Wikipedia

D. W. Griffith

David Wark Griffith(January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture,[2]he pioneered many aspects offilm editing[3]and expanded the art of thenarrative film.[4]

D. W. Griffith
Griffith in 1922
Born
David Wark Griffith

(1875-01-22)January 22, 1875
Oldham County, Kentucky,U.S.
DiedJuly 23, 1948(1948-07-23)(aged 73)
Hollywood, California,U.S.
Resting placeMount Tabor Methodist Church Graveyard,
Centerfield, Kentucky,U.S.
Occupations
  • Film director
  • screenwriter
  • producer
Years active1895–1931
Spouses
​
​
(m.1906;div.1936)​
[1]
Evelyn Baldwin
​
​
(m.1936;div.1947)​
[1]
Signature

To modern audiences, Griffith is known primarily for directing the 1915 filmThe Birth of a Nation.One of the most financially successful films of all time and considered a landmark by film historians, it has attracted much controversy for its degrading portrayals of African Americans, its glorification of theKu Klux Klanand support for theConfederacy.The film led to riots in several major cities all over the United States, and theNAACPattempted to have it banned. Griffith made his next filmIntolerance(1916) as an answer to critics, who he felt unfairly maligned his work.

Together withCharlie Chaplin,Mary Pickford,andDouglas Fairbanks,Griffith founded the studioUnited Artistsin 1919 with the goal of enabling actors and directors to make films on their own terms as opposed to the terms of commercial studios. Several of Griffith's later films were successful, includingBroken Blossoms(1919),Way Down East(1920), andOrphans of the Storm(1921), but the high costs he incurred for production and promotion often led to commercial failure. He had made roughly 500 films by the time ofThe Struggle(1931), his final feature, and all but three were completely silent.

Early life

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Griffith circa 1907

Griffith was born on January 22, 1875,[5]on a farm inOldham County, Kentucky,the son of Jacob Wark "Roaring Jake" Griffith,[6]aConfederate Armycolonel in theAmerican Civil Warwho was elected as a Kentucky state legislator, and Mary Perkins (née Oglesby).[5]Griffith was raised as aMethodist,[7]and he attended a one-room schoolhouse, where he was taught by his older sister Mattie. His father died when he was 10, and the family struggled with poverty.

When Griffith was 14, his mother abandoned the farm and moved the family to Louisville, Kentucky; there she opened a boarding house, which was unsuccessful. Griffith then left high school to help support the family, taking a job in a dry goods store and later in a bookstore. He began his creative career as an actor in touring companies. Meanwhile, he was learning how to become a playwright, but he had little success. Only one of his plays was accepted for a performance.[8]He traveled to New York City in 1907 in an attempt to sell a script toEdison StudiosproducerEdwin Porter;[8]although Porter rejected the script, he gave Griffith an acting part inRescued from an Eagle's Nestinstead.[8]As a result of this experience, Griffith decided to try his luck as an actor, and he appeared in many films as an extra.[9]

Early film career

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Griffith on the set ofThe Birth of a Nation(1915) with actorHenry B. Walthalland others

In 1908, Griffith accepted a role as a stage extra inProfessional Jealousyfor the American Mutoscope andBiograph Company,where he met cameramanBilly Bitzer.[10]In 1908, Biograph's main directorWallace McCutcheon Sr.fell ill, and his son Wallace McCutcheon Jr. took his place.[11]McCutcheon Jr. did not bring the studio success;[10]Biograph co-founder Harry Marvin then gave Griffith the position,[10]and he made the shortThe Adventures of Dollie.He directed a total of 48 shorts for the company that year.

Among the films he directed in 1909 wasThe Cricket on the Hearth,an adaptation ofCharles Dickens' novel. Showing the influence of Dickens on his own film narrative, Griffith employed the technique ofcross-cutting—where two stories run alongside each other, as seen in Dickens' novels such asOliver Twist.[12]When criticized by a cameraman for doing this technique in a later film, Griffith was said to have replied "Well, doesn't Dickens write that way?".[12]

His shortIn Old California(1910) was the first film shot in Hollywood, California. Four years later, he produced and directed his first feature filmJudith of Bethulia(1914), one of the early films to be produced in the U.S. Biograph believed that longer features were not viable at this point. According toLillian Gish,the company thought that "a movie that long would hurt [the audience's] eyes".[13]

Left to right: Griffith, cameraman Billy Bitzer (behindPathécamera),Dorothy Gish(watching from behind Bitzer),Karl Brown(keeping script) andMiriam Cooper(in profile) in a production still forIntolerance(1916)

Griffith left Biograph because of company resistance to his goals and his cost overruns on the film. He took his company of actors with him and joined theMutual Film Corporation.There he co-producedThe Life of General Villa,a silent biographical-action movie starringPancho Villaas himself, shot on location in Mexico during a civil war. He formed a studio withMajestic StudiosmanagerHarry Aitken,[14]which became known asReliance-Majestic Studiosand later was renamed Fine Arts Studios.[15]His new production company became an autonomous production unit partner in theTriangle Film Corporationalong withThomas H. InceandKeystone Studios'Mack Sennett.The Triangle Film Corporation was headed by Aitken, who was released from the Mutual Film Corporation,[14]and his brother Roy.

The Birth of a Nation(1915), by Griffith

Griffith directed and producedThe ClansmanthroughReliance-Majestic Studiosin 1915. The film later became known asThe Birth of a Nation.It is one of the earlyfeature lengthAmerican films.[16]The film was a success, but it aroused much controversy due to its depiction ofslavery,theKu Klux Klan,race relationsin the American Civil War, and theReconstruction eraof the United States. It was based onThomas Dixon Jr.'s 1905 novelThe Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan;it depicts Southern slavery as benign, the enfranchisement offreedmenas a corrupt plot by theRepublican Party,and the Ku Klux Klan as a band of heroes restoring the rightful order. This view of the era was popular at the time and was endorsed for decades by historians of theDunning School,but it met with strong criticism from theNational Association for the Advancement of Colored People(NAACP) and other groups.[17][18]

The NAACP attempted to stop showings of the film. This ban was successful in some cities, but nonetheless it was shown widely and became the most successful box-office attraction of its time. It is considered among the first "blockbuster" motion pictures, and it broke all box-office records that had been established until then. "They lost track of the money it made", Lillian Gish remarked in aKevin Brownlowinterview.[19]

The first million-dollar partners: Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin and Griffith
Intolerance(1916), by Griffith

Audiences in some major northern cities rioted over the film's racial content and the violence.[20]Griffith's indignation at efforts to censor or ban the film motivated him the following year to produceIntolerance,in which he portrayed the effects of intolerance in four different historical periods: theFall of Babylon;theCrucifixion of Jesus;the events surrounding theSt. Bartholomew's Day massacre(during religious persecution of FrenchHuguenots); and a modern story.Intolerancewas not a financial success; it did not bring in enough profits to cover the lavish road show that accompanied it.[21]Griffith put a huge budget into the film's production that could not be recovered in its box office.[22]He mostly financedIntolerancehimself, which contributed to his financial ruin for the rest of his life.[23]

"Belshazzar's feast", one of the massive film sets inIntolerance(1916)

Griffith's production partnership was dissolved in 1917, and he went to Artcraft, part ofParamount Pictures,and then toFirst National Pictures(1919–1920). At the same time, he foundedUnited Artiststogether withCharlie Chaplin,Mary Pickford,andDouglas Fairbanks;the studio was based on allowing actors to control their own interests rather than being dependent upon commercial studios.[24][25]

Souvenir program from D.W. Griffith presentation of "The Birth of a Nation"

He continued to make films, but he never again achieved box-office grosses as high as eitherThe Birth of a NationorIntolerance.[26]

Later film career

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Although United Artists survived as a company, Griffith's association with it was short-lived. While some of his later films did well at the box office, commercial success often eluded him. Griffith features from this period includeBroken Blossoms(1919),Way Down East(1920),Orphans of the Storm(1921),Dream Street(1921),One Exciting Night(1922),The White Rose(1923),America(1924) andIsn't Life Wonderful(1924). Of these, the first three were successes at the box office.[27]Griffith was forced to leave United Artists afterIsn't Life Wonderful(1924) failed at the box office.

United Artists founders Griffith, Pickford, Chaplin and Fairbanks sign their contract for the cameras in 1919.

He madeLady of the Pavements(1929), a part sound film, and only two full-sound films:Abraham Lincoln(1930) andThe Struggle(1931). Neither was successful, and afterThe Struggle,he never made another film.

In 1936, directorWoody Van Dyke,who had worked as Griffith's apprentice onIntolerance,asked Griffith to help him shoot the famous earthquake sequence forSan Francisco,but Griffith was not given any film credit. StarringClark Gable,Jeanette MacDonaldandSpencer Tracy,it was the top-grossing film of the year.[28]

In 1939, the producerHal Roachhired Griffith to produceOf Mice and Men(1939) andOne Million B.C.(1940). He wrote to Griffith: "I need help from the production side to select the proper writers, cast, et cetera, and to help me generally in the supervision of these pictures."[29]

Although Griffith eventually disagreed with Roach over the production and departed, Roach later insisted that some of the scenes in the completed film were directed by Griffith. This movie was the final production in which Griffith was involved. However, cast members' accounts recall Griffith directing only the screen tests and costume tests. When Roach advertised the film in late 1939 with Griffith listed as producer, Griffith asked that his name be removed.[30]

Griffith was for decades held in awe by many members of the film industry. He was presented with an honoraryOscarby theAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciencesin 1936.[31]In 1946, he made an impromptu visit to the film location ofDavid O. Selznick's epic westernDuel in the Sun,where some of his veteran actors—Lillian Gish,Lionel BarrymoreandHarry Carey—were cast members. Gish and Barrymore found their mentor's presence distracting, and they became self-conscious; in response, Griffith hid behind the scenery when the two were filming their scenes.[32]

Death

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On the morning of July 23, 1948, Griffith was discovered unconscious in the lobby at theKnickerbocker Hotelin Los Angeles, where he had been living alone. He died of acerebral hemorrhageat 3:42 PM on the way to a Hollywood hospital.[24]A public memorial service was held in his honor at theHollywood Masonic Temple.He is buried at Mount Tabor Methodist Church Graveyard in Centerfield, Kentucky.[33]In 1950, TheDirectors Guild of Americaprovided a stone and bronze monument for his grave site.[34]

Legacy

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Stamp issued by theUnited States Postal Servicein 1975 to commemorate the centennial of Griffith's birth[35]

Griffith has a controversial legacy. Despite criticism, he was a widely celebrated and respected public figure during his life, and modern film historians continue to recognize him for his contributions to the craft of filmmaking. Nevertheless, many critics during his lifetime, as well as in the decades since his death, have characterized him and his work (most notablyThe Birth of a Nation) as upholding white supremacist ideals. Historians frequently citeThe Birth of a Nationas a major factor inthe KKK's revival in the 20th century,and it remains controversial to this day.

Performer and director Charlie Chaplin called Griffith "The Teacher of Us All". Filmmakers such asAlfred Hitchcock,[36]Lev Kuleshov,[37]Jean Renoir,[38]Cecil B. DeMille,[39]King Vidor,[40]Victor Fleming,[41]Raoul Walsh,[42]Carl Theodor Dreyer,[43]andStanley Kubrickhave praised Griffith.[44]Sergei Eisensteinexpressed his admiration for Griffith as an "outstanding master", but criticizedBirth of a Nation,calling it "disgraceful propaganda of racial hatred towards the colored people".[45]

Griffith's Star on theHollywood Walk of Fame

Griffith seems to have been the first to understand how certain film techniques could be used to create an expressive language; it gained popular recognition with the release of hisThe Birth of a Nation(1915). His early shorts —such as Biograph'sThe Musketeers of Pig Alley(1912), show that Griffith's attention to camera placement and lighting heightened mood and tension. In makingIntolerance,Griffith opened new possibilities for the medium, creating a form that seems to owe more to music than to traditional narrative.[46][47]

  • In the 1951Philco Television Playhouseepisode "The Birth of the Movies", events from Griffith's film career were depicted. Griffith was played byJohn Newland.
  • In 1953 theDirectors Guild of America(DGA) instituted the D. W. Griffith Award, its highest honor. However, on December 15, 1999, then DGA PresidentJack Sheaand the DGA National Board announced that the award would be renamed as the "DGA Lifetime Achievement Award". They stated that, although Griffith was extremely talented, they felt his filmThe Birth of a Nationhad "helped foster intolerable racial stereotypes", and that it was thus better not to have the top award in his name.
  • On February 8, 1960, Griffith was posthumously awarded a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame,which is located at 6535 Hollywood Boulevard.[48]
  • In 1975, Griffith was honored on a 10-cent postage stamp by the United States.[35]
  • The 1976 American comedy filmNickelodeonin part pays homage to silent film makers, and includes footage fromThe Birth of a Nation.
  • D.W. Griffith Middle School in Los Angeles is named after Griffith.[49]
  • In 2008 theHollywood Heritage Museumhosted a screening of Griffith's early films to commemorate the centennial of his start in film.[50]
  • On January 22, 2009, the Oldham History Center in La Grange, Kentucky, opened a 15-seat theatre in Griffith's honor. The theatre features a library of available Griffith films.

Film preservation

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Griffith has six films preserved on the United StatesNational Film Registrydeemed as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant":Lady Helen's Escapade,A Corner in Wheat(both 1909),The Musketeers of Pig Alley(1912),The Birth of a Nation(1915),Intolerance(1916) andBroken Blossoms(1919).

See also

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References

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  1. ^abUPI (July 23, 1948)"D.W. Griffith, 73, film pioneer, dies".United Press. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
  2. ^D.W. Griffith.
  3. ^"Changes in Film Style in the 1910s | wcftr marts.wisc.edu".Archived fromthe originalon November 21, 2021.RetrievedNovember 21,2021.
  4. ^"The Beginnings of Film Narrative"(PDF).University of California Press.RetrievedJanuary 25,2023.
  5. ^abKenneth, Dennis (2001). "Griffith, David Wark". In Kleber, John E. (ed.).The Encyclopedia of Louisville.Le xing ton, Ky.: University Press of Kentucky. p. 359.ISBN9780813121000.
  6. ^"D.W. Griffith (1875–1948)".RetrievedDecember 3,2016.
  7. ^Blizek, William L. (2009).The Continuum Companion to Religion and Film.A&C Black. p. 126.ISBN978-0-8264-9991-2.
  8. ^abc"D.W. Griffith".Spartacus-Educational.Archivedfrom the original on June 5, 2011.RetrievedFebruary 27,2019.
  9. ^"American Experience | Mary Pickford".Public Broadcasting Service.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  10. ^abc"D.W. Griffith Biography".Starpulse.July 23, 1948. Archived fromthe originalon August 30, 2008.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  11. ^"Who's Who of Victorian Cinema".Victorian-cinema.net.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  12. ^ab"Dickens on screen: the highs and the lows".The Guardian.December 23, 2011.RetrievedApril 21,2020.
  13. ^Kirsner, Scott (2008).Inventing the movies: Hollywood's epic battle between innovation and the status quo, from Thomas Edison to Steve Jobs(1st ed.). [s.l.]: CinemaTech Books. p. 13.ISBN978-1-4382-0999-9.
  14. ^ab"D.W. Griffith: Hollywood Independent".Cobbles. June 26, 1917.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  15. ^"Fine Arts Studio".Employees.oxy.edu. June 9, 1917. Archived fromthe originalon May 14, 2011.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  16. ^Devore, Dan."Birth of a Nation, The (1915)",Movie Justice Movie Review, January 23, 2003.Internet ArchiveWayback Machine.Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  17. ^"'The Birth of a Nation': When Hollywood Glorified the KKK ".HistoryNet.June 12, 2006.RetrievedFebruary 27,2016.
  18. ^Brooks, Xan (July 29, 2013)."The Birth of a Nation: a gripping masterpiece… and a stain on history".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.RetrievedFebruary 27,2016.
  19. ^Interview with Lillian Gish in the "Pioneers" episode of the seriesHollywood,directed byKevin BrownlowandDavid Gill,Thames Television,1980
  20. ^"The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow".PBS. March 21, 1915.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  21. ^"Griffith's 20 Year Record".Cinemaweb.September 5, 1928. Archived fromthe originalon July 12, 2011.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  22. ^"Intolerance Movie Review".Contactmusic.May 29, 2011.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  23. ^Georges Sadoul(1972 [1965]).Dictionary of Films,P. Morris, ed. & trans.,p. 158.UCP.
  24. ^ab"DAVID W. GRIFFITH, FILM PIONEER, DIES; Producer of 'Birth of Nation,' 'Intolerance' and 'America' Made Nearly 500 Pictures SET, SCREEN STANDARDS Co-Founder of United Artists Gave Mary Pickford and Fairbanks Their Starts".The New York Times.July 24, 1948.ProQuest108102777.
  25. ^Woo, Elaine (September 29, 2011)."Mo Rothman dies at 92; found new audience for Chaplin".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedOctober 1,2011.
  26. ^"American Masters. D.W. Griffith".PBS. December 29, 1998. Archived fromthe originalon October 31, 2009.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  27. ^"Last Dissolve".Time.August 2, 1948. Archived fromthe originalon December 4, 2008.RetrievedAugust 14,2008.
  28. ^"Biggest Box Office Hits of 1936".Ultimate movie rankings.August 28, 2017.RetrievedNovember 14,2017.
  29. ^Richard Lewis Ward,A History of the Hal Roach Studios,pp. 109–110. Southern Illinois University, 2005.ISBN0-8093-2637-X.In his tie at Biograph, Griffith had directed two films with prehistoric settings:Man's Genesis(1912) andBrute Force(1914).
  30. ^Ward, p. 110.
  31. ^Schneider, Steven Jay, ed. (2007).501 Movie Directors.London: Cassell Illustrated. pp. 16–18.ISBN9781844035731.OCLC1347156402.
  32. ^Green, Paul (2011).Jennifer Jones: The Life and Films.McFarland & Company. p. 69.ISBN978-0-7864-8583-3.
  33. ^Schickel, Richard (1996).D.W. Griffith: An American Life.Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 31.ISBN0-87910-080-X.
  34. ^Schickel, Richard (1996).D.W. Griffith: An American Life.Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 605.ISBN0-87910-080-X.
  35. ^ab"D.W. Griffith Honored by Issue of 10c Stamp",The New York Times,29 May 1975, p. 29.
  36. ^Leitch, Thomas; Poague, Leland (2011).A Companion to Alfred Hitchcock.John Wiley & Sons. p. 50.ISBN978-1-4443-9731-4.
  37. ^"Landmarks of Early Soviet Film".Archived fromthe originalon April 23, 2012.RetrievedOctober 18,2012.
  38. ^"Jean Renoir Biography".biography.yourdictionary.RetrievedOctober 18,2012.
  39. ^"Movie Review: Restored 'Intolerance' Launches Festival of Preservation".Los Angeles Times.July 6, 1990.RetrievedOctober 18,2012.
  40. ^"Overview for King Vidor".tcm.RetrievedOctober 18,2012.
  41. ^"Victor Fleming: An American Movie Master".Archived fromthe originalon September 14, 2013.RetrievedApril 24,2013.
  42. ^Moss, Marilyn (2011).Raoul Walsh: The True Adventures of Hollywood's Legendary Director.University Press of Kentucky. pp. 181, 242.ISBN978-0-8131-3394-2.
  43. ^"Matinee Classics – Carl Dreyer Biography & Filmography".matineeclassics. Archived fromthe originalon December 15, 2013.RetrievedOctober 9,2012.
  44. ^"D.W. Griffith".Encyclopædia Britannica.RetrievedMarch 30,2015.
  45. ^Neuberger, Joan(February 27, 2017)."Sergei Eisenstein on" The Birth of a Nation "".Not Even Past.RetrievedJuly 14,2024.
  46. ^"D.W. Griffith".Senses of Cinema.February 13, 2001.RetrievedFebruary 27,2016.
  47. ^"History of the Close Up in Film".Archived fromthe originalon October 9, 2017.
  48. ^"D. W. Griffith".Hollywood Walk of Fame.October 25, 2019.RetrievedJuly 26,2023.
  49. ^"Griffith Middle School: Home Page".RetrievedDecember 3,2016.
  50. ^"Hollywood Heritage".Hollywood Heritage. Archived fromthe originalon July 26, 2011.RetrievedJune 5,2011.

Further reading

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  • Seymour Stern,An Index to the Creative Work of D.W. Griffith(London: The British Film Institute, 1944–47)
  • Iris Barry and Eileen Bowser,D.W. Griffith: American Film Master(Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1965)
  • Kevin Brownlow,The Parade's Gone By(New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1968)
  • David Robinson,Hollywood in the Twenties(New York: A.S. Barnes & Co, Inc., 1968)
  • Lillian Gish,The Movies, Mr. Griffith and Me(Englewood, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1969)
  • Robert M. Henderson,D.W. Griffith: His Life and Work(New York: Oxford University Press, 1972)
  • Karl Brown,Adventures with D.W. Griffith(New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973)
  • Edward Wagenknecht and Anthony Slide,The Films of D.W. Griffith(New York: Crown, 1975)
  • Petrić, Vlada,D.W. Griffith's A Corner in Wheat: A Critical Analysis(Cambridge, MA: University Film Study Center, 1975)
  • William K. Everson,American Silent Film(New York: Oxford University Press, 1978)
  • Richard Schickel,D.W. Griffith: An American Life(New York: Simon & Schuster, 1984)
  • William M. Drew,D.W. Griffith's "Intolerance:" Its Genesis and Its Vision(Jefferson, NJ: McFarland & Company, 1986)
  • Tom Gunning,D.W. Griffith and the Origin of the American Narrative: The Early Years at Biograph(Urbana, Illinois: Illinois University Press, 1994)
  • Drew, William M."D.W. Griffith (1875–1948)".RetrievedJuly 31,2007.
  • Smith, Matthew (April 2008). "American Valkyries: Richard Wagner, D.W. Griffith, and the Birth of Classical Cinema".Modernism/modernity.15(2): 221–242.doi:10.1353/mod.2008.0040.S2CID144141443.
  • Kirby, Jack Temple (1978). "D.W. Griffith's Racial Portraiture".Phylon.39(2): 118–127.doi:10.2307/274506.JSTOR274506.
  • Jay, Gregory S. (2000). "'White Man's Book No Good': D.W. Griffith and the American Indian ".Cinema Journal.39(4): 3–26.doi:10.1353/cj.2000.0016.JSTOR1225883.S2CID145361470.
  • Robinson, Cedric J. (June 1997). "In the Year 1915: D.W. Griffith and the Whitening of America".Social Identities.3(2): 161–192.doi:10.1080/13504639752041.
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