Kenneth Casey Robinson (October 17, 1903 – December 6, 1979) was an American producer and director of mostly

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

s and a screenwriter responsible for some of

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...

' most revered films. Film critic Richard Corliss once described him as "the master of the art – or craft – of adaptation."

Early life and Hollywood career

Born in

Logan, Utah Logan is a city in Cache County, Utah, United States. The 2020 census recorded the population was 52,778. Logan is the county seat of Cache County and the principal city of the Logan metropolitan area, which includes Cache County and Franklin ...

, the son of a

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...

music/drama instructor, Robinson graduated from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

at the age of 19 and briefly taught English before turning to journalism. In 1927, he began his Hollywood career writing the titles for

silent movie ''Silent Movie'' is a 1976 American satirical comedy film co-written, directed by and starring Mel Brooks, released by 20th Century Fox in the summer of 1976. The ensemble cast includes Dom DeLuise, Marty Feldman, Bernadette Peters, and Sid ...

s. He graduated to directing in the early 1930s, but after six films he abandoned that field in order to concentrate on writing. The films with Davis included ''

It's Love I'm After ''It's Love I'm After'' is a 1937 American screwball comedy film directed by Archie Mayo and starring Leslie Howard, Bette Davis, and Olivia de Havilland. Based on the story "Gentlemen After Midnight" by Maurice Hanline, with a screenplay by Casey ...

'', ''

Dark Victory ''Dark Victory'' is a 1939 American melodrama film directed by Edmund Goulding, starring Bette Davis, and featuring George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Ronald Reagan, Henry Travers, and Cora Witherspoon. The screenplay by Ca ...

'', '' The Old Maid'', ''

All This, and Heaven Too ''All This, and Heaven Too'' is a 1940 American drama film made by Warner Bros.-First National Pictures, produced and directed by Anatole Litvak with Hal B. Wallis as executive producer. The screenplay was adapted by Casey Robinson from the 1938 ...

'', ''

Now, Voyager ''Now, Voyager'' is a 1942 American drama film starring Bette Davis, Paul Henreid, and Claude Rains, and directed by Irving Rapper. The screenplay by Casey Robinson is based on the 1941 novel of the same name by Olive Higgins Prouty. Prouty ...

'', and ''

The Corn Is Green ''The Corn Is Green'' is a 1938 semi-autobiographical play by Welsh dramatist and actor Emlyn Williams. The play premiered in London at the Duchess Theatre in September 1938; with Sybil Thorndike as Miss Moffat and Williams himself portraying Mo ...

''. Robinson's production credits include '' Days of Glory'', '' Under My Skin'', and ''

Two Flags West ''Two Flags West'' is a 1950 Western drama set during the American Civil War, directed by Robert Wise and starring Joseph Cotten, Jeff Chandler, Linda Darnell, and Cornel Wilde. The opening credits contain the following statement: On Decemb ...

'', all of which he scripted as well. He also worked on three weeks of re-writes for

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

, but was uncredited. In 1935, Robinson was a write-in candidate for what was then called the Academy Award for Best Writing, Screenplay for his work on '' Captain Blood''. After spending the better part of the 1930s and the early 1940s working at Warner Bros., Robinson moved to MGM in the mid-'40s, then to

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 ...

in the 1950s. He retired in 1962 and eventually emigrated to Sydney, Australia (his wife was Australian). While in Sydney he came out of retirement to write and produce ''

Scobie Malone Scobie Malone is a fictional Sydney homicide detective created by Australian novelist Jon Cleary. History Named after the jockey Scobie Breasley, Malone made his first appearance in Cleary's 1966 novel '' The High Commissioner''. Cleary says he ...

'', in 1975. His second wife was prima ballerina Tamara Toumanova; they were wed from 1944 until their divorce in 1955. The union was childless. He died in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

in 1979, aged 76.

Selected filmography

*''

Bare Knees ''Bare Knees'' is a 1928 American silent film comedy drama directed by Erle C. Kenton and starring Virginia Lee Corbin as Billie Durey, the family's black sheep, who returns to her small hometown causing a sensation with her short skirts, cigar ...

'' (1928) *''

Out of the Ruins ''Out of the Ruins'' is a choral work by Michael Nyman for an eponymous BBC documentary by Agnieszka Piotrowska in commemorating the first anniversary of the 1988 Spitak earthquake in Armenia 7 December 1988, which aired on the BBC's ''40 Minute ...

'' (1928) * '' The Head of the Family'' (1928) *'' Companionate Marriage'' (1928) *''

United States Smith ''United States Smith'' is a 1928 American silent drama film directed by Joseph Henabery and starring Eddie Gribbon, Lila Lee and Kenneth Harlan.Hemenez p.537 Cast * Eddie Gribbon as Sgt. Steve Riley * Lila Lee Lila Lee (born Augusta Wilh ...

'' (1928) * ''

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...

'' (1929) *''

The Squealer ''The Squealer'' is a 1930 American pre-Code crime film directed by Harry Joe Brown and starring Jack Holt, Dorothy Revier and Davey Lee.Stumpf, p. 129 The film's sets were designed by the art director Edward C. Jewell. Cast * Jack Holt as ...

'' (1930) * '' The Last Parade'' (1931) *''

I Found Stella Parish ''I Found Stella Parish'' is a 1935 melodrama starring Kay Francis as a beloved actress whose dark secret is revealed to the world.. Plot In London, Stella Parish (Kay Francis) has her greatest stage triumph in a play produced and directed by Ste ...

'' (1935) *'' Captain Blood'' (1935) *''

'' (1937) *'' Tovarich'' (1937) *''

Four's a Crowd ''Four's a Crowd'' is a 1938 American romantic comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Rosalind Russell, and Patric Knowles. It was written by Casey Robinson and Sig Herzig from a story by Wallace Sulli ...

'' (1938) *''

'' (1939) *'' The Old Maid'' (1939) *''

'' (1940) *''

One Foot in Heaven ''One Foot in Heaven'' is a 1941 American biographical film starring Fredric March, Martha Scott, Beulah Bondi, Gene Lockhart and Elisabeth Fraser. The film was adapted by Casey Robinson from the autobiography by Hartzell Spence. It was directed ...

'' (1941) *''

Kings Row ''Kings Row'' is a 1942 film starring Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings, Ronald Reagan and Betty Field that tells a story of young people growing up in a small American town at the turn of the twentieth century. The picture was directed by Sam Wood ...

'' (1942) *''

This Is the Army ''This Is the Army'' is a 1943 American wartime musical comedy film produced by Hal B. Wallis and Jack L. Warner, and directed by Michael Curtiz, adapted from a wartime stage musical with the same name, designed to boost morale in the U.S. duri ...

'' (1943) *''

Passage to Marseille ''Passage to Marseille'', also known as ''Message to Marseille'', is a 1944 American war film made by Warner Brothers, directed by Michael Curtiz. The screenplay was by Casey Robinson and Jack Moffitt from the novel ''Sans Patrie'' (''Men Withou ...

'' (1944) *''

The Racket Man ''The Racket Man'' is a 1944 American crime film directed by D. Ross Lederman. Plot A racketeer gets his draft notice and becomes a soldier. He comes across a criminal organization while in the Army and decides to do something about it. Cast ...

'' (1944) *'' Days of Glory'' (1944) (also producer) *''

'' (1945) *'' Father Was a Fullback'' (1949) *'' The Snows of Kilimanjaro'' (1952) *''

The Egyptian ''The Egyptian'' (''Sinuhe egyptiläinen'', Sinuhe the Egyptian) is a historical novel by Mika Waltari. It was first published in Finnish in 1945, and in an abridged English translation by Naomi Walford in 1949, from Swedish rather than Finni ...

'' (1954) *''

While the City Sleeps While the City Sleeps may refer to: * ''While the City Sleeps'' (1928 film), an American silent film starring Lon Chaney * ''While the City Sleeps'' (1950 film), a Swedish drama scripted by Ingmar Bergman * ''While the City Sleeps'' (1956 film), ...

'' (1956) *''

'' (1975) (also producer)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Casey 1903 births 1979 deaths Writers from Logan, Utah American male screenwriters American film producers Cornell University alumni 20th-century American businesspeople Film directors from Utah Screenwriters from Utah American emigrants to Australia 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters