Ian Dalrymple
Born26 August 1903
Johannesburg, South Africa
Died28 March 1989
London, England

Ian Dalrymple (26 August 1903 – 28 March 1989) was a British screenwriter, film director, film editor and film producer.

Biography

Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, he was educated at Rugby and Trinity College, Cambridge University. [1] He worked in advertising then went into the film industry.[2]

Editor

Initially, he worked as an editor at Gainsborough Pictures working his way up to head editor. He then went to become head editor at Gaumont-British pictures from Rome Express onwards.[3]

Screenwriter

He went into screenwriting with great success.[4] He was nominated for an Oscar for his contribution to the script of Pygmalion.[5]

Dalrymple went to work on Korda's propaganda film The Lion Has Wings (1939). One of its directors, Michael Powell, called Dalrymple "an extremely able and very nice man and a wonderful organiser."[6]

Crown Film Unit

During World War II, from 1940-43 he was a producer for the Crown Film Unit, the government run agency for information and propaganda films, in particular working, and forming a close friendship, with Humphrey Jennings.[1]

Dalrymple said in 1941 their goal was:

We say in film to our own people 'This is what the boys in the services, or the girls in the factories, or the men and women in Civil Defence, or the patient citizens themselves are like, and what they are doing. They are playing their part in the spirit in which you see them in this film. Be of good heart and go and do likewise'. And we say to the world, 'Here in these films are the British people at war' ... It has seen the truth and it can make up its own mind.[7]

Korda

In 1943 Dalrymple went to work for Alex Korda as production supervisor. [8][9]

Wessex

In 1946 he formed Wessex Productions as his own company, making his films at Pinewood Studios. In his company were Pat Jackson and Jack Lee from the Crown Film Unit. They made The Woman in the Hall (1947) and Esther Waters, the latter making a star of Dirk Bogarde.[10] In 1949 Wessex moved from Rank to London Films.[11]

He reunited with Jennings for Family Portrait but Jennings then died in an accident.[12]

In the late 1960s he was film adviser to Decca and supervisor of film projects at Argo.[1]

He died in London on 28 March 1989.

Selected filmography

References

References

  1. ^ a b c The Crown prince of documentary Dalrymple, Ian. The Guardian 5 May 1989: 37.
  2. ^ PINEWOOD HAS THE COMMUNITY SPIRIT Graves, Charles. The Sphere; London Vol. 188, Iss. 2455, (Feb 8, 1947): 208.
  3. ^ Technicians of the unknown cinema: British critical discourse and the analysis of collaboration in film production Stollery, Martin. Film History; Sydney Vol. 21, Iss. 4, (Dec 2009): 373-393.
  4. ^ "London Life in New British Films". Glen Innes Examiner. Vol. 15, , no. 1960. New South Wales, Australia. 15 July 1939. p. 2. Retrieved 7 May 2019 – via National Library of Australia.((cite news)): CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  5. ^ HOLLYWOOD NAMES AWARD CANDIDATES New York Times 6 Feb 1939: 13.
  6. ^ Powell and Pressburger: the war years Badder, David. Sight and Sound; London Vol. 48, Iss. 1, (Winter 1978): 8.
  7. ^ Fires were started Richards, Jeffrey. History Today; London Vol. 45, Iss. 4, (Apr 1995): 29.
  8. ^ REPORT ON THE DOINGS OF A KNIGHT By C.A. LEJEUNE. New York Times 22 Aug 1943: X3.
  9. ^ BUSY BRITONS: Two Down and One to Go By C.A. LEJEUNE. New York Times 24 June 1945: 27.
  10. ^ LONDON TALKS OF QUOTAS By C.A. LEJEUNE. New York Times 22 Dec 1946: 49.
  11. ^ "BRITISH FILM MAKERS LOOKING TO AUSTRALIA". Sunday Times (Perth). No. 2689. Western Australia. 11 September 1949. p. 4 (Sunday Times Comics). Retrieved 7 May 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. ^ KILLED IN FALL FROM CLIFF The Manchester Guardian 26 Sep 1950: 4.
  13. ^ At the New York H. H. T. New York Times 11 Feb 1953: 33.
  14. ^ THE FESTIVAL FILMS Sight and Sound, suppl. Supplement; London Vol. 19, Iss. 10, (Mar 1, 1951): 40.
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