Maine-born John Ford (born Sean Aloysius O'Fearna) originally went to Hollywood in the shadow of his older brother, Francis, an actor/writer/director who had worked on Broadway. Originally a laborer, propman's assistant, and occasional stuntman for his brother, he rose to became an assistant director and supporting actor before turning to directing in 1917. Ford became best known for his Westerns, of which he made dozens through the 1920s, but he didn't achieve status as a major director until the mid-'30s, when his films for RKO (The Lost Patrol [1934], The Informer [1935]), 20th Century Fox (Young Mr. Lincoln [1939], The Grapes of Wrath [1940]), and Walter Wanger (Stagecoach [1939]), won over the public, the critics, and earned various Oscars and Academy nominations. His 1940s films included one military-produced documentary co-directed by Ford and cinematographer Gregg Toland, December 7th (1943), which creaks badly today (especially compared with Frank Capra's Why We Fight series); a major war film (They Were Expendable [1945]); the historically-based drama My Darling Clementine (1946); and the "cavalry trilogy" of Fort Apache (1948), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), and Rio Grande (1950), each of which starred John Wayne. My Darling Clementine and the cavalry trilogy contain some of the most powerful images of the American West ever shot, and are considered definitive examples of the Western.
Ford also had a weakness for Irish and Gaelic subject matter, in which a great degree of sentimentality was evident, most notably How Green Was My Valley (1941) and The Quiet Man (1952), which was his most personal film, and one of his most popular. It also earned more Oscars and nominations than any other movie ever produced at Republic Pictures. Poor health dogged Ford's career during the 1950s, but he still managed to create The Sun Shines Bright (1953) -- one of his favorite films, dealing with politics and race relations in the 19th century South -- Mogambo (1953), and The Searchers (1956), which is considered one of the most powerful Western dramas ever made. The Horse Soldiers (1959) showed some of Ford's flair, but was marred by production problems, and Ford later directed the John Wayne/Harry Morgan section of How the West Was Won (1963). His concern with social justice, which manifested itself in The Sun Shines Bright also became more evident during the early '60s, in films such as Sergeant Rutledge (1960), Donovan's Reef (1963), and Cheyenne Autumn (1964), all of which sought to address problems of racial prejudice.
Ford was the recipient of the first Life Achievement Award bestowed by the American Film Institute, and was the subject of Peter Bogdanovich's documentary, Directed by John Ford (1971). He died in 1973.
| Title | Year | Editors' Rating | User Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
John Ford Goes to War
Archival Appearance |
2005 | |||
|
Hollywood Mavericks
Archival Appearance |
1990 | |||
|
The Great American West
Interviewee |
1973 | |||
|
Directed by John Ford
Participant |
1971 | |||
|
Seven Women
Director, Producer |
1966 | |||
|
Young Cassidy
Director |
1965 | |||
|
Cheyenne Autumn
Director, Producer |
1964 | |||
|
Donovan's Reef
Director, Producer |
1963 | |||
|
How the West Was Won
Director |
1962 | |||
|
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Director, Producer |
1962 | |||
|
Two Rode Together
Director, Producer |
1961 | |||
|
Sergeant Rutledge
Director, Producer |
1960 | |||
|
The Horse Soldiers
Director |
1959 | |||
|
Gideon of Scotland Yard
Director, Producer |
1958 | |||
|
The Last Hurrah
Director, Producer |
1958 | |||
|
The Rising of the Moon
Director |
1957 | |||
|
The Wings of Eagles
Director |
1957 | |||
|
The Searchers
Director |
1956 | |||
|
Mister Roberts
Director |
1955 | |||
|
Rookie of the Year
Director |
1955 | |||
|
The Long Gray Line
Director |
1955 | |||
|
Mogambo
Director |
1953 | |||
|
The Sun Shines Bright
Director, Producer |
1953 | |||
|
The Quiet Man
Director, Producer |
1952 | |||
|
What Price Glory?
Director |
1952 | |||
|
This Is Korea
Director |
1951 | |||
|
Rio Grande
Director, Producer |
1950 | |||
|
Wagon Master
Director, Producer |
1950 | |||
|
When Willie Comes Marching Home
Director |
1950 | |||
|
Mighty Joe Young
Producer |
1949 | |||
|
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
Director, Producer |
1949 | |||
|
Fort Apache
Director, Producer |
1948 | |||
|
The Fugitive
Director, Producer |
1948 | |||
|
The Three Godfathers
Director, Producer |
1948 | |||
|
My Darling Clementine
Director |
1946 | |||
|
They Were Expendable
Director, Producer |
1945 | |||
|
At the Front
Director |
1943 | |||
|
December 7th
Director |
1943 | |||
|
December 7th: The Movie
Director |
1943 | |||
|
The Battle of Midway
Actor, Cinematographer, Director, Screenwriter |
1942 | |||
|
How Green Was My Valley
Director |
1941 | |||
|
Sex Hygiene
Director |
1941 | |||
|
Tobacco Road
Director |
1941 | |||
|
Women in Defense
Director |
1941 | |||
|
The Grapes of Wrath
Director |
1940 | |||
|
The Long Voyage Home
Director |
1940 | |||
|
Drums Along the Mohawk
Director |
1939 | |||
|
Stagecoach
Director, Producer |
1939 | |||
|
Young Mr. Lincoln
Director |
1939 | |||
|
Four Men and a Prayer
Director |
1938 | |||
|
Submarine Patrol
Director |
1938 | |||
|
The Hurricane
Director |
1937 | |||
|
Wee Willie Winkie
Director |
1937 | |||
|
Mary of Scotland
Director |
1936 | |||
|
The Plough and the Stars
Director |
1936 | |||
|
The Prisoner of Shark Island
Director |
1936 | |||
|
Steamboat Round the Bend
Director |
1935 | |||
|
The Informer
Director |
1935 | |||
|
The Whole Town's Talking
Director |
1935 | |||
|
Judge Priest
Director |
1934 | |||
|
The Lost Patrol
Director |
1934 | |||
|
The World Moves On
Director |
1934 | |||
|
Doctor Bull
Director |
1933 | |||
|
Pilgrimage
Director |
1933 | |||
|
Air Mail
Director |
1932 | |||
|
Flesh
Director |
1932 | |||
|
Arrowsmith
Director |
1931 | |||
|
The Brat
Director |
1931 | |||
|
The Seas Beneath
Director |
1931 | |||
|
Born Reckless
Director |
1930 | |||
|
Men Without Women
Director |
1930 | |||
|
Up the River
Director |
1930 | |||
|
Salute
Director |
1929 | |||
|
Strong Boy
Director |
1929 | |||
|
The Black Watch
Director |
1929 | |||
|
Four Sons
Director |
1928 | |||
|
Hangman's House
Director |
1928 | |||
|
Mother Machree
Director |
1928 | |||
|
Riley the Cop
Director |
1928 | |||
|
Upstream
Director, Producer |
1927 | |||
|
Blue Eagle
Director |
1926 | |||
|
Shamrock Handicap
Director, Producer |
1926 | |||
|
Three Bad Men
Director, Producer, Screenwriter |
1926 | |||
|
Kentucky Pride
Director |
1925 | |||
|
Lightnin'
Director |
1925 | |||
|
Thank You
Director |
1925 | |||
|
Hearts of Oak
Director |
1924 | |||
|
The Iron Horse
Director, Producer |
1924 | |||
|
Face on the Barroom Floor
Director |
1923 | |||
|
Hoodman Blind
Director, Producer |
1923 | |||
|
North of Hudson Bay
Director |
1923 | |||
|
Little Miss Smiles
Director |
1922 | |||
|
Silver Wings
Director |
1922 | |||
|
Action
Director |
1921 | |||
|
The Big Punch
Director, Screenwriter |
1921 | |||
|
The Wallop
Director |
1921 | |||
|
Just Pals
Director |
1920 | |||
|
The Prince of Avenue A.
Director |
1920 | |||
|
Bare Fists
Director |
1919 | |||
|
Fight for Love
Director |
1919 | |||
|
Gun Fightin' Gentleman
Director, Screenwriter |
1919 | |||
|
Marked Men
Director |
1919 | |||
|
Rider of the Law
Director |
1919 | |||
|
Riders of Vengeance
Director, Screenwriter |
1919 | |||
|
Roped
Director |
1919 | |||
|
The Outcasts of Poker Flat
Director |
1919 | |||
|
Bucking Broadway
Director |
1918 | |||
|
Hell Bent
Director, Screenwriter |
1918 | |||
|
Scarlet Drop
Screenwriter |
1918 | |||
|
The Craving
Screenwriter |
1918 | |||
|
Three Mounted Men
Director |
1918 | |||
|
Woman's Fool
Director |
1918 | |||
|
Cheyenne's Pal
Screenwriter |
1917 | |||
|
Marked Man
Director, Screenwriter |
1917 | |||
|
Scrapper
Actor, Screenwriter |
1917 | |||
|
Soul Herder
Director |
1917 | |||
|
Tornado
Actor, Screenwriter |
1917 | |||
|
Trail of Hate
Actor |
1917 | |||
|
Bandit's Wager
Actor |
1916 | |||
|
Lumber Yard Gang
Actor |
1916 | |||
|
Peg O' the Ring
Actor |
1916 | |||
|
The Purple Mask
Actor |
1916 | |||
|
Broken Coin
Actor, First Assistant Director |
1915 | |||
|
Doorway of Destruction
Actor, First Assistant Director |
1915 | |||
|
Hidden City
Actor |
1915 | |||
|
The Birth of a Nation
Actor |
1915 | |||
|
Three Bad Men and a Girl
Actor |
1915 | |||
|
Mysterious Rose
Actor |
1914 |






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