Huston, John

John Huston was a cinematic giant of our time whose long extended list of films left an incredible mark on American cinema and a legacy of the man whose larger-than-life character off screen, as an eccentric rebel and a Hollywood titan, whose many roles such as director, screenwriter, painter and character actor, all aided the thirty year career span of a true Hollywood legend.

Born on August 5th, 1906 in Nevada, John was the son of actors Walter Huston and Rhea Gore Huston. At a very young age John was diagnosed with nephritis and an enlarged heart and was bed bound for years. After a fortunate recovery his zest for life flourished and as young as thirteen years old the once sickly child compiled a 23-2 amateur record and a name for himself as a lightweight boxer. A magazine article on futurism got him interested in art, and he enrolled first in the Smith Art School.

Huston's first introduction to the world of cinema was acting a small part along side his starring father in the production of 'The Easy Mark'. It was also around this time that he developed a keen interest in creative writing and he wrote a number of short stories for various magazines.

Hustons interests changed from the theatre to film and from acting to screenwriting around the early 1930s. He was employed by Universal and wrote for several films and acted in some small part cameos, but just as his career was taking off his personal life went into a downward spiral. He started living the fast life of a Hollywood rake and his relationship with his wife Dorothy Harvey was all but over. He was arrested in 1933 three times for drink driving and one one of these occasions he killed a woman pedestrian. After he cleared charges Universal dropped him and his wife divorced him.

Huston moved to England to work on a couple of films and after remarrying he returned to America to work with Warner Brothers. He earned two Academy Award nominations around this time for his screenplay for 'Dr. Erhlich's Magic Bullet' and 'Sergeant York'. In 1951 Huston directed his first full length film 'The Maltese Falcon' starring Humphery Bogart. This film was key in establishing Huston as a Hollywood name.

During World War II Huston filmed documentaries for the U.S. military, and after the war he directed a string of box office successes and films now considered classics, including 'The Asphalt Jungle' (1950) 'The African Queen' (1951) and 'The Misfits' (1951)

In the 1980s Huston's output, though diminished due to illness, remained as varied as ever. His movies included, 'The Man Who Would Be King' (1975), 'Wise Blood' (1980), 'Annie' (1982), 'Under the Volcano' (1984), 'Prizzi's Honor' (1985), and his last film ever to be made 'The Dead' (1987).

John Huston died from emphysema on August 28, 1987.


Filmography

As director

The Maltese Falcon [1941]
In This Our Life [1942]
Across the Pacific [1942]
Report from the Aleutians [1943]
The Battle of San Pietro [1945]
Let There Be Light [1946]
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre [1948]
Key Largo [1948]
We Were Strangers [1949]
The Asphalt Jungle [1950]
The Red Badge of Courage [1951]
The African Queen [1951]
Moulin Rouge [1953]
Beat the Devil [1953]
Moby Dick [1956]
Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison [1957]
The Barbarian and the Geisha [1958]
The Roots of Heaven [1958]
The Unforgiven [1960]
The Misfits [1960]
Freud the Secret Passion [1962]
The List of Adrian Messenger [1963]
The Night of the Iguana [1964]
The Bible: In The Beginning [1966]
Reflections in a Golden Eye [1967]
Casino Royale [1967]
Sinful Davey [1969]
A Walk with Love and Death [1969]
The Kremlin Letter [1970]
Fat City [1972]
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean [1972]
The Mackintosh Man [1973]
The Man Who Would Be King [1975]
Wise Blood [1979]
Phobia [1980]
Escape to Victory [1981]
Annie [1982]
Under the Volcano [1984]
Prizzi's Honor [1985]
The Dead [1987]


As screenwriter

Mr. North (with Janet Roach, & James Costigan) [1988]
The Man Who Would Be King (with Gladys Hill) [1975]
The Night of the Iguana (with Anthony Veiller) [1964]
Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (with John Lee Mahin) [1957]
Moby Dick (with Ray Bradbury) [1956]
Beat the Devil (with Truman Capote) [1953]
Moulin Rouge (with Anthony Veiller) [1952]
The African Queen (with James Agee) [1951]
Key Largo (with Richard Brooks) [1948]
We Were Strangers (with Peter Viertel) [1949]
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre [1948]
The Killers (with Anthony Veiller) [1946]
Three Strangers (with Howard Koch) [1946]
High Sierra (with W.R. Burnett) [1941]
The Maltese Falcon (Adapted) [1941]
Sergeant York (with Abem Finkel, Harry Chandler, & Howard Koch) [1941]
The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse (with John Wexley) [1938]
Jezebel (with Clements Ripley, Abem Finkel, & Robert Buckner) [1938]
Murders in the Rue Morgue (with Tom Reed & Dale Van Every) [1932]


As actor
(NB. Does not include the films which he also directed)

The Cardinal (Director: Otto Preminger) [1963]
Candy (Director: Christian Marquand) [1968]
Rocky Road to Dublin (Documentary, director: Peter Lennon) [1968]
De Sade (Director: Cy Endfield) [1969]
Myra Breckinridge (Director: Michael Sarne) [1970]
Man in the Wilderness (Director: Richard C. Sarafian) [1971]
The Bridge in the Jungle [1971]
Rufino Tamayo: The Sources of his Art (Documentary, director: Gary Conklin) [1972]
Battle for the Planet of the Apes (Director: J. Lee Thompson) [1973]
Chinatown (Director: Roman Polanski) [1974]
Breakout [1975]
The Wind and the Lion (Director: John Milius) [1975]
Tentacles (Director: Ovidio G. Assonitis) [1977]
The Greatest Battle (Director: Umberto Lenzi) [1978]
The Bermuda Triangle (Director: René Cardona, Jr.) [1978]
Angela (Director: Boris Sagal) [1978]
The Visitor (Director: Giulio Paradisi) [1979]
Winters Kills (Director: Willam Richert) [1979]
A Minor Miracle (Director: Raoul Lomas) [1983]
Notes from Under the Volcano (Documentary, as himself, director: Gary Conklin) [1984]
Lovesick (Director: Marshall Brickman) [1984]
Momo (Director: Johannes Schaaf) [1986]



Above: Dick Cavett show feature on Huston