Shirley Ulmer
Shirley Kassler Ulmer (June 12, 1914 - July 6, 2000) was an American screenwriter.[1][2]
Early life[edit]
Shirley Beatrice Kassler was born in New York in 1914.[1] After her banker father lost his saving in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, the family moved to California.[1]
Career[edit]
While living in California, Kassler "met picture people" and began working as a script supervisor in Hollywood.[3] She married Max Alexander, nephew of Universal Studios' founder Carl Laemmle, in 1933.[1][4]
While working on The Black Cat (1934) as a script supervisor, Kassler met Edgar G. Ulmer.[1][3] The two began a relationship after work on the film finished, and Kassler started divorce proceedings while living with Ulmer in the Hotel Christie on Hollywood Boulevard.[3] The relationship angered Kassler's uncle-in-law, Laemmie. He blacklisted Kassler and Ulmer, preventing either from getting jobs in Hollywood. Kassler's final work on a Hollywood film was Thunder Over Texas (1934), which she wrote, Ulmer directed, and her then-husband, Alexander, produced.[1]
After leaving Hollywood, Kassler and Ulmer married in early 1935, a few months before Kassler's 21st birthday,[3] and moved to New York, where Shirley modeled hats and Edgar worked as a cameraman for Pathé News.[1] The couple went to Canada in 1936, when they were hired by producer William Steiner to film a thriller called From Nine To Nine.[1] The two were paid poorly, making essentially no money after Shirley developed appendicitis and required medical care.[1] Their next project, Natalka Poltavka, was more successful,[1] and Shirley played a small role in the film after an actress no-showed.[3]
While living in New York, the couple were encouraged to make films for the large Yiddish-speaking population there.[1] Their first film, Green Fields (1937), was a success, leading to subsequent films. Shirley Ulmer continue to worked on scripts for her husband's films, including The Light Ahead (1939),[5] American Matchmaker (1940),[2] Girls in Chains (1943), Jive Junction (1943), Strange Illusion (1945), and Detour (1945).[1]
Ulmer also worked as a script supervisor under the name Shirley Castle for directors such as Frank Borzage, Frank Lloyd, Douglas Sirk, and William Wyler.[1][6] She also worked as a script supervisor for the TV series Batman, CHIPs, The Lone Ranger, and S.W.A.T.[1][2][6]
Ulmer co-wrote novels under the name Shirle Castle,[2][6] and a 1986 book titled The Role Of Script Supervision In Film And Television.[1][7]
Following Edgar Ulmer's death in 1972, Shirley Ulmer became director of the Edgar G Ulmer Preservation Corporation.[1]
Filmography[edit]
| Year | Film | Role | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1934 | I Can't Escape | [3] | |
| The Black Cat | Script supervisor | [1] | |
| Thunder Over Texas | Story, Script supervisor | [5] | |
| 1937 | Natalka Poltavka | Script supervisor | |
| Green Fields | |||
| 1939 | The Singing Blacksmith | ||
| Cossacks in Exile | |||
| Moon Over Harlem | Script writer, supervisor | ||
| The Light Ahead | Script writer | ||
| 1940 | American Matchmaker | Script writer, supervisor | |
| 1943 | Girls in Chains | [1] | |
| Jive Junction | |||
| 1945 | Detour | ||
| Strange Illusion | |||
| 1948 | Ruthless | Script supervisor | [5] |
| 1960 | The Amazing Transparent Man | ||
| Beyond the Time Barrier | |||
| 1973 | Little Cigars | ||
| 1975 | Return to Macon County |
Personal life[edit]
Ulmer had a daughter with her second husband, Edgar Ulmer.[1]
Ulmer died of natural causes in July 2000 in Los Angeles.[6]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Bergan, Ronald (2000-09-04). "Shirley Ulmer". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-12-03.
- ^ a b c d Archives, L. A. Times (2000-08-14). "Shirley Kassler Ulmer; Screenwriter of 'American Matchmaker'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
- ^ a b c d e f Weaver, Tom (2010-06-21). I Was a Monster Movie Maker: Conversations with 22 SF and Horror Filmmakers. McFarland. pp. 227–236. ISBN 978-0-7864-6265-0.
- ^ Isenberg, Noah William (2014-01-09). Edgar G. Ulmer: A Filmmaker at the Margins. Univ of California Press. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-520-23577-9.
- ^ a b c "SHIRLEY ULMER". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
- ^ a b c d Wolf, Jonathan (2000-08-16). "Shirley Kassler Ulmer". Variety. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
- ^ Ulmer, Shirley; Sevilla, Carol R. (1986). The Role of Script Supervision in Film and Television: A Career Guide. Hastings House. ISBN 978-0-8038-6366-8.