public Enemy (1931),
    tackled Depression-era social problems in Wild Boys of the Road and Heroes for Sale (both 1933),
    crafted an Oscar-winning original story and screenplay for A Star Is Born (1937,
    which also earned him a nomination as Best Director),
    showed a flair for screwball comedy with Nothing Sacred (also 1937)
    , brought verve to the old Foreign Legion standard Beau Geste (1939),
    made viewers' spines tingle with his harrowing lynch-mob tale The Ox-Bow Incident (1943),
    and saluted WW2 dogfaces with his war films The Story of G.I. Joe (1945) and Battleground (1949,
    Oscar nominated again).
    He earned his final Oscar nomination directing the hugely popular "Grand Hotel aloft" saga The High and the Mighty (1954).


    An adventurous youth, Wellman joined the French Foreign Legion at the outbreak of World War 1,
    and when America entered the conflict three years later he flew with the distinguished Lafayette Escadrille.
    Mustered out of the service after being seriously wounded,
    the highly decorated Wellman became a stunt flyer and barnstormer back in the United States.
    As Hollywood legend has it, he broke into movies after meeting Douglas Fairbanks
    when his plane made a forced landing on the actor's property.
    Wellman even acted in Fairbanks' Knickerbocker Buckaroo (1919),
    but quickly decided he'd rather be behind the camera.
    He worked his way up from prop man to assistant director to director,
    cutting his eyeteeth on Buck Jones' Westerns for Fox in the mid 1920s.


    Wellman's Wings (1927), a breathtaking drama of WW1 aviators,
    won the first Academy Award for Best Picture and boosted the director into the front rank of Hollywood helmers.
    He never lost his love affair with flying, and frequently returned to aviation themes in his films.
    A two-fisted, no-nonsense tough guy who several times traded blows with his actors (including Spencer Tracy),
    Wellman earned the nickname "Wild Bill."


    Wellman, who married Wild Boys of the Road leading lady Dorothy Coonan, wrote his memoirs,
    "A Short Time for Insanity," in 1974. His son, William Wellman, Jr., became an actor.


    Filmography
    Director
    1. Lafayette Escadrille (1958)
    ... aka C'est la guerre (USA)
    ... aka Hell Bent for Glory (UK)
    ... aka With You in My Arms (USA: alternative title)
    2. Darby's Rangers (1958)
    ... aka The Young Invaders (UK)
    3. Good-bye, My Lady (1956)
    ... aka Goodbye, My Lady (USA: cable TV title)
    ... aka The Boy and the Laughing Dog (USA: reissue title)
    4. Blood Alley (1955)
    ... aka William A. Wellman's Blood Alley (USA: complete title)
    5. Track of the Cat (1954)
    6. Light's Diamond Jubilee (1954) (TV)
    7. Ring of Fear (1954) (uncredited)
    8. The High and the Mighty (1954)
    9. Island in the Sky (1953)
    10. My Man and I (1952)
    11. It's a Big Country (1951)
    12. Across the Wide Missouri (1951)
    13. Westward the Women (1951)
    14. The Happy Years (1950)
    15. The Next Voice You Hear... (1950)
    16. Battleground (1949)
    17. Yellow Sky (1949)
    18. The Iron Curtain (1948)
    ... aka Behind the Iron Curtain (USA: reissue title)
    19. Magic Town (1947)
    20. Gallant Journey (1946)
    21. Story of G.I. Joe (1945)
    ... aka Ernie Pyle's Story of G.I. Joe (USA: complete title)
    ... aka G.I. Joe (USA: short title)
    ... aka War Correspondent
    22. This Man's Navy (1945)
    23. Buffalo Bill (1944)
    24. The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)
    ... aka Strange Incident (UK)
    25. Lady of Burlesque (1943)
    ... aka Striptease Lady (UK)
    ... aka The G-String Murders
    26. Thunder Birds (1942)
    27. The Great Man's Lady (1942)
    28. Roxie Hart (1942)
    29. Reaching for the Sun (1941)
    30. The Light That Failed (1939)
    31. Beau Geste (1939)
    32. Men with Wings (1938)
    33. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938) (retakes) (uncredited)
    34. Nothing Sacred (1937)
    35. A Star Is Born (1937)
    36. Tarzan Escapes (1936) (uncredited)
    37. Small Town Girl (1936)
    ... aka One Horse Town (USA: TV title)
    38. The Robin Hood of El Dorado (1936)
    39. The Call of the Wild (1935) (as William Wellman)
    40. The President Vanishes (1934)
    ... aka Strange Conspiracy (UK)
    41. Stingaree (1934)
    42. Viva Villa! (1934) (uncredited)
    43. Looking for Trouble (1934) (as William Wellman)
    44. Female (1933) (uncredited) (17 scenes)
    45. College Coach (1933)
    ... aka Football Coach (UK)
    46. Wild Boys of the Road (1933)
    ... aka Dangerous Days (UK)
    47. Midnight Mary (1933) (as William Wellman)
    48. Heroes for Sale (1933)
    ... aka Breadline (USA)
    49. Lilly Turner (1933)
    50. Central Airport (1933)
    51. Frisco Jenny (1932)
    52. The Conquerors (1932)
    ... aka Pioneer Builders (USA: reissue title)
    53. The Purchase Price (1932)
    54. Love Is a Racket (1932)
    ... aka Such Things Happen (UK)
    55. So Big! (1932)
    56. The Hatchet Man (1932)
    ... aka The Honourable Mr. Wong (UK)
    57. Safe in Hell (1931)
    ... aka The Lost Lady (USA)
    58. The Star Witness (1931)
    59. Night Nurse (1931)
    60. The Public Enemy (1931)
    ... aka Enemies of the Public (UK)
    61. Other Men's Women (1931)
    ... aka The Steel Highway
    62. Maybe It's Love (1930)
    ... aka Eleven Men and a Girl (USA: TV title)
    63. Young Eagles (1930)
    64. Dangerous Paradise (1930)
    65. Woman Trap (1929)
    66. The Man I Love (1929)
    67. Chinatown Nights (1929)
    ... aka Tong War (USA)
    68. Beggars of Life (1928)
    69. Ladies of the Mob (1928)
    70. The Legion of the Condemned (1928)
    71. Wings (1927)
    72. The Cat's Pajamas (1926)
    73. You Never Know Women (1926)
    74. The Boob (1926)
    ... aka The Yokel (UK)
    75. When Husbands Flirt (1925) (as William Wellman)
    76. The Circus Cowboy (1924) (as William Wellman)
    77. The Vagabond Trail (1924)
    78. Not a Drum Was Heard (1924)
    79. Cupid's Fireman (1923)
    80. Big Dan (1923)
    81. The Man Who Won (1923)
    82. Second Hand Love (1923) (as William Wellman)
    83. The Twins of Suffering Creek (1920) (uncredited)


    Producer
    1. Lafayette Escadrille (1958) (producer)
    ... aka C'est la guerre (USA)
    ... aka Hell Bent for Glory (UK)
    ... aka With You in My Arms (USA: alternative title)
    2. Magic Town (1947) (producer)
    3. Gallant Journey (1946) (producer)
    4. The Great Man's Lady (1942) (producer)
    5. Reaching for the Sun (1941) (producer)
    6. The Light That Failed (1939) (producer)
    7. Beau Geste (1939) (producer)
    8. Men with Wings (1938) (producer)
    9. Ladies of the Mob (1928) (producer)
    10. The Legion of the Condemned (1928) (producer)


    Writer
    1. A Star Is Born (1976) (1937 story)
    2. Lafayette Escadrille (1958) (story)
    ... aka C'est la guerre (USA)
    ... aka Hell Bent for Glory (UK)
    ... aka With You in My Arms (USA: alternative title)
    3. A Star Is Born (1954) (1937 story)
    4. Gallant Journey (1946) (written by)
    5. The Last Gangster (1937) (story)
    6. A Star Is Born (1937) (story)
    7. The Robin Hood of El Dorado (1936) (screenplay)


    Actor
    1. Lafayette Escadrille (1958) (uncredited) .... Narrator
    ... aka C'est la guerre (USA)
    ... aka Hell Bent for Glory (UK)
    ... aka With You in My Arms (USA: alternative title)
    2. Frisco Jenny (1932) (uncredited) .... Reporter
    3. The Star Witness (1931) (uncredited) .... Company workman
    4. Wings (1927) (uncredited) .... Doughboy
    5. Evangeline (1919) .... British lieutenant
    6. The Knickerbocker Buckaroo (1919) (as William Wellman) .... Henry


    Miscellaneous Crew
    1. Magic Town (1947) (presenter)


    Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
    1. China Seas (1935) (second unit director: pirate scenes) (uncredited)


    Himself
    1. "Hollywood" (1980) (mini) TV Series .... Himself (1973 TV interview)
    ... aka Hollywood: A Celebration of the American Silent Film (USA: video box title)
    2. Gable: The King Remembered (1975) (TV) (as William Wellman) .... Himself
    3. The Men Who Made the Movies: William A. Wellman (1973) (TV) .... Himself
    4. Challenge the Wilderness (1951) .... Himself
    5. 1925 Studio Tour (1925) .... Himself - a Director


    Archive Footage
    1. Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick (1996) .... Himself


    Notable TV Guest Appearances
    1. "This Is Your Life" playing "Himself" in episode: "Joel McCrea" 3 December 1972
    2. "This Is Your Life" playing "Himself" in episode: "Robert Stack" 27 November 1960
    3. "This Is Your Life" playing "Himself" in episode: "William Wellman" 8 December 1954

    Best Wishes
    Keith
    London- England

    Edited 7 times, last by ethanedwards ().

  • William Wellman, made 5 films with Duke,


    JohnWayne.Wm.Wellman.Col-a.jpg


    Blood Alley (1955)
    The High and the Mighty (1954)
    Island in the Sky (1953)
    College Coach (1933)
    Central Airport (1933)


    A currently topical director at the moment with the release
    of the eagerly awaited, Island in the Sky and The High and the Mighty !
    He seemed to specialize in airplane movies,
    starting off with Central Airport !


    They called him, "Wild Bill" on the set,because of the noise he made on set,
    however he was more bark, than bite, and a fine old film maker.
    Wayne-Fellows had contracted him to make 6 films for then,
    3 with , Duke, and 3, with other stars.


    Wild Bill said,

    Quote

    I started out, like a racehorse, and then fell on my skinny butt!


    Wellman seemed better with action, then character development, and at best, his pictures had muscle, and were visually exciting.


    Duke admired him, and accepted his tough approach, with little interference,
    and said of him,

    Quote

    He's a wonderful, old son of a bitch,he had a metal plate in his head, from some accident,and he'd go around belting all these big, tough guys, and they'd be affraid to hit him back, for fear they'd kill him


    He appeared to be, one hell of a character!

    Best Wishes
    Keith
    London- England

    Edited once, last by ethanedwards ().

  • The picture posted with the original post, and his biography, is NOT William Wellman, but rather, his son.


    The picture lasbugas posted - immediately preceeding my post IS William Wellman.


    Well spotted Russ, thank you.
    Just shows how much folk's pay attention,
    it's only taken nearly 7 years, for anyone to notice!!

    Best Wishes
    Keith
    London- England