Beaumont Smith

Frank Beaumont "Beau" Smith (15 August 1885 – 2 January 1950), was an Australian film director, producer and exhibitor, best known for making low-budget comedies.

Biography

Smith was born in Hallett, South Australia, and educated at East Adelaide Public School. He first worked as a journalist, writing for The Critic, The Register and The Bulletin, and helping C. J. Dennis found The Gadfly. He tried playwriting, working on an adaptation of On Our Selection with Steele Rudd – this was eventually rewritten by Bert Bailey to great success.^[1][2]

He later worked as secretary for William Anderson.^[3] In 1911 he managed a European troupe of midgets, "Tiny Town".^[4][5] and went into theatre management.^[6]

He was a fan of the works of Henry Lawson and adapted several of his stories for stage and film.^[7]

Film career

Smith made his first film in 1917, Our Friends, the Hayseeds. He went on to become one of the most prolific and popular Australian filmmakers of the silent era. Among his films were adaptations of the works of Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson. His 1933 comedy The Hayseeds featured the first screen appearance of Cecil Kellaway.

Smith was famous for making his films quickly – sometimes he would complete shooting and post production within one month for budgets ranging from £600 to £1,200. His wife Elsie would comment on his scripts and his brother Gordon looked after company finances. He was sometimes known as "One Shot Beau" or "That'll Do Beau".^[8]

In May 1919 he stopped producing films until better terms for exhibiting them could be found. He recommenced production in October.^[8]

Later career

Shrinking profits led to Smith retiring from filmmaking in 1925, although he returned briefly in the early 1930s. He became managing director of Williamson Films (New Zealand) Ltd (later J. C. Williamson Picture Corporation Ltd), Wellington.^[9] He retired to Killara, Sydney in 1938, and died in the Royal North Shore Hospital.

Personal life

Smith was married to Elsie Fleming from 1911, until his death. She was often an uncredited contributor with his work, helping him write scripts. His brother Gordon managed his finances.^[10]

Legacy

The National Library of Australia tracked down a collection of 300 reels of Smith's films, including all his features. However, when the researchers arrived to collect it they were told that the entire collection had been burnt within the previous weeks, on the advice of an insurance company because of the film's inflammable nature.^[11]

Selected filmography

• Our Friends, the Hayseeds (1917)
• The Hayseeds Come to Sydney (1917)
• The Hayseeds' Back-blocks Show (1917)
• The Hayseeds' Melbourne Cup (1918)
• Satan in Sydney (1918)
• Desert Gold (1919)
• Barry Butts In (1919)
• The Man from Snowy River (1920) – based on the poem by Banjo Paterson
• A Journey through Filmland (1921) – documentary
• The Betrayer (1921)
• While the Billy Boils (1921) – based on the stories of Henry Lawson
• The Gentleman Bushranger (1922)
• Townies and Hayseeds (1923)
• Prehistoric Hayseeds (1923)
• The Digger Earl (1924)
• Joe (1924) – based on the story by Henry Lawson
• Hullo Marmaduke (1925)
• The Adventures of Algy (1925)
• The Hayseeds (1933)
• Splendid Fellows (1934)

Selected Theatre Credits

• Seven Little Australians (1916)
• While the Billy Boils (1916) – adaptation^[12]
• Joe Wilson and His Mates (1916) – adaptation^[13]

References

External links

• Beaumont Smith at the Internet Movie Database
• Beaumont Smith biography at Australian Dictionary of Biography
• Beaumont Smith at Trove
• Beaumont Smith items at the National Film and Sound Archive