David MacDonald (9 May 1904 in Helensburgh, Dunbartonshire – 22 June 1983 in London) was a Scottish film director, writer and producer.

Career

MacDonald was the son of a wealthy landowner. His intention was to become a doctor but changed his mind and aged 17 went to

Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...

to work on a rubber plantation for seven and a half years. When he had leave to return to Scotland, he travelled via Hollywood and became interested in filmmaking.Macdonald, D. (1948)
"David MacDonald"
''The Tatler and Bystander'', 188(2439), 14. He returned to Malaya and worked at a plantation in

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman and historically as Queda, is a state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area of over 9,000 km2, and it consists of the mainla ...

. According to one story, while in Malaya he met Douglas Fairbanks who encouraged MacDonald to try his luck in Hollywood.

Hollywood

MacDonald broke into Hollywood by getting a job as technical adviser on a film '' Prestige''. After that he was out of work for nine months. He eventually gained a job working for Cecil B. DeMille. MacDonald worked as DeMille's assistant on '' The Sign of the Cross'' (1932), '' Four Frightened People'' (1934), ''

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler. ...

'' (also 1934) and ''

The Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were ...

'' (1935). He worked on '' Lives of a Bengal Lancer'' (also 1935) with Henry Hathaway. He also worked for King Vidor and Raoul Walsh. He returned to England with Walsh when the latter came to direct '' O.H.M.S.'' (1937) and elected to stay.

Quota quickies

''OHMS'' was made for Michael Balcon at Shepherd's Bush studio in London. Balcon recommended MacDonald to make his directorial debut with a "B" quota quickies: '' Double Alibi'' (1937). MacDonald followed it with other quota quickies: an adaptation of '' It's Never Too Late to Mend'' (1937) with

Tod Slaughter Norman Carter Slaughter (19 March 1885 – 19 February 1956), also known as Tod Slaughter, was an English actor, best known for playing over-the-top maniacs in macabre film adaptations of Victorian melodramas. Early life Slaughter was born ...

; '' The Last Curtain'' (1937); ''

Death Croons the Blues ''Death Croons the Blues'' is a 1937 British crime film directed by David MacDonald and starring Hugh Wakefield, Antoinette Cellier and George Hayes.Wood p.94 The film was made at Twickenham Studios by the producer Julius Hagen whose ownershi ...

'' (1937); '' Riding High'' (1937); ''

Make It Three ''Make It Three'' is a 1938 British comedy film directed by David MacDonald and starring Hugh Wakefield, Edmund Willard and Diana Beaumont. The screenplay concerns a bank clerk who is left a very large inheritance on condition that he firs ...

'' (1938); '' A Spot of Bother'' (1938); and ''

Meet Mr. Penny ''Meet Mr. Penny'' is a 1938 British comedy film directed by David MacDonald and starring Richard Goolden, Vic Oliver and Fabia Drake. It was made at Welwyn Studios by British National Films.Wood p.98 Cast * Richard Goolden as Henry Penny * Vi ...

'' (1938). Some of these were produced by

Anthony Havelock-Allan Sir Anthony James Allan Havelock-Allan, 4th Baronet (28 February 1904 – 11 January 2003) was a British film producer and screenwriter whose credits included ''This Happy Breed'', '' Blithe Spirit'', '' Great Expectations'', '' Oliver Twist'', ...

who also produced MacDonald's '' This Man Is News'' (1938), which became a surprise hit. It starred

Barry K. Barnes Barry K. Barnes (27 December 190612 January 1965) was an English film and stage actor. The son of Horatio Nelson Barnes and Anne Mackintosh Barnes, he was born and died in London. He appeared in sixteen films between 1936 and 1947. He played Sir ...

. MacDonald went on to make '' Dead Men Tell No Tales'' (1938); '' This Man in Paris'' (1939), a sequel to ''This Man Is News'', with Barnes; '' Spies of the Air'' (1939); '' The Midas Touch'' (1940); '' Law and Disorder'' (1940); and '' This England'' (1940).

World War Two

MacDonald tried to

enlist Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Some nations (e.g., Mexico) require a ...

but was told he was too old. He was however sent to France to do some filming for

Military Intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from ...

. Returning home he made ''

Men of the Lightship ''Men of the Lightship'' is a short propaganda film produced by the Crown Film Unit for the British Ministry of Information in 1940, the year after the beginning of the Second World War. It dramatises the bombing of the East Dudgeon lightship ...

'' (1940). The

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence (MoD ...

then called him and asked him to form the

Army Film Unit The Army Film and Photographic Unit was a subdivision of the British armed forces set up on 24 October 1941, to record military events in which the British and Commonwealth armies was engaged. During the war, almost 23 percent of all AFPU soldier ...

, where he rose to the rank of major. MacDonald was transferred to the Middle East, where he helped make the documentary '' Desert Victory'' (1943). Several people who worked on the film for MacDonald were killed in action. In 1943, he accompanied the film on a ten-week tour of the US and it was announced MacDonald would make films for

Alexander Korda Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; hu, Korda Sándor; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956)Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, and fell ill with

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or deat ...

. This meant he was unable to take part in the invasion of France. He worked at Pinewood Studios for six-months with the Army Film Unit, then was transferred to the Far East where he made ''

Burma Victory ''Burma Victory'' is a 1945 British documentary about the Burma Campaign during World War II. It was directed by Roy Boulting. The accompanying music is by Alan Rawsthorne. Production The film was a project of Louis Mountbatten. It was originally ...

'' (1946). He also took this film on a lecture tour through the USA.

Sydney Box

When MacDonald left the army, he began to work for producer Sydney Box. He made the Scottish melodrama '' The Brothers'' (1947) with Patricia Roc, partly shot on location on the Isle of Skye. MacDonald then made '' Snowbound'' (1948), an Alpine-set thriller based on a novel by

Hammond Innes Ralph Hammond Innes (15 July 1913 – 10 June 1998) was a British novelist who wrote over 30 novels, as well as works for children and travel books. Biography Innes was born in Horsham, Sussex, and educated at Feltonfleet School, Cobham, Surre ...

; and '' Good-Time Girl'' (1948) with Jean Kent. MacDonald directed two flops for Box, both biopics: '' The Bad Lord Byron'' (1949) with

Dennis Price Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose Price (23 June 1915 – 6 October 1973) was an English actor, best remembered for his role as Louis Mazzini in the film '' Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1949) and for his portrayal of the omnicompetent valet Jeev ...

, and ''

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

'' (1949), with

Fredric March Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated, versatile stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary '' Variety'', April 16, 1975, ...

. Also unsuccessful at the box office was '' Diamond City'' (1949), an attempt to make a British western in South Africa.

Later career

MacDonald made two films for Audrey Baring. He had a hit with '' Cairo Road'' (1950) with Eric Portman and Laurence Harvey, partly shot in Egypt. '' The Adventurers'' (1951), also shot in Africa and featuring Jack Hawkins, was less successful. For

Tempean Films Tempean Films was a British film production company formed in 1948 by Robert Baker and Monty Berman. Tempean's output of B movies were distributed by Eros Films. The company later moved into television, adapting Leslie Charteris' series of T ...

, MacDonald made '' The Lost Hours'' (1952) with Jean Kent and Mark Stevens. He followed it with '' Tread Softly'' (1952). MacDonald returned to documentaries with '' Operation Malaya'' (1953), about the

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War was a guerrilla war fought in British Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and the military forces o ...

. He was the director of the science fiction film '' Devil Girl from Mars'' (1954) for the Danziger Brothers. MacDonald directed episodes of '' Saber of London'' and worked on many other TV shows. He did the thriller '' Alias John Preston'' (1955). He made a comedy '' Small Hotel'' (1957) then did a swashbuckler set during the English civil war, '' The Moonraker'' (1958). He followed it with comedies: ''

A Lady Mislaid ''A Lady Mislaid'' is a 1958 British comedy film directed by David MacDonald and starring Phyllis Calvert, Alan White and Thorley Walters. It is based on a 1948 play of the same name by Kenneth Horne. Plot Esther, (Phyllis Calvert), and her s ...

'' (1958), '' Petticoat Pirates'' (1961), and '' The Golden Rabbit'' (1962).

Select filmography

*'' The Last Curtain'' (1937) *''

When the Poppies Bloom Again ''When the Poppies Bloom Again'' ( nl, Dokter Pulder zaait papavers, , lit=Doctor Pulder Sows Poppies) is a 1975 Dutch drama film directed by Bert Haanstra. It is based on the book ''The Nail Behind the Wallpaper'' by Anton Koolhaas. The film wa ...

'' (short, 1937) *'' Double Alibi'' (short, 1937) *'' It's Never Too Late to Mend'' (1937) *''

'' (1937) *'' Riding High'' (1937) *''

'' (1938) *'' A Spot of Bother'' (1938) *''

'' (1938) *'' This Man Is News'' (1938) *'' Dead Men Tell No Tales'' (1938) *'' This Man in Paris'' (1939) * '' Law and Disorder'' (1940) *'' The Midas Touch'' (1940) *''

'' (propaganda film, 1940) *'' Desert Victory'' (propaganda film, 1943) *'' The Brothers'' (1947) *'' Good-Time Girl'' (1948) *''

'' (1949) *'' Diamond City'' (1949) *'' The Bad Lord Byron'' (1949) *'' Cairo Road'' (1950) *'' The Adventurers'' (1951) *'' Tread Softly'' (1952) *'' The Lost Hours'' (1952) * " One Just Man" (episode of '' The Vise'', 1954) *''

The Yellow Robe ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

'' (1954) *'' Devil Girl from Mars'' (1954) *'' Triple Blackmail'' (1955) *''

Three Cornered Fate 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * ''Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 n ...

'' (1955) *'' Operation Malaya'' (1955) *''

Final Column Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

'' (1955) *''

Man in Demand A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromos ...

'' (1955) *'' Small Hotel'' (1957) *''

'' (1958) *'' The Moonraker'' (1958) *'' Petticoat Pirates'' (1961) *'' The Golden Rabbit'' (1962)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Macdonald, David 1904 births 1983 deaths Scottish film directors People from Helensburgh Scottish documentary filmmakers British Army personnel of World War II British Army officers Documentary war filmmakers Secret Intelligence Service personnel