James B. Fagan

Biography

James Bernard Fagan arrived in Belfast as the son of Sir John Fagan, the esteemed consulting surgeon to the Royal Hospital, yet the operating theatre held no charm for him. On 13 October 1895 he stepped onto a different kind of stage, making his acting debut, but four years later he traded applause for ink and paper, unveiling his first play, “The Rebels,” in 1899. Scripts soon tumbled into celluloid; IMDb lists the screen versions of his dramas, two flickering to life after he was gone. Between pages and premieres he produced tirelessly across England, and in 1927 he tripled as author, producer, and performer for “And So to Bed” at New York’s Shubert Theatre. Hollywood beckoned in 1929 with The Wheel of Life, adapted from his own stage hit, and clinched his reputation three years later when he refashioned Smilin’ Through for Norma Shearer. A first marriage to Elizabeth Kirby unraveled; he later wed Mary Grey, who survived him along with their two sons.