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The son of a New York City police lieutenant, Bertram Millhauser inaugurated his screenwriting career at the old Pathe studios, specializing in the company's popular serials. It was Millhauser's contention that the villain was the key to any story's success: thus, he'd start each script by developing the "bad guy" characters, then moved on to such inconsequentials as heroes and heroines. During his Pathe stay, he tried his hand at directing with The Phantom Foe (1920) and The Yellow Arm (1921); in the early talkie era, he briefly moved into the producer's chair with Trent's Last Case (1929) and Girl of the Port (1930). Millhauser is most closely associated with the "Sherlock Holmes" films of the 1930s and 1940s; he scripted the 1932 Clive Brook starrer Sherlock Holmes, and later penned five of the Basil Rathbone-Nigel Bruce "Holmes" entries for Universal. In addition to his movie activities, Bertram Millhauser wrote several novels (Ever in My Heart, They Made Me a Criminal) and plays (Life of Jimmy Dolan), many of which were later adapted for the screen.