Edmund Goulding (20 March 1891 – 24 December 1959) was a British screenwriter and film director. As an actor early in his career he was one of the 'Ghosts' in the 1922 silent film '' Three Live Ghosts'' alongside Norman Kerry and Cyril Chadwick. Also in the early 1920s he wrote several screenplays for star Mae Murray for films directed by her then husband Robert Z. Leonard. Goulding is best remembered for directing cultured dramas such as ''

Love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...

'' (1927), '' Grand Hotel'' (1932) with

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragic ch ...

and

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, ''

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 ...

'' (1939) with

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 ...

, and ''

The Razor's Edge ''The Razor's Edge'' is a 1944 novel by W. Somerset Maugham. It tells the story of Larry Darrell, an American pilot traumatized by his experiences in World War I, who sets off in search of some transcendent meaning in his life. The story b ...

'' (1946) with Gene Tierney and

Tyrone Power Tyrone Edmund Power III (May 5, 1914 – November 15, 1958) was an American actor. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Power appeared in dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads. His better-known films include ''Jesse James (193 ...

. He also directed the classic

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 '' ...

'' Nightmare Alley'' (1947) with

and Joan Blondell, and the action drama '' The Dawn Patrol''. He was also a successful songwriter, composer, and producer.

Biography

Before moving to films, Goulding was an actor, playwright and director on the London stage. Interviewed about his Goulding biography ''Edmund Goulding's Dark Victory'' (2009), film historian Matthew Kennedy stated:

He not only directed many types of films, but he took on multiple functions on each set. Though he didn't usually take credit, he co-wrote many scripts, composed incidental music, produced, even consulted on makeup, costumes, and hair styling. His one blind spot in production seems to be the camera...When shooting a scene, Eddie was intent on capturing performers at their best and most truthful, but he left the mechanics of filming to his cameramen...he seemed adept at just about everything — comedy (''Everybody Does It'', ''We're Not Married!''), ensemble dramas (''Grand Hotel''), family relations (''White Banners'', ''Claudia''), war (''The Dawn Patrol'', ''We Are Not Alone''), psychiatry (''The Flame Within''), show business (''Blondie of the Follies''), male-female relationships (''The Devil's Holiday'', ''Riptide''), and even existentialism (''The Razor's Edge'') and the dark arts of spiritism (''Nightmare Alley'').

Together with Jack Conway, Goulding holds the distinction of having directed the most Best Picture-nominated films without ever receiving a nomination for Best Director, with three ('' Grand Hotel'', which won the award; ''

''; and ''

''). Goulding died during heart surgery at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. He was buried at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park 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 ...

.Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Location 18220). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition

Filmography

References

External links

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Goulding biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goulding, Edmund 1891 births 1959 deaths English film directors English male screenwriters LGBT film directors English gay actors English film producers Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) 20th-century English screenwriters 20th-century English male writers 20th-century English businesspeople 20th-century LGBT people British emigrants to the United States