Biography
A stage actor and director in the late 1900s, James W. Horne began directing films in the mid teens, initially specializing in serials such as
Stingaree,
The Midnight Man, and
The Third Eye. In the '20s he made numerous actioners and comedies, and helmed the
Buster Keaton feature
College. Horne began directing Laurel and Hardy short comedies with their 1929 silent classic
Big Business; he also guided them in their sound shorts
Chickens Come Home,
Laughing Gravy,
Our Wife,
Come Clean,
One Good Turn,
Beau Hunks,
Any Old Port, and
Thicker than Water, as well as their features
Bonnie Scotland,
The Bohemian Girl (co-directed with Charles Rogers), and
Way Out West. He returned to serials in the late '30s, and helmed such notable action fare as
The Shadow,
Holt of the Secret Service,
The Iron Claw,
The Spider Returns, and
Captain Midnight. ~ All Movie Guide