Dale Van Every (July 23, 1896 in Van,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

– May 28, 1976 in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

) was an American writer, film producer, and studio executive.

Biography

Van Every's parents were Wilbert and Estella (Palmer) Van Every from Petoskey, Michigan. He graduated from a

San Bernardino, California San Bernardino ( ) is a city in and the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 census, making it the List of ...

-area high school in 1914 and attended

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

. When the United States entered

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, "in his junior year he enlisted with the Stanford ambulance unit, serving overseas for about three years, first in the ambulance corps, later as a commissioned officer in the Convois Automobils '' ic'. He graduated from Stanford in 1920 and went to work for the

United Press United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...

news agency, first in New York, then around 1921, as a bureau chief in

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...

. He eventually quit and pursued writing. With Morris DeHaven Tracy, he wrote a biography of

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, and author. On May 20–21, 1927, he made the first nonstop flight from New York (state), New York to Paris, a distance of . His aircra ...

which was published in 1927, the year Lindbergh made his famous solo trip across the Atlantic. He also wrote a number of historical non-fiction works, including a four-volume series on the American frontier experience. His first novel, ''Telling the World'', was made into a 1928 movie of the same name;

William Haines Charles William Haines (January 2, 1900 – December 26, 1973) was an American actor and interior designer. Haines was discovered by a talent scout and signed with Goldwyn Pictures in 1922. His career gained momentum when he received favo ...

played a journalist who gets involved in a murder. Van Every went to Hollywood to work on the film and began writing screenplays. In 1934, he was paid a salary of $52,500 by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

, $250 less than

Mary Pickford Gladys Louise Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American film actress and producer. A Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood, pioneer in the American film industry with a Hollywood care ...

and $1000 more than

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

. Along with

Marc Connelly Marcus Cook Connelly (December 13, 1890 – December 21, 1980) was an American playwright, director, producer, performer, and lyricist. He was a key member of the Algonquin Round Table, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930. Biogra ...

and

John Lee Mahin John Lee Mahin (August 23, 1902, Evanston, Illinois – April 18, 1984, Los Angeles) was an American screenwriter and producer of films who was active in Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1960s. He was known as the favorite writer of Clark Gable a ...

, he was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best screenplay adapted from previously established material. The most frequently adapted media are novels, but other adapted narrative formats include stage plays, mus ...

for ''

Captains Courageous ''Captains Courageous: A Story of the Grand Banks'' is an 1897 novel by Rudyard Kipling that follows the adventures of fifteen-year-old Harvey Cheyne Jr., the spoiled son of a railroad tycoon, after he is saved from drowning by a Portuguese f ...

'' (1937). He was one of seven

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

studio executives who worked for

Carl Laemmle Carl Laemmle (; born Karl Lämmle ; January 17, 1867 – September 24, 1939) was a German-American film producer and the co-founder and, until 1934, owner of Universal Pictures. He produced or worked on over 400 films. Regarded as one of the ...

and his son Julius (Carl Jr.) Laemmle during the golden age of Universal-Laemmle ownership. Later, he also produced some films. He married fellow Stanford graduate Ellen Mein Calhoun in April 1922. They had two children before "an interlocutory judgment of divorce was entered in the Superior Court of the State of California" in July 1935. According to his daughter, author Joan Van Every Frost, and as reported by historian Tony Burton, he married twice more: Florence Mason (1896-1969) sometime before 1940, and Frances Robinson Hess near the end of his life. He died in 1976 at age 89.

Partial filmography

*''Telling the World'' (1928) – story *''Marianne'' (1929) – screenplay and story ( silent and

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

versions) *''

Desert Nights ''Desert Nights'' (also known as ''Thirst'') is a 1929 American synchronized sound adventure/romantic drama film starring John Gilbert, Ernest Torrence, and Mary Nolan. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized ...

'' (1929) – story *''

The Duke Steps Out ''The Duke Steps Out'' is a 1929 American synchronized sound comedy-drama film directed by James Cruze and starring William Haines and Joan Crawford. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized musical score with ...

'' (1929) – adaptation *'' Navy Blues'' (1929) – adaptation *''

Those Three French Girls ''Those Three French Girls '' is a 1930 American Pre-Code comedy film directed by Harry Beaumont and starring Fifi D'Orsay, Reginald Denny, and Cliff Edwards. The dialogue was written by P. G. Wodehouse.Trader Horn Alfred Aloysius "Trader" Horn (born Alfred Aloysius Smith; 21 June 1861 – 26 June 1931) was an ivory trader in central Africa. His memoirs detailing his journeys, were transcribed and edited by the novelist Ethelreda Lewis and published in t ...

'' (1931) – adaptation *''

East of Borneo ''East of Borneo'' is a 1931 American Pre-Code adventure film directed by George Melford, co-written by Edwin H. Knopf and Dale Van Every, starring Rose Hobart, Charles Bickford, Georges Renavent, Lupita Tovar, and Noble Johnson, and released ...

'' (1931) – screenplay *''

Murders in the Rue Morgue "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe published in ''Graham's Magazine'' in 1841. It has been described as the first modern detective story; Poe referred to it as one of his "tales of ratiocination". C. Auguste ...

'' (1932) – screenplay *''

Air Mail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...

'' (1932) – screenplay *''

Saturday's Millions ''Saturday's Millions'' is a 1933 American pre-Code sports drama film directed by Edward Sedgwick and starring Robert Young, Andy Devine, Leila Hyams and Johnny Mack Brown. It was produced and distributed by Universal Pictures. The film is an a ...

'' (1933) - screenplay *''

After Office Hours ''After Office Hours'' is a 1935 crime drama film directed by Robert Z. Leonard and starring Clark Gable and Constance Bennett. The screenplay was written by Herman Mankiewicz. Plot Jim Branch (Clark Gable), a newspaper editor, falls for we ...

'' (1935) – story *'' More Than a Secretary'' (1936) – screenplay *''

'' (1937) – screenplay *''

Souls at Sea ''Souls at Sea'' is a 1937 American historical adventure film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Gary Cooper and George Raft. Based on a story by Ted Lesser, the film is about a first mate on a slave ship who frees the slaves on the ship aft ...

'' (1937) – screenplay *''

Spawn of the North ''Spawn of the North'' is a 1938 American adventure film directed by Henry Hathaway about rival fishermen in Alaska starring George Raft, Henry Fonda and Dorothy Lamour and featuring Akim Tamiroff and John Barrymore. ''Spawn of the North'' is b ...

'' (1938) – uncredited screenplay construction *'' Dr. Cyclops'' (1940) – producer *'' The Talk of the Town'' (1942) – adaptation *'' Sealed Cargo'' (1951) – screenplay

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Van Every, Dale 1896 births 1976 deaths American film producers American film studio executives American male journalists 20th-century American journalists American military personnel of World War I 20th-century American novelists American male screenwriters Stanford University alumni American male novelists 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American screenwriters