Henry King

published 01/07/1982 at 09:38 by Richard West

Actor | Director - Born June 24, 1886 in Christiansburg, Va. - Died June 29, 1982 in Toluca Lake, CA

Pioneer film director Henry King's unerring eye for the right actor, landscape and architecture made many of his movies classics of Americana.

Although never as publicized as other film industry pioneers, King was one of the giants of the industry. He was a contemporary of D.W. Griffith and a founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

King reached his peak with his Americana films in the 1930s. They included "State Fair" with Will Rogers, "Ramona" with Loretta Young and Don Ameche, and "Alexander's Ragtime Band," "Jesse James" and "In Old Chicago" all starring Tyrone Power.

King discovered Power and made him a star, as he had with Ameche, Ronald Colman, Jennifer Jones, Gary Cooper and Jean Peters.

King directed a mustachioed Gregory Peck in "The Gunfighter" in 1950 and Jennifer Jones in "The Song of Bernadette" in 1943 and "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" in 1953.

His last film was "Tender Is the Night," based on the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, in 1961.

In 1915 King found himself in Hollywood acting and directing "Little Mary Sunshine" movies for $100 a picture.

King made his reputation in 1921 with a powerful drama of the silent screen, "Tol'able David," which starred Richard Barthelmess. Other of his best silent films are "The White Sister (1923), Colman's debut "Stella Dallas" (1925) and "The Winning of Barbara Worth" (1926), which introduced Cooper.