Mark Hellinger

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Mark Hellinger (March 21, 1903 - December 21, 1947) is primarily known as a New York theatre critic and reviewer. The Mark Hellinger Theatre in New York City is named for him. Produced a number of films including his last film The Naked City (1948), a black-and-white film noir for which he also provided the narration.

Hellinger also provided the story for the classic 1939 Jimmy Cagney/Raoul Walsh gangster movie The Roaring Twenties. He based the story on his own experiences during the turbulent decade. In a forward that appears at the beginning of the film, he wrote

“

It may come to pass that, at some distant date, we will be confronted with another period similar to the one depicted in this photoplay. If that happens, I pray that the events, as dramatized here, will be remembered. In this film, the characters are composites of people I knew, and the situations are those that actually occurred. Bitter or sweet, most memories become precious as the years move on. This film is a memory - and I am grateful for it.

Mark Hellinger

”

Hellinger and his wife Gladys Glad, a cast member of the Ziegfeld Follies, are buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Sleepy Hollow, New York.