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Richard Thorpe

Director

Richard Thorpe

Born February 24, 1896 in Hutchinson, Kansas, USADied May 1, 1991148 films

Richard Thorpe (February 24, 1896 - May 1, 1991) was an American film director. Born Rollo Smolt Thorpe in Hutchinson, Kansas, he 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. 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 in 1991.

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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 thirteen. 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.

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Thorpe has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6101 Hollywood Blvd.

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The Thin Man Goes Home posterFirst watchThe Thin Man Goes Home19447.1Hoping for a peaceful visit with his parents in the small town of Sycamore Springs, Nick Charles and his wife Nora soon find themselves surrounded by old rivalries, family tensions, and a…View film

Essential films

Ranked by acclaim and reach
Ivanhoe poster6.8Ivanhoe1952Tarzan Escapes poster6.9Tarzan Escapes1936Jailhouse Rock poster6.3Jailhouse Rock1957Tarzan's New York Adventure poster6.4Tarzan's New York Adventure1942Tarzan Finds a Son! poster6.1Tarzan Finds a Son!1939The Prisoner of Zenda poster6.9The Prisoner of Zenda1952Knights of the Round Table poster6.0Knights of the Round Table1953Fun in Acapulco poster5.9Fun in Acapulco1963

Filmography

148 films as director
  1. TBAThe Bonanza BuckarooDirector
  2. 1967The Scorpio LettersDirector
  3. 1967The Last ChallengeDirector
  4. 1965That Funny FeelingDirector
  5. 1965The Truth About SpringDirector
  6. 1964The Golden HeadDirector
  7. 1963Fun in AcapulcoDirector
  8. 1963Follow the BoysDirector
  9. 1962The Horizontal LieutenantDirector
  10. 1961The Honeymoon MachineDirector
  11. 1961The TartarsDirector
  12. 1959The House of the Seven HawksDirector
  13. 1959Killers of KilimanjaroDirector
  14. 1957Tip on a Dead JockeyDirector
  15. 1957Ten Thousand BedroomsDirector
  16. 1957Jailhouse RockDirector
  17. 1955Quentin DurwardDirector
  18. 1955The ProdigalDirector
  19. 1955BedevilledDirector
  20. 1954AthenaDirector
  21. 1954The Student PrinceDirector
  22. 1953Knights of the Round TableDirector
  23. 1953All the Brothers Were ValiantDirector
  24. 1953The Girl Who Had EverythingDirector
  25. 1952The Prisoner of ZendaDirector
  26. 1952IvanhoeDirector
  27. 1952Carbine WilliamsDirector
  28. 1951It's a Big CountryDirector
  29. 1951The Unknown ManDirector
  30. 1951The Great CarusoDirector
  31. 1951Vengeance ValleyDirector
  32. 1950Three Little WordsDirector
  33. 1950Black HandDirector
  34. 1949MalayaDirector
  35. 1949Challenge to LassieDirector
  36. 1949The Sun Comes UpDirector
  37. 1949Big JackDirector
  38. 1948A Date with JudyDirector
  39. 1948On an Island with YouDirector
  40. 1947This Time for KeepsDirector
  41. 1947FiestaDirector
  42. 1945What Next, Corporal Hargrove?Director
  43. 1945Her Highness and the BellboyDirector
  44. 1945Thrill of a RomanceDirector
  45. 1944The Thin Man Goes HomeDirector
  46. 1944Two Girls and a SailorDirector
  47. 1943Cry 'Havoc'Director
  48. 1943Above SuspicionDirector
  49. 1943Three Hearts for JuliaDirector
  50. 1942White CargoDirector
  51. 1942Apache TrailDirector
  52. 1942Tarzan's New York AdventureDirector
  53. 1942Joe Smith, AmericanDirector
  54. 1941Tarzan's Secret TreasureDirector
  55. 1941Barnacle BillDirector
  56. 1941The Bad ManDirector
  57. 1940WyomingDirector
  58. 194020 Mule TeamDirector
  59. 1940The Earl of ChicagoDirector
  60. 1939Tarzan Finds a Son!Director
  61. 1939The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnDirector
  62. 1938Three Loves Has NancyDirector
  63. 1938The Crowd RoarsDirector
  64. 1938The Toy WifeDirector
  65. 1938The First Hundred YearsDirector
  66. 1938Love Is a HeadacheDirector
  67. 1938Man-ProofDirector
  68. 1937Double WeddingDirector
  69. 1937Lest We ForgetDirector
  70. 1937Night Must FallDirector
  71. 1937Dangerous NumberDirector
  72. 1936Tarzan EscapesDirector
  73. 1936The Voice of Bugle AnnDirector
  74. 1935Last of the PagansDirector
  75. 1934Secret of the ChateauDirector
  76. 1934Strange WivesDirector
  77. 1934Cheating CheatersDirector
  78. 1934Green EyesDirector
  79. 1934City ParkDirector
  80. 1934Stolen SweetsDirector
  81. 1934The QuitterDirector
  82. 1933Murder on the CampusDirector
  83. 1933Rainbow Over BroadwayDirector
  84. 1933A Man of SentimentDirector
  85. 1933Notorious But NiceDirector
  86. 1933Strange PeopleDirector
  87. 1933I Have LivedDirector
  88. 1933ForgottenDirector
  89. 1932The Secrets of Wu SinDirector
  90. 1932Women Won't TellDirector
  91. 1932Slightly MarriedDirector
  92. 1932The King MurderDirector
  93. 1932Thrill of YouthDirector
  94. 1932Beauty ParlorDirector
  95. 1932The Midnight LadyDirector
  96. 1932EscapadeDirector
  97. 1932ProbationDirector
  98. 1932Murder at DawnDirector
  99. 1932Cross-ExaminationDirector
  100. 1931The Devil PlaysDirector
  101. 1931Forgotten WomenDirector
  102. 1931Neck and NeckDirector
  103. 1931Grief StreetDirector
  104. 1931The Sky SpiderDirector
  105. 1931Wild HorseDirector
  106. 1931The Lady from NowhereDirector
  107. 1931The Lawless WomanDirector
  108. 1931King of the WildDirector
  109. 1930The Utah KidDirector
  110. 1930Under Montana SkiesDirector
  111. 1930The ThoroughbredDirector
  112. 1930Wings of AdventureDirector
  113. 1930The Dude WranglerDirector
  114. 1930The Lone DefenderDirector
  115. 1929The King of the KongoDirector
  116. 1929Border RomanceDirector
  117. 1929The Bachelor GirlDirector
  118. 1929The Fatal WarningDirector
  119. 1928The Flyin' BuckarooDirector
  120. 1928The Vanishing WestDirector