About

Known credits:
92
Birthday:
1889-06-10
Place of birth:
Los Angeles, California, USA
Website:
N/A

Wesley Ruggles

Overview

Wesley Ruggles (June 11, 1889 – January 8, 1972) was an American film director.

He was born in Los Angeles, a younger brother of actor Charles Ruggles. He began his career in 1915 as an actor, appearing in a dozen or so silent films, on occasion with Charles Chaplin.

In 1917, he turned his attention to directing, making more than 50 mostly forgettable films — including a silent film version of Edith Wharton's novel The Age of Innocence (1924) — before he won acclaim with Cimarron in 1931. The adaptation of Edna Ferber's novel Cimarron, about homesteaders settling in the prairies of Oklahoma, was the first Western to win an Academy Award as Best Picture.

Although Ruggles followed this success with the light comedy No Man of Her Own (1932) with Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, the comedy I'm No Angel (1933) with Mae West and Cary Grant , College Humor (1933) with Bing Crosby, and Bolero (1934) with George Raft and Carole Lombard, few of his later films were in any way memorable (an exception is Arizona).

His career was on the downslide when he teamed with the Rank Organisation in 1946 to produce and direct London Town with Sid Field and Petula Clark, based on a story he wrote. The film — British cinema's first attempt at a Technicolor musical extravaganza — is notable as being one of the biggest critical and commercial failures in that country's film history. Ironically, Ruggles had been hired to helm it because as an American, it was thought, he was better equipped to handle a musical — despite the fact that nothing in his past had prepared him to work in the genre. It was his last film. An abridged version was released in the U.S. under the title My Heart Goes Crazy by United Artists in 1953.

Ruggles died in 1972 in Santa Monica and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Wesley Ruggles, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia

Known for

Acting
1951 A Burlesque on the Opera Carmen Actor 59
Average
1920 A Trip Through the World's Greatest Motion Picture Studios Actor Himself 59
Average
1918 Triple Trouble Actor Crook 58
Average
1917 Her Torpedoed Love Actor Messenger Inside the House 59
Average
1916 Behind the Screen Actor Actor (uncredited) 59
Average
1916 The Pawnshop Actor Ring Client (uncredited) 60
Fair
1916 Beatrice Fairfax Actor #15 Wristwatches 58
Average
1916 Police Actor Jailbird and Thief 59
Average
1916 The Floorwalker Actor Policeman (uncredited) 59
Average
1915 A Submarine Pirate Actor His accomplice / Sub Officer 58
Average
1915 A Night in the Show Actor Second Man in Balcony Front Row 59
Average
1915 Her Painted Hero Actor Effeminate Party Guest (uncredited) 58
Average
1915 Shanghaied Actor Shipowner 59
Average
1915 A Lover's Lost Control Actor Shoe Clerk 59
Average
1915 Gussle Rivals Jonah Actor Ship Steward / Ship Passenger N/A
N/A
1915 Gussle's Wayward Path Actor Clergyman 59
Average
1915 Caught in a Park Actor The Cop 59
Average

Directing
1946 London Town Directing Director N/A
N/A
1944 See Here, Private Hargrove Directing Director 59
Average
1943 Slightly Dangerous Directing Director 59
Average
1942 Somewhere I'll Find You Directing Director 59
Average
1941 You Belong to Me Directing Director 58
Average
1940 Arizona Directing Director 59
Average
1940 Too Many Husbands Directing Director 59
Average
1939 Invitation to Happiness Directing Director N/A
N/A
1938 Sing, You Sinners Directing Director 59
Average
1937 True Confession Directing Director 59
Average
1937 I Met Him in Paris Directing Director 59
Average
1936 Valiant Is the Word for Carrie Directing Director 59
Average
1935 The Bride Comes Home Directing Director 58
Average
1935 Accent on Youth Directing Director 59
Average
1935 Mississippi Directing Director 59
Average
1935 The Gilded Lily Directing Director 59
Average
1934 Shoot the Works Directing Director 59
Average
1934 Bolero Directing Director 59
Average
1933 I'm No Angel Directing Director 59
Average
1933 College Humor Directing Director 58
Average
1933 The Monkey's Paw Directing Director 59
Average
1932 No Man of Her Own Directing Director 59
Average
1932 Roar of the Dragon Directing Director 59
Average
1931 Are These Our Children? Directing Director 59
Average
1931 Cimarron Directing Director 58
Average
1930 The Sea Bat Directing Director 58
Average
1930 Honey Directing Director 58
Average
1929 Condemned! Directing Director 59
Average
1929 Street Girl Directing Director 59
Average
1929 Girl Overboard Directing Director N/A
N/A
1929 Scandal Directing Director N/A
N/A
1928 Finders Keepers Directing Director N/A
N/A
1928 The Fourflusher Directing Director N/A
N/A
1927 Beware of Widows Directing Director N/A
N/A
1927 Breaking Records Directing Director N/A
N/A
1927 Flashing Oars Directing Director 59
Average
1927 The Cinder Path Directing Director N/A
N/A
1927 The Relay Directing Director 59
Average
1927 Around the Bases Directing Director N/A
N/A
1926 The Last Lap Directing Director N/A
N/A
1926 The Collegians Directing Director N/A
N/A
1926 Hooked at the Altar Directing Director N/A
N/A
1926 A Man of Quality Directing Director N/A
N/A
1925 The Plastic Age Directing Director 59
Average
1925 The Plastic Age Directing Continuity 59
Average
1925 A Broadway Lady Directing Director N/A
N/A
1924 The Age of Innocence Directing Director N/A
N/A
1923 Slippy McGee Directing Director N/A
N/A
1923 The Heart Raider Directing Director N/A
N/A
1923 Mr. Billings Spends His Dime Directing Director N/A
N/A
1922 If I Were Queen Directing Director N/A
N/A
1922 Wild Honey Directing Director N/A
N/A
1921 Uncharted Seas Directing Director 58
Average
1920 Love Directing Director N/A
N/A
1920 The Leopard Woman Directing Director 58
Average
1920 The Desperate Hero Directing Director N/A
N/A
1920 Sooner or Later Directing Director 58
Average
1919 Piccadilly Jim Directing Director N/A
N/A
1917 Outcast Directing Assistant Director N/A
N/A

Writing
1946 London Town Writing Story N/A
N/A
1942 Somewhere I'll Find You Writing Writer 59
Average
1931 Are These Our Children? Writing Story 59
Average

Production
1965 The Incredible World of James Bond Production Associate Producer 58
Average
1946 London Town Production Producer N/A
N/A
1941 You Belong to Me Production Producer 58
Average
1940 Arizona Production Producer 59
Average
1940 Too Many Husbands Production Producer 59
Average
1939 Invitation to Happiness Production Producer N/A
N/A
1938 Sing, You Sinners Production Producer 59
Average
1937 I Met Him in Paris Production Producer 59
Average
1936 Valiant Is the Word for Carrie Production Producer 59
Average
1935 The Bride Comes Home Production Producer 58
Average
1931 Cimarron Production Producer 58
Average
1930 The Sea Bat Production Producer 58
Average
1929 Street Girl Production Producer 59
Average