Editing Mervyn LeRoy (section)

== Return to director-producer ==

LeRoy assumed the dual role of director-producer in the late Fifties and Sixties, during the declining period of the [[Hollywood Golden Age]]. He primarily worked at Warner Studios, but also [[20th Century Fox]], [[Columbia Pictures|Columbia]] and [[Universal Pictures|Universal]].<ref name="Higham and Greenberg, 1968 p. 18" /><ref>Canham, 1976 pp. 164-165, And: p. 186-188, See Filmography Section for multiple studios, distributors.</ref> Critic Kingsley Canham offers the following appraisal of LeRoy's work in this period:

{{blockquote|LeRoy's work in the later half of the Fifties and Sixties has been largely confined to adaptations of stage successes, interspersed with the odd drama such as ''The FBI Story'' (1959), ''The Devil at 4 O'Clock'' (1961) and ''Moment to Moment'' (1966). Many of the former displayed an unhappy tendency toward excessive length or they padded out a basically funny situation beyond its endurance (e.g. [[A Majority of One (film)|''A Majority of One'']] [1961] and [[Wake Me When It's Over (film)|''Wake Me When it's Over'']] [1960]), tending to make one feel that LeRoy was better off in the Thirties when he had to work in the more restricted confines of the old Hollywood system when it was at its peak...whereas [the] Fifties signaled the death knell of the Old Hollywood, leaving directors like LeRoy to struggle with unsuitable material, assigned to them by virtue of their past reputations.<ref>Canham, 1976 p. 164:</ref>}} Despite these developments, LeRoy remained a profitable asset in the film industry.

[[The Bad Seed (1956 film)|''The Bad Seed'']] (1956): The film is based on a story by [[William March]] about a disturbed eleven-year-old girl whose murderous behavior is credited to her genetic heritage: she is the granddaughter of a notorious serial killer. [[Maxwell Anderson]]'s 1954 [[The Bad Seed (play)|stage production]] enjoyed success and LeRoy imported most of the cast for his film adaptation, including child actor [[Patty McCormick]]. The [[Motion Picture Production Code]] required that the child murderess perish for her crimes, and LeRoy dispatches her with a lightning bolt. LeRoy recounts his struggle with censors:

{{blockquote |I couldn't budge the [[Eric Johnston|Johnston Office]] people...In those days, long before the [[Motion picture content rating system|rating system]], there was no halfway about it...You either got a seal of approval or you didn't, and Jack Warner wasn't about to release the film without that seal. So we had to change the ending. [[John Lee Mahin]] dreamed up the idea of having the child killed by a bolt of lightning. The Johnson Office gave us their blessing when we showed them the revised script.<ref>Leroy and Kleiner, 1974. P. 198</ref>}}

The highly profitable ''Bad Seed'' garnered Academy Award nominations for several of the principal cast and cinematographer [[Harold Rosson]].<ref>Canham, 1976 p. 185-186: "Drama about a psychotic little girl who disposes of people that upset her."<br />Barson, 2020: "The Bad Seed (1956) had also been a hit on Broadway. LeRoy's popular but slavishly faithful version of Maxwell Anderson's play about a sweet little girl who is actually a murderer imported most of the original cast, of whom Nancy Kelly, Eileen Heckart, and child actress Patty McCormack all earned Oscar nominations."<br />Whiteley, 2020: "In 1956 LeRoy directed ''The Bad Seed'' a sophisticated horror and suspense movie based on a stage play by Maxwell Anderson and successfully retaining most of the Broadway cast."<br />Miller, 2004 TCM: "Initially, [Warner Brothers]objected to [Leroy's] plan to cast the play's leading players...in place of established box-office names like Bette Davis, who had expressed an interest in the film's leading role...He also decided to stick closely to Anderson's original screenplay, working with cinematographer Harold Rosson... And: "Warner Bros. had gotten approval for the material simply by offering to create a new ending in which Rhoda would be punished for her crimes." And: "In another move to appease the censors, Warner Bros. added an "adults only" tag to the film's advertising. As a result, the film became one of their biggest hits of the year, grossing $4.1 million (an impressive figure for the time) and landing in the year's top 20 at the box office. The film also landed Oscar nominations for Rosson, Kelly, McCormack and Heckart..."</ref>

[[Toward the Unknown|''Toward the Unknown'']] (1956): A sympathetic dramatization of a former [[Korean War]] POW, played by [[William Holden]], who struggles to recover from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and return to service as a test pilot in the U.S. Air Force.<ref>Miller, 2014 TCM: under Mervyn LeRoy's direction, [Toward the Unknown] marks one of the screen's first sympathetic treatments of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder years before the condition had even been named...It even took its title from the motto of the Flight Test Center at Edwards (the motto of the Air Force Flight Test Center, ''Ad Inexplorata.''"</ref>

[[No Time for Sergeants (film)|''No Time for Sergeants'']] (1958): Novelist [[Mac Hyman]]'s hillbilly protagonist Will Stockdale gained popularity in comic book form and was adapted to the stage by [[Ira Levin]]. [[Andy Griffith]] played the lead and [[Nick Adams (actor, born 1931)|Nick Adams]] his sidekick in LeRoy's film adaptation.<ref>Nixon, 2009 TCM: Andy Griffith as "country bumpkin hero, Will Stockdale...brought his new critical and commercial success to [LeRoy's] film version of No Time for Sergeants, along with most of his supporting stage cast... ''No Time for Sergeants'' is one of those popular properties with a long record of success prior to the film version and an extended influence beyond it, inspiring spin-offs [including [[Mayberry RFD]] and [[Gomer Pyle]]] and imitations and boosting the careers of several of its principals (among them [[Don Knotts]])..."</ref><ref>Canham, 1976 p. 186: "...Hillbilly..."</ref>

[[Home Before Dark (film)|''Home Before Dark'']] (1958): Based on a story and screenplay by Robert and Eileen Bassing, LeRoy examines the struggle of a former mental patient ([[Jean Simmons]]) to normalize her relationships with her husband ([[Dan O'Herlihy]]), who she suspects of having an affair with her half-sister ([[Rhonda Fleming]]).<ref>Barson, 2020: "Home Before Dark (1958) was a drama about a woman's (Jean Simmons) efforts to readjust to a normal life after spending a year in a mental institution."</ref><ref>Canham, 1976 p. 186: Thumbnail sketch of film</ref>

''[[The FBI Story]]'' (1959): A hagiographic review of federal law enforcement figure Chip Hardesty, vetted by LeRoy's close personal friend and FBI director [[J. Edgar Hoover]], and starring [[James Stewart]].<ref>Barson, 2020: "The FBI Story (1959) was a capsule dramatization of the agency's most famous cases; it starred James Stewart as an FBI agent and Vera Miles as his long-suffering wife."</ref><ref>Smith, 2014 TCM: "...J. Edgar Hoover himself [was the] driving force behind this Hollywood adaptation of the [[Don Whitehead]] non-fiction best-seller (issued in both adult and kid-friendly editions in 1956)...Backed by Warner Brothers...with veteran director Mervyn LeRoy (a close personal friend of Hoover) at the helm, ''The FBI Story'' fictionalized several high profile bureau cases (involving white supremacists, Dust Bowl thugs, Axis agents, and Red Menace rats) with Stewart cast as lead investigating agent Chip Hardesty...This hagiographic white-wash was vetted by the Bureau on every level..."</ref><ref>Canham, 1976 p. 164: "...the odd drama, such as The FBI Story..."</ref> For his services in directing and producing ''The FBI Story,'' the agency honored LeRoy with its Distinguished Service Award.<ref>LeRoy and Kleiner, 1974 p. 201</ref><ref>LeRoy and Kleiner, 1974 p. 199: "I am extremely proud of ''The FBI Story''...It was authentic done to the last detail...I didn't want to jeopardize my personal friendship with [[J. Edgar Hoover]] by doing anything that wasn't accurate. He assigned two agents to be with [the film crew] at all times..."</ref>

[[Wake Me When It's Over (film)|''Wake Me When It's Over'']] (1960), 20th Century Fox: A comedy-of-errors, starring [[Ernie Kovacs]] and [[Dick Shawn]], involving the appropriation of post-WWII army surplus to build a resort on a remote Japanese island occupied by US troops.<ref>Canham, 1976 p. 187</ref><ref>Barson, 2020: "The comedy ''Wake Me When It's Over'' (1960) featured Dick Shawn and Ernie Kovacs as army pals who, out of boredom, build a resort on the Japanese island where they are stationed."</ref>

''[[The Devil at 4 O'Clock]]'' (1961), Columbia Pictures: A priest ([[Spencer Tracy]]) and a convict ([[Frank Sinatra]]) join forces to rescue children from a leper colony when a volcano eruption threatens their Polynesian island.<ref>Barson, 2020: "''The Devil at 4 o'Clock'' (1961) starred Tracy and Sinatra in a drama about the evacuation of a children's hospital after a volcano erupts."</ref><ref>Stafford, 2004 TCM: The title of the film comes from a proverb: "It is hard for a man to be brave when he knows he is going to meet the devil at four o'clock."</ref><ref>Canham, 1976 p. 188: "Convicts and a priest help evacuate a leper colony when an earthquake destroys the island..."</ref>

[[A Majority of One (film)|''A Majority of One'']] (1961): Warner Brothers: An adaptation of the successful [[Leonard Spigelgass]] play directed by [[Dore Schary]]. Stage actors [[Gertrude Berg]] and [[Cedric Hardwicke]] were replaced by producer [[Jack L. Warner]] with film stars [[Rosalind Russell]] and [[Alec Guinness]] as the romantic leads, and the story set in Japan.<ref>Barson, 2020: "''A Majority of One'' (1962) was a lengthy adaptation of the Broadway success, with the unusual casting of Rosalind Russel as a Jewish divorcée and Alec Guinness as a Japanese diplomat."</ref><ref>Canham, 1976 p. 188: "Long-winded romance between a Japanese businessman [played by Guinness] and a Brooklyn Jewess [played by Russell]."</ref>

[[Gypsy (1962 film)|''Gypsy'']] (1962), Warner Brothers: LeRoy returned to musicals with a portrayal of the young [[Gypsy Rose Lee]] in her early career as a [[burlesque]] stripper, played by [[Natalie Wood]], with [[Rosalind Russell]] as Lee's domineering stage mother.<ref>Miller, 2008 TCM: "Gypsy was based on the early career of Gypsy Rose Lee, the most famous stripper in burlesque history."</ref><ref>Canham, 1976 p. 188-189: "...domineering mother..."<br />LeRoy and Kleiner, 1974 p. 202-203: LeRoy defends his decision to not use [[Ethel Merman]] in the film production.</ref><ref>Barson, 2020: "Russell was better served in Gypsy (1962) as Rose Hovick, the frightening stage mother of Gypsy Rose Lee (Natalie Wood) and Baby June (Morgan Britanny)."<br />Whiteley, 2020: "'Gypsy' in 1962 was his last important movie and its success caused LeRoy to be tempted away from Warners to Universal where he made what proved to be his final work, 'Moment to Moment' in 1966."</ref>

''[[Moment to Moment]]'' (1965), Universal: LeRoy's last credited directorial effort, ''Moment to Moment'' starring [[Jean Seberg]] and [[Honor Blackman]].<ref>Whiteley, 2020: "Gypsy in 1962 was his last important movie and its success caused LeRoy to be tempted away from Warners to Universal where he made what proved to be his final work, ''Moment to Moment'' in 1966."</ref><ref>Barson, 2020: "LeRoy's last credit was Moment to Moment (1965), a romantic thriller starring Jean Seberg and Honor Blackman."</ref>

Following ''Moment to Moment,'' disputes with Universal production head [[Edward Muhl]] over studio-proposed screenplays led to LeRoy's return to Warner Brothers under Jack Warner's auspices. There LeRoy embarked on several projects, including pre-production for an adaptation of [[James Thurber]]'s ''[[The 13 Clocks]],'' a tale that LeRoy believed "had the makings of another ''Wizard of Oz.'' When Warners was purchased by The McKinney Company, executives canceled the project and LeRoy quit the studio.<ref>LeRoy and Kleiner, 1974 pp. 217-219: See here process of LeRoy's disaffection and disengagement from Warners."</ref>

=== ''The Green Berets'' (1968): Uncredited adviser ===

LeRoy served for over five months as an uncredited adviser on the 1968 [[The Green Berets (film)|''The Green Berets'']], co-directed by [[Ray Kellogg (director)|Ray Kellogg]] and [[John Wayne]] and based on [[Robin Moore]]'s [[The Green Berets (book)|1965 collection of short stories]].<ref>McGee, 2007 TCM: "Robin Moore's collection of short stories called "The Green Berets" portrayed the crack commando unit as lawless, sadistic, and racist."</ref><ref>Whiteley, 2020: "After this, disillusioned by the increasingly youth-related movie industry, he retired from film making, apart from a brief, uncredited advisory role, helping his friend, John Wayne with his movie 'The Green Berets' in 1968."<br />Barson, 2020: "LeRoy also assisted Wayne on the Vietnam War film The Green Berets (1968) before retiring."<br />Canham, 1976 p. 167: "[LeRoy] spent five months helping John Wayne" on the film.</ref>

The studio producing ''The Green Berets,'' [[Warner Bros.-Seven Arts|Seven Arts]], after recently acquiring Warners, were concerned that Wayne's dual role as actor-director was beyond his abilities. LeRoy describes his enlistment in the project and the extent of his contribution:

{{blockquote|[[Eliot Hyman]] [head of Seven Stars operations] told me that I had a free hand with the picture. I could do anything I wanted – even close it down if I felt it should be shut down...When I got to [[Fort Benning]], Duke [Wayne] and I had a long talk and straightened out the question as to how I could help him. Then I took over and assisted Duke with the directing whenever he thought he needed me…<ref name="LeRoy and Kleiner, 1974 p. 218">LeRoy and Kleiner, 1974 p. 218</ref>}}

LeRoy added that he "was on the picture for five and a half months...I didn't do it for nothing, of course, but I wouldn't let them put my name on it, as I didn't think that would be fair to Duke." LeRoy retired from Warners-Seven Arts shortly after completing ''The Green Berets,'' representing his directorial [[swan song]].<ref name="LeRoy and Kleiner, 1974 p. 218" />

LeRoy received an [[Academy Honorary Award|honorary]] [[Academy Awards|Oscar]] in 1946 for ''[[The House I Live In (1945 film)|The House I Live In]],'' "for tolerance short subject," and the [[Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award]] in 1976.

A total of eight movies Mervyn LeRoy directed or co-directed were nominated for [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]] at the Oscars, one of the highest numbers among all directors.

On February 8, 1960, he received a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] at 1560 [[Vine Street]], for his contributions to the motion pictures industry.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.walkoffame.com/mervyn-leroy|title=Mervyn LeRoy {{!}} Hollywood Walk of Fame|website=www.walkoffame.com|access-date=June 21, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://projects.latimes.com/hollywood/star-walk/mervyn-leroy/|title=Mervyn LeRoy|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=June 21, 2016}}</ref>