Malcolm St. Clair | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Malcolm_St._Clair,_film_director,_circa_1940.jpg) St. Clair, circa 1940, 20th Century Fox | |
| Born | May 17, 1897 |
| Died | June 1, 1952 (aged 55) |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, writer, producer, and actor |
| Notable work | Yankee Doodle in Berlin |
Malcolm St. Clair (May 17, 1897 – June 1, 1952) was a Hollywood film director, writer, producer and actor.[1]
St. Clair's film career spanned the silent and sound era during the Hollywood Golden Age. His work is characterized by a “dynamic visual style” evident in all the genres he treated.[2]
The zenith of St. Clair's filmmaking occurred during the silent film era, demonstrating his flexibility in wielding the medium as a director of comedies. His films included slapstick for Sennett, outrageous gag routines with Keaton and sophisticated comic-romances for Paramount.[2]
His performance as a director declined with the advent of sound, suffering from the increased censorship, and his difficulty adapting to a less mobile camera and studio editing of his work. His later films were often limited to B movie “family” comedies, such as the Jones Family series, Lum and Abner and the later Laurel and Hardy features.[3]
Most of St. Clair's silent films are lost or have limited access in archives.[4]
- ^ Dwyer, Rauth Anne (March 20, 1997). Malcolm St. Clair: His Films 1915–1948. The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-2709-7.
- ^ a b Dwyer, 1996 p 1, p. 2: “...the peak of his career in 1926...” And p. 5: On Keaton
- ^ Dwyer, 1996 p. 2: “...his career as a ‘B’ director in the 1930s at 20th Century Fox...” And p. 160-161
- ^ Dwyer, 1996 p. 2: “many films are lost, and some, surviving only on delicate nitrate stock, are unavailable for viewing.” And p. 160