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(14 December 1880, San Francisco,
California - 29 June 1942, Hollywood, California)
James Wesley Horne is best remembered for his direction of Laurel &
Hardy and Charlie Chase comedies under Hal Roach, Horne helmed a
single "Our Gang" feature, "When the Wind Blows" (1930).
During the silent-era Horne specialized in staging thrill scenes for
features and serials. On the strength of Horne's work in The Cruise
of the Jasper B, Buster Keaton hired him to direct his 1927 comedy
College. From there he moved to the Hal Roach studio, where he
worked with Roach's leading stars, Laurel and Hardy, Charley Chase,
and Our Gang. Horne's Laurel and Hardy comedies Big Business and Way
Out West are acclaimed as classics.
Horne also displayed an aptitude for directing Roach's
foreign-language versions; the American version might be staged by
James Parrott, for example, but the international version would be
entrusted to Horne.
Horne left Roach in 1932 during an economic downturn that eliminated
many jobs. He was hired by Universal Pictures where, for the next
few years, he directed the studio's now-obscure two-reel comedies.
When Universal suspended production, Horne worked briefly at
Columbia Pictures and returned to Roach in 1935.
Horne directed 207 films form 1915 until 1942. |
