Richard Thorpe (born Rollo Smolt Thorpe; February 24, 1896 â€" May 1,
1991) was an American film director best known for his long career at
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.Born Rollo Smolt Thorpe in Hutchinson, Kansas,
Richard Thorpe began his entertainment career performing in vaudeville
and onstage. In 1921 he began in motion pictures as an actor and
directed his first silent film in 1923. He went on to direct more than
one hundred and eighty films. He worked frequently at the Poverty Row
studio Chesterfield Pictures during the 1930s. The first full-length
motion picture he directed for MGM was Last of the Pagans (1935)
starring Ray Mala. After directing The Last Challenge in 1967, he
retired from the film industry. He died in Palm Springs, California on
May 1, 1991.His two favorite films were Night Must Fall (1937) and Two
Girls and a Sailor (1944).Thorpe is also known as the original
director of The Wizard of Oz. He was fired after two weeks of shooting
because it was felt that his scenes did not have the right air of
fantasy about them. Thorpe notoriously gave Judy Garland a blonde wig
and cutesy "baby-doll" makeup that made her look like a girl in her
late teens rather than an innocent Kansas farm girl of about 13. Both
makeup and wig were discarded at the suggestion of George Cukor, who
was brought in temporarily. Stills from Thorpe's work on the film
survive today. Further, it is understood that bits of his filmed
footage of Toto escaping from the Wicked Witch's castle are featured
in the film, albeit uncredited.
1991) was an American film director best known for his long career at
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.Born Rollo Smolt Thorpe in Hutchinson, Kansas,
Richard Thorpe began his entertainment career performing in vaudeville
and onstage. In 1921 he began in motion pictures as an actor and
directed his first silent film in 1923. He went on to direct more than
one hundred and eighty films. He worked frequently at the Poverty Row
studio Chesterfield Pictures during the 1930s. The first full-length
motion picture he directed for MGM was Last of the Pagans (1935)
starring Ray Mala. After directing The Last Challenge in 1967, he
retired from the film industry. He died in Palm Springs, California on
May 1, 1991.His two favorite films were Night Must Fall (1937) and Two
Girls and a Sailor (1944).Thorpe is also known as the original
director of The Wizard of Oz. He was fired after two weeks of shooting
because it was felt that his scenes did not have the right air of
fantasy about them. Thorpe notoriously gave Judy Garland a blonde wig
and cutesy "baby-doll" makeup that made her look like a girl in her
late teens rather than an innocent Kansas farm girl of about 13. Both
makeup and wig were discarded at the suggestion of George Cukor, who
was brought in temporarily. Stills from Thorpe's work on the film
survive today. Further, it is understood that bits of his filmed
footage of Toto escaping from the Wicked Witch's castle are featured
in the film, albeit uncredited.
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