Bretaigne Windust

From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Ernest Bretaigne Windust January 20 1906 March 19 1960 was a USbased Frenchborn theater film and television director Career Planning to become an actor Windust cofounded with Charles Leatherbee the University Players in 1928 on Cape Cod in Falmouth Massachusetts The company lasted five years and included later luminaries Joshua Logan Henry Fonda James Stewart Margaret Sullavan Mildred Natwick Eleanor Phelps Barbara ONeil Myron McCormick Kent Smith and Aleta Freel Windust directed more often than he acted Though he began his association with the Theatre Guild in Manhattan as an assistant stage manager in 1929 he maintained his position as a director of the University Players in the offseason when they performed on Cape Cod through the summer of 1932 Indeed he quit the Theatre Guild briefly during the winter season of 193132 to direct the University Players through its 18week winter season in Baltimore Windusts first major Broadway hit was Life With Father the Russel CrouseHoward Lindsay play based on the memoirs of Clarence Day Jr a distant relative on Windusts mothers side At 3224 performances it held the record for the longestrunning Broadway production for many years In quick succession he followed with Arsenic and Old Lace and Strip for Action giving him three hits running on Broadway at the same time In 1947 Windust relocated to Hollywood where he worked as the dialogue director on Stallion Road starring Ronald Reagan His film directing career included two 1948 Bette Davis vehicles the melodramatic Winter Meeting and the screwball comedy June Bride The latter part of his career was spent working in the television division of Universal directing episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents Wagon Train Leave It to Beaver and Bachelor Father in addition to the Thanksgiving 1957 special The Pied Piper of Hamelin later released as a feature film