Under the pseudonym John Ford, fans of classic American cinema know the talented director and screenwriter John Martin Feeney. Except for feature films. John Ford was engaged in literary creation, and also produced films in the genre of "Western". Thanks to his powerful talent and extraordinary energy, the filmmaker has created masterpieces of cinema that have been awarded four Oscars.
Biography
John Martin Feeney was born in the small town of Cape Elizabeth in the American state of Maine on February 1, 1894. During his youth, he fell in love with cinema, which at the dawn of the twentieth century was just beginning to develop. In the summer of 1914, the future film master went to California, where the first film studios were located, creating masterpieces of silent films. This is where the young guy starts his career. His job was common for an aspiring film actor, John Ford was an understudy. Over time, he mastered the profession of an operator. The energetic and strong-willed John was noticed by the founder of one of the film studios Karl Lemmle, who invited John Ford to try himself as a filmmaker. The first silent tape directed by John Ford came out in 1917. Films at that time were shot very quickly and the young talented filmmaker released 60 Westerns in a short time. About a dozen of them have survived to this day.
The era of talkies
When silent cinematography was replaced by films with sound design, not all filmmakers were able to adapt to the new filming rules. But John Ford quickly realized what kind of perspective sound offered. Incredible efficiency, iron discipline, a clear understanding of what should be present in a motion picture doomed John Ford's films to world success and recognition. He makes films based on the novels of famous American writers. This is how the film adaptation of The Grapes of Wrath, based on the novel by the classic of world literature John Steinbeck, and the world famous film Stagecoach, appeared.
Westerns again
Although John Ford was brilliant at staging literary masterpieces, the filmmaker gravitated towards action-adventure feature films. He loved making westerns and they turned out so impressive that they became classic models that are cited in all film schools in the world, where they receive professional directorial education.
John Ford was very conservative in choosing his employees and leading roles. His group, which has remained virtually unchanged for decades, made a "golden contribution" to American adventure cinema in the forties of the twentieth century. Favorite actors of the genius director are Henry Fonda and John Wayne.
At the end of life
The frantic pace of work, bad habits, injuries undermined the health of the titan. In the 60s, John Ford began to have serious health problems. He lost ground a lot. At 79, the great director ended his life in an oncological clinic. The grateful people paid deserved honors to the great American for his work - a monument to the memory of John Ford was erected in Portland.
