Biography
Mervyn LeRoy was an American film director, producer, and sometime actor. LeRoy worked in costumes, processing labs and as a camera assistant until he became a gag writer and actor in silent films, including The Ten Commandments in 1923. LeRoy credits Ten Commandments director, Cecil B. DeMille, for inspiring him to become a director: "As the top director of the era, DeMille had been the magnet that had drawn me to his set as often as I could go." LeRoy also credits DeMille for teaching him the...
Known For
Complete Filmography

Hollywood, The Dream Life of Lana Turner
2019
as Self (archive footage)
Portrait of Julia Jean Turner, from her childhood to her rise of fame as Lana Turner, to her last role.

Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words
2015
as Self (archive footage)
A personal and captivating account of the extraordinary life and work of Ingrid Bergman (1915-82), a young Swedish woman who became one of the most ce...

You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story
2008
as Self (archive footage)
Jack L. Warner, Harry Warner, Albert Warner and Sam Warner were siblings who were born in Poland and emigrated to Canada near the turn of the century....

42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage
2006
as Self (archive footage)
Making-of documentary about the 1933 musical, 42nd Street.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: 50 Years of Magic
1990
as Self (archive footage)
Documentary about the making of the 1939 MGM classic film The Wizard of Oz. Includes interviews of cast and crew members, their families and fans of t...

The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
1988
as Self (archive footage)
This documentary revisits the making of Gone with the Wind via archival footage, screen tests, insightful interviews and rare film footage.

James Stewart: A Wonderful Life
1987
as Self (archive footage)
Documentary about James Stewart's long career as an actor and positive personal life.

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
1983
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Out-takes (mostly from Warner Bros.), promotional shorts, movie premieres, public service pleas, wardrobe tests, documentary material, and archival fo...

The Making of the Wizard of Oz
1979
as Self
The time was 1938. The place, Hollywood. This is the story of one of the 456 films made that year, how it was made, and why it has endured.

Moment to Moment
1966
Producer, Director
When an erring wife's supposedly dead lover turns up an amnesiac, it's her unsuspecting shrink husband who's enlisted to get those memories back.

Mary, Mary
1963
Director, Producer
Sparks fly when a recently-divorced couple is forced back into proximity to sort out a tax matter.

Gypsy
1962
Director, Producer
Rose Hovick lives to see her daughter June succeed on Broadway by way of vaudeville. When June marries and leaves, Rose turns her hope and attention t...

A Majority of One
1961
Director, Producer
A gentle love story about a Japanese businessman and widower, and a Brooklyn widow. But before a happy ending can ensue, they must learn again the les...

The Devil at 4 O'Clock
1961
Director
A crusty, eccentric priest recruits three reluctant convicts to help him rescue a children's leper colony from a Pacific island menaced by a smolderin...

Wake Me When It's Over
1960
Director, Producer
The war may be over, but that doesn't keep the hapless Gus Brubaker from being drafted and posted on a forgotten little Japanese Island...and that's j...

The FBI Story
1959
Director, Producer
A dedicated FBI agent recalls the agency's battles against the Klan, organized crime and Communist spies.

Home Before Dark
1958
Director
A young woman returns home after being institutionalized in a mental hospital.

No Time for Sergeants
1958
Director
Georgia farm boy Will Stockdale is about to bust with pride. He’s been drafted. Will’s ready. But is Uncle Sam ready for Will?

Toward the Unknown
1956
Director, Producer
Tortured into a false confession while a POW in Korea, Major Lincoln Bond returns to active service as a test pilot. Determined to clear his name, Bon...

The Bad Seed
1956
Director, Producer
Air Force Colonel Kenneth Penmark and his wife, Christine, adore their daughter Rhoda, despite her secret tendency for selfishness. Christine keeps he...

Mister Roberts
1955
Director
Mr. Roberts is a Navy officer who's yearning for battle but is stuck in the backwaters of World War II on a non-commissioned ship run by the bullying ...

Strange Lady in Town
1955
Director, Producer
Julia Garth, a female doctor, plans to introduce modern techniques of medicine to old Santa Fe in 1880, but is opposed by an established doctor, Rourk...

Rose Marie
1954
Director
Rose Marie Lemaitre, an orphan living in the Canadian wilderness, falls in love with her guardian, Mike Malone, an officer of the Royal Canadian Mount...

Latin Lovers
1953
Director
An heiress searches for true love while vacationing in Brazil.

Million Dollar Mermaid
1952
Director
After overcoming polio, Annette Kellerman achieves fame and creates a scandal when her one-piece bathing suit is considered indecent.

Lovely to Look At
1952
Director
Three broke Broadway producers are desperately looking for backers for a new show. When they are about to give up, one of them discovers that they are...

Quo Vadis
1951
Director
After fierce Roman commander Marcus Vinicius becomes infatuated with beautiful Christian hostage Lygia, he begins to question the tyrannical leadershi...

Rome, the Eternal City
1951
as Self
A Traveltalk style documentary look at Rome.

East Side, West Side
1949
Director
A vain businessman puts strains on his happy marriage to a rich, beautiful socialite by allowing himself to be seduced by a former girlfriend.

Any Number Can Play
1949
Director
When illegal casino owner Charley Kyng develops heart disease, he is advised by a doctor to spend more time with his family. However, he finds it diff...

The Great Sinner
1949
Co-Director
A young man succumbs to gambling fever.

Little Women
1949
Director, Producer
Louisa May Alcott's autobiographical account of her life with her three sisters in Concord Mass in the 1860s. With their father fighting in the civil ...

Homecoming
1948
Director
Self-absorbed Dr. Lee Johnson enlists with the Army medical corps during World War II, more out of a feeling that it's "the thing to do" rather than d...

Desire Me
1947
Director
A war widow falls in love with the man who informed her of her husband's death.

Without Reservations
1946
Director
Kit Madden is traveling to Hollywood, where her best-selling novel is to be filmed. Aboard the train, she encounters Marines Rusty and Dink, who don't...

The House I Live In
1945
Director, Producer
Frank Sinatra teaches a group of young boys a lesson in religious tolerance.

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo
1944
Director
In the wake of Pearl Harbor, a young lieutenant leaves his expectant wife to volunteer for a secret bombing mission which will take the war to the Jap...

Madame Curie
1943
Director
Poor physics student Marie is studying at the Sorbonne in 1890s Paris. One of the few women studying in her field, Marie encounters skepticism concern...

You, John Jones!
1943
Director
John Jones contemplates how fortunate he and his family are in America, where no wartime bombing occurs.

Random Harvest
1942
Director
Wandered away from his asylum, an amnesiac World War I veteran falls in love with a music hall star but his amnesia makes it difficult to last.

Johnny Eager
1941
Producer, Director
A charming racketeer seduces the DA's stepdaughter for revenge, then falls in love.

Unholy Partners
1941
Director
A crusading newsman starts up a tabloid with a gangster as his 50-50 partner.

Blossoms in the Dust
1941
Director, Producer
Edna marries Texan Sam Gladney, operator of a wheat mill. They have a son, who is killed when very young. Edna discovers by chance how the law treats ...
You Can't Fool a Camera
1941
as Himself
This short starts out as a documentary. In a dramatization, Eadward Muybridge's photographic experiments prove that when a horse gallops, there are ti...

Escape
1940
Director, Producer
An American goes to pre-war Germany to find his mother and discovers her in a concentration camp. With the help of an American-born widowed countess h...

Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
1940
as Self
This 1940 presentation features highlights of earlier (1928 onward) Oscar ceremonies including Shirley Temple and Walt Disney, plus acceptance speeche...

Waterloo Bridge
1940
Director
On the eve of World War II, a British officer revisits Waterloo Bridge and recalls the young man he was at the beginning of World War I and the young ...

At the Circus
1939
Producer
Jeff Wilson, the owner of a small circus, owes his partner Carter $10,000. Before Jeff can pay, Carter's accomplices steal the money so he can take ov...

The Wizard of Oz
1939
Producer
Young Dorothy finds herself in a magical world where she makes friends with a lion, a scarecrow and a tin man as they make their way along the yellow ...

Stand Up and Fight
1939
Producer
A southern aristocrat clashes with a driver transporting stolen slaves to freedom.

Dramatic School
1938
Producer
Aspiring actress Louise Muban attends the prestigious Paris School of Drama during the day and works at a dreary factory assembling gas meters at nigh...

Fools for Scandal
1938
Director, Producer
An incognito Hollywood star in Paris meets a penniless nobleman who follows her to London.

The Great Garrick
1937
Producer
A British actor insults a French acting group only to fall victim to a prank that might destroy his career.

Mr. Dodd Takes the Air
1937
Producer
A country bumpkin becomes a singing sensation on the radio.

They Won't Forget
1937
Director
A southern town is rocked by scandal when teenager Mary Clay is murdered on Confederate Decoration Day. Andrew Griffin, a small-time lawyer with polit...

The King and the Chorus Girl
1937
Director
A destitute, bored monarch falls in love with a chorus girl.

Three Men on a Horse
1936
Director
A meek salesman with an uncanny ability to pick horses is virtually kidnapped by a trio of gamblers.

Anthony Adverse
1936
Director
Based on the novel by Hervey Allen, this expansive drama follows the many adventures of the eponymous hero, Anthony Adverse. Abandoned at a convent by...

The Making of a Great Motion Picture
1936
Narrated documentary of the making of Anthony Adverse (1936), featuring many clips from the actual film.

I Found Stella Parish
1935
Director
A blackmailer preys on an actress who is trying to protect her daughter from her past.

Page Miss Glory
1935
Director
A country girl goes to the city and gets a job in a posh hotel, and winds up becoming an instant celebrity thanks to an ambitious photographer.

Oil for the Lamps of China
1935
Director
An American oil company representative almost sacrifices his marriage for his career.

Sweet Adeline
1934
Director
In 1898, composer Sid Barnett manages to get his sweetheart, Adeline the beer-garden singer, to sing the lead in his new Broadway operetta; this infur...

Happiness Ahead
1934
Director
Society heiress Joan Bradford rebels against her mother's choice of a future husband by masquerading as a working class girl and dating a window washe...

Heat Lightning
1934
Director
A lady gas station attendant gets mixed up with escaped murderers.

Hi, Nellie!
1934
Director
Managing Editor Brad Bradshaw refuses to run a story linking the disappearance of Frank Canfield with embezzlement of the bank. He considers Frank a s...

The World Changes
1933
Director
Generational saga tracing the events in the lives of the midwest pioneering Nordholm family, as seen through the eyes of businessman Orin Nordholm Jr....

Tugboat Annie
1933
Director
Tugboat, the Narcissus, is owned and captained by Annie Brennan, and among her crew are her alcoholic but good-natured husband, Terry, and her conscie...

Gold Diggers of 1933
1933
Director
When all Broadway shows are shut down during the Depression, a trio of desperate showgirls scheme to bilk a repugnant high society man of his money to...

Elmer, the Great
1933
Director
Elmer does not want to leave Gentryville, because Nellie is the one that he loves. Even when Mr. Wade of the Chicago Cubs comes to get him, it is only...

Hard to Handle
1933
Director
A hustling public relations man promotes a series of fads.

I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang
1932
Director
A World War I veteran’s dreams of becoming a master architect evaporate in the cold light of economic realities. Things get even worse when he’s false...

Three on a Match
1932
Director
Although Vivian Revere is seemingly the most successful of a trio of reunited schoolmates, she throws it away by descending into a life of debauchery ...

Big City Blues
1932
Director
An Indiana boy comes into an inheritance and moves to New York City, living it up with his girlfriend until he gets in over his head and someone gets ...

Two Seconds
1932
Director
A condemned murderer, in the process of being executed, relives the events that led to his being sentenced to die in the electric chair. Told in flash...

The Heart of New York
1932
Director
A poor New York plumber's wife and children hope to move "uptown" from their lower East Side neighborhood after he sells his new invention.

High Pressure
1932
Director
Gar Evans is a con artist, who pretends to be the owner of a "Golden Gate Artificial Rubber Company", and he is looking for investors. Finding them is...

Local Boy Makes Good
1931
Director
John is a timid student who works at the University Book Store. He is studying to be a botanist and has a secret crush on the lovely Julia. One day, o...

Five Star Final
1931
Director
Searching for headlines at any cost, an unscrupulous newspaper owner forces his editor to print a serial based on a past murder, tormenting a woman in...

Broadminded
1931
Director
Jack's father lowers the boom when his irresponsible rich-kid ends up in jail after a night of debauchery. The father appoints Ossie, Jack's cousin, a...

Too Young to Marry
1931
Director
In this comedy drama set in a small town, a milque-toast gets a backbone and stands up to his overbearing wife. Only one of his daughters is on his si...

Gentleman's Fate
1931
Director
A bootlegger falls apart when his wife leaves him.

Little Caesar
1931
Director
A small-time hood shoots his way to the top, but how long can he stay there?

Tonight or Never
1931
Director
A young opera singer finds her career stalled because of her cold and passionless performances, until she finds romance with a handsome admirer.

Top Speed
1930
Director
An order clerk poses as a millionaire.

Numbered Men
1930
Director
Prison drama from 1930. Mary Dane and falsely imprisoned Bud Leonard love each other, but Lou Rinaldo, who framed Bud to get Mary, and escape-minded K...

Show Girl in Hollywood
1930
Director
Broadway actress leaves New York to become a star in Hollywood, and succeeds despite sleazy directors and her own ego.

Playing Around
1930
Director
New York girl has a dull boyfriend and seems destined for a dull marriage when she meets a rich playboy who has money to burn and places to go.

Little Johnny Jones
1929
Director
Little Johnny Jones is a jockey who is in love with his all-American sweetheart, Mary Baker, and also his career as the rider of thoroughbred horses. ...

Broadway Babies
1929
Director
Dee is a naive chorus girl living in a boarding house full of low-paid actors. Dee and Billy are in love and he helps her to move from chorus girl to ...

Hot Stuff
1929
Director
An uptight society aunt sends her too sexy niece to college so she can land a man.

Naughty Baby
1928
Director
A cloak room girl (Alice White) falls for a rich boy who may not actually be rich.

Oh Kay!
1928
Director
On the eve of her wedding Lady Kay Rutfield runs off aboard her sloop. A storm carries her out to sea and she is rescued by a passing rumrunner bound ...

Harold Teen
1928
Director
Farmboy Harold moves to the city and there attends high school. Soon he is very popular, his spirited nature causing much excitement on the campus. He...

No Place to Go
1927
Director
Starry-eyed heiress Mary Astor yearns for a "cave man" who will treat her rough and make her like it.

Ella Cinders
1926
Scenario Writer
Poor Ella Cinders is much abused by her evil step-mother and step-sisters. When she wins a local beauty contest she jumps at the chance to get out of ...

The Chorus Lady
1924
as Duke (the jockey)
When her latest show closes, Pat O'Brien returns home. The stable owned by her fiancé, Dan Mallory, catches fire, and Pat helps save his prize horse, ...

Broadway After Dark
1924
as Carl Fisher
Ralph Norton, man-about-town and wealthy favorite in Broadway society circles, is attracted to Helen Tremaine, but her flirtatious behavior causes him...

The Call of the Canyon
1923
as Jack Rawlins
Returning from World War I, Glenn Kilbourne travels to Arizona to regain his health. He meets a local girl, Flo Hutler, who helps him recover. His fia...

Going Up
1923
as The Bellboy
Going Up (1923)

Little Johnny Jones
1923
as George Nelson, Jockey
Jockey Johnny Jones is hired to ride The Earl of Bloomsburg's horse at the English Derby. Crooked gambler Robert Anstead frames Johnny as a thief and ...

Prodigal Daughters
1923
as Newsboy
Elinor "Swifty" Forbes and her younger sister Marjory are the carefree daughters of wealthy J. D. Forbes. Their mother shows no restraint over her dau...

My American Wife
1922
as Extra
Manuel La Tessa, son of a wealthy South American family, meets Natalie Chester, a young Kentucky woman whose horse has won a race at a South American ...