Ian Dalrymple
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Ian Dalrymple (26 August 190328 March 1989) was a British
screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...
,
film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
,
film editor Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film stock, film which increasingly involves the use Digital cinema, of digital ...
and film producer.


Early life

Born in
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, he was educated at Rugby and
Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...
.


Career

He worked in advertising then went into the film industry.


Editor

Initially, he worked as an editor at
Gainsborough Pictures Gainsborough Pictures was a British film studio based on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, east London. Gainsborough Studios was active between 1924 and 1951. The co ...
working his way up to head editor. He then went to become head editor at
Gaumont-British The Gaumont-British Picture Corporation was a British company that produced and distributed films and operated a cinema chain in the United Kingdom. It was established as an offshoot of France's Gaumont (company), Gaumont. Film production Gaumo ...
pictures from '' Rome Express'' onwards.


Screenwriter

He went into screenwriting with great success. He won an Oscar for his contribution to the script of '' Pygmalion''. Dalrymple went to work on
Alexander Korda Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; ; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956)
's propaganda film ''
The Lion Has Wings ''The Lion Has Wings'' is a 1939 British, black-and-white, documentary-style, propaganda film, propaganda war film that was directed by Adrian Brunel, Brian Desmond Hurst, Alexander Korda and Michael Powell. The film was produced by London Film ...
'' (1939). One of its directors, Michael Powell, called Dalrymple "an extremely able and very nice man and a wonderful organiser."


Crown Film Unit

During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, from 1940 to 1943 he was a producer for the Crown Film Unit, the government run agency for information and propaganda films, in particular working, and forming a close friendship, with Humphrey Jennings.The Crown prince of documentary Dalrymple, Ian. The Guardian 5 May 1989: 37. Dalrymple said in 1941 their goal was:
We say in film to our own people 'This is what the boys in the services, or the girls in the factories, or the men and women in Civil Defence, or the patient citizens themselves are like, and what they are doing. They are playing their part in the spirit in which you see them in this film. Be of good heart and go and do likewise'. And we say to the world, 'Here in these films are the British people at war' ... It has seen the truth and it can make up its own mind.


Korda

In 1943 Dalrymple went to work for Alex Korda as production supervisor.


Wessex

In 1946 Dalrymple formed his own production company, Wessex Productions, based at
Pinewood Studios Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to t ...
. Among his employees were
Pat Jackson Patrick Douglas Selmes Jackson (26 March 1916 – 3 June 2011) was an English film and television director. Biography Born in Eltham to a formerly affluent family which was severely affected by the Wall Street crash in 1929, Jackson's formal ...
and Jack Lee, who worked with him at the Crown Film Unit. The company signed an agreement with Rank, and made ''
The Woman in the Hall ''The Woman in the Hall'' is a 1947 British drama film directed by Jack Lee and starring Ursula Jeans, Jean Simmons, Cecil Parker. The screenplay was written by Lee, Ian Dalrymple Ian Dalrymple (26 August 190328 March 1989) was a British ...
'' (1947), written and produced by Dalrymple and directed by Lee. It was followed by '' Esther Waters'' (1948), which Dalrymple directed alongside Peter Proud, and is remembered today for introducing
Dirk Bogarde Sir Dirk Bogarde (born Derek Jules Gaspard Ulric Niven van den Bogaerde; 28 March 1921 – 8 May 1999) was an English actor, novelist and screenwriter. Initially a matinée idol in films such as ''Doctor in the House (film), Doctor in the Hous ...
. Bogarde starred in two other Wessex films, ''
Once a Jolly Swagman ''Once a Jolly Swagman'' (U.S. title: ''Maniacs on Wheels'') is a 1949 British film starring Dirk Bogarde, Bonar Colleano, Bill Owen, Thora Hird and Sid James. It was written by William Rose and Jack Lee, based on the 1944 novel of the sa ...
'' (1949), directed by Lee, and '' Dear Mr. Prohack'' (1949) directed by
Thornton Freeland Thornton Freeland (February 10, 1898 – May 22, 1987) was an American film director who directed 26 British and American films in a career that lasted from 1924 to 1949. Early success He was born in Hope, North Dakota in 1898 and originally ...
. They also made ''
All Over the Town ''All Over the Town'' is a 1949 British comedy film directed by Derek N. Twist and starring Norman Wooland, Sarah Churchill and Cyril Cusack. It was written by Michael Gordon and Twist based on the 1947 novel by R. F. Delderfield. Plot ...
'' (1949), directed by
Derek Twist Derek Norman Twist (26 May 190515 August 1979) was a British screenwriter, film editor and director. He was sometimes credited as Derek N. Twist. During the 1930s he worked at British Gaumont. Early life Twist was born in Paddington area of L ...
. None of the films had been particularly successful at the box office. In 1949 Wessex moved from Rank to Korda's
London Films London Films Productions is a British film and television production company founded in 1932 by Alexander Korda and from 1936 based at Denham Film Studios in Buckinghamshire, near London. The company's productions included '' The Private Li ...
, who distributed through
British Lion Films British Lion Films is a film production and distribution company active under several forms since 1919. Originally known as British Lion Film Corporation Ltd, it entered receivership on 1 June 1954. From 29 January 1955 to 1976, the company was k ...
. The change had instant results: Wessex's first film in association with London, '' The Wooden Horse'' (1950), directed by Lee, was a big hit. It also made a star of Anthony Steel. Dalrymple returned to documentary filmmaking with Jennings with ''Family Portrait'' (1950) and ''The Changing Face of Europe'' (1951) but Jennings then died in an accident. He had a critical success with '' The Heart of the Matter'' (1953) starring
Trevor Howard Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith (29 September 1913 – 7 January 1988) was an English stage and screen actor. After varied work in the theatre, he achieved leading man star status in the film '' Brief Encounter'' (1945), followed by '' The Third M ...
. It was followed by '' Three Cases of Murder'' (1955), a horror anthology, and '' Raising a Riot'' (1955), a
Kenneth More Kenneth Gilbert More (20 September 1914 – 12 July 1982) was an English actor. Initially achieving fame in the comedy ''Genevieve (film), Genevieve'' (1953), he appeared in many roles as a carefree, happy-go-lucky gent. Films from this period ...
comedy directed by Wendy Toye which was a big success. Wessex made a film about the Korean War, ''
A Hill in Korea ''A Hill in Korea'' is a 1956 British war film based on Max Catto's 1953 novel of the same name. The original name was ''Hell in Korea'', but it was changed for distribution reasons—except in the US. It was directed by Julian Amyes and pro ...
'' (1956), best remembered today for giving early roles to actors such as Robert Shaw, Stanley Baker and
Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...
. In the late 1960s he was film adviser to Decca and supervisor of film projects at Argo.


Personal life

In the 1940s he lived at 'The Manor' at
Bourton-on-the-Water Bourton-on-the-Water is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, that lies on a wide flat vale within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The village had a population of 3,296 at the 2011 census. Much of the village ...
in the
Cotswolds The Cotswolds ( ) is a region of central South West England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper River Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and the Vale of Evesham. The area is defined by the bedroc ...
.''Cheltenham Chronicle'' Saturday 14 August 1948, page 7 On Saturday 7 August 1948 his daughter Janet married Flying Officer Michael John Eldon Swiney (19 August 1926 - 30 September 2016), later Station Commander from 28 January 1972 until 12 October 1973 of RAF Leuchars. Janet died in 2011. Flight Lieutenant Michael Swiney, with Lieutenant David Crofts, took part in the 1952 Little Rissington UFO incident. He died in London on 28 March 1989.


Selected filmography


Sources

* ''Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies'' – published by Harper-Collins * ''Chronicle of the Cinema'' published by D & K –


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dalrymple, Ian 1903 births 1989 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge British film directors British film producers British film editors British male screenwriters Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award winners People from Bourton-on-the-Water People from Johannesburg 20th-century British screenwriters