Christy Cabanne

William Christy Cabanne (April 16, 1888 – October 15, 1950) was an American film director, screenwriter, and silent film actor. Born in 1888, Cabanne (pronounced CAB-a-nay) started his career on stage as an actor and director. He appeared on-screen in dozens of short films between 1911 and 1915. He gradually became a film director and in fact one of the more prolific directors of his time (see filmography below). He signed on with the Fine Arts Film Company and was employed as an assistant to D.W. Griffith. Miriam Cooper credited him with discovering her as an extra in 1912. Cabanne directed legendary child actress Shirley Temple in The Red-Haired Alibi (1932) in her first credited role in a feature-length movie.Cabanne earned a reputation for efficiency, and was capable of turning out feature films very quickly, often on rugged locations. Like fellow silent-era directors William Beaudine, Elmer Clifton, Harry Fraser, and Lambert Hillyer, Cabanne was resourceful, and kept working for both major and minor studios through the 1930s and 1940s. By the forties Cabanne was usually entrusted with low-budget action fare at Universal Pictures, and finished his career making lower-budget westerns for Monogram Pictures.