St. Elmo Boyce(1899-1930)

St. Elmo Boyce was born on August 16, 1899. He worked as a theater manager in El Paso, Texas before becoming a cinematographer. St. Elmo began working for Mack Sennett as a scenario writer in 1926. In 1928 he wrote the Hoot Gibson feature The Wild West Show. He eventually left Sennett to direct films. St. Elmo directed the Barney Google series and several of the Toots and Casper shorts starring Bud Duncan and Thelma Hill. He was engaged to Thelma Hill for several years. In February of 1930 he was arrested for drunk driving. On September 30, 1930 he committed suicide at age thirty-one. He was found in his home at 1617 N Gardner Street with an empty bottle of poison at his side. St. Elmo Boyce was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.