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''Not to be confused with Herbert Mason the photographer who photographed St Paul's Survives (1940).'' Samuel George Herbert Mason (7 April 1891 – 20 May 1960) was a British film director, producer, stage actor, army officer, presenter of some revues, stage manager, stage director, choreographer, production manager and playwright.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b9f2b5ab2 )〕〔McFarlane, 2005, p. 462〕 He was a recipient of the Military Cross the prestigious award for "gallantry during active operations against the enemy." He received the gallantry award for his part in the Battle of Guillemont where British troops defeated the Germans to take the German stronghold of Guillemont. Mason began his theatrical career at the age of 16 and appeared in several productions at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre〔Kemp, 1943, p. 142〕 including Barry Jackson's ''The Christmas Party''.〔Kemp, 1943, p. 132〕 During the 1920s he stage managed some of the largest shows in London (including many of Andre Charlot's musical revues) and began his film career with the arrival of sound in motion pictures. Mason was the Assistant director for ''I Was a Spy'', which was very successful in the box office and voted best film of the year. He made his debut as director in 1936 with ''The First Offence''. His most prominent film was ''A Window in London'' a dark thriller set in the London Underground, which was a remake of the original French drama film ''Metropolitan''. Another successful film included ''Take My Tip'', in which he directed Jack Hulbert whose "dances () beautifully staged." Several rising actors and actresses (including Vivien Leigh) made their film debuts in some of his films before they rose to prominence. He worked for several studios and production companies including Gaumont British, Gainsborough Pictures, London Films and MGM-British Studios. Mason directed 16 films (from thrillers to comedies), moved into producing for the rest of his career and authored some plays with his wife Daisy Fisher, a novelist and playwright also with a background in theatre. His films were generally very well received, and some of them were marked out for the inventiveness of the plot, locations used for shooting and humour. Some of his films are remembered for introducing rising actors and actresses to the screen before they became famous. ==Early life== Samuel George Herbert Mason was born on 7 April, in Moseley, Birmingham the third of four children of Samuel George Mason (a Brass Founder at Samuel Mason Ltd) and Amy Mason (née Collins) and a nephew (by marriage) of the famous Shakespearean actress – Ellen Terry.〔Quinlan, 1999, p. 225〕 His grandfather Samuel Mason was also a Brass Founder. The firm was originally called Mason and Lawley – makers of balance cocks for clock movement. It was later renamed Samuel Mason Ltd specialising in bar equipment.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.georgeglazer.com/decarts/objects/siriusbrass.html )〕 Mason was educated at Solihull Grammar School and left aged 14. Mason was apprenticed in the family brass foundry prior to beginning his career as an actor in about 1907. He was a Stage Manager at the Palace Theatre and Birmingham Repertory Theatre (up to 1914) where he appeared in ''The Critic'' and ''The Christmas Party.''〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://theatricalia.com/play/2p6/the-christmas-party/production/eg1 )〕 Both the plays also starred Felix Aylmer and Frank Clewlow. Mason was an Officer in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment from 1914 and then in the Machine Gun Corps during the First World War. He joined the army about two months after marrying a chorus girl Daisy Fisher. On 17 November 1914 he received his commission as a temporary Second Lieutenant. He rose to the rank of Major and was awarded the Military Cross〔McFarlane, 2005, p. 462〕 for his great personal outstanding gallantry when commanding the 59th brigade machine gun company at the taking of Guillemont during the Battle of the Somme. The report written on 7 September 1916 (from the Public Record Office and the National Archives in Kew) is Mason's description of the battle. The 59th machine gun company had 16 machine guns and about 170 men. About half the men died in the battle. While his unit was waiting in line, he occupied himself doing a self-portrait using oil paints, which were presumably left by a French officer in the trench. Mason served in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment with the brother of Michael Balcon (who worked with Mason on ''The First Offence'', ''I was a Spy'' and ''Take My Tip'' as Producer).〔Balcon, 1969, p. 74〕 Additionally he served in the Machine Gun Corps with Clive Brook who later became an actor〔Aaker, Everett, 2013, p. 40〕 and a friend. Mason spent the whole four years in the Western Front was awarded the Mons Star – the medal of those who were in it from the beginning. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Herbert Mason」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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