Arthur Hornblow Jr.

Arthur Hornblow Jr.
Hornblow andMyrna Loy soon after their marriage in 1936
Born	(1893-03-15)March 15, 1893 New York City, US
Died	July 17, 1976(1976-07-17)(aged 83) New York City, US
Occupation	Film producer
Spouses	Juliette Crosby ​ ​ (m.1924;div.1936)​ Myrna Loy ​ ​ (m.1936;div.1942)​ Leonora Schinasi ​ ​ (m.1945)​

Arthur Hornblow Jr.(March 15, 1893 – July 17, 1976) was an American film producer. Four of his movies received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture.

Biography

Hornblow was the son of Arthur Hornblow Sr. (1865–1942), a writer who editedTheatre Magazinein New York City.

Hornblow graduated fromDeWitt Clinton High School,New York City, in 1911, before studying atDartmouth CollegeandNew York Law School,and was a member of the fraternityTheta Delta Chi.He served incounter-intelligenceduring World War I,and then tried his hand at playwriting. He was then hired as a production supervisor bySam GoldwynatParamountin 1927.

Initially, he specialized in the popularscrewball comedies,eventually givingBilly Wilderhis first directing job, and producing several films starringBob Hope.These includedThe Cat and the Canary(1939),The Ghost Breakers(1940) andNothing But the Truth(1941).In 1942 he moved toMGMwhere he producedGaslightand severalfilm noir.In the 1950s, as an independent producer rather than a studio employee, he worked on the musicalOklahomaand the courtroom dramaWitness for the Prosecution,directed by his former Paramount colleague, Wilder.

He gave aspiring actressMarie Windsorher first screen test, and Constance Ockelman her new name,Veronica Lake.

Four of his movies received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture.

His producer screen credit is distinctive because it is a reproduction of his signature with an underline, not the (usually printed) font used for the rest of the credits.

Oscar nominations

As a producer he was nominated for anAcademy Award'Best Picture' Oscar four times, but failed to win.

• Ruggles of Red Gap(1935), comedy-western withCharles Laughton.
• Hold Back the Dawn(1941), romantic-comedy withCharles BoyerandOlivia de Havilland.
• Gaslight(1944), thriller withIngrid Bergman,Charles Boyer andJoseph Cotten.
• Witness for the Prosecution(1957), courtroom drama with Charles Laughton,Tyrone Power,Marlene Dietrich,andElsa Lanchester.

Legacy

He allowed a version of his last name be used byC. S. Forester(who, together withNiven Busch,was a scriptwriter for one of the films he directed) for the fictional sea captainHoratio Hornblower.

Selected filmography

Hornblow andPaulette Goddardon the set ofThe Cat and the Canary(1939)

• Four Hours to Kill!(1935)
• The Princess Comes Across(1936)
• Easy Living(1937)
• High, Wide, and Handsome(1937)
• Midnight(1939)
• The Cat and the Canary(1939)
• The Ghost Breakers(1940)
• Arise, My Love(1940)
• The Major and the Minor(1942)
• Gaslight(1944)
• Desire Me(1947)
• The Hucksters(1947)
• Cass Timberlane(1947 film)
• The Asphalt Jungle(1950)
• Million Dollar Mermaid(1952)
• Oklahoma!(1955)
• The War Lover(1962)

Books

• A History of the Theatre in America From its Beginnings to the Present Time Vol. 1(J.B. Lippincott Company, 1919),ISBN9781628452334
• A History of the Theatre in America From its Beginnings to the Present Time Vol. 2(J.B. Lippincott Company, 1919),ISBN9781628452594

With Leonora Hornblow:

• Animals Do the Strangest Things,illus.Michael K. Frith(Random House, 1964), 62 pp.,LCCN64-19132

The Hornblows, Frith, and Random House collaborated to produce numerous sequels,Birds Do the Strangest Things(1965), and so on.

External links

• Arthur Hornblow Jr.atIMDb
• Erickson, Hal."Arthur Hornblow Jr".Allmovie.
• "Arthur Hornblow Jr".TCMDB.(U.S. only)
• Arthur Hornblow Jr.atLibrary of Congress,with 13 library catalog records
• "Hornblow, Arthur, 1865–1942".LC Authorities.Archived fromthe originalon October 21, 2021.;"Arthur Hornblow".WorldCat.
• "Leonora Hornblow".LC Authorities.Archived fromthe originalon October 21, 2021.;"Leonora Hornblow".WorldCat.