- After working as a technical advisor, production assistant and assistant producer for nearly a decade, Negulesco was finally offered a chance at directing. Jack L. Warner wanted his newest series of moderately budgeted films to be directed by his newest crop of directors. Although Negulesco received directorial credit for his first film, Singapore Woman (1941), he was fired in mid-production. He was also removed from his next assignment, The Maltese Falcon (1941) after working on that film for 2 months and replaced by John Huston as reward for his successful adaptation of High Sierra (1940). Dejected, Negulesco's friend, director Anatole Litvak suggested a book by Eric Ambler, "The Coffin of Dimitrios" and pitched the story to producer Henry Blanke. Retitled as The Mask of Dimitrios (1944), it remains one of the best films ever made by a novice director.
- Ironic that the "Gay Parisian" (a feature WB film short released to movie theaters in 1941) would be paired as a bonus with "The Maltese Falcon" (the WB feature film released to theaters in 1941) - on their WB-DVD; The director of the two WB feature film dance shorts assignments - "Gay Parisian" and "Spanish Fiesta," were filmed after one of Jean Negulesco's first film directorial assignment at Warner Brothers' Film Studio - directing "The Maltese Falcon." Previously Negulesco had been working as a second unit director on loan to Warner Brothers from Paramount Film Studios, Negulesco signed a WB contract, in 1940 until 1948, to direct short features. Between 1941 and 1944, Negulesco turned out a staple of shorts, generally of a musical nature and often featuring popular big bands, like those of Joe Reichman, Freddy Martin and Jan Garber. Negulesco's first feature film directing assignment was "The Maltese Falcon," replaced after two months with John Huston, coincidentally Huston's first directing job! John Huston had written the screen play adaption of "The Maltese Falcon," with back room politicking, replacing Negulesco. Warner Bros. added their feature-film short "Spanish Fiesta," paired with the WB/Bette Davis film DVD collection, as a bonus on the "This Is Our Life" DVD disc.
- Like David Lean, he directed for a few days on "The Greatest Story Ever Told" (without being credited) whilst George Stevens was enduring difficulties during location shooting.
- In early 1940, the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo dance company was located in Paris, France, performing their repertoire. With the German threat of war, the company hastily returned and remained in New York City. The dance company's American and South American tour had ended in late 1939. With the unstable world conditions focused in England, France, Poland and the Nazi-European war expansion, the Ballet Russe company directors's decision was to keep the company members safe in the United States. Completing the two WB feature film shorts, the ballet group returned to New York City to ponder their fate. The Ballet Russe impresario Rene Blum returned to Paris. Blum was arrested December 12, 1941 in his Parisian home. Among the first Jews to be arrested in Paris by the French police after France was defeated and occupied by the German Regime, he was held in the Beaune-La-Ronde camp, then in the Drancy deportation camp. On September 23, 1942, he was shipped to the Auschwitz concentration camp where he was later killed by the Nazis.
- Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume One, 1890-1945." Pages 827-832. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1987.
- Was approached to direct Adventures of Don Juan (1948).
- Film Director Jean Negulesco was usually paired with a sixty three year old WB Production Designer, Art Director Charles Martin Novi, born in Milan, Italy, on June 30, 1889. Charles Novi was part of the Jack L. Warner Brothers' feature film studio's stable of art department staff in 1940. Charles Novi was active with the WB Studio from 1936 to 1945. Charles Novi was nominated by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) for an Academy Award in the category "ART DIRECTION (COLOR)" for the WB film "The Desert Song" in 1945. Charles Novi's feature film short studio production design assignments represent his principal focused detailed designer style showcase.. Novi's artistic talents had a very Euorpean theatrical design style in his architectural analysis. These two feature film shorts illustrate Novi's approach to stage set design, and as a testimonial in the two Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo film shorts: "Gay Parisian" and "Spanish Fiesta".
- Jack L. Warner was a visionary in 1940, who had the authority to be totally inspired to bring the entire Frenchman's founding director Rene Blum's "Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo" ensemble dance troupe from their New York City temporary company based headquartered location to his California Burbank Studio after the ballet company's impresario Sol Hurok's American and South American international 1938-1939/40 tour had concluded. Jack Warner had seen the Rene Blum dance company's live performances in Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium during the impresario Sol Hurok's Rene Blum produced "The Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo" sponsored American and South American Tour. Jack Warner's determined sponsorship for presenting filmed stage theatricals as part of his prestigious film catalogue causing his impetus to produce two "WB feature-film shorts" using the ballet company's featured international Russian and French principal soloists and ensemble. Jack L. Warner demanded - new "film costumes" for his two "film shorts" - replacing all the original ballet company's worn and shabby tour costume wardrobe, originally designed and built by Madam Barbara Karinska in either her Paris, London, and New York City costume shops. The Ballet Company's wardrobe trunks had been delivered to Warner Brothers' Burbank film studio prior to the Ballet Russe Dance Company's personnel and management arrival at the film studio. The Warner Brothers' costume-wardrobe department meticulously copied every costume for the two short featurettes. The dance company's original ballet costumes were supervised and maintained by Barbara Karinska, who had toured with the ballet company's whirl-wind American and South American International Tour as the company's wardrobe mistress. Although Tamara Tormanova had been featured in the company's tour repertoire in "the glove role", she did not perform the role in this "Gay Parisian" film short. Tormanova performed in the Warner's second feature film short "Spanish Fiesta". Both film shorts were filmed in 1941, with the studio releasing "Gay Parisian" first in January, 1942, and the second short "Spanish Fiesta" in March, 1942.
- Former painter, stage designer, 2nd-unit director, assistant director
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content