Harry Behn
Encyclopedia
Harry Behn, also known as Giles Behn, was an American screenwriter
and children's author.
in what was then the Arizona Territory
. He was the son of Henry K. Behn, an immigrant from Germany
, and Maren (or Marion) Christensen Behn, an immigrant from Denmark
.
At the age of 18, after he had been accepted as a student at Stanford University
but before he went there, he met Henry Berger, a photographer affiliated with the Prizma
Company, who hired Harry Behn as his assistant for the summer. The two of them went to Yellowstone
and Glacier National Park, where they were supposed to take a series of nature slides for Prizma. A family emergency took Henry Berger away for a month, and during this time Harry Behn stayed in Glacier National Park with all the photographic equipment, waiting for Berger to return. While Berger was gone, Harry Behn made friends with some young Blackfoot Indians whose reservation was in the park, and lived with them. He was invited to join the tribe, and underwent all the tests and rituals involved in becoming a Blackfoot, and received the name Big Wolf Medicine. For a while he was actually listed as a Blackfoot with the Indian Service
, making him eligible for oil royalties being paid to the Blackfoot tribe, and he actually received a check, but he later convinced the Indian Service to give the money to the tribe.
He received his education at Stanford University, which he attended in 1918, and Harvard University (S.B., 1922).
in 1925, and Hell's Angels
in 1930, that was directed by Howard Hughes
. The Big Parade
, which was silent, would later be overshadowed by the success of All Quiet on the Western Front.
, where he was a professor of English and ran the educational radio programs. He founded and edited the Arizona Quarterly, and also founded the Phoenix Little Theater
in the 1920s, and the University of Arizona Press
in 1960.
, with the help of people who knew this language.
His illustrated translation of the Duino Elegies
by Rainer Maria Rilke
was published by Peter Pauper Press in 1957.
, and one daughter Pamela Behn.
He died in Seville, Spain, while traveling there; his place of residence at the time of his death was Greenwich, Connecticut. He was 74 years old when he died.
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
and children's author.
Early life
Harry Behn was born in 1898 in McCabe, Arizona, which is now a ghost town, in Yavapai CountyYavapai County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*89.3% White*0.6% Black*1.7% Native American*0.8% Asian*0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*2.5% Two or more races*5.0% Other races*13.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
in what was then the Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
. He was the son of Henry K. Behn, an immigrant from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and Maren (or Marion) Christensen Behn, an immigrant from Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
.
At the age of 18, after he had been accepted as a student at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
but before he went there, he met Henry Berger, a photographer affiliated with the Prizma
Prizma
The Prizma Color system was a technique of color motion picture photography, invented in 1913 by William Van Doren Kelley and Charles Raleigh. Initially, it was a two-color additive color system, similar to its predecessor, Kinemacolor...
Company, who hired Harry Behn as his assistant for the summer. The two of them went to Yellowstone
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
and Glacier National Park, where they were supposed to take a series of nature slides for Prizma. A family emergency took Henry Berger away for a month, and during this time Harry Behn stayed in Glacier National Park with all the photographic equipment, waiting for Berger to return. While Berger was gone, Harry Behn made friends with some young Blackfoot Indians whose reservation was in the park, and lived with them. He was invited to join the tribe, and underwent all the tests and rituals involved in becoming a Blackfoot, and received the name Big Wolf Medicine. For a while he was actually listed as a Blackfoot with the Indian Service
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency of the federal government of the United States within the US Department of the Interior. It is responsible for the administration and management of of land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans in the United States, Native American...
, making him eligible for oil royalties being paid to the Blackfoot tribe, and he actually received a check, but he later convinced the Indian Service to give the money to the tribe.
Career as a screenwriter
Harry Behn was involved in writing the screenplay for a number of films, including the war film The Big ParadeThe Big Parade
The Big Parade is a 1925 silent film. It tells the story of an idle rich boy who joins the US Army's Rainbow Division and is sent to France to fight in World War I, becomes friends with two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl.The film was...
in 1925, and Hell's Angels
Hell's Angels (film)
Hell's Angels is a 1930 American war film, directed by Howard Hughes and starring Jean Harlow, Ben Lyon, and James Hall. The film, which was produced by Hughes and written by Harry Behn and Howard Estabrook, centers on the combat pilots of World War I...
in 1930, that was directed by Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
. The Big Parade
The Big Parade
The Big Parade is a 1925 silent film. It tells the story of an idle rich boy who joins the US Army's Rainbow Division and is sent to France to fight in World War I, becomes friends with two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl.The film was...
, which was silent, would later be overshadowed by the success of All Quiet on the Western Front.
Academic career
In the mid-1930s, Harry Behn joined the faculty of the University of ArizonaUniversity of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
, where he was a professor of English and ran the educational radio programs. He founded and edited the Arizona Quarterly, and also founded the Phoenix Little Theater
Phoenix Theatre (Phoenix)
The Phoenix Theatre is a professional theatre company located in Phoenix, Arizona. Started in 1920, by a theatre troupe known as the Phoenix Players, the theatre is the oldest amateur playhouse in the United States, west of the Mississippi River...
in the 1920s, and the University of Arizona Press
University of Arizona Press
The University of Arizona Press, a publishing house founded in 1959 as a department of the University of Arizona, is a nonprofit publisher of scholarly and regional books...
in 1960.
Author
Harry Behn wrote many children's books, and also translated Japanese haikuHaiku
' , plural haiku, is a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterised by three qualities:* The essence of haiku is "cutting"...
, with the help of people who knew this language.
His illustrated translation of the Duino Elegies
Duino Elegies
The Duino Elegies are a set of ten elegies written in German by the poet Rainer Maria Rilke from 1912 to 1922. They are frequently referred to as Rilke's most acclaimed poetic work.-Presentation:...
by Rainer Maria Rilke
Rainer Maria Rilke
René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke , better known as Rainer Maria Rilke, was a Bohemian–Austrian poet. He is considered one of the most significant poets in the German language...
was published by Peter Pauper Press in 1957.
Artist
Harry Behn also produced a number of paintings, although he is not as well known as an artist as he is as a writer. Some of his paintings are owned by his descendants.Personal life
Harry Behn was married to Alice Lawrence (1905–1989), and had two sons Prescott Behn and Peter BehnPeter Behn
Peter Behn is an American voice actor. He is best known for providing the voice of the young Thumper in the film Bambi.-Early Life and Education:...
, and one daughter Pamela Behn.
He died in Seville, Spain, while traveling there; his place of residence at the time of his death was Greenwich, Connecticut. He was 74 years old when he died.
Filmography
- The Big ParadeThe Big ParadeThe Big Parade is a 1925 silent film. It tells the story of an idle rich boy who joins the US Army's Rainbow Division and is sent to France to fight in World War I, becomes friends with two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl.The film was...
(1925) - Proud FleshProud Flesh (film)Proud Flesh is a 1925 silent comedy-drama film directed by King Vidor.-Plot:A San Francisco earthquake orphan is adopted by relatives in Spain and gets wooed by a Romeo there. She turns him down to return to a San Francisco plumber.-Cast:...
(1925), with Agnes Christine Johnson - La BohèmeLa Bohème (1926 film)La Bohème is a 1926 silent drama film directed by King Vidor, based on the opera La bohème by Giacomo Puccini.-Plot:The film takes place in Paris in 1830. Several bohemians try to survive on the streets, living under poor conditions and desiring to one day become famous. One of them is Marcel , a...
(1926), with Ray Doyle - The CrowdThe CrowdThe Crowd is a 1928 American silent film directed by King Vidor. It is notable for its dramatization of the concerns and dangers of urbanization and modernity....
(1928), with King VidorKing VidorKing Wallis Vidor was an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter whose career spanned nearly seven decades...
and John V.A. Weaver - The RacketThe RacketThe Racket is an American crime film directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Thomas Meighan, Marie Prevost, Louis Wolheim, and George E. Stone...
(1928), with Del Andrews - Frozen River (1929)
- The Sin Sister (1929), with Andrew BennisonAndrew BennisonAndrew Bennison was an American screenwriter and film director whose career was at its peak in the 1930s....
- Hell's AngelsHell's Angels (film)Hell's Angels is a 1930 American war film, directed by Howard Hughes and starring Jean Harlow, Ben Lyon, and James Hall. The film, which was produced by Hughes and written by Harry Behn and Howard Estabrook, centers on the combat pilots of World War I...
(1930), with Howard Estabrook - Secret of the Chateau (1934), with Richard ThorpeRichard ThorpeRichard Thorpe 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...