Person
Richard Thorpe
Hutchinson, Kansas, USA
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 vaud…
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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. 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. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Filmography
Movies and shows, newest first
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1976
That's Entertainment, Part II
Movie Thanks
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1967
The Scorpio Letters
Movie Producer
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1967
The Last Challenge
Movie Producer
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1965
That Funny Feeling
Movie Director
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1965
The Truth About Spring
Movie Director
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1964
The Golden Head
Movie Director
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1963
Fun in Acapulco
Movie Director
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1963
Follow the Boys
Movie Director
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1962
How the West Was Won
Movie Special Guest Director
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1962
The Horizontal Lieutenant
Movie Director
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1961
The Honeymoon Machine
Movie Director
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1961
The Tartars
Movie Director
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1959
The House of the Seven Hawks
Movie Director
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1959
Killers of Kilimanjaro
Movie Director
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1957
Tip on a Dead Jockey
Movie Director
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1957
Ten Thousand Bedrooms
Movie Director
More credits
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1957
Jailhouse Rock
Movie Director
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1955
Quentin Durward
Movie Director
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1955
The Prodigal
Movie Director
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1955
Bedevilled
Movie Director
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1954
Athena
Movie Director
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1954
The Student Prince
Movie Director
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1953
Knights of the Round Table
Movie Director
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1953
All the Brothers Were Valiant
Movie Director
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1953
The Girl Who Had Everything
Movie Director
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1952
The Prisoner of Zenda
Movie Director
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1952
Ivanhoe
Movie Director
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1952
Carbine Williams
Movie Director
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1951
It's a Big Country
Movie Director
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1951
The Unknown Man
Movie Director
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1951
The Great Caruso
Movie Director
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1951
Vengeance Valley
Movie Director
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1950
Three Little Words
Movie Director
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1950
Black Hand
Movie Director
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1949
Malaya
Movie Director
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1949
Challenge to Lassie
Movie Director
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1949
The Sun Comes Up
Movie Director
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1949
Big Jack
Movie Director
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1948
A Date with Judy
Movie Director
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1948
On an Island with You
Movie Director
