Died Today (July 23rd) D.W. Griffith (1875–1948)

D.W. Griffith (1875–1948)

Born: January 22, 1875 in LaGrange, Kentucky, USA
Died: July 23, 1948 (age 73) in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

He has been called “the father of film technique,” “the man who invented Hollywood,” and “the Shakespeare of the screen”.

In 1920, he established United Artists with Charles Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford.

Sometimes, whether you like it or not you have to give the devil his due. D.W. Griffith’s “Birth of a Nation” may be an embarrassing reminder of the dark side of our history that we’d just as soon sweep under the rug, but for better or worse it invented the feature film as we know it.

WAY DOWN EAST 1920 dir. D.W. Griffith Starring Lillian Gish Richard Barthlemess

Intolerance 1916 dir. D.W. Griffith Starring Mae Marsh Robert Harron

JUDITH OF BETHULIA 1914 dir. D.W. Griffith Starring: Blanche Sweet Henry B. Walthall

AN UNSEEN ENEMY