Erich von Stroheim's financial excesses and explosive temperament were condemned by many movie studios, von Stroheim was known for his eccentricities and his life full of excessive misguided energy. He was not only a passionate director, but a writer of many films, and a magnificent actor that took on many difficult roles. Erich von Stroheim - Director, actor, writer, editor, producer and costume designer. One of the true - if controversial - geniuses of the silent screen, he was initially an actor and in 1914 became a prot¨¦g¨¦ of D.W. Griffith. Von Stroheim's financial excesses and explosive temperament were condemned by the Universal (and later other studios). He was sometimes banished from the set, removed from production and saw his films edited to tragic proportions - thus quashing his artistic rebellion under the strict studio policy.
