Charles E. Ford
Encyclopedia
Charles E. Ford was a newsreel and film producer and the director of Frank Buck
’s jungle movie Jacaré
(1942).
and shortly thereafter spent thirty months touring Europe by automobile and plane. Among his newsreels were the series Going Places With Lowell Thomas
(1934–1937), Stranger Than Fiction (1934–1941) and another news series Going Places With Graham McNamee (1939–1940) featuring radio broadcaster Graham McNamee
as reporter.
Ford's short subject Camera Thrills
was nominated for an Academy Award in 1935.
One of Ford’s best known Universal Newsreels was made in 1937 from 7,000 feet of film flown to New York from war-torn China, said to be the first motion picture of the warfare in Shanghai. It showed two major Japanese bombings of the city's streets, in Nanking Road and near the Cathay Hotel.
films Billy the Kid Returns
(1938), Shine On, Harvest Moon (1938), and Come on Rangers (1938). He was associate producer of the Gene Autry
movies Man from Music Mountain (1938) and Gold Mine in the Sky (1938).
produced Jacare, Killer of the Amazon
. This filmed record of James Dannaldson
's hunting expedition into the Amazon jungles is filled with wild-animal footage, including a terrifying attack by a 28-foot anaconda. Levey incorporated a narration by Frank Buck
and music by Miklos Rozsa
.
He is buried in Forest Lawn, Glendale, Section Eventide, Map # 01, Lot # 1395, Space #3, (Ground). Dr. Irving Leroy Ress
was one of his pallbearers.
Frank Buck (animal collector)
Frank Howard Buck was a hunter and "collector of wild animals," as well as a movie actor, director, writer and producer...
’s jungle movie Jacaré
Jacare (film)
Jacaré was a film made in 1942 of James Dannaldson’s expedition to the Amazon.Clyde E. Elliott, Charles E. Ford and James Dannaldson led the film crew, which shot some 260,000 feet of film on the lower reaches of the Amazon River in Spring 1942...
(1942).
Early life
Ford was the son of Charles A Ford, an insurance salesman, and Martha A. Ford. Young Charles served as an Army cameraman in World War I and later worked for Fox, Pathé and International Newsreels as a cameraman.Universal Newsreel
In 1929 Ford became managing director of Universal NewsreelUniversal Newsreel
Universal Newsreel was a series of 7- to 10-minute newsreels that were released twice a week between 1929 and 1967 by Universal Studios. A Universal publicity official, Sam B. Jacobson, was involved in originating and producing the newsreels...
and shortly thereafter spent thirty months touring Europe by automobile and plane. Among his newsreels were the series Going Places With Lowell Thomas
Lowell Thomas
Lowell Jackson Thomas was an American writer, broadcaster, and traveler, best known as the man who made Lawrence of Arabia famous...
(1934–1937), Stranger Than Fiction (1934–1941) and another news series Going Places With Graham McNamee (1939–1940) featuring radio broadcaster Graham McNamee
Graham McNamee
Graham McNamee was a pioneering broadcaster in American radio, the medium's most recognized national personality in its first international decade....
as reporter.
Ford's short subject Camera Thrills
Camera Thrills
Camera Thrills is a 1935 short film produced by Charles E. Ford. It was nominated for an Academy Award at the 8th Academy Awards in 1935 for Best Short Subject ....
was nominated for an Academy Award in 1935.
One of Ford’s best known Universal Newsreels was made in 1937 from 7,000 feet of film flown to New York from war-torn China, said to be the first motion picture of the warfare in Shanghai. It showed two major Japanese bombings of the city's streets, in Nanking Road and near the Cathay Hotel.
Republic Pictures
Ford was associate producer of the Roy RogersRoy Rogers
Roy Rogers, born Leonard Franklin Slye , was an American singer and cowboy actor, one of the most heavily marketed and merchandised stars of his era, as well as being the namesake of the Roy Rogers Restaurants franchised chain...
films Billy the Kid Returns
Billy the Kid Returns
Billy the Kid Returns is a 1938 American film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Roy Rogers.-Plot:Following the shooting of Billy the Kid by his former friend Sheriff Pat Garrett lookalike deputy sherriff Roy Rogers,assisted by travelling musical instrument salesman Frog Millhouse, takes his...
(1938), Shine On, Harvest Moon (1938), and Come on Rangers (1938). He was associate producer of the Gene Autry
Gene Autry
Orvon Grover Autry , better known as Gene Autry, was an American performer who gained fame as The Singing Cowboy on the radio, in movies and on television for more than three decades beginning in the 1930s...
movies Man from Music Mountain (1938) and Gold Mine in the Sky (1938).
Jacaré
In 1942 Ford directed and Jules LeveyJules Levey
for the television producer please see Jules LevyJules Levey was the producer of the Frank Buck movie Jacaré.-Early career:...
produced Jacare, Killer of the Amazon
Jacare (film)
Jacaré was a film made in 1942 of James Dannaldson’s expedition to the Amazon.Clyde E. Elliott, Charles E. Ford and James Dannaldson led the film crew, which shot some 260,000 feet of film on the lower reaches of the Amazon River in Spring 1942...
. This filmed record of James Dannaldson
James Dannaldson
James Melven Dannaldson starred in the Frank Buck film Jacaré.-Early life:Dannaldson was the son of James Jerrmiel Dannaldson and Lulu Belgium Rola Hiatt. Young James...
's hunting expedition into the Amazon jungles is filled with wild-animal footage, including a terrifying attack by a 28-foot anaconda. Levey incorporated a narration by Frank Buck
Frank Buck (animal collector)
Frank Howard Buck was a hunter and "collector of wild animals," as well as a movie actor, director, writer and producer...
and music by Miklos Rozsa
Miklós Rózsa
Miklós Rózsa was a Hungarian-born composer trained in Germany , and active in France , England , and the United States , with extensive sojourns in Italy from 1953...
.
Death
Ford died suddenly of peritonitis after surgery in Cedars of Lebanon Hospital, just after returning from the Amazon. A widow and two children by a previous marriage survived him, along with his mother, two brothers, and a sister.He is buried in Forest Lawn, Glendale, Section Eventide, Map # 01, Lot # 1395, Space #3, (Ground). Dr. Irving Leroy Ress
Irving Leroy Ress
Irving Leroy Ress was a prominent Beverly Hills physician and obstetrician.-Early Years:Irivng Ress, born in New York City, New York, was the son of Henry Mitchell Ress, a Russian immigrant jewelry manufacturer, and Anna Jaffee Ress...
was one of his pallbearers.
External links
- Charles E. Ford on the Internet Movie Database http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0285551/
- Reviews of Jacare http://stevenlehrer.com/jacare.htm
- video: Frank Buck narrates an anaconda attack in Jacare
- video: Frank Buck narrates a crocodile attack in Jacare