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- Nader Shah was born on 22 October 1688 in Iran. He died on 20 June 1747 in Iran.
- Writer
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Federico Ricci was born on 22 October 1809 in Naples, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies [now Campania, Italy]. He was a writer and composer, known for Wings (1927), Crispino e la comare: 'Vuoi tornare...' (1908) and Crispino e la comare: 'Una volta un ciabattino' (1908). He died on 10 December 1877 in Conegliano, Veneto, Italy.- Music Department
Federico Ricci was born on 22 October 1809 in Naples, Italy. He is known for Ricci: Crispino e la Comare (2016). He died on 10 December 1877 in Conegliano, Veneto, Italy.- Music Department
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Franz Liszt, the virtuoso pianist and composer, was the most famous concert superstar of the 19th century. He was born in what was then the Austrian Empire. His father was Hungarian and his mother was Austrian. At age 6 he took music lessons from his father, Adam Liszt, who worked at the Court of Count Esterhazy, the main sponsor of Liszt's education and career. Liszt continued his music studies in Vienna under Carl Czerny and Antonio Salieri.
In 1823, at the young age of 12, Liszt moved with his parents to Paris. There he enjoyed an early friendship with Frédéric Chopin, but later they became rivals. At that time young Liszt began his career of a travelling virtuoso. He was adulated all-over Europe, from Ireland to Russia. His concert performances included his own compositions, regarded by many as the most difficult piano music ever written. His elegant, worldly manners in combination with diabolic cynicism and his impressive stage presence and supernatural virtuosity gave cause for rumors, that he must have made a deal with the Devil. His "Mephisto Waltz" depicts the Devil playing a Paganini-style violin on the piano.
Franz Liszt became a friend of many important cultural figures of his time. He attended the Paris premiere of the "Symphonie Fantastique" by Hector Berlioz and the two composers became good friends. Liszt shared mutual respect with Mikhail Glinka. He also admired Aleksandr Borodin and promoted his first symphony for performances in Western Europe. Liszt was a friend of Richard Wagner, who was Liszt's son-in-law, until their differences led to cooler relationship in their later years. Liszt's influence on his fellow musicians was legendary. He made superb piano transcriptions of symphonies, operas and large orchestral works of other composers, such as Ludwig van Beethoven, Hector Berlioz, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Richard Wagner. Operas and symphonies in Liszt's transcriptions became valuable repertoire of many pianists.
Liszt lived and travelled with the married Countess Marie D'Agoult for 12 years and they had three children. In 1847, in Russia, Liszt met the beautiful and wealthy Princess Carolyne Wittgenstein, who soon left her husband for Liszt. In 1848 he became the Director of Music at the Court of Weimar. There, living with Carolyne in her mansion, he composed and revised his most important music, including the "Dream of Love", dedicated to Carolyne. The Church did not allow Liszt to marry Carolyne and also did not allow Carolyne to divorce Wittgenstein, with whom she had a daughter. In 1861 Liszt settled in Rome where Carolyne bought a home and they tried to marry again, but the Church did not terminate Carolyne's marriage until her husband died in 1864. She then changed her mind and lived with unmarried Liszt, who was stuck in this painful situation until the end of his life. Under her influence, he became a religious man and in 1865 Pope admitted Liszt into Holy Orders and commissioned the church music. Since 1870s Liszt taught at the Budapest Conservatory and also participated with Wagner in several concert events in Bayreith. He spent his last years between Rome, Weimar, Budapest and Bayreuth, where he died in 1886.- Malcolm Watson was born on 22 October 1853 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was a writer, known for Sanctuary (1916). He died on 8 August 1929 in Holborn, London, England, UK.
- James Bland was an African-American musician and composer who wrote many songs about the American South for use in minstrel shows. His most famous was Carry Me Back to Old Virginny (1878), which became the official State Song of Virginia, being retired in 1997 due to racial controversies. Bland was born in Flushing, New York on October 22, 1854, one of eight children to educated free parents. His father bought him an eight-dollar banjo and Bland was soon performing professionally by his early teens. He attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., but soon pursued music, inspired by the music of some of the workers on the Howard campus, and joined the all-black Georgia Minstrels in the late 1870's. He soon married fellow Howard student and Virginia native Mamie Friend, and was inspired to write Carry Me Back to Old Virginny after hearing her speak of her homesickness while away at college. Other songs composed by Bland were In the Morning in the Bright Light (1879), In the Evening by the Moonlight (1879), and his second most famous song, Oh! Dem Golden Slippers (1879), known today mostly because it was used in an often-aired Golden Grahams cereal television commercial in the 1970's. In 1881, he moved to London, spending the next twenty years there before returning to the United States. While in London, he performed without blackface and gave command performances for Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales. Bland was making $10,000 a year at one point but recklessly spent his money. In 1901 he returned penniless to Washington, D.C., and as the popularity of minstrel shows waned, Bland could not find work. He died alone in Philadelphia on May 5, 1911, a victim of tuberculosis. He was buried in an unmarked grave but in 1939 the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) provided a headstone at the grave site to commemorate his life. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.
- Born in 1858 to Duke Friedrich of Schleswig-Holstein and his wife, Princess Adelheid zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg, Augusta-Victoria's family was uprooted from their hereditary fief due to war, and as a consequence she lived throughout Europe as a girl. She met then-Crown Prince Wilhelm of Germany in 1879 and married him two years later; she was a dutiful wife and mother, and posed no challenge to her husband's dominating personality. When his father died in 1888, Wilhelm became Kaiser of Germany. After World War I, she followed her husband into exile in the Netherlands, where she died in 1921.
- Jeanne Brindeau was born on 22 October 1860 in Paris, France. She was an actress, known for Paris' Girls (1929), La voyante (1924) and La fille du Boche (1915). She died on 6 April 1946 in Paris, France.
- Antony Mars was born on 22 October 1861 in Vence, Alpes-Maritimes, France. He was a writer, known for Les vingt-huit jours de Clairette (1933), Le billet de logement (1932) and Le sorprese del divorzio (1923). He died on 17 February 1915 in Paris, France.
- Actor
- Writer
Raymond Hitchcock was born on 22 October 1865 in Auburn, New York, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Upstream (1927), Redheads Preferred (1926) and The Ringtailed Rhinoceros (1915). He was married to Flora Zabelle and Freda Bowen. He died on 24 November 1929 in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- E. Phillips Oppenheim was born on 22 October 1866 in London, England, UK. E. Phillips was a writer, known for The Golden Web (1926), The Black Box (1915) and Monte Carlo Nights (1934). E. Phillips died on 3 February 1946 in St. Peter Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands, UK.
- Vera Pivonková was born on 22 October 1866 in Prague, Austrian Empire [now Czech Republic]. She was an actress, known for Prodaná nevesta (1913). She died on 13 July 1939 in Prague, Protektorát Cechy a Morava [now Czech Republic].
- Actor
- Director
Fred J. Butler was born on 22 October 1867 in Idaho, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Smiling All the Way (1920), Girls Don't Gamble (1920) and Fickle Women (1920). He was married to Adele Belgrade. He died on 22 February 1929 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Lillian Hayward was born on 22 October 1868 in Napa County, California, USA. She was an actress, known for The Child of the Sea (1913), Etienne of the Glad Heart (1914) and The Black Orchid (1916). She was married to Francis Boggs. She died on 13 June 1947 in Chico, California, USA.
- Director
- Writer
- Actor
Charles H. France was born on 22 October 1869 in Decatur, Illinois, USA. He was a director and writer, known for An Absent-Minded Mother (1914), The Adventures of Andy Clark (1914) and A Romance of the Everglades (1914). He died on 12 June 1940 in Onarga, Illinois, USA.- Harue Ichikawa was born on 22 October 1870 in Ehime Prefecture, Japan. She is known for Kiri no minato (1923), Koi o tatsu ono (1924) and Yoshioka taisa (1926).
- Ivan Bunin was the first Russian writer to win the Nobel Prize for Literature (1933).
He was born Ivan Alekseevich Bunin on October 22, 1870 on his ancestral estate near Voronezh, Russia. His father, Aleksei Bunin, and his mother, were descendants of several lines of old nobility that included Russian landed gentry and Luthuanian knights. The Bunins were landlords and serf-owners; but Bunin's father lost his estate in a unfortunate card-game spree, leaving his family in a financial ruin. Young Ivan Bunin spent his childhood around the peasant surfs on his estate. He went to a grammar school in the town of Yelets, but after only five years of school he had to return back home. Bunin continued homeschooling under the tutelage of his elder brother, who was a university student. Brother encouraged Bunin to write and read Russian classics such as Alexander Pushkin, Nikolay Gogol, Mikhail Lermontov, Lev Tolstoy, and others.
Bunin published his first poem at the age of 17, in a literary magazine in St. Petersburg. His first short story 'Derevenski eskiz' (aka.. Country Sketch) was published in 1891, it was soon followed by publications of more poems and short stories. At that time he had a job as an assistant editor of a local newspaper in the city of Orel, Russia. His stories were published in several newspapers and magazines across Russia. At that time Bunin started a correspondence with Anton Chekhov, and with a passage of time the two writers became close friends. In 1894 Bunin met Lev Tolstoy. He admired the works of Tolstoy, but their social and moral views were quite different. Bunin's communication with Maxim Gorky led to their meeting in 1899 and both writers developed good friendship. During the 1900s Bunin and Gorky spent several winters together on the isle of Capri. At that time Bunin had several publications through the "Znanie" (Knowledge) group, which was founded and managed by Maxim Gorky.
By 1900 Ivan Bunin had published over 100 poems. His 1899 translation of 'The Song of Hiawatha' by Longfellow was awarded the Pushkin Prize and Gold Medal from the Russian Academy of Science. His other translations included Lord Byron's 'Manfred', Tennyson's 'Lady Godiva', and poems by Alfred de Musset. In 1909 Bunin was elected one of the 12 full members of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In 1910 he published his first full-scale novel 'Derevnya' (The Village), and in 1912, 'Sukhodol' (Dry Valley), a nostalgic portrayal of decaying Russian nobility based on the true story of his own family. Bunin traveled extensively in Russia and abroad, in Palestine, Egypt, Turkey, Algeria, all-over Europe and Asia. His first marriage to the daughter of a Greek revolutionary ended in divorce. His second marriage in 1907 lasted his all life.
Bunin witnessed the terror and destruction caused by communists during the Russian Revolution of 1917. He fled from the Bolshevok communists by moving from Moscow to Odessa. There Bunin lived for 2 years hoping that the White Russians might restore order and beat the communist revolutionaries, but soon revolutionary chaos spread all over Russia. In February 1920 Bunin had to leave all his property behind under the threat of approaching communist armies. He swiftly emigrated aboard the last French ship leaving Odessa with other anti-communist Russians, and eventually settled in Grasse, near Cannes, in the south of France. There he published his eyewitness account of the Russian Revolution in the form of a diary entitled 'Okayannye dni' (The Accursed Days 1925-26). In it Bunin described the Soviet government by writing of them: "What a disgusting gallery of convicts!"
He was the eldest of Russian émigré writes, and was regarded by all intellectual émigrés as the last one writing in the high tradition of Lev Tolstoy and Anton Chekhov. Bunin was the first Russian writer to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1933. At that time Bunin received congratulations from intellectuals from all-over the world, but not a word from the Soviet Russia, where his name and his books were banned. On his way to accept the Nobel Prize in Stockholm, Sweden, Bunin had to pass through Germany. There he was arrested by the Nazis on a false accusations of smuggling jewels, and was forced to drink a bottle of Castor oil. Bunin had a staunch anti-Nazi position, he was known for sheltering a Jew in his home during the Nazi occupation of France.
Bunin's best known books 'Solnechny Udar' (A Sunstroke 1927), 'Zhizn Arsenyeva' (The Life of Arsenyev 1933), 'Lika' (1939), and 'Tyomnye Allei' (Dark Alleys, or in some translations, Shadowed Paths, 1943) are among the highest achievements in Russian literature of the 20th century. Bunin's poetry was highly regarded by Vladimir Nabokov. However, most of Bunin's books were banned in Russia under the Soviet censorship, because of his truthful and frightening description of chaos and destruction caused by the communists after the Russian revolution of 1917. Later, every year in the morning of the 8th of November, Bunin suffered from painful traumatic memories about the collapse of Russia caused by the communist takeover that happened on that date in 1917. He died of a heart attack in the morning of November 8, 1953, in his apartment in Paris, and was laid to rest in the Russian Cemetery at Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois in Paris.
Selected works by Bunin were published posthumously in Russia, in 1956- 1961, during the "Thaw" that was initiated by Nikita Khrushchev. However,
- Lord Alfred Douglas was born on 22 October 1870 in Ham Hill, Worcester, England, UK. Lord Alfred was a writer, known for Salomé (1979). Lord Alfred was married to Olive Custance. Lord Alfred died on 20 March 1945 in Lancing, Sussex, England, UK.
- Sara Ware Bassett was born on 22 October 1872 in Newton, Massachusetts, USA. Sara Ware was a writer, known for Captain Hurricane (1935) and Danger Ahead! (1921). Sara Ware died in July 1968 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
- Mikhail Rostovtsev was born on 22 October 1872 in Taganrog, Don Voisko Oblast, Russian Empire [now Rostov Oblast, Russia]. He was an actor, known for Devushka speshit na svidanie (1936), Chuzhie (1929) and Kosaya liniya (1929). He died on 19 April 1948 in Moscow, RSFSR, USSR [now Russia].
- Federico Oliver was born on 22 October 1873 in Chipiona, Cádiz, Andalucía, Spain. Federico was a writer, known for The Witching Hour (1985). Federico died on 21 February 1957 in Madrid, Madrid, Castilla la Nueva, Spain [now Madrid, Madrid, Spain].
- Actor
- Producer
Harry Walden was born on 22 October 1875 in Berlin, Germany. He was an actor and producer, known for Der Umweg zur Ehe (1919), Zwei Welten (1919) and Der Mandarin (1918). He was married to Frieda Wagen-Hohenthal. He died on 4 June 1921 in Berlin, Germany.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Birth registration reads as follows (in part):
1876 LOFTUS, MARIE CECILIA B (Statutory registers Births 644/11 1971):
1876 BIRTHS in the District of Hutchesontown in the County of Lanark, No. (#) 1971
Name and Surname: Marie Cecilia Brown LOFTUS, Illegitimate.
When and where born: 1876, October Twenty second 10 h. 30m a.m., 40 Rose Street, Hutchesontown, Glasgow.
Name, Surname & Rank or Profession of Father (none listed).
Name and Maiden Surname of Mother: Mary Loftus, Vocalist.
Date and Place of Marriage (no listing).- Fritz Alberti was born on 22 October 1877 in Hanau, Hesse, Germany. He was an actor, known for Die Nibelungen: Siegfried (1924), The Student of Prague (1926) and Das Geheimnis um Johann Orth (1932). He died on 15 September 1954 in Berlin, Germany.
- Mrs. Thomas N. Heffron was born on 22 October 1877 in Utah, USA. She was an actress, known for The Problem Love Solved (1913). She was married to Thomas N. Heffron. She died on 9 April 1974 in San Francisco, California, USA.
- Actor
- Writer
Burton Law was born on 22 October 1877 in Ouray, Colorado, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Winners of the West (1921), In the Days of Buffalo Bill (1922) and The Radio-Active Bomb (1923). He died on 2 November 1963 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Erik Forslund was born on 22 October 1878 in Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden. He was an actor, known for Onda ögon (1947), En stulen vals (1932) and Jag är med eder... (1948). He died on 12 March 1960 in Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden.
- Although forgotten today, Detmar Poppen was a very active stage actor (see "other works"), appearing on Broadway since 1906. His final stage role was in the hit, "Revenge with Music" starring the fascinating (and scandalous) torch singer Libby Holman. He was signed on a per film contract basis to First National (Warner Brothers) in mid-1933, first appearing in Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle's final effort, the short, Tomalio (1933), which wasn't released until 5 months after the comedian's death. His career took an interesting, if somewhat miscast turn on radio in 1935 when he signed with NBC as Popeye which was broadcast over three different networks by two sponsors from 1935 to 1938. Wheatena hot cereal first sponsored the show from September 10, 1935 to March 28, 1936 (87 episodes aired on the NBC Red Network on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday nights at 7:15pm). Poppen's vocal characterization of the famous King Features sailor was only vaguely reminiscent of the better known cartoon incarnation as performed by Billy Costello or Jack Mercer and he was replaced by Floyd Buckley, a silent screen actor, for the final 78 episodes that ran through February, 1937 on CBS. On film, Poppen only appeared in 5 short subjects over a span of a little more than 4 years before retiring from the acting profession.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Frank LaForge studied music with Harrison Wild and others, and earned an honorary degree from the Detroit Foundation Music School. He founded the La Forge-Berumen Studios in New York, accompanied Lily Pons and others, recorded on piano for Victor, and composed several popular and sacred songs including "Retreat", "To a Messenger", "Before the Crucifix", "Hills", and "Pathways of Song".- Else Bötticher was born on 22 October 1880. She was an actress, known for So ein Flegel (1934), Fräulein Leutnant (1914) and Frau Hempels Tochter (1919). She died on 3 July 1966 in Berlin, Germany.
- John I. Dudley was born on 22 October 1881 in New York, USA. He was a producer, known for Life Without Soul (1915). He died on 20 October 1946 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.
- Actor
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Stunts
Eddie Sturgis was born on 22 October 1881 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He was an actor and assistant director, known for Seven Keys to Baldpate (1925), Just for Tonight (1918) and A Divorce of Convenience (1921). He died on 13 December 1947 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- A former stage actress, Dorothy Phillips was married to actor/director/producer Allen Holubar. They were known as two of the screen's most prominent players--her the star, he the director/producer. Dorothy was well known in Hollywood as one of the most warm-hearted, approachable stars in the business. After the advent of sound, however, her career faded and she could be seen in a handful of films as an extra. Although a major star in her time and one of the best loved of that era, her passing was barely mentioned, other than in local papers.
- Animation Department
Edmund Dulac was born on 22 October 1882 in 56 Rue Montaudron, Toulouse, France. Edmund is known for Between Earth and the End of Time (1995). Edmund was married to Elsa Arnalice Bignardi and Alice May de Marini. Edmund died on 25 May 1953.- Beatrix Fielden-Kaye was born on 22 October 1883 in Darwen, Lancashire, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Trouble Brewing (1939), The Show Goes On (1936) and No Limit (1935). She died on 30 January 1942 in Manchester, England, UK.
- Bill Carrigan was born on 22 October 1883 in Lewiston, Maine, USA. He died on 8 July 1969 in Lewiston, Maine, USA.
- Composer
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Viktor Jacobi was born on 22 October 1883 in Budapest, Hungary. Viktor was a composer, known for Leányvásár (1941), Leányvásár (1919) and Musical TV Theater (1970). Viktor died on 12 December 1921 in New York City, New York, USA.- Cinematographer
- Director
- Special Effects
Aleksandr Digmelov was born on 22 October 1884 in Tiflis, Russian Empire [now Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia]. He was a cinematographer and director, known for Giorgi Saakadze (1942), Ukanaskneli djvarosnebi (1933) and Sami sitsotskhle (1924). He died on 31 March 1958 in Tbilisi, USSR [now Republic of Georgia].- John Sheehan was born on 22 October 1885 in Oakland, California, USA. He was an actor, known for The Criminal Code (1930), Ticket to Paradise (1936) and Hidden Enemy (1940). He was married to Blanche Morris Roberts. He died on 14 February 1952 in Calabasas, California, USA.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
One of the great voices of the Metropolitan Opera, the tenor Giovanni Martinelli has one of the longest tenures there of any principal artist (1913 - 1945) and a popularity with audiences that, at one point, was exceeded only by that of Enrico Caruso. A specialist in the French and Italian repertoires, who created the tenor leads in several Met premiers (Granados' "Goyescas," Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin," Verdi's "Don Carlo," among many others), his greatest success came in 1937 in the title role of Verdi's "Otello," opposite Lawrence Tibbett and Helen Jepson. Although he retired from the company in 1945, he continued to lead an active, vigorous life almost to the end of his days. A frequent attendee at Met performances, his entrances received as much applause as the evening's featured singers, sometimes more so. He was an attendee at the closing night of the Old Met and the opening night of the New Met in, both in 1966. In 1967, at the age of eighty-one, he sang his last performance, as the Emperor in a Seattle Opera performance of Puccini's "Turandot," proving that his voice had not failed him. He died, a happy man with a love of music and life that never faded, two years later, at the age of eighty three.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Gilberto Govi was born on 22 October 1885 in Genoa, Liguria, Italy. He was an actor and writer, known for Colpi di timone (1942), Che tempi! (1948) and Il diavolo in convento (1951). He was married to Caterina Franchi Gaioni. He died on 28 April 1966 in Genoa, Liguria, Italy.- Director
- Writer
- Editor
Friedrich Burau was born on 22 October 1885 in Dresden, Saxony, Germany. He was a director and writer, known for Zu spät! (1919), Keckhahns Ferienabenteuer (1918) and Der Sinn des Lebens (1922). He died on 26 May 1952 in Basel, Kanton Basel Stadt, Switzerland.- Actor
- Set Decorator
- Additional Crew
Jay Hanna was born on 22 October 1886 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, USA. He was an actor and set decorator, known for Old Gorman's Gal (1913), NWA Southwest Wrestling (1999) and Love on Tough Luck Ranch (1912). He died on 7 August 1957 in Santa Clara, California, USA.- John Reed was born on 22 October 1887 in Portland, Oregon, USA. He was a writer, known for October (Ten Days that Shook the World) (1927), Reed: Insurgent Mexico (1972) and Red Bells (1982). He was married to Louise Bryant. He died on 17 October 1920 in Russia.
- Writer
- Director
Hamilton Smith was born on 22 October 1887 in Muskegon, Michigan, USA. He was a writer and director, known for A Bride for a Knight (1923), The Ventures of Marguerite (1915) and The Key to Possession (1915). He died on 29 October 1941 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Robert Graves was born on 22 October 1888 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Madame Spy (1934), Le spectre vert (1930) and The Great Circus Mystery (1925). He was married to Ellen Godsey. He died on 19 August 1954 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Nat Salmon was born on 22 October 1888 in New York City, New York, USA. Nat is known for Broken Chains (1922).- Hedwig Keller was born on 22 October 1888 in Vienna, Austria. She was an actress, known for Margot de Plaisance (1919), Die Rache des Bastards (1919) and Jä-soo! (1935). She died on 27 August 1943 in Vienna, Austria.
- John L. Balderston was an American playwright, screenwriter, and journalist from Philadelphia. He specialized in creating horror and fantasy stories. He is primarily remembered for the time travel-themed play "Berkeley Squarte" (1926), the 1927 American adaptation of the play "Dracula", the screenplays for the horror films "The Mummy" (1932), "Bride of Frankenstein" (1935), and "Dracula's Daughter" (1936), the screenplay for the adventure film "The Prisoner of Zenda" (1937), and the screenplay for the psychological thriller "Gaslight" (1944).
Balderston received his college education at Columbia University, a private research university located in New York City. In 1912, he was hired as a journalist by the daily newspaper "The Philadelphia Record" (1877-1947). He served as the newspaper's New York City correspondent.
During World War I, Balderston served as a war correspondent for the for the McClure Newspaper Syndicate. He also served as a director of information in England and Ireland for the United States Committee on Public Information. In 1916, Balderston co-wrote "The Brooke Kerith", a biography of Jesus. In 1919, he wrote his debut play, "The Genius of the Marne".
From 1920 to 1923, Balderston served as a magazine editor for the London-based publication "The Outlook" (1898-1928). The magazine was founded by the British Conservative politician George Wyndham (1863-1913), and was closely aligned with the Conservative Party for most of its existence.
From 1923 to 1931, Balderston was the head of the London bureau for the daily newspaper "New York World" (1860-1931). The newspaper was owned at the time by the Pulitzer family, heirs of its former publisher Joseph Pulitzer (1847-1911). In 1931, the Pulitzer family sold the newspaper to their competitor Roy W. Howard (1883-1964). The new owner decided to shut down the newspaper, and to fire its 3,000 employees. Balderston decided at the time to retire as a journalist, in order to work as a full-time screenwriter.
Balderston had written several plays in the early 1920s, to little success. His first major hit was "Berkeley Squarte" (1926). Its main plot concerned a 20th-century man who time travels back to late 18th-century London and interacts with his own ancestors. The plot was loosely based on the unfinished novel "The Sense of the Past" (1917) by Henry James, though most of the characters were originally created by Balderston. The play enjoyed 179 performances at London's West End theaters, and 229 performances in Broadway.
In 1927, Balderston was retained by stage producer Horace Liveright (1884-1933) to write a revised version of the play "Dracula" (1924) by Hamilton Deane. Balderston reduced the total cast from eleven characters to eight, combined the main female characters Lucy Westenra and Mina Murray into a single character, and revised the origin of Dracula himself. He clearly identified the fictional vampire with the historical ruler Vlad the Impaler, something only hinted at the original novel by Bram Stoker. Balderston's version enjoyed 261 performances at Broadway, and turned lead actor Bela Lugosi into a rising star.
At a later point, actor-producer Hamilton Deane hired Balderston to write a revised version of the play "Frankenstein" (1927) by Peggy Webling. Balderston's version never made it to Broadway, but Balderston sold the film rights to the film studio Universal Pictures. Balderston's plays served as the basis for the hit horror films "Dracula" (1931) and "Frankenstein" (1931). Universal decided to directly hire Balderston as a screenwriter for the horror film "The Mummy" (1932). Balderston in turn decided to move the film's setting to Egypt, figured that the main villain should be motivated by immortal love (rather than revenge), and invented the concept of the magical Scroll of Thoth (loosely based on the historical "Book of the Dead").
Throughout the 1930s, Balderston worked as a screenwriter for various film studios. He was one of the team of writers who collaborated on the film adaptation of "Gone with the Wind" (1939). He wrote screenplays for several films in the early 1940s, but his only major success in this period was "Gaslight" (1944). With his screenwriter career at its end, he tried his hand at writing his own novels. He wrote the novel "A Goddess to a God" (1948), which depicted the relationship of Julius Caesar and Cleopatra VII.
In 1952, Balderston was appointed as a lecturer in drama at the University of Southern California. In 1953, he settled a law suit with Universal Pictures over the "Frankenstein" sequels. Based on his original contract, Balderston should have received part of the revenue of any sequel to the original "Frankenstein". Universal had reneged on the deal, and Balderston had sued them.
In March 1954, Balderston suffered a heart attack at his residence in Beverly Hills. He died shortly after, at the age of 64. His enduring fame since then is based mostly on his screenplays to popular films. Several of his works received new adaptations following his death. He is considered one of the most successful screenwriters of the interwar period. - The actor Otto Landahl comes from large family with 8 siblings. He was born in Harnosand, in the north part of Sweden, where he lived with his family. Later on he moved to South Sweden, to Helsingborg, where he worked on Helsingborg Theater and performed in 8 plays directed by Ingermar Bergman.