James Cruze

American actor and director (1884–1942)

James Cruze

Cruze in 1923

Born|

Jens Cruz Bosen

(1884-03-27)March 27, 1884

Ogden, Utah, U.S.

Died| August 3, 1942(1942-08-03) (aged 58)

Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Resting place| Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Occupation(s)| Actor, film director
Years active| 1910–1938
Spouses|

(m. 1901; died 1907)​

Marguerite Snow

(m. 1913; div. 1923)​

Betty Compson

(m. 1924; div. 1930)​

Alberta Beatrice McCoy

(m. 1941)​

Children| 6

James Cruze (born Jens Cruz Bosen;[1][2][3] March 27, 1884[1][3] – August 3, 1942) was a silent film actor and film director.

## Early life[edit]

Born Jens Cruz Bosen in Ogden, Utah of Mormon parents,[2] Cruze acquired his middle name solely by virtue of his birth date. As Cruze's longtime friend and colleague, actor Luke Cosgrave, explained in a 1930 interview:

> Did you hear how Jimmy and I came together? I was playing in Boise with Charley Murray and we needed a young fellow for the good looking hero parts and I wired for Chester Stevens, who was in San Francisco, sending him a ticket to Boise. He got a job right then and handed the ticket to another young fellow. I met the train two days after I had expected Chester and thought how young he seemed. He soon informed me that he was not Chester but Jens Bosen of Ogden. You see, young Jens was born on March 27 and his mother wanted to name him after some famous man born on the same day, so she looked in the almanac, but no great man had a birthday on that date. But she did find it was the anniversary of the battle of Vera Cruze [sic], so she called him Jens Cruze Bosen.[3]

Birth name notwithstanding, Bosen and/or his parents decided well before his professional stage debut to anglicize at least his given name, as evidenced by the impassioned 8th grade commencement speech he delivered, as James Bosen, at Ogden's Central School in June 1898.[4]

## Career[edit]

Cruze acted in, directed and or produced over 100 films, mainly during the silent era. His first known acting job was at Lubin Manufacturing Company in 1910. He started at Thanhouser Company in 1911 with She (1911), which is where the majority of his body of work was produced, much of it as the leading man.[citation needed]

After leaving Thanhouser in 1916, he worked for several other companies as director and producer, primarily for Paramount Pictures, from 1918 to 1938.[citation needed]

Cruze struggled to regain his successes of the silent era when sound came to film. His career declined as he descended further into alcoholism, and he ended his directing career at Republic Pictures. He spent the last four years of his life unemployed, before he killed himself in 1942.[5]

## Personal life[edit]

Cruze was first married to a fellow Latter Day Saint, identity unknown, circa 1901 until her death in 1907; they had five children.[6][7] By no later than 1914, he had married actress Marguerite Snow,[8] and they had a daughter, Julie Jane. They divorced in 1923.[9] He married actress Betty Compson on October 14, 1924.[10] He married Alberta Beatrice McCoy in June 1941, and they were still wed when he died.[9]

## Death[edit]

Cruze died on August 3, 1942, at his home in Hollywood, California, aged 58.[9] His cremated remains are interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. [11]

## Filmography[edit]

Cruze in The Web of Life (1917) Cruze in The Million Dollar Mystery (1914)

### As director[edit]

Partial list

* The Wrong Road (1937)
* Sutter's Gold (1936)
* Two-Fisted (1935)
* David Harum (1934)
* Helldorado (1934)
* Mr. Skitch (1933) with Will Rogers
* I Cover the Waterfront (1933) with Claudette Colbert
* Washington Merry-Go-Round (1932) with Lee Tracy
* If I Had a Million (1932) 8 directors; Cruze directed segment with Gene Raymond and Frances Dee
* Salvation Nell (1931) based on the play by Edward Sheldon
* Once a Gentleman (1930)
* The Great Gabbo (1929) with Erich von Stroheim and Betty Compson
* A Man's Man (1929) with William Haines
* The Duke Steps Out (1929)
* The Mating Call (1928) produced by Howard Hughes starring Thomas Meighan, Evelyn Brent, and Renée Adorée (Preserved by the Academy Film Archive, in conjunction with UNLV, in 2016.[12])
* The City Gone Wild (1927) with Louise Brooks—lost film
* Old Ironsides (1926) partly filmed in experimental widescreen process Magnascope
* Mannequin (1926) with Alice Joyce, Warner Baxter, Dolores Costello
* The Pony Express (1925)
* Beggar on Horseback (1925) based on the play by George S. Kaufman and Marc Connelly
* Welcome Home (1925) with Lois Wilson
* Merton of the Movies (1924) based on the novel by Harry Leon Wilson and the play by Kaufman and Connelly
* The City That Never Sleeps (1924)
* The Enemy Sex (1924) lost film
* The Fighting Coward (1924) with Cullen Landis, Mary Astor
* The Covered Wagon (1923)
* Hollywood (1923) lost film
* To the Ladies (1923)
* One Glorious Day (1922) with Will Rogers
* The Dictator (1922) with Wallace Reid, Lila Lee
* Leap Year (1921) with Fatty Arbuckle
* Crazy to Marry (1921) with Arbuckle
* Gasoline Gus (1921) with Arbuckle
* The Dollar-a-Year Man (1921) with Arbuckle
* The Fast Freight (1921) with Arbuckle
* The Charm School (1921) with Wallace Reid
* Thirty Days (1922) with Reid and Hawley
* Food for Scandal (1920)
* An Adventure in Hearts (1919) with Robert Warwick
* Hawthorne of the U.S.A. (1919) with Reid
* The Valley of the Giants (1919) with Reid
* You're Fired (1919) with Reid and Wanda Hawley[13]
* The Roaring Road (1919) with Reid
* The Dub (1919)

### As actor[edit]

newspaper advertisement for Rivalry (1914)

* The Last of the Mohicans (1911)
* The Covered Wagon (1923) (scenes deleted) .... Indian (Cruze was also director)
* The Slave Market (1921)
* Johnny Get Your Gun (1919) .... The Duke of Bullconia
* Under the Top (1919) .... 'Foxy' Stillmore
* The Source (1918) .... Langlois
* Less Than Kin (1918) .... Jinx
* The City of Dim Faces (1918) .... Wing Lung
* Believe Me, Xantippe (1918) .... Simp Calloway
* Wild Youth (1918) .... Li Choo
* The Hidden Pearls (1918) .... Koro Leon
* Nan of Music Mountain (1917) .... Gale Morgan
* The Call of the East (1917) .... Janzo
* On the Level (1917) .... Ozmun
* What Money Can't Buy (1917) .... Ferdinand Vaslof
* The Web of Life (1917) .... Tom Wilson
* Her Temptation (1917) .... Walton Maynard
* The Snowbird (1916) .... Bruce Mitchell
* Armstrong's Wife (1915) .... Harvey Arnold
* His Guardian Auto (1915)
* The Patriot and the Spy (1915) .... Pietro
* The Heart of the Princess Marsari (1915)
* Zudora (1914) .... Hassam Ali/Jim Baird, Reporter (film was retitled The Twenty Million Dollar Mystery)
* From Wash to Washington (1914)
* The Million Dollar Mystery (1914) .... Jim Norton
* Rivalry (1914)
* A Dog of Flanders (1914)
* A Debut in the Secret Service (1914)
* The Cat's Paw (1914)
* The Desert Tribesman (1914)
* Cardinal Richelieu's Ward (1914) .... Richelieu
* A Leak in the Foreign Office (1914)
* Joseph in the Land of Egypt (1914) .... Joseph
* Why Reginald Reformed (1914)
* The Woman Pays (1914)
* The Adventures of a Diplomatic Freelance (1914)
* Frou Frou (1914) .... Comte Paul de Valreas
* The Legend of Provence (1913) .... Sir Henry
* The Silver-Tongued Orator (1913)
* The Plot Against the Governor (1913)
* A Daughter Worth While (1913)
* Moths (1913) .... Undetermined Name, villain
* Robin Hood (1913) (uncredited)
* The Message to Headquarters (1913)
* The Ward of the King (1913)
* An Unromantic Maiden (1913)
* Tannhäuser (1913)
* The Lost Combination (1913)
* The Snare of Fate (1913)
* Marble Heart (1913) .... Raphael
* Her Sister's Secret (1913)
* Rosie's Revenge (1913)
* The Woman Who Did Not Care (1913)
* Cymbeline (1913) .... Leonatus
* For Her Boy's Sake (1913)
* Her Gallant Knights (1913)
* The Idol of the Hour (1913)
* Good Morning, Judge (1913)
* The Dove in the Eagle's Nest (1913) .... The Eagle
* The Tiniest of Stars (1913) .... The Musician
* A Poor Relation (1913)
* When Ghost Meets Ghost (1913)
* A Militant Suffragette (1912) .... John Strong, Mary's Fiancé
* The Star of Bethlehem (1912) .... Micah, Joseph
* The Other Half (1912) .... The Father
* The Forest Rose (1912) .... Albert as an Older Man, Rose's Lover
* The Thunderbolt (1912) .... The Dishonest Broker
* Cross Your Heart (1912) .... The Little Boy Grown Up
* The Ladder of Life (1912)
* Put Yourself in His Place (1912) .... Edith's Husband
* In a Garden (1912) .... Jack, as an Adult
* The Woman in White (1912) .... Sir Percival
* When Mercy Tempers Justice (1912) .... The Impoverished Father
* Miss Robinson Crusoe (1912) .... Miss Crusoe's Rescuer and Lover
* Letters of a Lifetime (1912) .... A Dying Bachelor
* But the Greatest of These Is Charity (1912) .... The Rich Father
* Undine (1912) .... Huldbrand, the Knight
* Lucile (1912) .... Lord Alfred
* Baby Hands (1912) .... The Husband
* The Finger of Scorn (1912) .... The Minister
* Nursie and the Knight (1912) .... The Father
* Pa's Medicine (1912) .... The Doctor
* Under Two Flags (1912)
* Called Back (1912) .... Gilbert Vaughn
* Whom God Hath Joined (1912) .... The Husband
* The Ring of a Spanish Grandee (1912)
* Jess (1912) .... Captain John Neil
* Love's Miracle (1912) .... The Convict/Lover
* Miss Arabella Snaith (1912) .... Harry Hargreaves, Novelist
* The Cry of the Children (1912) .... The working father
* Rejuvenation (1912) .... The Millionaire
* Into the Desert (1912) .... The Arab
* A Love of Long Ago (1912)
* The Girl of the Grove (1912)
* For Sale—A Life (1912) .... The Wealthy Young Clubman
* he Golf Caddie's Dog (1912) .... The Lover
* Flying to Fortune (1912) .... The Daughter's Sweetheart
* The Arab's Bride (1912) .... The Wealthy Moor
* On Probation (1912)
* East Lynne (1912) .... Archibald Carlyle
* Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1912) .... Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde
* She (1911) .... Leo Vincey / Kallikrates
* Brother Bob's Baby (1911) .... Bob's Brother
* Beneath the Veil (1911) .... The Artist
* A Mother's Faith (1911) .... The Errant Son
* The Last of the Mohicans (1911) .... Uncas
* The Higher Law (1911)
* A Boy of the Revolution (1911)
* Back to Nature (1911)
* The Pied Piper of Hamelin (1911)

## Notes[edit]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b Sadoul, Georges (1972). Dictionary of Films. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. p. 53\. ISBN 0-520-01864-8. See also:

* Parish, James Robert; Pitts, Michael R. (1974). Film Directors: A Guide to Their American Films. Metuchen, NJ: The Scarecrow Press. p. 84\. ISBN 0-8108-0752-1.
* Katchmer, George (July 1, 1981). "More Forgotten Cowboys and Cowgirls". Classic Images, No. 76. p. 17\. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
2. ^ a b Tully, Jim (January 29, 1929). "James Cruze, Erstwhile Hobo: Director of The Covered Wagon' Was in Turn Roustabout, Waiter and Ham Actor". Hartford Courant. p. E3. "He is heavily muscled, broad-shouldered and leonine. As simple as a child, he is as deep as the riddle of life. His real name is Jens Cruze Bosen. He is the son of a Mormon Danish immigrant—a fanatic who settled in Utah as a follower of Brigham Young." Retrieved June 13, 2023.
3. ^ a b c "Veteran Thespian in Capital City; Luke Cosgrave Will Appear Before Footlights". The Idaho Statesman. June 1, 1930. p. 9\. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
4. ^ "Eight Grade Commencement". The Salt Lake Herald. June 4, 1898. p. 7\. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
5. ^ Eyman, Scott. The Speed of Sound: Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution 1926-1930. Simon and Schuster, New York: 1997.
6. ^ "A Worthy Successor; 'Something New Under the Sun'". The Ephraim Enterprise. October 31, 1901. p. 5\. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
7. ^ "Dies Very Suddenly". The Salt Lake Tribune. May 19, 1907. p. 20\. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
8. ^ Tinee, Mae (August 2, 1914). "An "Unsilent" Evening with MARGUERITE SNOW". Chicago Daily Tribune. pp. D4. ProQuest 173790037. "I was sitting in my room chatting with the darling white haired mother of Coles Phillips, the artist, when the telephone rang and Mrs. James Cruze—Marguerite Snow—asked me over to her apartment for dinner and to spend the evening."
9. ^ a b c "James Cruze, 58, Screen Director". The New York Times. August 5, 1942. p. 19. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
10. ^ "James Cruze Weds Betty Compson". The New York Times. October 15, 1924. p. 27. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
11. ^ West, Alice Pardoe (August 9, 1942). "Ogdenites Mourn Passing of Famed Film Character". The Ogden Standard-Examiner. p.14. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
12. ^ "Preserved Projects". Academy Film Archive.
13. ^ Article at PopMatters about rediscovered silent movies including Cruze's You're Fired! (November 5, 2010)

## Bibliography[edit]

* Ray Starman, "James Cruze: Cinema's Forgotten Director", Films In Review (October 1985), p. 460-465

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to James Cruze.

* James Cruze at IMDb

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Films directed by James Cruze

1910s|

* From Wash to Washington (1914)
* Too Many Millions (1918)
* The Dub (1919)
* Alias Mike Moran (1919)
* The Roaring Road (1919)
* You're Fired (1919)
* The Love Burglar (1919)
* The Valley of the Giants (1919)
* The Lottery Man (1919)
* Hawthorne of the U.S.A. (1919)
* An Adventure in Hearts (1919)

1920s|

* Terror Island (1920)
* Mrs. Temple's Telegram (1920)
* The Sins of St. Anthony (1920)
* What Happened to Jones (1920)
* Food for Scandal (1920)
* A Full House (1920)
* Always Audacious (1920)
* The Charm School (1921)
* The Dollar-a-Year Man (1921)
* Gasoline Gus (1921)
* Crazy to Marry (1921)
* One Glorious Day (1922)
* Is Matrimony a Failure? (1922)
* The Fast Freight (1922)
* The Dictator (1922)
* The Old Homestead (1922)
* Thirty Days (1922)
* The Covered Wagon (1923)
* Hollywood (1923)
* Ruggles of Red Gap (1923)
* To the Ladies (1923)
* Leap Year (1924) filmed 1921
* The Fighting Coward (1924)
* The Enemy Sex (1924)
* Merton of the Movies (1924)
* The City That Never Sleeps (1924)
* The Garden of Weeds (1924)
* The Goose Hangs High (1925)
* Waking Up the Town (1925)
* Welcome Home (1925)
* Beggar on Horseback (1925)
* Marry Me (1925)
* The Pony Express (1925)
* Mannequin (1926)
* Old Ironsides (1926)
* The Waiter from the Ritz (1926) never completed or released
* We're All Gamblers (1927)
* The City Gone Wild (1927)
* On to Reno (1928)
* The Mating Call (1928)
* The Red Mark (1928)
* Excess Baggage (1928)
* The Duke Steps Out (1929)
* A Man's Man (1929)
* The Great Gabbo (1929)

1930s|

* Once a Gentleman (1930)
* She Got What She Wanted (1930)
* Salvation Nell (1931)
* Washington Merry-Go-Round (1932)
* If I Had a Million (segment "Death Cell", 1932)
* Racetrack (1933)
* Sailor Be Good (1933)
* I Cover the Waterfront (1933)
* Mr. Skitch (1933)
* David Harum (1934)
* Their Big Moment (1934)
* Helldorado (1934)
* Two-Fisted (1935)
* Sutter's Gold (1936)
* The Wrong Road (1937)
* Prison Nurse (1938)
* Gangs of New York (1938)
* Come On, Leathernecks! (1938)

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