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Jacques Tourneur | |
|---|---|
 Tourneur on set ofCanyon Passage, 1946[1] | |
| Born | Jacques Thomas (1904-11-12)November 12, 1904 Paris, France |
| Died | December 19, 1977(1977-12-19) (aged 73) Bergerac, France |
| Other names | Jack Turner |
| Occupations | Director, producer, editor |
| Years active | 1929–1965 |
| Father | Maurice Tourneur |
Jacques Tourneur (/ˈtʊrnər/;French:[tuʁnœʁ]; November 12, 1904 – December 19, 1977) was a French-American filmmaker, active during theGolden Age of Hollywood. He was known as anauteur of stylish and atmospheric genre films, many of them forRKO Pictures, including thesupernatural horror filmsCat People (1942),I Walked with a Zombie (1943) andThe Leopard Man (1943), thewar filmDays of Glory (1944), which markedGregory Peck's debut film role, and thefilm noirOut of the Past (1947). He is also known for directing theBritish horror filmNight of the Demon (1957), which was released byColumbia Pictures asCurse of the Demon.
Tourneur was born inParis, France, the son of Fernande Petit andfilm directorMaurice Tourneur.[2] At age 10, he moved to theUnited States with his father.[2] Tourneur started a career in cinema while still attendinghigh school as an extra and later as a script clerk in varioussilent films. Both Maurice and Jacques returned to France after his father worked on the filmThe Mysterious Island in 1925.[2]
Tourneur became estranged from his father after beginning an affair with his lover, the French actress Marguerite Christiane Virideau (1905-1993), notable for having supplied the voice for Snow White in the French release of the Disney classic. After moving to America, they married on 22 April 1934, remaining together until his death.[3]
Jacques Tourneur died in 1977, aged 73, inBergerac,Dordogne, France.
Tourneur began work as aneditor andassistant director. He made his debut as a director on the French filmTout ça ne vaut pas l'amour [fr] in 1931.[2] In 1934, Tourneur went to Hollywood, where he had a contract withMGM Studios. While working as thesecond unit director on the filmA Tale of Two Cities he met film producerVal Lewton.[2]
Tourneur made his American feature debut as director in the 1939 filmThey All Come Out. After Tourneur was dropped by MGM in 1941, he was picked up by Lewton to film several acclaimed low-budgethorror films forRKO Studios includingCat People andI Walked with a Zombie.[2]
Cat People, his first commercial success,[4] although considered a B movie and made on a limited budget, was distinguished by a style of lighting and cinematography that has been imitated countless times. Tourneur was promoted to the A-list at RKO, directing films includingOut of the Past andBerlin Express.[2] In the 1950s, Tourneur became a freelance director, filming various genre films includingWichita,Anne of the Indies,Way of a Gaucho,Nightfall,The Flame and the Arrow,Stars In My Crown andNight of the Demon.[2] His last two films, made forAmerican International Pictures and starringVincent Price, wereThe Comedy of Terrors (1963) andWar-Gods of the Deep (1965).[2]
After his final days working for film, Tourneur began directing television episodes. Tourneur filmed episodes ofThe Barbara Stanwyck Show,Bonanza,The Twilight Zone, andThe Alaskans. Tourneur's final director credit was for an episode ofT.H.E. Cat in 1966. Tourneur then retired and returned to France.[2]
Feature films
Short films
La Mort en direct, a 1980 film byBertrand Tavernier, is dedicated to the deceased film director Jacques Tourneur.
"There are films that watch us grow old." Statement bySerge Daney quoted by Serge Le Péron inJacques Tourneur Le Médium, a film by Alain Mazars, 2015.
By naming the main character Jessica Holland in his filmMemoria (2021),Apichatpong Weerasethakul pays tribute to Jacques Tourneur's filmI Walked with a Zombie.[5]
Bibliography
