H. M. Walker
Encyclopedia
Harley M. "Beanie" Walker (June 27, 1878 – June 23, 1937) was a member of the Hal Roach
movie
production company from 1916 until his resignation in 1932. The title cards he wrote for Harold Lloyd
, Charley Chase
, Our Gang
and Laurel and Hardy
comedies "have entered legend, both for silent films, and as opening remarks for the earlier talkies." He was also an officer of the Roach Studio corporation.
Like many screenwriters of his time, notably Ben Hecht
and Charles MacArthur
, Walker came to the screen trade from the freewheeling world of newspaper journalism. He was a sports writer for the Los Angeles Examiner
before joining Roach.
On Roach's "Lot of Fun", script development usually started with meetings among the gag men, who would develop what was known as an "action script": the outline of the story and a description of the scenes and some of the sight gags, which generally would run three to six legal-size pages. This document would then pass to Walker, the head of the editorial department, which oversaw not only script editing, but film editing as well. Walker usually came up with the title of each film, wrote "brilliantly witty" title cards which would be produced and inserted into the film, and wrote a critique before the picture went out to the distributors, Pathé Exchange, or later, M-G-M.
Walker was a chain-smoking eccentric, a cat fanatic whose office always had a few tabbies in residence. His exterior was gruff and he was often difficult to get along with. Director Tay Garnett
had an early-career one-day trial as an assistant writer to Walker, whose only reaction to Garnett's efforts was a guttural "yeah." Then, Garnett, "who soon discovered Walker's 'yeah's to be the equivalent to a round of applause, was told 'Come back tomorrow—on salary.'" Film Editor Richard Currier recounted that Walker never drove a car, so his wife had to drive him to work every day. But Currier was fond of Walker, calling him "a prince of a guy," and remembered the present of a dictionary with a note that read like one of Waker's title cards: "Having listened for years to your astonishing, and, at times, highly-charged vocabulary, I hasten to add to your voltage."
As sound came to motion pictures, Walker and his staff were writing cards for Roach series considered today as classics, notably the Our Gang
and Laurel and Hardy
comedy
short subject
s. But as witty as his title cards had been, Walker was less adept at writing the spoken dialogue required by talkies. "Much of his work for Laurel and Hardy was so unwieldy and out of character that complete on-set revision was necessary," says The Laurel and Hardy Encyclopedia. Laurel and Hardy scholar Randy Skretvedt
writes that Walker's "contribution to the L&H films was relatively minor" and that comparison of the "action" and "dialogue" scripts with the finished film "usually reveals that most of Walker's dialogue went unused."
Things came to a head with the arrival at Roach of new-broom general manager Henry Ginsburg in 1931, a boorish man universally despised on the lot and called by Stan Laurel "The Expeditor". Ginsburg's every move was aimed at dumping costs, often at great harm to the studio's creative output. One of the first casualties was cameraman George Stevens
, who would go on to win two Oscars
for Best Director. Among the next was Beanie Walker, who resigned after sixteen years over disputes with Ginsburg's cost-cutting edicts.
After leaving the Roach studio, Walker wrote dialogue for comedies produced by ex-Roach general manager Warren Doane at Universal Pictures
. Later, he worked at Paramount Pictures
, where he contributed to the W. C. Fields
picture The Old Fashioned Way
(1934).
Walker died of a heart attack
on June 23, 1937, four days short of his 52nd birthday, while dining in the Chicago apartment of Leroy Shield
, his friend and composer of much of the Roach Studio's music.
Hal Roach
Harold Eugene "Hal" Roach, Sr. was an American film and television producer and director, and from the 1910s to the 1990s.- Early life and career :Hal Roach was born in Elmira, New York...
movie
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
production company from 1916 until his resignation in 1932. The title cards he wrote for Harold Lloyd
Harold Lloyd
Harold Clayton Lloyd, Sr. was an American film actor and producer, most famous for his silent comedies....
, Charley Chase
Charley Chase
Charley Chase was an American comedian, actor, screenwriter and film director, best known for his work in Hal Roach short film comedies...
, Our Gang
Our Gang
Our Gang, also known as The Little Rascals or Hal Roach's Rascals, was a series of American comedy short films about a group of poor neighborhood children and the adventures they had together. Created by comedy producer Hal Roach, the series is noted for showing children behaving in a relatively...
and Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
comedies "have entered legend, both for silent films, and as opening remarks for the earlier talkies." He was also an officer of the Roach Studio corporation.
Like many screenwriters of his time, notably Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, and novelist. Called "the Shakespeare of Hollywood", he received screen credits, alone or in collaboration, for the stories or screenplays of some 70 films and as a prolific storyteller, authored 35 books and created some of...
and Charles MacArthur
Charles MacArthur
Charles Gordon MacArthur was an American playwright and screenwriter.-Biography:Charles MacArthur was the second youngest of seven children born to stern evangelist William Telfer MacArthur and Georgiana Welsted MacArthur. He early developed a passion for reading...
, Walker came to the screen trade from the freewheeling world of newspaper journalism. He was a sports writer for the Los Angeles Examiner
Los Angeles Herald-Examiner
The Los Angeles Herald Examiner was a major Los Angeles daily newspaper, published Monday through Friday in the afternoon, and in the morning on Saturdays and Sundays. It was part of the Hearst syndicate. The afternoon Herald-Express and the morning Examiner, both of which had been publishing in...
before joining Roach.
On Roach's "Lot of Fun", script development usually started with meetings among the gag men, who would develop what was known as an "action script": the outline of the story and a description of the scenes and some of the sight gags, which generally would run three to six legal-size pages. This document would then pass to Walker, the head of the editorial department, which oversaw not only script editing, but film editing as well. Walker usually came up with the title of each film, wrote "brilliantly witty" title cards which would be produced and inserted into the film, and wrote a critique before the picture went out to the distributors, Pathé Exchange, or later, M-G-M.
Walker was a chain-smoking eccentric, a cat fanatic whose office always had a few tabbies in residence. His exterior was gruff and he was often difficult to get along with. Director Tay Garnett
Tay Garnett
Tay Garnett was an American film director and writer.Born in Los Angeles, California, Garnett served as a naval aviator in World War I and entered films as a screenwriter in 1920. He was a gagwriter for Mack Sennett and Hal Roach, then joined Pathé and began to direct films in 1928...
had an early-career one-day trial as an assistant writer to Walker, whose only reaction to Garnett's efforts was a guttural "yeah." Then, Garnett, "who soon discovered Walker's 'yeah's to be the equivalent to a round of applause, was told 'Come back tomorrow—on salary.'" Film Editor Richard Currier recounted that Walker never drove a car, so his wife had to drive him to work every day. But Currier was fond of Walker, calling him "a prince of a guy," and remembered the present of a dictionary with a note that read like one of Waker's title cards: "Having listened for years to your astonishing, and, at times, highly-charged vocabulary, I hasten to add to your voltage."
As sound came to motion pictures, Walker and his staff were writing cards for Roach series considered today as classics, notably the Our Gang
Our Gang
Our Gang, also known as The Little Rascals or Hal Roach's Rascals, was a series of American comedy short films about a group of poor neighborhood children and the adventures they had together. Created by comedy producer Hal Roach, the series is noted for showing children behaving in a relatively...
and Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
short subject
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
s. But as witty as his title cards had been, Walker was less adept at writing the spoken dialogue required by talkies. "Much of his work for Laurel and Hardy was so unwieldy and out of character that complete on-set revision was necessary," says The Laurel and Hardy Encyclopedia. Laurel and Hardy scholar Randy Skretvedt
Randy Skretvedt
Randy Skretvedt is an American film and music scholar, author, lecturer and broadcaster. His 1987 book Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies is the reference standard for Laurel and Hardy fans Randy Skretvedt (b. November 1958) is an American film and music scholar, author, lecturer and...
writes that Walker's "contribution to the L&H films was relatively minor" and that comparison of the "action" and "dialogue" scripts with the finished film "usually reveals that most of Walker's dialogue went unused."
Things came to a head with the arrival at Roach of new-broom general manager Henry Ginsburg in 1931, a boorish man universally despised on the lot and called by Stan Laurel "The Expeditor". Ginsburg's every move was aimed at dumping costs, often at great harm to the studio's creative output. One of the first casualties was cameraman George Stevens
George Stevens
George Stevens was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer.Among his most notable films were Diary of Anne Frank , nominated for Best Director, Giant , winner of Oscar for Best Director, Shane , Oscar nominated, and A Place in the Sun , winner of Oscar for Best...
, who would go on to win two Oscars
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for Best Director. Among the next was Beanie Walker, who resigned after sixteen years over disputes with Ginsburg's cost-cutting edicts.
After leaving the Roach studio, Walker wrote dialogue for comedies produced by ex-Roach general manager Warren Doane at Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
. Later, he worked at Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
, where he contributed to the W. C. Fields
W. C. Fields
William Claude Dukenfield , better known as W. C. Fields, was an American comedian, actor, juggler and writer...
picture The Old Fashioned Way
The Old Fashioned Way (film)
The Old Fashioned Way is a 1934 film produced by Paramount Pictures and starring W. C. Fields. The film was directed by William Beaudine. The script was written by Jack Cunningham based on a story by "Charles Bogle" ....
(1934).
Walker died of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
on June 23, 1937, four days short of his 52nd birthday, while dining in the Chicago apartment of Leroy Shield
Leroy Shield
Leroy Shield was an American film score and radio composer.-Career:A native of Waseca, Minnesota, Shield was an employee of RCA Victor's National Broadcasting Company, for which he composed and conducted on-air musical pieces...
, his friend and composer of much of the Roach Studio's music.