Morris R. Schlank

• Born: 1885c in Omaha, Nebraska
• Died: Jul 29, 1932 in Murietta Hot Springs, California
• Occupation: Director
• Active: '20s
• Major Genres: Western, Crime
• Career Highlights: Perils of the Rail, Drifting Souls, Crossed Signals
• First Major Screen Credit: Storm Girl (1922)

Biography

The owner of a costume rental service in Hollywood, American screen executive Morris R. Schlank became a producer in 1920, releasing a series of Charley Chase comedies. Schlank also inaugurated a series of inexpensive slapstick comedies featuring lower-echelon comic Hank Mann. As the 1920s went on, Schlank switched to cheap action and Western fare, specializing in oaters featuring the likes of Bob Reeves, Helen Holmes (of the Hazards of Helen fame), Cliff Lyons, and Cheyenne Bill. Released by the Schlank-operated Anchor organization, the Lyons and Bill series were produced back to back at Kernville in central California, just about the cheapest Westerns ever unleashed upon an unsuspecting audience. The Schlank Westerns were directed by the veteran Benjamin F. Wilson and were among the final silent oaters to enjoy country-wide distribution. Morris R. Schlank died of a heart attack while taking a rest cure at Murietta Hot Springs in Southern California. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide