John Stahl was the final executive in charge of Tiffany Pictures (located on the Talisman lot, later owned by Monogram Pictures), once a big fish in the pond of "Poverty Row", which in those days also included Columbia Pictures. With a B-movie history dating back to the silent era and after making 70 talkies, Tiffany imploded in 1932 in the midst of the deepening Depression and ended its days grinding out the "Chimp Comedies" series of shorts, in which chimps "lip-synched"--by means of having them chew bubble gum--to dubbed actors' voices scripted to corny plots. These simian shorts were popular as filler in second-run movie houses until the freakish novelty wore thin. A sad end to a studio once notable for a roster of stars that included 雷克斯·利斯, 肯·美纳德, 康韦·特尔, 鲍勃·斯蒂尔 and 梅·默里.
Stahl moved over to MGM, producing and directing the notable flop 烈士忠魂 (1937), widely considered the studio's worst effort to date. Despite this, he would continue in the business as a producer and director of some note until his death in 1950.
One of the 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS)
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Pictures at 6546 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
Directed 2 actors to Oscar nominations: 格利高里·派克 (Best Actor, 天路历程 (1944)) and 吉恩·蒂尔尼 (Best Actress, 爱到天堂 (1945)).
Founder and president of John M. Stahl Productions, formed in 1921.
He died on Jan. 12, 1950, in Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital of a heart attack. He had been hospitalized since New Year's Day with pneumonia.
He has directed two films that have been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: 春风秋雨 (1934) and 爱到天堂 (1945).
Salary (1) 介绍信(1938) $26,000