Delmer Lawrence Daves (July 24, 1904 – August 17, 1977) was an American

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...

and

film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

. He worked in many genres, including

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American '' ...

and

warfare War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regu ...

, but he is best known for his

Western movies The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

, especially '' Broken Arrow'' (1950), '' The Last Wagon'' (1956), '' 3:10 to Yuma'' (1957) and '' The Hanging Tree'' (1959). He was forced to work on studio-based films only after heart trouble in 1959 but one of these, ''

A Summer Place ''A Summer Place'' may refer to: * A Summer Place (novel), ''A Summer Place'' (novel), a 1958 novel by Sloan Wilson * A Summer Place (film), ''A Summer Place'' (film), a 1959 American romantic drama film based on the novel * Theme from A Summer Pla ...

'', was nevertheless a huge commercial success. Daves worked with some of the best known players of his time including established stars like

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...

, Glenn Ford,

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality ...

and Richard Widmark. He also helped to develop the careers of up-and-coming players such as Ernest Borgnine,

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. Known for his "granite features and brawny physique," he gained international fame for his starring roles in action, Western, and wa ...

Felicia Farr Felicia Farr (born Olive Dines; October 4, 1932) is a American former actress and model Early years Farr was born in Westchester County, New York. She attended Erasmus Hall High School and studied sociology at Penn State. Career Farr be ...

and George C. Scott.

Life and career

College and acting

Born in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

, Daves studied law at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...

but, on completing his degree, he decided to pursue a career in the burgeoning film industry, first working as a prop boy on the Western '' The Covered Wagon'' (1923), directed by James Cruze, and then serving as a

technical advisor In film production, a technical advisor is someone who advises the director on the convincing portrayal of a subject. The advisor's expertise adds realism both to the acting and to the setting of a movie. Nipo T. Strongheart was a noted technica ...

on a number of other films. He tried his hand at acting and appeared in more than ten movies including '' The Night Flyer'' (1928) (produced by Cruze), '' The Duke Steps Out'' (1929) and '' Good News'' (1930).

Screenwriting

While he was acting, Daves was given the opportunity by MGM to collaborate on

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, f ...

s. He began his career as a screenwriter by contributing to the early sound comedy film '' So This Is College'' (MGM; 1929), directed by Sam Wood. Later, working for MGM and other companies, he wrote screenplays for films like '' Shipmates'' (MGM; 1931), ''

Dames ''Dame'' is an honorific title and the feminine form of address for the honour of damehood in many Christian chivalric orders, as well as the British honours system and those of several other Commonwealth realms, such as Australia and New Zeala ...

'' (

Warner Bros Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American Film studio, film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, Califo ...

; 1934), ''

The Petrified Forest ''The Petrified Forest'' is a 1936 American film directed by Archie Mayo and based on Robert E. Sherwood's 1935 Broadway drama of the same name. The motion picture stars Leslie Howard, Bette Davis and Humphrey Bogart. The screenplay was writ ...

'' (Warner Bros; 1936), '' Love Affair'' (

RKO Radio RKO General, Inc. (previously General Teleradio, RKO Teleradio Pictures, and RKO Teleradio) was, from 1952 through 1991, the main holding company for the noncore businesses of the General Tire and Rubber Company and, after General Tire's reorganiz ...

; 1939), and '' You Were Never Lovelier'' (

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region i ...

; 1942). Daves was particularly successful with ''Love Affair'' which, using his original script, was remade as ''

An Affair to Remember ''An Affair to Remember'' is a 1957 American romance film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. Filmed in CinemaScope, it was distributed by 20th Century Fox. It is considered among the most romantic films of all ti ...

'' (

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

; 1957).

Direction

In 1943, Warner Bros asked Daves to direct '' Destination Tokyo'', a wartime adventure film starring

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one of ...

and

John Garfield John Garfield (born Jacob Julius Garfinkle, March 4, 1913 – May 21, 1952) was an American actor who played brooding, rebellious, working-class characters. He grew up in poverty in New York City. In the early 1930s, he became a member of ...

. Daves assisted with the screenplay and this became normal practice for him as a director. He directed three more films during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

– '' The Very Thought of You'' (1944), '' Hollywood Canteen'' (1944) and '' Pride of the Marines'' (1945), all for Warners. The first two of those were light-hearted but the latter, starring John Garfield and Eleanor Parker, studied the difficulties faced by a

US marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through com ...

who had been blinded at the Battle of Guadalcanal. All four of Daves' wartime films were commercially successful. After the war, Daves turned to

and made '' The Red House'' (1947), starring

Edward G. Robinson Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...

, for Sol Lesser at

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stu ...

. He returned to Warners where he wrote and directed '' Dark Passage'' (1947), starring

Lauren Bacall Lauren Bacall (; born Betty Joan Perske; September 16, 1924 – August 12, 2014) was an American actress. She was named the 20th-greatest female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the American Film Institute and received an Academy Honorary ...

and Agnes Moorehead. He later directed '' To the Victor'' (1948), '' A Kiss in the Dark'' (1949) and '' Task Force'' (1949). He also wrote the screenplay for ''Task Force'', which starred

. In February 1949, Daves signed a long-term contract at

. He began by directing his first Western, the critically acclaimed '' Broken Arrow'' (1950) which starred

, Debra Paget and Jeff Chandler. Chandler played Cochise and the movie's success inspired the making of other films with Native American protagonists. Kim Newman wrote that, by his dignified and heroic performance, Oscar-nominated Chandler established Cochise as "the 1950s model of an Indian hero". Newman points out that the film inspired goodwill to other Native American chiefs such as

Sitting Bull Sitting Bull ( lkt, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake ; December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota leader who led his people during years of resistance against United States government policies. He was killed by Indian agency police on the Standing Rock ...

Crazy Horse Crazy Horse ( lkt, Tȟašúŋke Witkó, italic=no, , ; 1840 – September 5, 1877) was a Lakota war leader of the Oglala band in the 19th century. He took up arms against the United States federal government to fight against encroachment by w ...

and

Geronimo Geronimo ( apm, Goyaałé, , ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a prominent leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache b ...

– as a result, "it became fashionable for Westerns to be pro-Indian". Other scholars warned that these "pro-Indian" movies proposed that peaceful co-existence between Natives and whites was achieved only through the loss of Indian identity. "Good" Indians would conform to white society, "bad" Indians would not. Daves decided to try other genres with the adventure films '' Bird of Paradise'' (1951) and '' Treasure of the Golden Condor'' (1953), both of which he wrote and directed. As director only, he made '' Never Let Me Go'' (1953) for MGM and '' Demetrius and the Gladiators'' (1954) for Fox. ''Never Let Me Go'', starring

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

and Gene Tierney, was shot entirely in England and featured a supporting cast of well-known British actors. Daves became a freelance director in 1954 and returned to Warners to work on '' Drum Beat'' (1954), which he wrote, directed and also co-produced with

Alan Ladd Alan Walbridge Ladd (September 3, 1913 – January 29, 1964) was an American actor and film producer. Ladd found success in film in the 1940s and early 1950s, particularly in films noir and Westerns. He was often paired with Veronica Lake ...

, who starred in the movie. One of Ladd's co-stars was

who, then relatively unknown, gave an impressive performance as the Modoc chief Captain Jack. By this time, Daves was fed up of the "pro-Indian" fashion that he had begun, and ''Drum Beat'' was "pro-settler" with the hanging of Bronson's character in the final scene "restoring the balance". Aleiss argued that ''Drum Beat'' actually preached the same theme in his previous Westerns of good Indians conforming to white expectations while eliminating the bad Indian (Captain Jack). Daves worked primarily on Westerns for the next five years. After writing the screenplay of '' White Feather'' (1955) for Fox, Daves directed three highly-rated Westerns: '' Jubal'' (1956) for Columbia; '' The Last Wagon'' (1956) for Fox; and '' 3:10 to Yuma'' (1957) for Columbia. He co-wrote the screenplay for the first two of these; Halsted Welles adapted ''3:10 to Yuma'' from the novel by

Elmore Leonard Elmore John Leonard Jr. (October 11, 1925August 20, 2013) was an American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. His earliest novels, published in the 1950s, were Westerns, but he went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense th ...

had a significant role in all three films. Glenn Ford was the lead actor in ''Jubal'' and co-starred with

Van Heflin Emmett Evan "Van" Heflin Jr. (December 13, 1908 – July 23, 1971) was an American theatre, radio and film actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man. H ...

in ''3:10 to Yuma''. Richard Widmark starred in ''The Last Wagon''. Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson and

Rod Steiger Rodney Stephen Steiger (; April 14, 1925July 9, 2002, aged 77) was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Cited as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars," he is closely assoc ...

were all in ''Jubal''; James Drury had a small part in ''The Last Wagon''; Richard Jaeckel and

Leora Dana Leora Dana (April 1, 1923 – December 13, 1983) was an American film, stage and television actress. Education Dana was born in New York City and her elder sister was Doris Dana. Dana graduated from Barnard College and the Royal Academy of Dr ...

had significant parts in ''3:10 to Yuma''. According to one review, ''3:10 to Yuma'' was a variation on ''

High Noon ''High Noon'' is a 1952 American Western film produced by Stanley Kramer from a screenplay by Carl Foreman, directed by Fred Zinnemann, and starring Gary Cooper. The plot, which occurs in real time, centers on a town marshal whose sense ...

'' (1952) as it "pits a farmer (Heflin) in a battle of wits with a captured killer" (Ford, cast against type as a villain) – it is a "psychological Western" that is generally considered a classic of the genre. Following ''

Cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaqu ...

'' (1958) which again starred Glenn Ford, this time with Felicia Farr's future husband

Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001) was an American actor. Considered equally proficient in both dramatic and comic roles, Lemmon was known for his anxious, middle-class everyman screen persona in dramedy pictures, leadi ...

, Daves decided on a switch of genre to direct '' Kings Go Forth'' (1958) a World War II drama for United Artists which starred

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the " Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and ...

, Tony Curtis and Natalie Wood. Daves returned to Westerns towards the end of 1958 when he made '' The Badlanders'' (1958) for MGM. This film was in effect a remake of noir classic '' The Asphalt Jungle'' (1950), reset in the 1890s. It starred Alan Ladd and Ernest Borgnine. Daves then made his last Western, '' The Hanging Tree'' (1959) starring Gary Cooper, Maria Schell and Karl Malden, with George C. Scott making his debut. This is regarded as another classic and Daves made full use of a stark landscape in which the only real feature was a makeshift gold camp. The power of newly struck gold sends the community into a frenzy and they become, in Newman's words, "a wild collection of riotous scum". Daves suffered problems with his heart during the making of ''The Hanging Tree'' and was forced to step aside for several days; Malden took over as director while Daves was absent. There has been speculation that health problems prevented Daves from continuing to work on Westerns, which were often physically demanding.

Later films

On medical advice, Daves decided to forgo Westerns and limit himself to studio-bound productions which were less strenuous. He wrote, produced and directed a series of romantic dramas at Warners which all starred Troy Donahue: ''

'' (1959), '' Parrish'' (1961), ''

Susan Slade ''Susan Slade'' is a 1961 American Technicolor drama film directed by Delmer Daves and starring Troy Donahue, Connie Stevens, Dorothy McGuire and Lloyd Nolan. Based upon the 1961 novel ''The Sin of Susan Slade'' by Doris Hume, concerns a well-t ...

'' (1961) and '' Rome Adventure'' (1962). ''A Summer Place'' was one of his biggest commercial successes. Based on the novel by Sloan Wilson, it was controversial at the time for its treatment of adultery and pre-marital sex. Daves' final three films were all made at Warners. '' Spencer's Mountain'' (1963) starred Henry Fonda and

Maureen O'Hara Maureen O'Hara (; 17 August 1920 – 24 October 2015) was a native Irish and naturalized American actress and singer, who became successful in Hollywood from the 1940s through to the 1960s. She was a natural redhead who was known for pl ...

. It was based upon Earl Hamner Jr's autobiographical novel of the same name, and served as the basis for the later television series '' The Waltons''. Daves then wrote, directed and produced ''

Youngblood Hawke ''Youngblood Hawke'' is a 1962 novel by American writer Herman Wouk about the rise and fall of a talented young writer of hardscrabble Kentucky origin who briefly becomes the toast of literary New York City. The plot was suggested by the life o ...

'' (1964) and '' The Battle of the Villa Fiorita'' (1965). He retired after ''Villa Florita'' was released. Daves was married to actress Mary Lawrence from 1938 until he died on August 17, 1977. He is interred at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from 191,719 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth-larges ...

Legacy

Kim Newman says of Daves and

Anthony Mann Anthony Mann (born Emil Anton Bundsmann; June 30, 1906 – April 29, 1967) was an American film director and stage actor. Mann initially started as a theatre actor appearing in numerous stage productions. In 1937, he moved to Hollywood where ...

that they were able to "ring changes" on seemingly familiar Western storylines by "playing up the psychologically acute reflections of their characters" in relation to the landscape as well as to each other. Daves, he says, achieved this in each of ''Broken Arrow'', ''The Last Wagon'', ''3:10 to Yuma'', and ''The Hanging Tree''. Despite several highly-acclaimed films,

Dave Kehr David Kehr (born 1953) is an American museum curator and film critic. For many years a critic at the '' Chicago Reader'' and the ''Chicago Tribune,'' he later wrote a weekly column for ''The New York Times'' on DVD releases. He later became a ...

considers Daves to be an under-rated and neglected filmmaker. As a director, Daves first built his reputation on morally complex war films such as ''Pride of the Marines'' and socially progressive Westerns. For example, ''Broken Arrow'' has been credited as one of the first to introduce the issue of racism in post-war American movies, and it is widely regarded as one of the first "pro-Native American" films. Kehr views Daves' late period romances as sharing the same virtues as his earlier action films: "characters composed with the utmost integrity and respect; a gift for creating a detailed and convincing social background; and a strong, clear narrative style that allowed him to manage a large cast of characters and several simultaneous levels of dramatic events".

Filmography

Daves began his career as filmmaker in 1943, following a career working as an actor and scriptwriter. He is credited with making 26 films between 1943 and 1965, his most acclaimed being the 1957 film ''3:10 to Yuma.'' * '' Destination Tokyo'' (1943; also writer) * '' The Very Thought of You'' (1944; also writer) * '' Hollywood Canteen'' (1944; also writer) * '' The Red House'' (1947; also writer) * '' Dark Passage'' (1947; also writer) * '' Task Force'' (1949; also writer) * '' A Kiss in the Dark'' (1949) * '' Broken Arrow'' (1950) * '' Bird of Paradise'' (1951; also writer) * '' Treasure of the Golden Condor'' (1953; also co-writer) * '' Never Let Me Go'' (1953) * '' Drum Beat'' (1954; also writer and producer) * '' Demetrius and the Gladiators'' (1954) * '' The Last Wagon'' (1956; also writer) * '' Jubal'' (1956; also writer) * '' 3:10 to Yuma'' (1957) * ''

'' (1958) * '' Kings Go Forth'' (1958) * '' The Badlanders'' (1958) * '' The Hanging Tree'' (1959) * ''

'' (1959; also writer and producer) * '' Parrish'' (1961; also writer and producer) * '' Rome Adventure'' (1962; also co-writer and producer) * '' Spencer's Mountain'' (1963; also writer and producer) * ''

'' (1964; also writer) * '' The Battle of the Villa Fiorita'' (1965; also writer and producer)

Other work

As actor * '' The Duke Steps Out'' (1929; actor) * ''

The Bishop Murder Case ''The Bishop Murder Case'' (1928) is the fourth in a series of mystery novels by S. S. Van Dine about fictional detective Philo Vance. The detective solves a mystery built around a nursery rhyme. ''The Bishop Murder Case'' is believed to be the f ...

'' (1929; actor – as Raymond Sperling) As writer * '' So This Is College'' (1929; writer) * '' Shipmates'' (1931; adaptation and dialogue) * ''

'' (1934; writer) * ''

Flirtation Walk ''Flirtation Walk'' is a 1934 American romantic musical film written by Delmer Daves and Lou Edelman, and directed by Frank Borzage. It focuses on a soldier (Dick Powell) who falls in love with a general's daughter (Ruby Keeler) during the gene ...

'' (1934; writer) * '' Page Miss Glory'' (1935; writer) * ''

'' (1936; adaptation) * '' The Go Getter'' (1937; writer) * '' Love Affair'' (1939; writer) * ''

Night of January 16th ''Night of January 16th'' (sometimes advertised as ''The Night of January 16th'') is a theatrical play by Russian-American author Ayn Rand, inspired by the death of the "Match King", Ivar Kreuger. Set in a courtroom during a murder trial, an u ...

'' (1941; co-writer with Robert Pirosh) * '' You Were Never Lovelier'' (1942; writer) * '' Stage Door Canteen'' (1943; writer) * '' White Feather'' (1955; writer) * ''

'' (1957; writer)

References

Bibliography

* *