利用者:タロ太郎

ウィリアム・サリー・ハート

ウィリアム・サリー・ハート
生誕	ウィリアム・サリー・ハート (1864-12-06) 1864年12月6日 ニューヨーク州, ニューバーグ
死没	1946年6月23日(1946-06-23)（81歳没） カリフォルニア州,ニューホール
職業	俳優 監督 脚本家 プロデューサー
活動期間	1888–1941
配偶者	ウィニフレッド・ウェストオーヴァー (m. 1921; div. 1927)
子供	1

ウィリアム・サリー・ハート は、アメリカの無声映画俳優・脚本家・監督・プロデューサーである。 彼は、どんな役も真剣にそして完璧に取り組む無声映画時代の西部劇名優として名を残している。1910年代後半から1920年代前半にかけて、彼は絶大な人気を誇る俳優であり映画雑誌ではよく人気男優ランキングの上位に名を連ねた。

若い頃

ウィリアムはニューヨーク州ニューバーグ出身であり、ニコラス・ハートとロザンナ・ハートの間に産まれた。 ウィリアムには幼くして亡くなった2人の兄と４人の妹がいた。彼と同じく西部劇の名優であるニール・ハートは従兄弟にあたる。

彼は20代で舞台に立ち、1888年にダニエル・E・バンドマン率いる劇団のメンバーとしてデビューした。翌年にはニューヨークのローレンス・バレット劇団に参加し、その後の数シーズンはホルテンス・レアの地方公演に参加した。1900年頃にはノースカロライナ州のアッシュビルにあったとされるオペラハウスで出演を担当したこともある。さらに、ブロードウェイではマーガレット・メイザーや他の名優と組んでシェイクスピア俳優として成功を収め、1899の舞台『ベン・ハー』の原作にも出演している。

映画キャリア

Hart went on to become one of the first great stars of the motion picture Western. Fascinated by the Old West, he acquired Billy the Kid's "six shooters" and was a friend of legendary lawmen Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson. He entered films in 1914, and after playing supporting roles in two short films, he achieved stardom the same year as the lead in the feature The Bargain. Hart was particularly interested in making realistic Western films. His films are noted for their authentic costumes and props, as well as Hart's acting ability, honed on Shakespearean theater stages in the United States and England.

Beginning in 1915, Hart starred in his own series of two-reel Western short subjects for producer Thomas Ince, which were so popular that they were supplanted by a series of feature films. Many of Hart's early films continued to play in theaters, under new titles, for another decade. In 1915 and 1916 exhibitors voted him the biggest money making star in the United States. In 1917 Hart accepted a lucrative offer from Adolph Zukor to join Famous Players-Lasky, which merged into Paramount Pictures. In the films Hart began to ride a brown and white pinto he called Fritz. Fritz was the forerunner of later famous movie horses known by their own name, e.g., horses like Tom Mix's Tony, Roy Rogers's Trigger and Clayton Moore's Silver. In 1917, to signify "his patriotism and loyalty to Uncle Sam" it was announced to "change the name of his favorite horse from Fritz to one more truly American." He also volunteered from 1917 to 1918 with the Four Minute Men program to give short pro-war speeches across the country. Hart was now making feature films exclusively, and films like Square Deal Sanderson and The Toll Gate were popular with fans.

In 1919 Hart's John Petticoats costar was a young actress named Winifred Westover. The film was made in New Orleans, and was a departure from Hart's usual roles, as he played a lumberman who was informed he'd inherited a shop selling ladies clothing.

Hart on the June 1917 cover of Motion Picture Magazine

In 1921, Hollywood comic actor Roscoe Arbuckle was charged with rape and manslaughter in the death of aspiring actress Virginia Rappe. Amid the controversy, many of Arbuckle's fellow actors declined public comment on the case. However, Hart, who had never worked with Arbuckle or even met him, made a number of damaging public statements in which he presumed the actor's guilt. Arbuckle, who was eventually acquitted but saw his career ruined, later wrote a premise for a film parodying Hart as a thief, bully and wife beater, and it was bought by Buster Keaton. The following year, Keaton co-wrote, directed and starred in the 1922 comedy film The Frozen North. As a result, Hart refused to speak to Keaton for many years.

By the early 1920s, Hart's brand of gritty, rugged Westerns with drab costumes and moralistic themes gradually fell out of fashion. The public became attracted by a new kind of movie cowboy, epitomized by Tom Mix, who wore flashier costumes and was involved in more action scenes. Paramount dropped Hart, who then made one last bid for his kind of Western. He produced Tumbleweeds (1925) with his own money, arranging to release it independently through United Artists. The film turned out well, with an epic land-rush sequence, but did only fair business at the box office. Hart was angered by United Artists' failure to promote his film properly and sued the studio. The legal proceedings dragged on for years, and the courts finally ruled in Hart's favor, in 1940.

After Tumbleweeds, Hart retired to his Newhall, California, ranch home, "La Loma de los Vientos", which was designed by architect Arthur R. Kelly. In 1939 he appeared in his only sound film, a spoken prologue for a reissue of Tumbleweeds. In this segment, filmed at his ranch, the 74-year-old Hart reflected on the Old West and fondly recalled his silent movie heyday. The speech turned out to be his farewell to the screen. Most prints and video versions of Tumbleweeds circulating today include the speech.

私生活

Hart was always close to his sister Mary, and when he moved to California she came with him. In his autobiography My Life East and West, he called Mary “my constant advisor,” and stated that she took care of his fan mail. Mary is listed as cowriter for two of his published books, Pinto Ben and Other Stories (1919), and And All Points West (1940).

William S. Hart and Winifred Westover in John Petticoats

When Winifred Westover, Hart's John Petticoats costar, was working in New York City Hart came to see her, and escorted her to dinner and shows. She was about to sign a five-year film contract with Lewis J. Selznick when Hart sent her a telegram, telling her not to sign anything until she'd received a letter he was mailing to her. The letter contained a marriage proposal. She telegraphed her acceptance.

On December 7, 1921, Hart married Westover in Los Angeles. She was 22-years-old, and Hart was 57. The only guests were the bride's mother, Hart's sister Mary, and his attorney. On the day of her wedding Westover signed an agreement to retire from acting.

Westover moved into the house shared by Hart and his sister, Mary. Six months into the marriage Hart told his pregnant wife to leave his home, and she went to live with her mother in Santa Monica. During the divorce hearing Westover testified that Hart's sister was the reason for the separation, and that her husband had insisted on keeping open the door that separated their bedroom from his sister's room.

The couple's son, William S. Hart, Jr., was born on September 22, 1922. On February 11, 1927, Westover was granted a divorce in Reno, Nevada. She received $100,000, with the understanding she would not return to acting or have her photograph published. A trust fund of $100,000 was established for William S. Hart, Jr., to be used for his support and education.

Hart's son lived with his mother, and spent little time with his father, but when Hart's sister Mary died in 1943 it was reported that the "tall, erect cowboy" entered the funeral service "leaning on the arm of his son, William S. Hart, Jr."

死

Hart died on June 23, 1946, in Newhall at age 81. He was buried in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. His Last Will and Testment stated: "I have made no provision in this will for my son for the reason that I have amply provided for him during my lifetime."