Search a film or person :
FacebookConnectionRegistration
Victor Fleming is a Actor, Director, Writer, Producer, Second Assistant Director, Director of Photography and Cinematography American born on 23 february 1889 at Pasadena (USA)

Victor Fleming

Victor Fleming
If you like this person, let us know!
Birth name Victor Lonzo Fleming
Nationality USA
Birth 23 february 1889 at Pasadena (USA)
Death 6 january 1949 (at 59 years) at Cottonwood (USA)
Awards Academy Award for Best Director

Victor Lonzo Fleming (February 23, 1889 – January 6, 1949) was an American film director, cinematographer, and producer. His most popular films were The Wizard of Oz (1939), and Gone with the Wind (1939), for which he won an Academy Award for Best Director. Fleming holds the achievement of being the only film director to have two films listed in the top 10 of the American Film Institute's prestigious 2007 AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies list.

Biography

Early life
Victor Fleming was born in La Canada, California, the son of Elizabeth Evaleen (née Hartman) and William Alonzo "Lon" Fleming, who worked in the water industry in Pasadena. His mother was of part German descent.


Career
He served in the photographic section during World War I, and acted as chief photographer for President Woodrow Wilson in Versailles, France. He showed a mechanical aptitude early in life; while working as a car mechanic he met the director Allan Dwan, who took him on as a camera assistant. He soon rose to the rank of cinematographer, working with both Dwan and D. W. Griffith, and directed his first film in 1919.

Many of his silent films were action movies, often starring Douglas Fairbanks, or Westerns. Because of his robust attitude and love of outdoor sports, he become known as a "man's director"; however, he also proved an effective director of women. Under his direction, Vivien Leigh won the Best Actress Oscar, Hattie McDaniel won for Best Supporting Actress, and Ingrid Bergman was nominated.


Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
In 1932, Fleming joined MGM and directed some of the studio's most prestigious films. Red Dust (1932), Bombshell (1933), and Reckless (1935) showcased Jean Harlow, while Treasure Island (1934) and Captains Courageous (1937) brought a touch of literary distinction to boy's-own adventure stories. His two most famous films came in 1939, when The Wizard of Oz was closely followed by Gone with the Wind.



Fleming's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941), with Spencer Tracy, was generally rated below Rouben Mamoulian's 1931 Pre-Code version, which had starred Fredric March. Fleming's 1942 film version of John Steinbeck's Tortilla Flat starred Tracy, John Garfield, Hedy Lamarr, and Frank Morgan. Other films that Fleming made with Tracy include Captains Courageous (for which Tracy won his first Oscar), A Guy Named Joe, and Test Pilot. He directed Clark Gable in a total of five films – Red Dust, The White Sister, Test Pilot, Gone with the Wind, and Adventure.


Personal life
He owned the Moraga Estate in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, then a horse ranch. Frequent guests to his estate were Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Ingmar Bergman and Spencer Tracy.

He died suddenly, while en route to a hospital in Cottonwood, Arizona after suffering a myocardial infarction (heart attack) on January 6, 1949. His death occurred shortly after completing Joan of Arc (1948) with Ingrid Bergman, one of the few films that he did not make for MGM. Despite mixed reviews, Fleming's film version of the life of Joan received seven Academy Award nominations, winning two.


Comment by Anne Revere
It was reported in James Curtis' book Spencer Tracy: A Biography that Anne Revere once said Fleming was "violently pro-Nazi" and strongly opposed to the United States entering World War II. According to the Fleming biography Victor Fleming: An American Movie Master, by author Michael Sragow, Fleming had once mocked the UK at the outset of World War II by taking a bet as to how long the country could withstand an attack by Germany. Furthermore, Revere had made her comment because she felt she had been cast in the film The Yearling over Flora Robson because Robson was British. However, at the time of the casting, Fleming was working on the film Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, which featured a British producer and a cast largely-composed of British or British Commonwealth actors. Furthermore, Revere did not know Fleming beyond their professional relationship. According to the cited biography, there is no other supporting evidence for Revere's claim.

Best films

Gone with the Wind (1940)
(Director)
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
(Director)
Joan of Arc (1948)
(Director)
The Good Earth (1937)
(Director)
Captains Courageous (1937)
(Director)
The Great Waltz (1938)
(Director)

Usually with

Cedric Gibbons
Cedric Gibbons
(14 films)
Harold Rosson
Harold Rosson
(8 films)
Anita Loos
Anita Loos
(10 films)
Source : Wikidata

Filmography of Victor Fleming (63 films)

Display filmography as list

Actor

Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words, 1h54
Directed by Stig Björkman
Genres Documentary, Historical
Themes Documentary films about business, Documentary films about the film industry
Actors Alicia Vikander, Isabella Rossellini, Roberto Rossellini, Ingrid Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Sigourney Weaver
Roles Self (archive footage)
Rating73% 3.6930053.6930053.6930053.6930053.693005
Nommée sept fois aux Oscars, Ingrid Bergman y fut récompensée trois fois. Elle fut une des actrices les plus talentueuses de l’âge d’or du cinéma hollywoodien et ses rôles dans des films comme CASABLANCA (1942), HANTISE (1944) et SONATE D’AUTOMNE (1978) sont inoubliables. En partant d’archives privées et d’interviews de ses enfants, ce film dresse un portrait personnel et offre aux spectateurs un aperçu de la vie exceptionnelle d’une jeune Suédoise qui devint l’une des plus célèbres actrices des États-Unis et du monde.
Around the World with Douglas Fairbanks, 1h20
Directed by Douglas Fairbanks, Victor Fleming
Origin USA
Genres Documentary
Actors Douglas Fairbanks, Victor Fleming, Sōjin Kamiyama, Sessue Hayakawa, Henry Sharp
Roles Self
Rating57% 2.8773552.8773552.8773552.8773552.877355
Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. and a crew of three--photographers Harry Sharp and Chuck Lewis and co-director Victor Fleming--journey around the world and report on various cultural curiosities and the humor they find in everyday life overseas. Beginning with Japan, Fairbanks focuses on the people and observes a Japanese woman demonstrating how her maids assemble her headdress. Fairbanks and his crew then travel to China, where they are greeted by one of China's greatest actors, female impersonator Mei Lanfang. Further travels take them to the walls of the Forbidden City in Peking, the tomb of Dr. Sun Yat-sen and the city of Hong Kong. En route, Fairbanks takes an exercise break on board a ship, displaying his athlete's physique while doing deck drills. He is also shown playing golf. In Indochina the Maharanee of Cooch-Behar provides Fairbanks with fifty elephants and attendants for an expedition into the jungle to hunt leopards. In the Philippines, Fairbanks films General Emilio Aguinaldo as he poses and speaks for the camera. After passing through Cambodia and Bangkok, Fairbanks stops in Siam, where he visits a party attended by many foreign dignitaries at the estate of the King of Siam.
When the Clouds Roll By, 50minutes
Directed by Victor Fleming, Theodore Reed
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Action, Romance
Actors Douglas Fairbanks, Kathleen Clifford, Frank Campeau, Ralph Lewis, Albert MacQuarrie, Victor Fleming
Roles Himself
Rating68% 3.442483.442483.442483.442483.44248
A man follows the advice of a "psychiatrist" who lives in a nearby apartment as he romances a woman in Greenwich Village. "Psychiatrist" Dr. Ulrich Metz attempts to drive Daniel Brown to suicide.

Director

The Farmer Takes a Wife, 1h21
Directed by Henry Levin, Victor Fleming
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Romantic comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Films about music and musicians, Théâtre, Musical films, Films based on plays, Children's films
Actors Betty Grable, Dale Robertson, Thelma Ritter, John Carroll, Gwen Verdon, Eddie Foy, Jr.
Rating52% 2.6244552.6244552.6244552.6244552.624455
During the 19th century, where Molly Larkin (Betty Grable), the girlfriend of rough-and-tumble canal-boat captain Jotham Klore (John Carroll) she hires mild-mannered farmer Daniel Harrow (Dale Robertson) to work on the boat. Molly and Dan fall in love and marry.
Joan of Arc, 2h25
Directed by Richard Rosson, Victor Fleming
Origin USA
Genres Drama, War, Historical
Themes Films about religion, Jeanne d'Arc, Political films, Films based on plays, Histoire de France
Actors Ingrid Bergman, José Ferrer, Francis L. Sullivan, J. Carrol Naish, George Coulouris, Gene Lockhart
Rating63% 3.1976053.1976053.1976053.1976053.197605
Unlike the play Joan of Lorraine, which is a drama that shows how the story of Joan affects a group of actors who are performing it, the film is a straightforward recounting of the life of the French heroine. It begins with an obviously painted shot of the inside of a basilica with a shaft of light, possibly descending from heaven, shining down from the ceiling, and a solemn off-screen voice pronouncing the canonization of the Maid of Orleans. Then, the opening page of what appears to be a church manuscript recounting Joan's life in Latin is shown on the screen, while some uncredited voiceover narration by actor Shepperd Strudwick sets up the tale. The actual story of Joan then begins, from the time she becomes convinced that she has been divinely called to save France to her being burnt at the stake at the hands of the English and the Burgundians.
Adventure
Adventure (1945)
, 2h15
Directed by Victor Fleming
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Adventure, Romance
Actors Clark Gable, Greer Garson, Joan Blondell, Thomas Mitchell, Tom Tully, Harry Davenport
Rating61% 3.0501053.0501053.0501053.0501053.050105
When his ship is torpedoed by a Japanese submarine, Harry Patterson (Clark Gable), a World War II merchant marine boatswain, is cast adrift on a launch with a few of his shipmates. While Harry remains calm in the face of disaster, his friend Mudgin (Thomas Mitchell) prays desperately, promising to avoid women, liquor, and fighting and to donate money to the church if they are saved. Harry finds Mudgin's pleas ridiculous, but no sooner does Mudgin complete his pact with God than a rescue plane appears on the horizon and the men are saved.
The Spider Woman, 1h3
Directed by Victor Fleming, Roy William Neill
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Thriller, Crime
Themes Sherlock Holmes films, Buddy films
Actors Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, Gale Sondergaard, Dennis Hoey, Mary Gordon, Harry Cording
Rating69% 3.497493.497493.497493.497493.49749
Consulting detective Sherlock Holmes fakes his own death in Scotland in order to investigate a number of bizarre apparent suicides that he is convinced are part of an elaborate plot by "a female Moriarty". Returning to his assistant Watson in secret, Holmes notes that all the victims were wealthy gamblers, so disguised as "Rajni Singh", a distinguished Indian officer, he stalks London's gaming clubs.
A Guy Named Joe, 2h2
Directed by Victor Fleming, John E. Burch
Origin USA
Genres Drama, War, Fantasy, Romance
Themes Transport films, Aviation films, Political films, United States Armed Forces in films
Actors Spencer Tracy, Irene Dunne, Van Johnson, Ward Bond, James Gleason, Lionel Barrymore
Rating68% 3.444673.444673.444673.444673.44467
Pete Sandidge (Spencer Tracy) is the reckless pilot of a North American B-25 Mitchell bomber flying out of England during World War II. He is in love with Women Airforce Service Pilot Dorinda Durston (Irene Dunne), a civilian pilot ferrying aircraft across the Atlantic. "Nails" Kilpatrick (James Gleason), Pete's commanding officer, first transfers Pete and his crew to a base in Scotland and then offers him a transfer back to America to be a flying instructor. Dorinda has a feeling that Pete's "number is up" and begs him to accept. Pete agrees, but goes out on one last mission with his best friend Al Yackey (Ward Bond) to check out a German aircraft carrier. Wounded after an attack by an enemy fighter, Pete has his crew bail out before bombing the ship and crashing into the sea.
Tortilla Flat, 1h45
Directed by Victor Fleming
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Romance
Actors Spencer Tracy, Hedy Lamarr, John Garfield, Frank Morgan, Akim Tamiroff, Sheldon Leonard
Rating61% 3.0969153.0969153.0969153.0969153.096915
Danny (John Garfield) inherits two houses, so Pilon (Spencer Tracy) and his poor, idle friends move in. One of them, Pirate, (Frank Morgan) is saving money which Pilon endeavors to steal, until he discovers that it is being collected to purchase a golden candlestick which he intends to burn for St. Francis to honor the Pirate's dead dog. One of the houses burns down, so Danny allows his friends to move into the other house with him, and in gratitude Pilon tries to make life better for his friend. Things are fine at first until Danny's passion for a lovely girl (Hedy Lamarr) causes him to actually go to work. A misunderstanding caused by Pilon about a vacuum cleaner causes Danny to lose it; he becomes drunk and a bit crazy. He almost dies in an accident in the cannery but through Pilon's prayers, is restored to health. He then marries his sweetheart with the promise that he will become a fisherman now that Pilon has found the money to buy a boat.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, 1h53
Directed by Victor Fleming
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Fantastic, Horror
Themes Serial killer films
Actors Spencer Tracy, Ingrid Bergman, Lana Turner, Donald Crisp, Ian Hunter, C. Aubrey Smith
Rating67% 3.396383.396383.396383.396383.39638
Dr. Jekyll (Spencer Tracy) believes good and evil exist in everyone. Experiments reveal his evil side, named Mr. Hyde. Experience teaches him how evil Hyde can be: he rapes Ivy Pearson (Ingrid Bergman), who earlier expressed interest in Jekyll. Meanwhile, Jekyll is preparing to marry Beatrix Emery (Lana Turner). Over the course of the film, Hyde abuses Ivy. Feeling remorse over the treatment inflicted on Ivy, Jekyll vows to never take the serum again, destroys the key to his lab, and sends money to Ivy anonymously. Ivy believes the money was sent by Hyde in order to trick her into believing she is now free. On the advice of a friend over her rattled nerves, she goes to Jekyll for comfort. Jekyll promises that Hyde will never hurt her again.
They Dare Not Love, 1h15
Directed by Victor Fleming, James Whale
Origin USA
Genres Drama, War
Actors George Brent, Martha Scott, Paul Lukas, Peter Cushing, Sig Arno, Georgia Backus
Rating60% 3.0487853.0487853.0487853.0487853.048785
A prince flees Austria when the Nazis take over and settles in London. He encounters a beautiful Austrian émigré who makes him realize his mistake in leaving. He strikes a deal with the Nazis to return in exchange for some Austrian prisoners, but discovers that the Nazis are not to be trusted.
Gone with the Wind, 4h3
Directed by George Cukor, Victor Fleming, Sam Wood
Origin USA
Genres Drama, War, Romance
Themes Films about slavery, Films about racism, Films about sexuality, Rape in fiction, Erotic films, Rape and revenge films, Political films, Auto-justice
Actors Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Leslie Howard, Olivia de Havilland, Hattie McDaniel, Butterfly McQueen
Rating81% 4.0987954.0987954.0987954.0987954.098795
Part 1 On the eve of the American Civil War in 1861, Scarlett O'Hara lives at Tara, her family's cotton plantation in Georgia, with her parents and two sisters. Scarlett learns that Ashley Wilkes—whom she secretly loves—is to be married to his cousin, Melanie Hamilton, and the engagement is to be announced the next day at a barbecue at Ashley's home, the nearby plantation Twelve Oaks.
The Wizard of Oz, 1h38
Directed by Mervyn LeRoy, George Cukor, Victor Fleming, Norman Taurog, Richard Thorpe, King Vidor
Origin USA
Genres Science fiction, Musical theatre, Fantasy, Adventure, Musical
Themes Films about magic and magicians, Monde imaginaire, Films about music and musicians, Le pays d'Oz, Witches in film, Musical films, Steampunk films, Children's films
Actors Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley, Billie Burke
Rating80% 4.0468954.0468954.0468954.0468954.046895
The film starts in sepia toned Kansas in the early 1900s. Dorothy Gale lives with her dog Toto on the farm of her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. Dorothy and Toto get in trouble with a ruthless neighbor, Miss Almira Gulch, when Toto bites her. However, Dorothy's family and the farmhands are all too busy to pay attention to her. Miss Gulch arrives with permission from the sheriff to have Toto euthanized. He is taken away, but escapes and returns to Dorothy; she then decides to run away from home with Toto to escape Miss Gulch.
Test Pilot
Test Pilot (1938)
, 1h58
Directed by Victor Fleming
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Adventure, Romance
Themes Transport films, Aviation films, Buddy films
Actors Clark Gable, Myrna Loy, Spencer Tracy, Lionel Barrymore, Samuel S. Hinds, Marjorie Main
Rating67% 3.395493.395493.395493.395493.39549
Reckless test pilot Jim Lane (Clark Gable) is forced to land on a Kansas farm in his aircraft, the "Drake Bullet", where he meets Ann "Thursday" Barton (Myrna Loy). They spend the day together and fall in love. Once Jim's best friend and mechanic, Gunner Morris (Spencer Tracy), arrives, Jim ignores Ann. To spur him, she gets engaged to her sweetheart. Jim leaves in the morning, but soon comes back for her. They quickly get married.
The Great Waltz, 1h44
Directed by Victor Fleming, Josef von Sternberg, Julien Duvivier
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Biography, Musical, Romance
Themes Dance films, Films about music and musicians, Films about classical music and musicians, Musical films
Actors Luise Rainer, Miliza Korjus, Lionel Atwill, Henry Hull, Hugh Herbert, Curt Bois
Rating64% 3.2460253.2460253.2460253.2460253.246025
The highly fictionalised story sees 'Schani' dismissed from his job in a bank. He puts together a group of unemployed musicians who wangle a performance at Dommayer's cafe. The audience is minimal, but when two opera singers, Carla Donner and Fritz Schiller, visit whilst their carriage is being repaired, the music attracts a wider audience.