CINEFILER

Edward Dmytryk

Born
September 4, 1908
Died
July 1, 1999
Edward Dmytryk (September 4, 1908 – July 1, 1999) was an American film director who was amongst the Hollywood Ten, a group of blacklisted film industry professionals who served time in prison for being in contempt of Congress during the McCarthy-era 'red scare'. Although born in Grand Forks, British Columbia, Canada, Dmytryk grew up in San Francisco when his Ukrainian parents moved to the United States. At the age of 31, he became a naturalized citizen. His best known films from the pre-McCarthy period of his career were film noirs Crossfire, for which he received a Best Director Oscar nomination, and Murder, My Sweet, the latter an adaptation of Raymond Chandler's Farewell My Lovely. In addition, he made two World War II films: Hitler's Children, the story of the Hitler youth and Back to Bataan starring John Wayne. The late 1940's was the time of the Second Red Scare, and Dmytryk was one of many filmmakers investigated. Summoned to appear before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC), he refused to cooperate and was sent to jail. After spending several months behind bars, Dmytryk made the decision to testify again, and give the names of his fellow members in the American Communist Party as the HUAC had demanded. On April 25, 1951, Dmytryk appeared before HUAC for the second time, answering all questions. He spoke of his own Party past, a very brief membership in 1945, including the naming of twenty-six former members of left-wing groups. He explained how John Howard Lawson, Adrian Scott, Albert Maltz and others had pressured him to include communist propaganda in his films. His testimony damaged several court cases that others of the so-called "Hollywood 10" had filed. He recounted his experiences of the period in his revealing 1996 book, Odd Man Out: A Memoir of the Hollywood Ten (Southern Illinois University Press, Carbondale, IL). For a time, Dmytryk moved to England, and Stanley Kramer hired him to direct a trio of low-budget films before handing Dmytryk The Caine Mutiny. He made films for major studios Columbia, 20th Century Fox, MGM and Paramount Pictures, including, among others, Raintree County, The Left Hand of God, The Young Lions, a remake of the Marlene Dietrich classic The Blue Angel, and The Carpetbaggers. Later into the 60' and 70's, he directed Where Love Has Gone, Anzio, Alvarez Kelly, Shalako, and his final film Bluebeard. The films which he directed featured stars such as Humphrey Bogart, Clark Gable, Gene Tierney, Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Bette Davis, Montgomery Clift, Marlon Brando, Sean Connery, Robert Mitchum, Richard Burton, Richard Widmark and Henry Fonda. After his film career tapered off in the 1970s, he entered academia and taught at the University of Texas at Austin, and at the University of Southern California. He wrote several books on the art of filmmaking (such as "On Film Editing") and lectured at various colleges and theaters, such as the Orson Welles Cinema. Dmytryk died from heart and kidney failure on 1 July, 1999, aged 90, in Encino, California.
Known For
The Caine Mutiny
(1954)
Director
Warlock
(1959)
Director
The Young Lions
(1958)
Director
Broken Lance
(1954)
Director
Shalako
(1968)
Director
Mirage
(1965)
Director
The Mountain
(1956)
Director
Raintree County
(1957)
Director
Back to Bataan
(1945)
Director
Crossfire
(1947)
Director
Walk on the Wild Side
(1962)
Director
Alvarez Kelly
(1966)
Director
The Sniper
(1952)
Director
Anzio
(1968)
Director
The Juggler
(1953)
Director
Full Filmography
Directing
The Hawk
(1935)
Director
Television Spy
(1939)
Director
Million Dollar Legs
(1939)
Director
Golden Gloves
(1940)
Director
Mystery Sea Raider
(1940)
Director
Her First Romance
(1940)
Director
Emergency Squad
(1940)
Director
The Devil Commands
(1941)
Director
Confessions of Boston Blackie
(1941)
Director
Secrets of the Lone Wolf
(1941)
Director
Sweetheart of the Campus
(1941)
Director
The Blonde from Singapore
(1941)
Director
Under Age
(1941)
Director
Counter-Espionage
(1942)
Director
Seven Miles from Alcatraz
(1942)
Director
The Falcon Strikes Back
(1943)
Director
Captive Wild Woman
(1943)
Director
Hitler's Children
(1943)
Director
Behind the Rising Sun
(1943)
Director
Murder, My Sweet
(1944)
Director
Tender Comrade
(1944)
Director
Cornered
(1945)
Director
Back to Bataan
(1945)
Director
Till the End of Time
(1946)
Director
Crossfire
(1947)
Director
So Well Remembered
(1947)
Director
Obsession
(1949)
Director
Give Us This Day
(1949)
Director
The Sniper
(1952)
Director
Eight Iron Men
(1952)
Director
Mutiny
(1952)
Director
The Juggler
(1953)
Director
Three Lives
(1953)
Director
The Caine Mutiny
(1954)
Director
Broken Lance
(1954)
Director
Soldier of Fortune
(1955)
Director
The Left Hand of God
(1955)
Director
The End of the Affair
(1955)
Director
The Mountain
(1956)
Director
Raintree County
(1957)
Director
The Young Lions
(1958)
Director
Warlock
(1959)
Director
The Blue Angel
(1959)
Director
Walk on the Wild Side
(1962)
Director
The Reluctant Saint
(1962)
Director
The Carpetbaggers
(1964)
Director
Where Love Has Gone
(1964)
Director
Mirage
(1965)
Director
Alvarez Kelly
(1966)
Director
Anzio
(1968)
Director
Shalako
(1968)
Director
Bluebeard
(1972)
Director
The Human Factor
(1975)
Director
He Is My Brother
(1975)
Director
Not Only Strangers
(1979)
Director
Acting
Editing
Production
Writing
Data provided by TMDB