Manning Shannon Fife(February 16, 1888 – May 7, 1972) was an American journalist, humorist and film scenario writer. He worked on at least 86 motion pictures over the silent film era before returning to journalism to write for magazines and newspapers.
Shannon Fife | |
|---|---|
 Shannon Fife US Passport Photograph (1920) | |
| Born | Manning Shannon Fife February 16, 1888 Dallas, Texas,USA |
| Died | May 7, 1972(aged 84) Dallas, Texas,USA |
| Other names | Manning S. Fife |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist and screenwriter |
Biography
editHe was born on February 16, 1888, in Dallas, Texas,[1]the middle of three boys born to Ambrose D. and Mary Shannon Fife. By the turn of the twentieth century, Fife and his two brothers (Locksley and Francis) were living in Dallas with an uncle and their maternal grandmother, Belle Shannon.[2]His father, a well-known Dallas businessman, died in 1911.[3]Fife first worked as a cub reporter for theDallas Dispatch,where he quickly rose to be city editor.[4]
Fife’s first movie,A Message from the Moon,was written in 1912 forMack SennettatBiograph Studiosbefore joining theLubin Companyfor several years. By 1916 he was afreelancewriter[5]working on such films asSusie SnowflakeandThe Rainbow Princess,formerZiegfeld FolliesstarAnn Pennington’sdebut pictures. That same year Fife co-wroteThe Habit of Happiness,a comedy starringDouglas Fairbanks, Sr.[6]In 1918 Fife's film career was interrupted for a short period while he served as a sergeant over the waning months of theFirst World WaratCamp Travis,a division ofFort Sam Houstonin San Antonio.[7]
Fife remained busy throughout the silent era until his health began to fail in the late 1920s. In 1928 he was reported to be home in Dallas recuperating from an unspecified illness,[8]and by 1930 he was listed as a patient at the Loomis Sanatorium inLiberty, New York.[9]His health did improve though, for a little over a year later he was reported slightly injured withDr. Godfrey Deweyand others while testing an Olympicbob sledcourse atLake Placid, New York.[10]Fife's last film, the 1929Hoot GibsoncomedySmilin' Guns,was an adaption of a popular magazine story he wrote. The latter half of Fife's career would be spent in journalism writing for magazines such asEsquireand syndicated articles in newspapers.[11]He was noted for his one- or two-line quips on modern life – e.g.,All agree that a woman’s blush is becoming, some insist it is becoming obsolete – Some college graduates who think they have drunk at the Fountain of Knowledge seemed to have only gargled– that were published in American newspapers and magazines for many years.[12][13]
Manning Shannon Fife died on May 7, 1972, in Dallas, Texas, aged 84.[14]
Filmography
edit- Red, White and Blue Blood(1917)
- Maternity(1917)
- The Song of the Soul(1918)
- Johnny-on-the-Spot(1919)
- Man and His Woman(1920)
- Second Hand Love(1923)
- Hard Boiled(1926)
References
edit- ^World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918; Ancestry.com scan
- ^1900-1910 US Census Records, Ancestry.com scan
- ^Galveston Daily News (Galveston Daily News - Saturday, May 06, 1911, Galveston, Texas) - Saturday, May 06, 1911, pg. 8
- ^Esquire Magazine; Vol. 13; 1940; pg.24
- ^The Moving Picture World: Volume 27; 1916; pg. 463
- ^The Habit of Happiness - Internet Movie Database
- ^U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 about Shannon Fife / Camp Travis, Texas World War I Records – Ancestry.com scans
- ^The Pennsylvania Gazette; 1928; pg. 683
- ^Manning S. Fife –Liberty, New York - 1930 US Census, Ancestry.com scan
- ^Bob Sled Racers Hurt in Practice-Morning Herald (Haggerstown Md.); February 5, 1931; pg.6
- ^Local Visitor Writes for Esquire-The Warrensburg News (Warrensburg, N.Y.) March 18, 1937; pg. 1
- ^Quotation Markmanship-The Zanesville Signal; September 19, 1946; pg. 4
- ^Quotation Ditching-The Van Nuys News; October 6, 1949; pg. 1
- ^Manning Fife - Texas Death Index, 1903-2000; Ancestry.com