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Curtis Harrington is a Actor, Director, Scriptwriter, Associate Producer, Director of Photography and Cinematography American born on 17 september 1926 at Los Angeles (USA)

Curtis Harrington

Curtis Harrington
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Birth name Gene Curtis Harrington
Nationality USA
Birth 17 september 1926 at Los Angeles (USA)
Death 6 may 2007 (at 80 years) at Hollywood Hills (USA)

Gene Curtis Harrington (September 17, 1926 – May 6, 2007) was an American film and television director whose work included experimental films, horror films, and episodic television. He is considered one of the forerunners of New Queer Cinema.

Biography

Harrington was born in Los Angeles on September 17, 1926, and grew up in Beaumont, California. His first cinematic endeavors were amateur films he made while still a teenager. He attended Occidental College and the University of Southern California and graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a film studies degree.

He began his career as a film critic, writing a book on Josef von Sternberg in 1948. He directed several avant-garde short films in the 1940s and '50s, including Fragment of Seeking, Picnic, and The Wormwood Star (a film study of the artwork of Marjorie Cameron). Cameron also co-starred in his subsequent film Night Tide (1961) with Dennis Hopper. Harrington worked with Kenneth Anger, serving as a cinematographer on Anger's Puce Moment and acting in Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954) ( he played Cesare, the Somnambulist). Harrington had links to Thelema shared with his close associate Kenneth Anger, and Marjorie Cameron who frequently acted in his films. One of Harrington’s mentors was avant-garde film pioneer Maya Deren, an initiated voodoo priestess.

Roger Corman assigned Harrington to turn some Russian science fiction footage into a whole new American movie; the result was Queen of Blood, which led to further films such as Games.

He also directed Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? (1971) with Shelley Winters, What's the Matter with Helen? (1972) with Winters and Debbie Reynolds, and Killer Bees (1974) with Gloria Swanson in one of her last film roles.

Harrington made two made for television movies based on screenplays by Robert Bloch: The Cat Creature (1973) and The Dead Don't Die (1975) .

Harrington had a cameo role in Orson Welles's unfinished The Other Side of the Wind. In the 1970s and 1980s, Harrington directed episodes of Dynasty, Wonder Woman, The Twilight Zone, and Charlie's Angels for television.

Harrington was the driving force in locating the original James Whale production of The Old Dark House (Universal Pictures, 1932). Even though the rights had been sold to Columbia Pictures for a remake, he got George Eastman House to restore the negative. On the Kino International DVD, there is a filmed interview of Harrington explaining why and how this came about (the contract stipulated that they were allowed to save the film only, not release it, essentially to prove no profit motive). Harrington was an advisor on Bill Condon's Gods and Monsters, about the last days of director James Whale, since Harrington had known Whale at the end of his life. Harrington also has a cameo in this film.

Harrington's final film, the short Usher, is a remake of an unreleased film he did while in high school, Fall of the House of Usher. His casting of Nikolas and Zeena Schreck in his updated version of Edgar Allan Poe’s ”Fall of the House of Usher” is in keeping with the magical thread that runs through the film-maker’s career. Financing of the film was partly accomplished through the Shreck's brokering of the sale of Harrington's signed copy of Crowley's The Book of Thoth.

He died on May 6, 2007, of complications from a stroke he had suffered in 2005. He is interred in the Cathedral Mausoleum at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

House of Harrington a short documentary about the director's life, was released in 2008. It was directed by Jeffrey Schwarz and Tyler Hubby and filmed several years before Harrington's death. It includes footage of his high school film Fall of the House of Usher.

Curtis Harrington's memoir Nice Guys Don't Work in Hollywood will be published in June 2013 by Drag City.

Usually with

Kenneth Anger
Kenneth Anger
(2 films)
Luana Anders
Luana Anders
(3 films)
Dennis Hopper
Dennis Hopper
(3 films)
Orson Welles
Orson Welles
(1 films)
Source : Wikidata

Filmography of Curtis Harrington (19 films)

Display filmography as list

Actor

The Other Side of the Wind, 2h2
Directed by Orson Welles
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy
Actors John Huston, Peter Bogdanovich, Norman Foster, Lilli Palmer, Robert Random, Joseph McBride
Roles Curtis Harrington
Rating66% 3.3492653.3492653.3492653.3492653.349265
Un vieux réalisateur, J.J. Hannaford, mélange de John Ford et d'Ernest Hemingway fait son retour à Hollywood après plusieurs années d'exil en Europe. Il est en train de finir un nouveau film avec lequel il veut mettre au défi, sur le terrain, « toute la palette du jeune cinéma américain, depuis les cinéphiles mélancoliques jusqu'à Andy Warhol ». Une fête est organisée en son honneur dans son ranch par tout le gratin hollywoodien à l'occasion de son soixante-dixième anniversaire. Cette soirée se terminera par la mort du réalisateur au volant de la voiture de sport qu'il voulait offrir à son acteur favori, sans que l'on sache s'il s'agit d'un accident ou d'un suicide.
Gods and Monsters, 1h45
Directed by Bill Condon
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Biography
Themes Films about films, Films about sexuality, Films about suicide, LGBT-related films, Frankenstein films, LGBT-related films, LGBT-related film
Actors Ian McKellen, Brendan Fraser, Lynn Redgrave, Arthur Dignam, Jack Plotnick, Lolita Davidovich
Roles Cukor Party Guest (uncredited)
Rating72% 3.647673.647673.647673.647673.64767
The story opens in the 1950s, after the Korean War; it has been more than a decade since James Whale, director of Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein, has retired. He lives with his long-time housemaid, Hanna, who loyally cares for him but disapproves of his homosexuality. Whale has suffered a series of strokes that have left him fragile and tormented by memories: growing up as a poor outcast, his tragic World War I service, and the filming of The Bride of Frankenstein. Whale slips into his past, and indulges in his fantasies, reminiscing about gay pool parties and also sexually teasing an embarrassed, starstruck fan who comes to interview him. Whale battles depression, at times contemplating suicide, as he realizes his life, his attractiveness, and his health are slipping away.
The Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, 38minutes
Directed by Kenneth Anger
Origin USA
Genres Fantasy, Horror
Actors Marjorie Cameron Parsons, Curtis Harrington, Kenneth Anger
Roles Cesare / Slave / Sleep-walker
Rating69% 3.490753.490753.490753.490753.49075

Director

Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell, 1h35
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Horror
Themes Films about animals, Natural horror films
Actors Richard Crenna, Yvette Mimieux, Kim Richards, Ike Eisenmann, Victor Jory, Ken Kercheval
Rating52% 2.6137052.6137052.6137052.6137052.613705
The Barry family acquire a new puppy after their old one dies in an accident. They buy the puppy from a seemingly friendly fruit vendor who is actually a satanist who bred the dog during an evil ceremony, causing it to be possessed. They sell the dog to wreak havoc in the hope Satan will overcome good once and for all. The dog acts very strangely when they bring it home, leading the father and the family maid to believe there is something wrong with the dog. The dad believes so after the maid is killed in a fire while she was watching the dog, and the dad being forced to stick his arm into a lawnmower while the dog is present. The father barely avoids having his arm chopped off and soon, the dog begins to exhibit mental control that allows him to kill, injure, or control many victims. Eventually, the family's souls are possessed by the hound causing them to act strangly, including the son framing a student by stealing a watch and planting it in a classmate's locker, allowing him to win the student election. Dad decides the dog has overstayed his welcome when he finds a secret shrine to Satan in the attic. Dad tries to shoot the demonic beast to put an end to the hardships, but it is unharmed.
Ruby
Ruby (1977)
, 1h25
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Action, Horror
Actors Piper Laurie, Stuart Whitman, Roger Davis, Paul Kent, Len Lesser, Michael Alldredge
Rating45% 2.2585952.2585952.2585952.2585952.258595
In 1935, a lowlife mobster, Nicky Rocco, is betrayed and executed in the swampy backwoods as his pregnant gun-moll, Ruby Claire watches. He swears vengeance with his dying breath, and then she suddenly goes into labour. Sixteen years later in 1951, Ruby is now running a drive-in theatre in the backwoods near her home and employs some ex-mobsters. Her 16-year-old daughter, Leslie Claire, is mute and has been since birth.
The Killing Kind, 1h35
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Thriller, Horror
Themes Serial killer films
Actors Ann Sothern, John Savage, Cindy Williams, Susan Bernard, Ruth Roman, Luana Anders
Rating60% 3.0488753.0488753.0488753.0488753.048875
Terry (Savage) is a man whose mind is destroyed after being physically forced to participate in a gang rape and serving two years in prison when the victim, Tina Moore (Susan Bernard), lies about the nature of the incident. Terry's mother, Thelma (Sothern), runs a boarding house primarily for elderly ladies. Terry and Thelma have a relationship of unusual intimacy.
Killer Bees, 1h14
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Science fiction, Horror
Themes Films about animals, Films about insects
Actors Gloria Swanson, Kate Jackson, Edward Albert, Craig Stevens, John Getz, Roger Davis
Rating48% 2.413862.413862.413862.413862.41386
Madame von Bohlen, a strong-willed woman and matriarch of her family, not only runs her family wine business, but she also has a mysterious power; she has psychic control over a swarm of "killer bees" that reside in her vineyard.
Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?, 1h31
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Thriller, Horror
Themes Films about families, Children's films
Actors Shelley Winters, Mark Lester, Ralph Richardson, Lionel Jeffries, Hugh Griffith, Rosalie Crutchley
Rating61% 3.0531753.0531753.0531753.0531753.053175
Mrs. Forrest, in the eyes of the staff and children at an orphanage, is a sweet, kind-mannered and children-loving widow, who throws a lavish annual Christmas party at her mansion, Forrest Grange (known to the orphans as the "Gingerbread House") for ten of the best-mannered children at the orphanage. But secretly, she is a demented, sad and miserable woman who keeps the mummified remains of her daughter Katharine in a nursery room in the attic, singing lullabies to her and trying to contact her spirit with the assistance of (phony) psychic Mr. Benton. He fools Forrest into believing that the voice of Clarine, one of the servants, during the fake séances is that of Katharine.
What's the Matter with Helen?, 1h41
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Thriller, Horror, Musical, Crime, Romance
Actors Debbie Reynolds, Shelley Winters, Dennis Weaver, Agnes Moorehead, Harry Dean Stanton, Peggy Rea
Rating62% 3.1462853.1462853.1462853.1462853.146285
Leonard Hill and Wesley Bruckner are seen being loaded into a paddywagon to face life sentences in prison for the Iowa murder of Ellie Banner. Their mothers, Helen Hill (Shelley Winters) and Adelle Bruckner (Debbie Reynolds) fight a crowd to their car.
How Awful About Allan, 1h13
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Thriller
Actors Anthony Perkins, Julie Harris, Joan Hackett, Kent Smith, Robert H. Harris, Molly Dodd
Rating57% 2.855562.855562.855562.855562.85556
Allan (Perkins) is suffering from hysterical blindness following a fire that killed his father, a renowned academic who punished Allan as a child. The fire also facially scarred Allan's sister Katherine (Harris). Allan had accidentally left some cans of paint thinner near a heater which caught fire.
Games
Games (1967)
, 1h40
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Thriller, Horror
Actors James Caan, Katharine Ross, Simone Signoret, Don Stroud, Kent Smith, Estelle Winwood
Rating63% 3.1950953.1950953.1950953.1950953.195095
Paul Montgomery (James Caan) and his wife Jennifer (Katharine Ross) are a pair of wealthy but blasé Upper East Side New York socialites with an attitude sometimes accompanying the overprivileged: a propensity to amuse themselves in a bizarre, chic, and upscale fashion, in this case playing socialite games for their peers, and occasionally revealing what appears to be a playfully sadistic streak.
Queen of Blood, 1h21
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Science fiction, Horror
Themes Vampires in film
Actors John Saxon, Basil Rathbone, Dennis Hopper, Judi Meredith, Florence Marly, Forrest J Ackerman
Rating52% 2.6052552.6052552.6052552.6052552.605255
The year is 1990 and space travel is well-established since humans landed on the moon twenty years earlier. At the International Institute of Space Technology, communications expert and astronaut Laura James monitors strange signals being received from outer space. Laura's superior, Dr. Faraday, translates the signal and discovers that it is from an alien race who are sending an ambassador to Earth. However, soon after this Laura receives a video log showing that the aliens have suffered an accident to their ship and have crashed on Mars.
Night Tide
Night Tide (1961)
, 1h24
Directed by Curtis Harrington
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Thriller, Fantasy, Horror, Romance
Actors Dennis Hopper, Marjorie Cameron Parsons, Linda Lawson, Gavin Muir, Luana Anders, Barbette
Rating63% 3.198383.198383.198383.198383.19838
Seaman Johnny Drake (Dennis Hopper), on shore leave, meets Mora (Linda Lawson) in a jazz club. She makes her living appearing as a mermaid in a sideshow attraction at the marina, operated by Captain Murdock (Gavin Muir). Mora, who lives in an apartment above the marina merry-go-round, and Johnny fall for each other. Everyone around them is wary of the romance, as her previous two lovers have died mysteriously.