Edward Dmytryk

Born: 1908-09-04

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.


Placeholder

Film Noir: Bringing Darkness to Light

as Self
Released: 2006-07-18

Film Noir burrows into the mind; it's disorienting, intriguing and enthralling. Noir brings us...

Movie page

Walter Matthau: Diamond in the Rough

as Self
Released: 1997-01-01

A profile of the life of actor Walter Matthau.

Movie page

Marlon Brando: The Wild One

as Self
Released: 1994-08-11

An examination of the craft of Marlon Brando, narrated by professionals of the film industry....

Movie page

The Reality Trip

as self
Released:

Documentary celebrating the centenary of cinema which looks at how technological innovations -...

Movie page

Gary Cooper: The Face of a Hero

as Self
Released: 1998-03-17

Known for his personification of the Western Hero, it was Montana-born Gary Cooper's...

Movie page

A War in Hollywood

as Self - Director (archive footage)
Released: 2009-10-16

The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) caused a great impression on the lives of most of the American...

Movie page

Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star

as Self
Released: 1991-03-10

A retrospective on the career of Robert Mitchum through interviews with friends and co-workers,...

Movie page

The Hollywood Ten

as Self
Released: 1950-01-15

A brief look at The Hollywood Ten, a group of screenwriters and directors charged with contempt...

Movie page

Dark and Deadly: Fifty Years of Film Noir

as Self
Released: 1995-06-01

One of the first film noir documentaries, made for British Channel Four, and including...

Movie page

Alan Ladd: The True Quiet Man

as Self
Released: 1999-03-04

In the 1942 film "This Gun For Hire," he was only a supporting actor. But his portrayal of a...

Movie page

Inside the Dream Factory

as Self
Released: 1995-11-01

Faye Dunaway hosts a behind-the-scenes look at the Hollywood star-making machine.

Movie page

Fred MacMurray: The Guy Next Door

as Self
Released: 1996-12-17

Amiable and unassuming, Fred MacMurray went from small-town boy to one of Hollywood and...

Movie page

The RKO Story: Tales From Hollywood

as Self
First aired: 1987-07-03

Ed Asner tells the story of RKO Pictures from the 1920s to the 1960s.

TV Show page