Henry MacRae

Henry Alexander MacRae (August 29, 1876 – October 2, 1944) was a Canadian film director, producer, and screenwriter during the silent era. One of a number of Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood, MacRae was credited with many innovations in film production, including artificial light for interiors, the wind machine, double exposures, and shooting at night.

MacRae is best known to film buffs as the head of Universal Pictures' serial unit. He joined the company in 1911 and began making serials in 1914, when the Pathé studio's The Perils of Pauline popularized the chapter-play format. MacRae remained in charge of Universal's serial production for three full decades, until his death in 1944. Among his landmark serials are The Indians Are Coming (1929), Flash Gordon (1936), Buck Rogers (1939), The Green Hornet (1940), and Gang Busters (1942).