Film director (1889-1943) remembered for his successful early sound films, including Tarzan the Ape Man (1932), The Thin Man (1934), and San Francisco (1936), which is considered the first of the true disaster films. Before entering the movie business, he was a gold miner, a lumberjack, a railroad worker, and a mercenary. Three different vintage signed and inscribed photos of the famed director, including: a matte-finish 10 x 8 photo of Van Dyke with African villagers, signed and inscribed in fountain pen, "Rena - My African interpreters, sorry I didn't teach them your name, Van"; a sepia glossy 10 x 8 photo of Van Dyke with a lifeless rhinoceros, signed and inscribed in fountain pen, "To Rena and Bill—The one on the right is me—I have a hat on, Van"; and a handsome matte-finish 8 x 10 portrait of the director in a tweed suit and patterned tie (with an MGM/Durward Graybill credit stamp on the reverse), signed and inscribed in fountain pen, "To you Bill, and thanks for everything! W.S. Van Dyke II." In overall fine condition, with scattered creasing, particularly to the rhinoceros photo, and a small chip to the lower left corner of the African villager photo.
His exploits filming Trader Horn (1931) in Africa made him the model for film director Carl Denham in King Kong. Noted for finishing films ahead of schedule, he was nicknamed 'One-Take Woody.' Robert Taylor said of him 'Woody cut as he shot.He used his camera as though it were a six-shooter and he was the fastest gun in Hollywood.'
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