Marcel Varnel

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Marcel Varnel (* 16th October 1892 as Marcel Hyacinthe Le Bozec in Paris ; † 13. July 1947 in Rake, West Sussex , UK ) was a French director and producer , an extremely successful creators droll comedies in England during the 1930s and 1940s.

Live and act

Born in Paris, Marcel Le Bozec had started as an actor before the First World War , before turning to directing after the war. In 1920 he brought out his first production in Paris, L'homme à la rose . After a series of other productions, Varnel went to the USA in 1925, where he specialized in operettas and musicals , but also produced classical spoken theater. At the beginning of 1931, his productions As You Desire Me and Melo found their way to Broadway .

When the talkies began, Varnel accepted an offer from Hollywood ; his horror film Chandu the Magician with Bela Lugosi in the title role, staged in collaboration with William Cameron Menzies , became his best-known work. In 1933 he went to Great Britain and became a successful director with some bizarre comedies and musical comedies. These cheaply made, but quite amusing films, often starring England's star comedians Will Hay and George Formby Jr. in the lead roles, enjoyed tremendous popularity with British audiences before and during World War II.

Despite intensive film activity, Varnel did not neglect his stage work since the middle of the Second World War . In 1943 he staged Joseph Kesselring's Lachschlager lace cap and arsenic , which was to run en suite for three years at a London West End theater. The Assassin , which he produced, was performed in March 1945 . At the time of his death, he was busy preparing another play, The First Gentleman .

Varnel was killed in a car accident southwest of London when he lost control of his vehicle. Colleagues suspected in retrospect that Varnel, who was terrified of insects, had panicked by a wasp or fly in the car.

His son Max Varnel (1925–1996) also worked as a director.

Filmography (as a director)

  • 1932: The Silent Witness
  • 1932: Chandu the Magician (co-director)
  • 1934: Freedom of the Seas
  • 1934: Girls Will Be Boys
  • 1935: The Dubarry (I Give My Heart)
  • 1935: No Monkey Business
  • 1936: All In
  • 1936: Good Morning, Boys
  • 1937: Okay for Sound
  • 1937: Otto, put the brakes on (Oh, Mr. Porter)
  • 1938: Convict 99
  • 1938: Alf's Button Afloat
  • 1938: Hey Hey USA
  • 1938: Old Bones of the River
  • 1939: Ask a Policeman
  • 1939: Where's That Fire?
  • 1939: The Frozen Limits
  • 1939: Band wagon
  • 1939: Let George Do it
  • 1940: Gasbags
  • 1940: Neutral Port
  • 1940: The Ghost of St. Michael's
  • 1941: Turned Out Nice Again
  • 1941: Hi Gang!
  • 1941: South American George
  • 1942: Much Too Shy
  • 1942: King Arthur was a gentleman
  • 1942: Get Cracking
  • 1943: Bell-Bottom George
  • 1944: He Snoops to Conquer
  • 1945: I Didn't Do It (also co-production)
  • 1945: George in Civvy Street (also co-production)
  • 1946: This Man is Mine (also production)

literature

  • Kay Less : The film's great personal dictionary . The actors, directors, cameramen, producers, composers, screenwriters, film architects, outfitters, costume designers, editors, sound engineers, make-up artists and special effects designers of the 20th century. Volume 8: T - Z. David Tomlinson - Theo Zwierski. Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-89602-340-3 , p. 143.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Older sources mostly state 1894 as the year of birth
  2. ↑ http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/447319/
personal data
SURNAME Varnel, Marcel
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Le Bozec, Marcel Hyacinthe (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION French film director
DATE OF BIRTH October 16, 1892
PLACE OF BIRTH Paris
DATE OF DEATH July 13, 1947
Place of death at Rake, West Sussex