Preston Sturges (Chicago, 1898 – August 29, New York, 6 August 1959), was originally called Edmund Preston Biden, a renowned screenwriter and film director of United States.

Biography

Born in Chicago, when he was three years he moved to Paris with his mother, who wished to pursue a career as a singer, there annulled their marriage with Preston’s father. The young Sturges traveled through different countries with Isadora Duncan, which his mother was a friendly company. He studied at France, Germany and Switzerland. In 1917 he enlisted volunteer to US Army with the intention to participate in the First world war, although the peace came before completing his training as a pilot. For a few months he published a weekly comic page titled Toot and his Loot newspaper field training (Park Field, Millington, Tennessee).

The beginning of his career

In 1928, Sturges wrote his first play The Guinea Pig, premiered in Massachusetts, its success made would that lead to Broadway the following year, this year Premiers Strictly Deshonorable work that gets quite successful.

In the following years wrote other works that do not have the same fate and in 1933 he moved to Hollywood as a screenwriter, being quite asked for his work.

In 1938 he married Louise Sargent Tevis.

During the remainder of the 1930s, Sturges worked under strict sponsored by the Hollywood studio system, working together in a chain of scripts, some of which were carried out, and others, wasn’t well-paying, winning $ 2,500 per week, but did not feel satisfied with the way managers handled his dialogues. This led to the resolution to take complete control of their own projects, which finally succeeded in 1939, offering his screenplay of The great McGinty, written six years earlier to Paramount Pictures for a dollar to change that could lead the project. The success of the film opened the door to be carried out similar agreements with other writers of the time like Billy Wilder and John Huston, who also became directors. Sturges said: “me has taken eight years to reach what I wanted.” But now, if I am not without ideas – and I hope that we have not – fun. “There are wonderful for making movies, and God willing, I will make some of them”. In 1940 he directed The great McGinty (the great McGinty), by which gets an Academy Award for best original screenplay.

Their greatest hits

McCrea, Claudette Colbert, Sullivan’s Travels (Sullivan’s travels), with Joel McCrea and Veronica Lake in 1941), in 1942 and The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (miracle of Morgan’s Creek) in 1944. Fifty years later, four of these films were included by the American Film Institute in the list of the 100 best comedies of the history of American cinema. Its inimitable combination of feelings and cynicism has made to continue attracting the audience today.

The final years

At the peak of his career, Sturges breaks with Paramount and forms with Howard Hughes company California Pictures Corporation. Wheel with Harold Lloyd The Sin of Harold Diddlebock (also known as Mad Wednesday), finally being a notable critical and commercial failure. It is fired from the shooting of Vendetta by Howard Hughes, after a clash between two strong personalities. Signature by the Fox company and wheel, between 1948 and 1949, Unfaithfully Yours and The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend, two new commercial failures ending his career as a director in Hollywood. His personal life is not much better: separated from 1946, finally manages to divorce his wife Louise and leaves with his son to Europe.

In the 1950s, and in the absence of tenders to direct cinema, Sturges dumps in writing and the theatre. Again in 1951, he married Anne Margaret Nagle. It has the opportunity to shoot the indent of George Bernard Shaw The Millionairess, in London and with Katharine Hepburn protagonist, but finally the project comes down due to lack of funding. In 1955 he writes and wheel in France what would be his last film, Les Carnets du Major Thompson, adapting a novel by Pierre Danino success.

Sturges died of a heart attack at the Algonquin Hotel in NYC while he wrote his autobiography, and was buried at the Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.

Filmography

As director

* Les Carnets du Major Thompson 1955

* The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend 1949

* Unfaithfully Yours 1948

* The no of Harold Diddlebock (The sin of Harold Diddlebock) 1947

* The Great Moment (Big time) 1944

* Hail the 1935–1936 hero (Save the victorious hero) 1944

* The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (The miracle of Morgan’s Creek) in 1944

* The Palm Beach Story (A rich husband) 1942

* The lady Eve (Three nights of Eve) 1941

* Sullivan’s Travels (Sullivan’s travels) 1941

* Christmas in July (Christmas in July) 1940

* The great McGinty (the great McGinty) 1940

As a producer (selection)

* The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (The miracle of Morgan’s Creek) 1944

* Sullivan’s Travels (Sullivan’s travels) 1941

As a screenwriter (selection)

* The Palm Beach Story (A rich husband) 1942

* The great McGinty (the great McGinty) 1940

As an actor

* Paris Holiday (The charm of Paris) 1958

* Sullivan’s Travels (Sullivan’s travels) 1941

* Christmas in July (Christmas in July) 1940