Herbert Brenon

Herbert Brenon
Herbert Brenon, 1916
Born
Alexander Herbert Reginald St. John Brenon

(1880-01-13)13 January 1880
Kingstown, Ireland
Died21 June 1958(1958-06-21) (aged 78)
Alma materKing's College London
OccupationFilm director
Years active1911–1940
SpouseHelen Oberg (m. 1904-1955; her death)
Children1
Brenon and Alla Nazimova with a camera in his studio, 9 August 1916.
Brenon in 1917 reading Rupert Hughes' Empty Pockets

Herbert Brenon (born Alexander Herbert Reginald St. John Brenon; 13 January 1880 – 21 June 1958) was an Irish-born U.S. film director, actor and screenwriter during the era of silent films through 1940.

Brenon was among the early filmmakers who, before the rise of corporate film production, was a genuine "auteur", controlling virtually all creative and technical components in crafting his pictures.[1] The quality of Brenon's artistic output rivaled that of film pioneer D. W. Griffith.[2][3]

Brenon was among the first directors to achieve celebrity status among moviegoers for his often spectacular cinematic inventions.[4] Among his most notable films are Neptune's Daughter (1914), Peter Pan (1925), A Kiss for Cinderella (1925), and the original film version of Beau Geste (1926).

  1. ^ Koszarski, 2008 pp. 35-36: Koszarski includes the roles of casting director, story and script writer, cameraman, film editor and "general studio operations".
  2. ^ Higham, 1973 p. 45: "Among those many directors who at once rivaled Griffith and emulated aspects of his style were Herbert Brenon and James Cruze."
  3. ^ Oberg 2014: Though "not as well known to you as D.W. Griffith or Cecil B. DeMille, his movies probably are..."
  4. ^ Koszarski, 1976 p. 123: "Brenon was one of the first great names behind the camera to gain a wide personal following [as a director]..."