George W. Hill

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For other persons of the same name, see George Hill.

George W. Hill
Born	April 25, 1895 Douglass, Kansas United States
Died	August 10, 1934 Venice, California United States
Occupation	Film director Cinematographer
Years active	1913 - 1933

George William Hill (April 25, 1895 – August 10, 1934) was an American film director and cinematographer.

He began his film career at age 13 with director, D. W. Griffith as a stagehand. A cinematographer of silent films known for his skill lighting female stars, he lensed a series of independently produced features for Mae Marsh and other woman stars in the postwar WWI years and was eventually tapped by the burgeoning major studios be a director, beginning in 1920. It wasn't until 1925 or 1926 however that his directing career began to gain serious traction and his assignments allowed him access to top stars such as Marion Davies and Jackie Coogan. Hill directed Lon Chaney's biggest money-maker, Tell It to the Marines, in 1926. Four years later Wallace Beery headed the cast of one of Hill's most memorable films, The Big House, a stark prison drama that is regarded by critics as a major achievement in early sound film artistry. For this film, and many others, he worked with his eventual wife, accomplished screenwriter Frances Marion. Their marriage lasted scarcely a year, however, from 1930 to 1931. 1931's Min and Bill paired Beery and Marie Dressler as alcoholic tugboat owner-operators, again with a script by Marion. This phenomenally popular film made both Beery and Dressler into Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's two top stars for the next couple of years and formed the basis for many later stereotypical routines about hard-nosed sea-going men.

Tragically, Hill was severely injured in a car accident just when his career was beginning to peak, and it is rumored that his injuries were the root cause of his apparent suicide in 1934. His body was found in his Malibu beach home. At the time of his death he was preparing to direct The Good Earth, a film eventually completed to great acclaim a few years later.

George Roy Hill, an equally successful film director of the 1970s, is no relation.

[edit] Selected filmography

[edit] External links

George W. Hill at the Internet Movie Database
George W. Hill at Find A Grave

Persondata
NAME	Hill, George W.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Film director, Cinematographer
DATE OF BIRTH	April 25, 1895
PLACE OF BIRTH	Douglass, Kansas United States
DATE OF DEATH	August 10, 1934
PLACE OF DEATH	Venice, California United States