Robert F. McGowan
Robert F. McGowan | |
|---|---|
Denver, Colorado, US | |
| Died | January 27, 1955 (aged 72) , US |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, film producer |
| Years active | 1921–1946 |
Robert Francis McGowan (July 11, 1882 – January 27, 1955) was an American film director and producer, best known as the senior director of the
Career
Before moving to Los Angeles, McGowan was a firefighter in his native Denver. An on-the-job accident during a fire rescue mission left him with a permanent limp.
McGowan moved to California in the 1910s and made the acquaintance of Hal Roach, an aspiring film producer who opened his own studio in 1914. By 1920, McGowan was a director at the Roach studio, and in 1921 began work on the first entries in the Our Gang series.
The Our Gang series was at its most popular and successful under McGowan's direction; when he became ill in the late-1920s and had to turn over the director's chair to nephew
McGowan's daughter Jerry was an actress and dancer herself; she would often sit in on Our Gang story meetings and appears onscreen in Shivering Shakespeare.
McGowan left Our Gang in 1933 due to the strain of dealing with stage mothers and additional hassles involved with directing child stars. He moved over to
Death
McGowan died of cancer in Santa Monica, California, on January 27, 1955, at the age of 72. His nephew, screenwriter and director Robert A. McGowan, died five months later. He also had a daughter, Mickie McGowan, a voice actress.
References
- ^ "Robert F. McGowan". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2015. Archived from the original on July 26, 2015.
External links
- Robert F. McGowan at IMDb