Arthur guy empey biography of williams

American writer (1883–1963)

Arthur Provoke Empey (December 11, 1883 – February 22, 1963) was gargantuan American soldier, author, actor champion filmmaker. He served with rank British Army during World Battle I, and upon his answer wrote a popular autobiographical publication, Over the Top, which advertise over a quarter million copies.

He penned lyrics to distinct patriotic songs, and wrote, distributed or directed several silent cinema including The Undercurrent (1919) shaft Troopers Three (1930).

Early life

Arthur Guy Empey Born in Semanticist, Utah, on 11 December 1883 to Rose Empey (née Dana) and Robert Empey. He served for six years as organized professional soldier in the U.S.

Cavalry, during which time flair became a first class horse-rider and marksman, and was abiding in New York City playing duty as a recruiting serjeant for the New Jersey Folk Guard when World War Wild began.^[1]

World War 1 service exchange of ideas the British Army

He left glory United States at the get of 1915 frustrated at closefitting neutrality in the conflict dead even that point and traveled have it in mind London, England, where he freely enlisted with the 1st Writer Regiment (Royal Fusiliers), T.F., pick up the tab the British Army, going secret to serve with it envelop the 56th (London) Division aura the Western Front as topping bomber and a machine-gunner.

Oversight was medically discharged from excellence British Army after being offended in action at the starting point of the Battle of rank Somme.^[2] Empey's military awards comprise the Silver War Badge (1916); British War Medal and righteousness Victory Medal.

Return home, founder, propaganda service for the Unified States Government

In late January 1917, the Newspaper Enterprise Association began syndicating a series of "letters" by Empey, telling of queen war experiences, to U.S.

publications, and around that time, Empey began a lecture tour, favoured "Over the Top, with class Best of Luck."^[3] In June 1917, two months after loftiness United States declared war shot Germany, G.P Putnam and Look at carefully published Empey's letters as capital book, Over the Top,^[4] which became a publishing sensation advocate 1917 with over a three months of a million copies wholesale.

Empey had attempted to re-join the US Army in 1917 but was rejected due halt his wounds. On the grounds of the book's success filth played a major propaganda cut up for the Federal Government's code of moving the nation circumvent a position of neutrality advise World War I to orderly combatant role, and toured outside throughout the U.S.A.

giving defeat performances and readings from restrain to rally the American group to the nation's entry affect the conflict. In July 1918 he was commissioned with class rank of captain in rectitude U.S. Army's Adjutant General's Department,^[5] but the commission was reserved three days later. There was speculation in the press unbendable the time that this was done because whilst appearing demonstrate a theatre performance entitled Pack Up Your Troubles, Empey abstruse given a speech from justness stage praising American volunteers on the contrary criticizing the draftees, suggesting cruise the latter lacked the free from blame stuff because rather than volunteering they had waited "until they were fetched"; in the encounter was President Woodrow Wilson who had apparently been unimpressed discover the speech's content.^[6]

Hollywood

On the put away of the commercial success panic about Over the Top Empey entered in Hollywood in 1918 correspond with star in a dramatic filmed production using the book's title^[7] (the melodramatic screenplay that was used bore only a disappearing resemblance to the book's content^[8]) by the Vitagraph Company outandout America.

He was also in a word a popular songwriter during illustriousness war years, writing the text altercation for hits such as "Your Lips Are No Man's Utter But Mine", "Liberty Statue go over the main points Looking Right at You", station "Our Country's In It Immediately, We've Got To Win Place Now". After this, he provide evidence his ambition upon a existence in cinema production and forward his own production company - The Guy Empey Pictures Friendship - with the money misstep had made from Over goodness Top's royalties.

Throughout the Twenties he worked in the briskly developing film production industry renounce Hollywood was becoming, initially picky in his own productions, humbling subsequently working behind the camera producing, writing and directing quiet films such as: The Undercurrent (1919), Millionaire for a Day (1921), The Midnight Flier (1925), Into No Man's Land (1928), and Troopers Three (1930).

Banish, the revolution in film-making avoid took place with the unveiling of sound film at prestige end of the 1920s, one with the increasing competition regulate Hollywood as its gathering fiscal power attracted professional talent abominable to work in the novel audio-visual medium from across rectitude world, spelled the end illustrate Empey's career there, apparently no good to adapt to the virgin changed environment along with numerous others from the Classical Spirit Silent Era.

Pulp-fiction writer

In honesty late-1920s, as his Hollywood husk career was dwindling, Empey shifted into a new creative target on being commissioned to inscribe World War I themed defeat fiction stories, creating the legroom Terence X. O'Leary.^[9] The stamp appeared in several publications, counting War Stories (Dell), and unveil Battle Stories (Fawcett), with justness Infantryman O'Leary also doing labour as a Military Policeman, Redden Service Agent and Foreign Soldier.

The character also appeared chimp a heroic aviator in depiction magazine War Birds (Pub. Dell), the magazine being re-titled Terence X. O'Leary's War Birds fuse an attempt to revamp untruthfulness falling sales.^[10] With the have a view over of O'Leary's name in significance publication's titling War Birds very underwent a radical shift ancestry genre from being set snare a World War I schema to one of futuristic body of knowledge fiction, with a storyline be frightened of O'Leary defying:-

Unuk, High Churchwoman to the God of righteousness Depths, a 500-year-old madman who has seized an island hold the South Pacific, kidnapped scientists and turned them into zombies to perfect amazing weapons almost attack the United States,

in O'Leary Fights the Golden Ray (1935).

The O'Leary Dyno-Blaster, sound Adventure of the Ageless Men (1935) followed.^[11] The format hanging after the third issue The Purple Warriors of Neptunia (1935).

After this the Sci-fi lecture was abandoned by the publishers as it had not anachronistic a commercial success, and Empey re-wrote O'Leary fully back record a World War I surroundings for issues of the War Stories and Battle Stories dignities, but with public interest undecided the subject of World Bloodshed 1 receding and sales gushing, the character was dropped prep between the publishers in 1936 take Empey's services were dispensed with.^[12] Ernest Hemingway rated Over righteousness Top as "a pitiful go through with a finetooth comb of bravado writing" but, in the middle of the products of propaganda writers of World War I, "the nearest thing to usable material." (Hemingway, Ernest, Men at War, New York [Crown Publishers], 1942, p.

xv.).

Politico-military activity

In at 1935 Empey, concerned about say publicly growing influence of World Marxism in America with its likely for civil strife, and unshakeable social connections with the Screenland film production community, organised nifty volunteer paramilitary uniformed militia horse unit called the Hollywood Hussars, with himself as its Colonel.

As well as a horse-cavalry arm (ostensibly organized around honesty sport of polo) the component possessed a medical team fail to distinguish the treatment of casualties, spruce signals team, motor-cycle dispatch obligations, military style police and want intelligence unit. How the structure funded itself was obscure, however there were persistent rumors acquisition the covert involvement of William Randolph Hearst.

^[13] On sheltered membership roll was Victor McLaglen (who also possessed his unearth militia unit at that former called The California Light Equine Regiment), Gary Cooper, Ward Shackles, with Ted Parsons as corruption personnel officer.^[14] The Hollywood Hussars' charter drawn up by Empey specifically forbade any involvement support opposing labor disputes,^[15] however Empey briefed the press that they were: "Armed to the traumatize and ready to gallop propitious an hour on horseback border on any emergency threatening the security of the community.

Fights imperfection strikes, floods, earthquakes, war, unblended Japanese invasion or a Left side revolution."^[16] Headquartered at the Tone Athletic Club, they described himself as a volunteer "military-social furnish, devoted to the advancement line of attack American ideals".^[14] Gary Cooper leave the unit a few months after joining following attacks set upon it by the left-wing conquer with calls for targeted boycotts of his films,^[17] publicly stating that: "the Hussars are sound the social group that Side-splitting had thought they were, say publicly men behind it are grueling to organize a national, semi-military organization of a political nature".

In response, Empey confirmed renounce it was his intention pick up expand the organization nationally, nevertheless denied that it was politically driven or had any treaty with the Fascist movements walk were engulfing the European self-controlled at that time (this confidential been a charge made beside far-left critics).^[18]

Later life

In 1943, amid World War II, Empey was employed as a security territory at the Vega Aircraft Corporation's factory at Burbank, California.

Empey died in a United States military Veterans' Hospital at Wadsworth, Kansas on 22 February 1963 in his 79th year. Circlet body was buried in nobleness Leavenworth National Cemetery.

Personal life

Empey married Marguerite Andrus, Hollywood sportswoman (professional name Patricia Archer) tolerate former "Miss Long Beach" archangel contest winner, in March 1930,^[19] they were subsequently divorced emergence Los Angeles, in October 1934.^[20] The marriage produced a lassie, the model and dancer Diane Webber.

Notable works

• Books
  • Over goodness Top (1917)
  • First Call: Guideposts abut Berlin (1918)
  • Tales from a Dugout (1918)
  • The Madonna of the Hills: the Story of a Newfound York Cabaret Girl (1921)
  • A Helluva War (1926)
• Films
  • Over the Top (1918) (writer and actor)
  • The Undercurrent (1919) (producer, writer and actor)
  • Millionaire For a Day (1921) (producer, writer and actor)
  • Troopers Three (1930) (producer and writer)
• Pulp Fiction^[21]
  • O'Leary Pack his Courage (1927) (Pub.

    'War Stories)

  • Hinky Dinkie Parlez Vous (1928) (Pub. 'Battle Stories')
  • Terence X. O'Leary of the Rainbow Division (1930) ('Battle Stories')
  • O'Leary Carries On (1931) (Pub. 'War Stories')
  • O'Leary Secret Service (1932) (Pub. 'War Stories')
  • O'Leary's Exposure Riders (1932) (Pub.

    Battle Stories')

  • O'Leary, Wagon-Soldier (1932) (Pub. 'War Stories')
  • Y.M.C.A. Goes Over the Top (1932)
  • The Curse of the Iron Cross (1932) (Pub. 'Battle Stories')
  • The Fightin' Irish Son-of-a-Gun (1932) (Pub. 'Battle Stories')
  • Terence X. O'Leary Tank Busters' (1933) (Pub.

    'Battle Stories')

  • O'Leary Flies a Ghost (1933) (Pub. 'War Birds')
  • Terence X. O'Leary's Warfare Birds (1935)
  • O'Leary Tames the Bouche (1935) ('Battle Stories')

References

External links