Robert Wise, “The Haunting”: Film History Series

Robert Wise, “The Haunting”, 1963, Cinematography Davis Boulton, Music Humphrey Searle, Producer Argyle Enterprises, Metro-Golden Mayer

Robert Wise’s 1963 “The Haunting” is a British psychological thriller film, an adaptation of American novelist Shirley Jackson’s 1959 novel “The Haunting of Hill House”, that is widely considered one of the best-written ghost stories. This film chronicles the experiences of several people invited by a paranormal investigator to study the ninety-year old Hill House, an allegedly haunted mansion in Massachusetts.

Wise read Shirley Jackson’s “The Haunting of Hill House” during the pre-production phase of “West Side Story”, his current project for United Artists. Impressed by the novel, he gave the book to his colleague, screenwriter Nelson Gidding, who had earned an Oscar nomination for his treatment of Wise’s 1958 “I Want to Live!”. Gidding wrote a full- story treatment and later crafted a screenplay which focused primarily on the psychological interactions between psychiatrist John Markway and patient Eleanor Vance. A meeting between Wise, Gidding and Shirley Jackson led to an increased focus on the supernatural aspect which was contained in the original story. It was Jackson who offered the film’s title, “The Haunting”.

Gidding’s screenplay took six months to write. A solitary worker, he did show Robert Wise some of the work as it progressed. Gidding cut the number of characters in the film and shortened the back-story. Most of the supernatural events were kept off-screen and, in order to emphasize the feeling of claustrophobia, the majority of the action was confined to interior spaces. Gidding’s final screenplay was completed just as Wise was finishing his directorial work on “West Side Story”.

Robert Wise presented the finished screenplay to United Artists; however, they declined to take the project. He next offered the project to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer as he still owed the studio one last film under an old contract. MGM accepted the project but would only finance the film for one million dollars, an amount Wise knew was insufficient. Understanding that it would be less expensive to shoot the “The Haunting” in England, he approached Borchamwood Studio, MGM’s British subsidiary. The studio’s support plus the financing and tax breaks through Britain’s film subsidy program, the Eady Levy, enabled Wise to make the film he envisioned.

Wise chose American theater actress Julie Ann Harris to the role of the lead character, the psychologically fragile Eleanor Vance. Stage and screen actress Claire Bloom was selected for the role of psychic Theodora (Theo). Richard Johnson, a Royal Shakespeare Company actor who was already signed with MGM, became the choice for the paranormal investigator, Dr. John Markway. The choice of Bloom and Johnson, in addition to the quality of their acting, enabled Wise to fulfill one of the requirements of the Eady Levy. The role of Luke Samerson, the next heir to Hill House, was given to American actor Russ Tamblyn who, under contract with MGM, had earned an Academy Award nomination for his role in the 1957 film “Peyton Place”.

The exterior shots of Hill House were done on the grounds of Ettington Park (now the Ettington Park Hotel) located in the West Midlands county of Warwickshire. The interior sets, designed by English art director Elliot Scott, were constructed at the Borchamwood Studio. Decorated in a Rococo style, these interior settings were constructed to be brightly lit, without dark corners or recesses. Although most film sets forgo ceilings, all the rooms constructed had ceilings to create a claustrophobic atmosphere. As per contract, “The Haunting” was shot in black and white film; however, Wise also used infra-red film to create a more sinister appearance to the physical structure of Hill House.

Robert Wise understood that which is not seen is more fearful than things people can see. He chose early in the production stage of the film to show little of the supernatural on the screen. Wise and cinematographer Davis Boulton decided to use low-angle shots and employed an anamorphic, wide-angle lens to distort distances. A plan to keep the camera constantly in motion employed unusual horizontal swivels and tracking camera shots during many scenes. To enhanced the acting, a pre-recorded soundtrack of voices and noises was played during the acting of tense scenes. Many of those pre-recorded sounds remained in the film after the final editing.

Wise’s “The Haunting” opened in Los Angeles and New York on the eighteenth of September in 1963 to mixed reception. Although many in the audiences found it frightening, reviews were mixed; many critics gave it a good review but did not think the film was outstanding. Shirley Jackson, after seeing the film at a premier, thought it was a poor movie which altered the plot of the book radically. Since its original release, “The Haunting” has been reappraised and given good reviews, especially regarding its technical quality. Robert Wise was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Director due to his work on “The Haunting”.

Notes: In 1990, Ted Turner began his controversial colorizing of black and white motion pictures. While touring Turner’s facilities as a member of the Directors Guild, Wise learned that “The Haunting” was to be colorized. The film has remained in its original black and white format due to Wise’s contract with MGM that specified that the film could only be in black and white.

Front Row Features has a 2023 article by writer Judy Sloane that includes a 1995 conversation between Sloane, Robert Wise and Julie Harris on the filming of “The Haunting”: https://frontrowfeatures.com/features-category-of-interviews-and-spotlights/in-retrospect-robert-wise-and-julie-harris-converge-on-hill-house-33927.html

Top Insert Image: Photographer Unknown, “Robert Wise, Set of The Haunting”, 1962-63, Gelatin Silver Print, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Archives

Second Insert Image: Davis Boulton, “Julie Harris and Claire Bloom”, 1963, “The Haunting”, Film Still, Director Robert Wise, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Third Insert Image: Davis Boulton, “Clair Bloom, Julie Harris, Richard Johnson, and Russ Tamblyn”, 1963, “The Haunting”, Film Still, Director Robert Wise, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Bottom Insert Image: Davis Boulton, “Julie Harris and Richard Johnson”, 1963, “The Haunting”, Film Still, Director Robert Wise, Metro-Goldwyn Mayer

Dwight Frye: Film History Series

Photographer Unknown, “Dwight Frye”, circa 1930s, Studio Photo, Gelatin Silver Print, Universal Pictures, Private Collection

Born in the central Kansas city of Salina in February of 1899, Dwight Frye was an American stage and screen actor who appeared in over sixty films during his career.

Born into the farming family of Charles Fry and Ella Dodd, a deeply devout member of the Christian Scientist church, Dwight Frye at an early age relocated with his family to Denver, Colorado where he spent his formative years. Already showing signs as a career musician, Frye gave his first solo recital on the piano at the age of fifteen. However by his senior high school year, he had developed a love for the theater and made the decision to pursue acting.

While working as a secretary in a Denver business firm, Frye spent his free time at the acting academy founded by stage and film actress Margaret Fealy. Recognized for his acting skill, he joined the Denham Stock Company and performed primarily in comedic and musical productions. Frye began touring with the company as its juvenile lead; however he soon became an actor much in demand. In 1918 during the influenza outbreak, Frye performed with the Woodward Players at theaters in Spokane, Washington where he was lauded as the local celebrity.

Dwight Frye relocated to New York City to seek success on its Broadway theater circuit. He played a romantic role in Hubert Osborne’s 1923 adaptation of Julian Street’s novel “Rita Coventry” at the Bijou Theatre. In 1924, Frye received recognition for his role in the production of Luigi Pirandello’s “Six Characters in Search of an Author” at the Princess Theatre. This was followed by the role of Melville Tuttle in Patrick Kearney’s 1925 three-act play “A Man’s Man” at the 52nd Street Theatre.

Frye’s acting career in Hollywood began with several uncredited roles in films produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Brothers Pictures, and Fox Film Company between 1926 and 1930. With the advent of sound films, he became known for his portrayal of villains and unbalanced characters. Frye’s first role of note was the madman R. M. Renfield in Tod Browning’s 1931 “Dracula”, a Garrett Fort adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel for Universal Pictures.

In the 1930s, Dwight Frye had supporting roles within thirty-eight movies; he alternated his characters between horror, drama, adventure, and crime films. In 1931, Frye performed two of his better-known roles: Fritz, the hunchbacked assistant in James Whale’s “Frankenstein” for Universal Pictures, and gunman Wilmer Cook in Roy Del Ruth’s directorial film adaptation of Dashiell Hammett’s “The Maltese Falcon”. Frye also portrayed the suspected killer in “The Vampire Bat” and a reporter in “The Invisible Man”, both 1933 Universal Pictures productions. He later took the role of Dr. Thomas, playing opposite Erich von Stroheim’s Dr. Crespi, in John H. Auer’s 1935 horror film “The Crime of Dr. Crespi” produced by Liberty Pictures.

In 1935, Frye returned to Universal Pictures to take the supporting role of Karl in what became another Universal Pictures classic, James Whale’s “The Bride of Frankenstein”. Other films in the 1930s included two with James Cagney: the 1930 crime drama “The Doorway to Hell” and the role of Mr. Easton in the 1937 musical “Something to Sing About”. Other films include the 1937 action movie “Sea Devils”, the 1938 crime films “Invisible Enemies” and “The Night Hawk”, the 1938 South Seas adventure film “Sinners in Paradise”, and director James Whale’s 1939 historical drama “The Man in the Iron Mask”.

In the early 1940s, Dwight Frye performed in both film roles and stage productions that ranged from comedies to musicals; he also made an appearance in a Broadway stage production of “Dracula” with Bela Lugosi. In the early stages of World War II, Frye made a contribution to the war effort by working at night as a tool designer for the Lockheed Aircraft Company.

In the early 1940s, American screenwriter and producer Lamar Trotti was working on a screen play for a biopic about Woodrow Wilson, aided by the assistance of Wilson’s daughter Eleanor and journalist Ray Stannard Baker. After the role of President Wilson was cast, Frye was chosen for the role of Secretary of War Newton D. Baker. A few days before his scheduled filming, Dwight Frye died of a heart attack at the age of forty-four on the seventh of November in 1943. His funeral service was held at the Utter-McKinley Mortuary and his body was buried at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park.

Notes: Produced by 20th Century-Fox, the 1944 “Wilson” received critical acclaim and earned ten nominations at the 17th Academy Awards, wining five including Best Writing and Original Screenplay.

Live Journal, a community publishing platform, has an excellent memorial article on Dwight Frye at its site: https://vintage-gold.livejournal.com/1366.html

Tales from the Border has a 2015 article entitled “What a Character! Blogathon: The Ballad of Dwight Frye” that has information not available on other sites: https://talesfromtheborder.com/2015/11/21/what-a-character-blogathon-the-ballad-of-dwight-frye/

Top Insert Image: Film Shot, “Dwight Frye as Flandrin”, 1933, “The Circus Queen Murder”, Director Roy William Neill, Cinematography Joseph H. August, Columbia Pictures

Second Insert Image: Film Shot, “Dwight Frye as Renfield”, 1931, “Dracula”, Director Tod Browning, Cinematography Karl Freund, Universal Pictures

Third Insert Image: Film Shot, “Dwight Frye as Jessop”, 1931, “The Black Camel” (Charlie Chan Series), Director Hamilton MacFadden, Cinematography Joseph August and Daniel B. Clark, Fox Film Corporation

Bottom Insert Image: Film Shot, “Dwight Frye as Wilmer Cook”, 1931, “The Maltese Falcon”, Director Roy Del Ruth, Cinematography William Rees, Warner Brothers Pictures

Tod Browning, “The Mystic”: Film History Series

Ira H. Morgan, “Actress Aileen Pringle as Zara”, Todd Browning’s 1925 silent “The Mystic”, Costume by Roman Petrovich Tyrtov (aka Erté)

“The Mystic” was a 1925 silent drama film directed by Tod Browning for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The script was co-written by Browning and Waldemar Young, who over the course of his career wrote screenplays for over eighty films. The film was produced by Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg who, two years before, had finished production on a drama film starring Lon Chaney, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”. Although Chaney was Browning’s immediate choice for the role of Michael Nash, he was unable to hire Chaney for “The Mystic” due to scheduling issues.

“The Mystic” starred Aileen Pringle, a stage and film actress who had worked previously with Rudolph Valentino in the 1920 “Stolen Moments” and with Conrad Nagel in the 1924 adaptation of Elinor Glyn’s romance novel “Three Weeks”. Her co-star was Conway Tearle, who began his career as a stage actor in London and later on Broadway. Over his thirty-six year career, he appeared in over ninety films and, at one point, was thought to be the highest-paid actor in America.

The cinematography was done by Ira H. Morgan who later successfully transitioned from silent to sound films. He worked extensively over his long career with major studios including Paramount Pictures, Warner Brothers, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Morgan’s credits included Charlie Chaplin’s “Modern Times”, George W. Hill’s “Tell It to the Marines”, Sam Katzman’s East Side Kids “Bowery Champs” and the Screen Gems television series “The Adventures of Rin-Tin-Tin”, among others.

The gowns in “The Mystic”, worn by Aileen Pringle in her role of the gypsy Zara, were created by the well-known Russian-born French artist and designer Roman de Tirtoff, known to the world as Erté. Brought to the United States by Louis B. Mayer, Erté first designed the sets and costumes for the 1925 silent film “Paris”. He later did designs for such MGM silent films as “Ben-Hur”, “The Comedian” and “Dance Madness”, as well as William Randolph Hearst’s 1920 silent drama “The Restless Sex”.

Released in September of 1925, one print of “The Mystic” has survived. It has a running time of seventy minutes and has English inter-titles. It is available as a web file at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Mystic_(1925)_by_Tod_Browning.webm

Bottom Insert Image: Ira H. Morgan, “Aileen Pringle and Conway Tearle”, 1925, Film Still from “The Mystic”, Director Tod Browning, MGM

Calendar: June 29

A Year: Day to Day Men: 29th of June

The Amazing Technicolor Man

June 29, 1995 marks the passing of one of MGM’s biggest stars: Lana Turner.

Born to working-class parents in northern Idaho, Lana Turner spent her early life there before her family relocated to San Francisco. In 1936, while still in high school, she was discovered while purchasing a soda at the Top Hat Malt Shop in Hollywood. At the age of 16, she was signed to a personal contract by Warner Brothers director Mervyn Le Roy who took her with him when he transferred to MGM in 1938.

Turner attracted attention playing a murder victim in her first film in 1937, LeRoy’s crime drama “They Won’t Forget”. During the early 1940s, Turner established herself as a leading actress and one of MGM’s top performers, appearing in such films as the film noir “Johnny Eager”, the musical “Ziegfeld Girl”, and the horror film Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, all in 1941. She starred in the 1942 romantic war drama “Somewhere I’ll Find You”, one of several films opposite Clark Gable.

At the advent of World War II, Turner’s increasing prominence in Hollywood led to her becoming a popular pin-up girl and her image appeared painted on the noses of U.S. fighter planes, bearing the nickname “Tempest Turner.” In June 1942, she embarked on a ten-week war bond tour throughout the western United States with her co-star Gable. Throughout the war, Turner continued to make regular appearances at U.S. troop events and area bases.

Turner’s reputation as a glamorous femme fatale was enhanced by her critically acclaimed performance in the 1946 film “The Postman Always Rings Twice”, a role which established her as a serious dramatic actress. Her popularity continued through the 1950s in dramas such as “The Bad and the Beautiful” and “Peyton Place”, the latter of which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.

Turner’s 1959 film, “Imitation of Life”, proved to be one of the greatest financial successes of her career. Her last starring role in the 1966 “Madame X” earned her a David di Donatello Award for Best Actress. Turner spent most of the 1970s and early 1980s in semi-retirement, making her final feature film appearance in “Witches’ Brew”, released in 1980. She accepted in 1982 a much publicized and lucrative recurring guest role in the television series “Falcon Crest”, which afforded the series notably high ratings.

Turner maintained her glamorous image into her late career; a 1966 film review characterized her as “the glitter and glamour of Hollywood.” While she consistently embraced her glamorous persona, she was also vocal about her dedication to acting and attained a reputation as a versatile, hard-working actress. One of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s biggest stars, Lana Turner earned the studio over $50 million during her eighteen-year contract with them.