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- Writer
- Soundtrack
Torquato Tasso was born on 11 March 1544 in Sorrento, Kingdom of Naples [now Campania, Italy]. He was a writer, known for La Gerusalemme liberata (1957), La Gerusalemme liberata (1913) and La Gerusalemme liberata (1918). He died on 25 April 1595 in Rome, Papal State [now Lazio, Italy].- William Vincent Wallace was born on 11 March 1812 in Waterford, Ireland. He was a writer, known for Maritana (1927) and Maritana (1922). He died on 12 October 1865 in Vieuzos, Hautes-Pyrénées, France.
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Vincent Wallace was born on 11 March 1812 in Waterford, Ireland. He was a writer, known for Don Caesar de Bazan (1915). He was married to Helen Stoepel (common law?) and Isabella Kelly. He died on 12 October 1865 in Sauveterre-de-Comminges, Haute-Garonne, France.- Her Grand Ducal Highness Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine was born on 11 March 1895 in Darmstadt, Grand Duchy of Hesse, German Empire [now Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany]. She died on 16 November 1903 in Skierniewice, Congress Poland, Russian Empire [now Skierniewice, Poland].
- Additional Crew
- Writer
- Director
Marius Petipa was born on 11 March 1818 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France. He was a writer and director, known for The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018), Shchelkunchik (2023) and The Bolshoi Ballet: Live from Moscow - The Nutcracker (2010). He was married to Love Savitskaya and Mariia Surovshchikova. He died on 14 July 1910 in Gurzuf, Crimea, Russian Empire [now Ukraine].- Eino Viljami Panula was born on 11 March 1911 in South Ostrobothnia, Finland. He died on 15 April 1912 in North Atlantic Ocean.
- Wilhelmine von Hillern was born on 11 March 1836 in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria [now Bavaria, Germany]. She was a writer, known for La Wally (1932), Die Geierwally (1940) and La leggenda di Wally (1930). She was married to Hermann von Hillern. She died on 25 December 1916 in Hohenaschau, Bavaria, Germany.
- Ömer Seyfettin was born on 11 March 1884 in Gönen, Karasi, Ottoman Empire [now Balikesir, Turkey]. He was a writer, known for Yalniz efe (1964), Kara Peçe (1970) and Yalniz Efe (1987). He died on 6 March 1920 in Constantinople, Ottoman Empire [now Istanbul, Turkey].
- Georg Okonkowski was born on 11 March 1865 in Hohensalza, Posen, Germany. He was a writer, known for The Girl in the Taxi (1937), Die blonde Geisha (1923) and Miss Venus (1921). He died on 24 March 1926 in Berlin, Germany.
- Director
- Actor
- Writer
Holger Rasmussen was born on 11 March 1870. He was a director and actor, known for I Spionklør (1917), Det røde alfabet (1916) and A Wedding During the French Revolution (1910). He died on 17 June 1926.- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Harry Grossman was born on 11 March 1881. He was a director and producer, known for Wits vs. Wits (1920), Face to Face (1922) and The Master Mystery (1918). He was married to Estella Hicks. He died on 11 November 1927 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France.- Actor
- Director
On 26 January 1928, Metcalfe was taking his fifth lesson in how to pilot an aeroplane, flying over Glendale with Roy Wilson, an instructor from the Wilson Aero Service of that city. During the course of the lesson, Metcalf suddenly took an unexpected loop, and was hurled from the plane, falling to his death. His body was found at Lake and Stazier Streets, in Burbank, and was taken to the Powell Undertaking Company Morgue there. (Los Angeles Times, 27 January 1928)- Writer
- Producer
H.C. Witwer was born on 11 March 1890 in Athens, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Cain and Mabel (1936), Her Father Said No (1927) and Bruisers and Losers (1926). He was married to Sadie S.. He died on 9 August 1929 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Vincent Macchia was born on 11 March 1886 in Italy. He was an actor, known for The World and His Wife (1920). He died on 14 March 1930 in Bronx, New York, USA.
- Actor
- Director
Ferry Sikla was born on 11 March 1865 in Hamburg, Germany. He was an actor and director, known for Der Vetter aus Mexiko (1917), Der Unwiderstehliche Theodor (1918) and Die blonde Geisha (1923). He died on 8 February 1932 in Dresden, Germany.- Producer
- Additional Crew
David Horsley was born on March 11, 1873, in a small coal mine village called West Stanley, County of Durham, England. This village was owned and operated by the West Stanley Coal Co., which operated three coal mines with an average output of 1,500 tons of coal per day. The miners' houses comprising the village were all owned by the coal company. David's paternal grandfather William Horsley was general manager of the company while his father, Robert, was a master mechanic and chief blacksmith for the mines, which used ponies to bring the coal to the surface. His maternal grandfather, John Chaytor, was the company's saddler and harness maker. On January 18, 1884, while on an errand for his mother, young David was struck down by a coal train locomotive as he crossed the tracks and lost three fingers, severed by the train wheels. Ultimately, his arm was amputated two inches below the elbow so as to forestall the onset of gangrene.
His mother, realizing that there was no future in the town for her disabled son, decided the family should emigrate to America. On October 17, 1884, the Horsley family arrived in New York and moved to New Jersey, eventually settling in Bayonne. The young Horsely helped support the family by selling newspapers, later working as a Western Union messenger boy. When he was approximately 16 years old, J.T.R. Proctor, the owner of the Bayonne Times, became his benefactor, paying for David to attend night school, where he studied bookkeeping and shorthand. His education enabled him to be hired by the Tidewater Oil Works as a timekeeper.
When he was 19 Horsley opened up a bicycle shop, hand-making bicycles despite his handicap. In 1903 he bought a piece of land and built a pool hall in Bayonne. Unfortunately, his business was wiped out by the Panic (or recession) of 1907. He and one of his regular customers, Charles Gorman, decided to try their hand in the movie business. Gorman had been a scenic artist at the Biograph Motion Picture Co. in New York, but had lost his job during the recession. Gorman had the know-how about the movie industry, and Horsely had the land for a primitive studio and possessed the mechanical skills to build a movie camera from the parts of an old projector. The rear yard of the pool hall was covered with a wooden platform and muslin was hung overhead to diffuse the light. They decided to call their enterprise the Centaur Film Co., as it was a name that was half "horse" (from Horsely) and half "man" (from Gorman).
The Centaur Film Co. struggled during the first three years of its existence, subsisting on money borrowed from relatives. It faced a monumental crisis at the end of its first year of operation when the Patents Company was created in 1908 to pool motion picture equipment patents, including the Lanham loop that was necessary for film to be fed correctly into a movie camera. The Patents Co. refused to give Centaur a license to operate; it considered Centaur a fly-by-night operation and turned down Horsley's application for a license three times, figuring that denying the company a license would drive it out of business. The Patents Co., which became known as "The Trust," intended to completely control the manufacture, distribution and exhibition of films.
The Trust created the General Film Co. to deal with film exchanges and to rent films to the exhibitors. General collected a weekly licensing fee of $2 on every projector in the US for the use of the Lanham loop, a situation that was deeply resented by exhibitors. Exhibitors who refused to pay the $2 license fee were denied films, and thus were deprived of their livelihood. General Film opened its own film exchanges to rent films, and it cut off the supply of films to other film exchanges. Eastman Kodak Co. refused to sell Horsely raw film stock to make his one-reel pictures, as its contract with the Patents Co. and General Film had them boycott non-Trust filmmakers. Horsley thus had to import his raw film stock from the Austin Edwards Co. in England.
When film exchange executives converged on New York to challenge the monopoly implemented by the Trust, they were directed to meet David Horsley, whose Centaur Film was holding up under the challenge. In order to improve his ability to compete successfully against the Patents Co. and General Film, Horsely decided to help the film exchange people become producers of movies, as he knew he wouldn't be able to survive for long against The Trust without some help.
Carl Laemmle and R.H. Cochrane formed the Independent Motion Picture Co. and opened a studio in New York producing one-reel movies called IMPS, while Edwin S. Porter started up Rex Pictures and Edwin Thanhouser opened a studio at New Rochelle, New York, while Pat Powers created Powers Pictures. Other companies formed by film exchange personnel to ensure that they received product were Bison, Champion and Reliance. By 1910 there were as many independent film companies making pictures as there were companies that were part of The Trust. It was difficult for indies to obtain cameras and film, as domestically-made cameras and film stock were covered by the Patent Co.'s patents and thus would not be sold to filmmakers outside The Trust. Producers were forced to go abroad to get the English Prestwich or Williamson camera, or to France to get a camera from DeBrie, Gaumont, Pathe or Prevost. They could also follow the example of Horsely in the US or Léo-Ernest Ouimet in Canada and create their own equipment.
To fight The Trust legally, the indies banded together as the Sales Co., headquartered at 14th Street in New York City. The Sales Co. operated as a central exchange, with producers delivering their one-reel films to 14th St., from whence its product was shipped C.O.D. to buyers at the cost of $100 per reel. The Sales Co. remitted $95 per reel to the filmmaker and kept a $5-per-reel fee in order to finance the fight against The Trust. Horsely's Centaur Co. was making one western, one drama and one Mutt & Jeff comedy per week, all one-reelers, for an output of 120 prints per week. This meant it was remitting $600 per week to the Sales Co., which had an income of about $5,000 to $7,500 per week from all the independent production companies. With these funds the Sales Co. retained first-rate patent attorneys to sue the Patents Co. and put an end to its attempt at monopolizing the motion picture business. The indies eventually won, and even the $2-per-week royalty on each projector was terminated by the courts.
The Trust, which had concentrated on technology rather than on the quality of films, had failed to keep up with the development of the crowd-pleasing narrative film, continuing to churn out simple-minded pictorial essays that found little favor with the maturing movie-going audience. Eventually all the production companies that had dominated the industry before the rise of the indies went out of business, including Edison, Biograph and Essanay. The last remaining Trust member, Vitagraph, was acquired by Warner Bros.
Due to bad weather conditions in the summer and early fall of 1911, making motion pictures in the New York City area became difficult. In response, Horsely moved Centaur to California, opening the first motion picture studio in Hollywood at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street on October 27, 1911. The film was developed after dark and shipped to Centaur's Bayonne office to the laboratory for printing. Al Christie--a Canadian who went on to found his own film company, the Nestor Motion Picture Co.--managed the comedy operation of the studio in both Bayonne and Los Angeles. Westerns were produced by Milton J. Fahrney and dramas were produced by Tom Ricketts. All three producers were responsible for one one-reel picture per week.
On May 20, 1912, the Universal Film Manufacturing Co. was formed and absorbed many independent film companies in exchange for stock, including Horsely's Centaur. For the Hollywood studio, New Jersey laboratory and other assets, Horsely received $175,000 in preferred stock and $204,000 in common stock in Universal shares. He was such a respected member of the film community by that point that he was appointed Universal treasurer at the salary of $200 per week. Soon after the formation of the company, a battle for control of Universal started as Carl Laemmle and his faction took on Pat Powers of Powers Pictures for control. Horsely held the balance of power due to his stake, and in the summer of 1913 he sold his stock to Laemmle for a substantial sum, including a first payment of $197,000 and the balance paid off at a monthly rate of $5,000 in notes. Now rich beyond his dreams, Horsely took his family on a trip back to the United Kingdom, then toured Europe, eventually resigning as treasurer of Universal.
Horsely was in Europe when war broke out in August 1914. The Bostock Animal and Jungle Show was evicted from its London exhibition rooms due to military necessity. The manager of the Jungle Show sold it to Horsely for $40,000, approximately a tenth of his fortune from the sale of his Universal stock. Horsely transported the show's assets to the US by ship. From the docks of Brooklyn, Horsely shipped the menagerie, which included 58 lions and two elephants, to Los Angeles. Altogether it cost him a total of $15,000 to freight the animals from England to L.A. He spent a further $47,500 to create a new park for his show, including grandstands, arenas, cages, and a concrete fence on a property at Washington and Main that rented for $600 per month.
After he opened the show in 1915 he was facing a daily overhead of $225, though the most tickets the show ever sold in a day was $165, while on a bad day the show took in as little as $1.25. To make the show pay, Horsely built a film studio at the site that he called the Bostock Jungle Films Co., which included its own film processing lab. Horsely began turning out movies, many of which used the wild animals as background. His new studio made five-reel dramas with Crane Wilbur, "Stanley in Africa" pictures, and approximately 200 comedies with George Ovey. By the fall of 1918 his movie-making venture was through, and when he filed for bankruptcy in 1919, the once-rich Horsely was $38,000 in debt.
The loss of his company, his exotic animal show and his fortune broke David Horsely. He died on February 23, 1933, a forgotten man, barely remembered as one of the men who saved the film industry from The Trust and pioneered Hollywood as a filmmaking center. Horsely was interred in Hollywood Cemetery, now known as Hollywood Forever Cemetery, reduced to a footnote in American cinema history.- William Dyer was born on 11 March 1881 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. He was an actor, known for The Trail of the Octopus (1919), The Red Glove (1919) and Man's Desire (1919). He died on 22 December 1933 in Hollywood, California, USA.
- Harry Schultz was born on 11 March 1883 in Bremen, Germany. He was an actor, known for One Stolen Night (1929), Crimson Romance (1934) and Spangles (1926). He died on 4 July 1935 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Otto Laubinger was born on 11 March 1892 in Eichenrod, Hesse, Germany. He was an actor, known for Das gestohlene Gesicht (1930) and Lumpaci the Vagabond (1922). He died on 27 October 1935 in Bad Nauheim, Hesse, Germany.
- Composer
- Actor
- Music Department
Gottfried Huppertz was born on 11 March 1887 in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He was a composer and actor, known for Metropolis (1927), Die Nibelungen: Siegfried (1924) and Le domino vert (1935). He died on 7 February 1937 in Berlin, Germany.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Casting Director
Al Ernest Garcia was born on 11 March 1887 in San Francisco, California, USA. He was an actor and casting director, known for Modern Times (1936), The Circus (1928) and City Lights (1931). He was married to Ruth Garcia. He died on 4 September 1938 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Aleksandr Voznesensky was born on 11 March 1880 in the Russian Empire. He was a writer, known for Mute Witnesses (1914), Slyozy (1914) and Tsar Nikolay II (1917). He died on 22 January 1939 in Kazakh SSR, USSR [now Kazakhstan].
- Sayajirao Gaekwad III was born on 11 March 1863 in Kavalana, Malegon Tashil, Baroda, British India. He was married to Lakshmibai Mohite and Chimnabai. He died on 6 February 1939 in Baroda, British India.
- Composer
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Dr. Wilhelm Grosz was born on August 11th, 1894, in Vienna, Austria. The only child of Bernhard and Mathilde Grosz, who owned a jewelry shop in Vienna, he studied theory and composition at the Vienna State Academy and graduated with honors. He received his Ph.D in Musicology in 1920. He married Elisabeth Schön on February 10th, 1927, who had a son from a previous marriage. In 1927, they moved to Berlin and Dr. Grosz became artistic manager of Ultraphon Gramophon Company, which later became Telefunken. He began to write less classical pieces and more popular music. On March 16th, 1930, Elisabeth gave birth to a daughter, their only child Eva Anneliese. In 1933, Dr. Grosz became conductor of the Kammerspiel Theater in Vienna after being forced to leave Berlin due to his being Jewish and Adolf Hitler having become Chancellor of Germany that same year. In 1934, he moved his family to London, where he befriended lyricist Jimmy Kennedy. Together, they composed several songs which have become standards over the years, including "Harbor Lights", "Red Sails in the Sunset", and "Isle of Capri". Grosz wrote under the name of Will Grosz, but later under the name Hugh Williams, and then Hugh Grant. In 1939, Grosz and his wife went to New York City with the intention of him eventually succeeding in Hollywood as a composer. With help from a friend from pre-WWII Vienna who had already found Hollywood success, composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Grosz signed a contract with Warner Brothers. As Hugh Williams, Grosz composed "Along the Santa Fe Trail" in 1939 for the Errol Flynn film, Santa Fe Trail. Although success seemed possible, the outbreak of WWII stranded him and his wife in New York while daughter Eva Anneliese and her half-brother, Peter, were still in London, where they would remain with family members until the end of the war. The tragedy of losing a homeland, family and friends, combined with the excitement of being on the precipice of success in America, all put tremendous stress on his already congenitally weak heart. Only two weeks after having signed the contract with Warner Brothers, on December 10th, 1939, Grosz gave a private recital at the home of his friend, Werner Liebman, in Forest Hills, a suburb of New York City. While accompanying a trio of ladies in the final scene of Der Rosenkavelier, he collapsed at the piano of a massive heart attack and fell backwards into the arms of friends, just as the Marschallin sang 'Im Gottes Namen!' (In the name of God!)- George Durham was born on 11 March 1856 in Georgia, USA. He was a writer, known for Texas Rangers (2001) and Planet of Doom (2004). He was married to Caroline H. Chamberlain. He died on 28 May 1940 in Texas, USA.
- Actress
- Additional Crew
Mary Wong was born on 11 March 1910 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She was an actress, known for The Good Earth (1937). She died on 15 July 1940 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- C.M. Lowne was born on 11 March 1863 in Bishopsgate, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Masks and Faces (1917). He died on 30 July 1941 in Hampstead, London, England, UK.
- Edward Rydz-Smigly was born on 11 March 1886 in Lapszyn, Brzezany, Galicia, Austria-Hungary [now Lapshin, Ternopil Oblast, Ukraine]. He died on 2 December 1941 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.
- Bruno Aspelin was born on 11 March 1870. He was an actor, known for Rautakylän vanha parooni (1923). He died on 9 December 1941.
- Cinematographer
William M. Edmond was born on 11 March 1883 in Pennsylvania, USA. He was a cinematographer, known for Held in Trust (1920), The Cheater (1920) and When Romance Rides (1922). He died on 24 December 1943 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Albrecht von Hagen was born on 11 March 1904 in Langen, Pomerania, Germany [now Legi, Zachodniopomorskie, Poland]. He died on 8 August 1944 in Plötzensee, Berlin, Germany.
- Mrs. Payne Whitney was born on 11 March 1875 in New York City, New York, USA. She was married to Payne Whitney. She died on 24 September 1944 in New York City, New York, USA.
- Jenöné Veszprémy was born on 11 March 1854 in Kenyhec, Austria-Hungary [now Kechnec, Slovakia]. She was an actress, known for Toprini nász (1918), A Szentmihály (1921) and Károly bakák (1918). She died on 28 January 1945 in Kápolnásnyék, Hungary.
- Franklyn Garland was born on 11 March 1864 in Wisconsin, USA. He was an actor, known for Shore Acres (1920) and Polygamy (1936). He was married to Allie M.. He died on 5 May 1945 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Fiske O'Hara was born on 11 March 1883 in Maine, USA. He was an actor, known for Track 29 (1988), Change of Heart (1934) and Paddy the Next Best Thing (1933). He was married to Mrs. Fiske O'Hara. He died on 2 August 1945 in Hollywood, California, USA.- Heinrich Greif was born on 11 March 1907 in Dresden, Germany. He was an actor, known for Girl No. 217 (1945), The Struggle (1936) and Vosstaniye rybakov (1934). He died on 16 July 1946 in Berlin, Germany.
- Malcolm Campbell was born on 11 March 1885 in Chislehurst, Kent, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Burn 'Em Up O'Connor (1939) and Speed Limit (1931). He was married to Betty Nicory, Dorothy Evelyn Whittall and Marjorie D. Knott. He died on 31 December 1948 in Reigate, Surrey, England, UK.
- Malcolm Campbell was born on 11 March 1885 in Chislehurst, Kent, England, UK. He died on 31 December 1948 in Reigate, Surrey, England, UK.
- Jesse Graves was born on 11 March 1879 in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. He was an actor, known for Safari (1940), Louisiana (1947) and Son of Ingagi (1940). He died on 4 March 1949 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Camera and Electrical Department
Owen Crompton was born on 11 March 1893 in Melbourne, Australia. He died on 17 March 1949 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Sonny Loy was born on 11 March 1915 in San Francisco, California, USA. He was an actor, known for The First Born (1921), Mr. Wu (1927) and The Divine Woman (1928). He died on 8 January 1950 in California, USA.
- Henri Rivière was born on 11 March 1864 in Paris, France. He is known for L'oeil, le pinceau et le cinématographe : naissance d'un art (2021). He died on 24 August 1951 in France.
- Oliver Garver was born on 11 March 1900 in Peoria, Illinois, USA. He was a director, known for Hollywood: Style Center of the World (1940). He died on 13 March 1952 in Sawtelle, California, USA.
- Jozef Sterkens was born on 11 March 1893 in Antwerpen, Flanders, Belgium. He was an actor, known for De witte (1934). He died on 3 May 1952 in Antwerpen, Flanders, Belgium.
- Gertrud Wolle was born on 11 March 1891 in Urbis, Alsace, Germany [now Urbès, Haut-Rhin, France]. She was an actress, known for The Hound of the Baskervilles (1937), Der Ball (1931) and Three from the Filling Station (1930). She died on 6 July 1952 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
- Henri Baudin was born on 11 March 1882 in Lyon, Rhône, France. He was an actor, known for Three Musketeers (1932), Le cousin Pons (1924) and La bouquetière des innocents (1923). He died on 2 October 1953 in Vienne-en-Arthriet, Val-d'Oise, France.
- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Bruce Wong was born on 11 March 1909 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Sum Hun (1936), China's Little Devils (1945) and China (1943). He died on 1 November 1953 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Director
- Composer
- Music Department
Songwriter ("Butterfingers"), organist, composer, conductor and director, educated at the University of Pittsburgh; he studied music with Dudley Fitch, and James Ford. He was an organist in St. Petersburg, Florida, and came to New York in 1936 as a free-lance organist, eventually doing musical and dramatic programs on radio and in theatres, and then joining the ABC staff. Joining ASCAP in 1947, his other popular songs included "Old Prairie Wagon", "Little Darlin'", "God Is Everywhere", "In Suniland", "In Flanders", "Sunset Lullabye", "Our Graduation Waltz", and "St. Patrick's Bells".- Mrs. Sydney Groome was born on 11 March 1872 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Mrs. Sydney was a writer, known for The Knight Errant (1922) and The Mystery of Mr. Bernard Brown (1921). Mrs. Sydney was married to Sydney H. Groom, Herbert Arthur Berkeley Dealtry and Herman Klein. Mrs. Sydney died on 29 April 1954 in Hove, East Sussex, England, UK.
- Composer
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Dan Folke was born on 11 March 1906 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was a composer, known for Tango (1933), Lynet (1934) and Odds 777 (1932). He was married to Elise Bruhn. He died on 16 September 1954 in Copenhagen, Denmark.