Robert Florey

Robert Florey (1900–1979) was born in Paris. He pursued acting, writing, and directing one-reel films while a student in Geneva. Back in France, he assisted director Louis Feuillade on L'Orpheline (1921). Florey came to Hollywood as a French press representative in 1921. His first industry job was as assistant to director Emmett Flynn on Monte Cristo (1922). He then worked for Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford at United Artists as director of foreign publicity and accompanied Rudolph Valentino on a European tour. In the mid-1920s Florey was assistant director on such MGM films as The Masked Bride (1925) and The Exquisite Sinner (1926). His first feature as director was One Hour of Love (1927). Florey made four experimental short films and at Paramount in New York directed several early sound films. Over the next two decades Florey directed more than 60 films. Perhaps best known for his horror films, from Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) to The Beast with Five Fingers (1947), he also collaborated on the original screenplay for Frankenstein (1931). For Monsieur Verdoux (1947) he was associate director to Charlie Chaplin. Turning to television in 1950, Florey became a prolific director. His books on Hollywood history were published in France.