Harold Rosson
Encyclopedia
Harold G. "Hal" Rosson, A.S.C. (b. April 6, 1895 New York, New York – d. September 6, 1988 Palm Beach, Florida
) was an American
cinematographer
during the early and classical Hollywood cinema
. He is best known for his work on the 1939
masterpiece The Wizard of Oz
.
, was a successful director and several other family members such as Richard
were also involved in the early film industry.
Harold Rosson began his film career in 1908 as an actor at the Vitagraph Studios
in the Flatbush
area of Brooklyn, New York. He became the assistant to Irvin Willat
at the Mark Dintenfass Studios. In 1912 he divided his time as an office boy in a stockbrokers firm and as and assistant, extra, and handyman at the Famous Players Studio in New York.
In December 1914, Rosson moved to California
and joined Metro Pictures
. During World War I
he served in the army
. After his demobilization he went to work on the Marion Davies
film The Dark Star. He was offered a contract with the Davies Company. In 1920 he was signed by Mary Pickford
working primarily with her brother Jack Pickford
.
After a very long and successful career in Hollywood, Rosson retired in 1958; he returned in 1966 for the Howard Hawks film El Dorado starring John Wayne
. He was married to actress Jean Harlow
[1933-34]. His sister Helene Rosson
[1897-1985] was an actress, his brother Richard [1893-1953] was an actor/director (who had played the romantic lead in The Patchwork Girl of Oz
) and brother Arthur
[1886-1960] was a film director.
: The Wizard of Oz
(1939), Boom Town
(1940), Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo
(1944), The Asphalt Jungle
(1950), The Bad Seed
(1956). He was awarded an Honorary Oscar
for the color cinematography of the 1936 David O. Selznick
production The Garden of Allah.
He is interred in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Hollywood, CA.
Palm Beach, Florida
The Town of Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The Intracoastal Waterway separates it from the neighboring cities of West Palm Beach and Lake Worth...
) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
during the early and classical Hollywood cinema
Classical Hollywood cinema
Classical Hollywood cinema or the classical Hollywood narrative, are terms used in film history which designates both a visual and sound style for making motion pictures and a mode of production used in the American film industry between roughly the 1910s and the early 1960s.Classical style is...
. He is best known for his work on the 1939
1938 in film
The year 1938 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*January — MGM announces that Judy Garland would be cast in the role of "Dorothy" in the upcoming Wizard of Oz motion picture. Ray Bolger is cast as the "Tinman" and Buddy Ebsen is cast as the "Scarecrow". At Bolger's insistence,...
masterpiece The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
.
Biography
Rosson came from a film-making family. His brother, Arthur RossonArthur Rosson
Arthur Rosson was an English film director. He directed 61 films between 1917 and 1948.He was born in London and died in Los Angeles, California. Rosson came from a film-making family. His brother, Harold Rosson, was an Academy Award-nominated cinematographer and several other family members were...
, was a successful director and several other family members such as Richard
Richard Rosson (filmmaker)
Richard Rosson was an American film director and actor. As an actor, he was known for the nearly 100 films he was in during the silent era...
were also involved in the early film industry.
Harold Rosson began his film career in 1908 as an actor at the Vitagraph Studios
Vitagraph Studios
American Vitagraph was a United States movie studio, founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York. By 1907 it was the most prolific American film production company, producing many famous silent films. It was bought by Warner Bros...
in the Flatbush
Flatbush, Brooklyn
Flatbush is a community of the Borough of Brooklyn, a part of New York City, consisting of several neighborhoods.The name Flatbush is an Anglicization of the Dutch language Vlacke bos ....
area of Brooklyn, New York. He became the assistant to Irvin Willat
Irvin Willat
Irvin Willat was an American film director of the silent film era. He directed 39 films between 1917 and 1937. Early in his career Willat worked as a cinematographer on several films...
at the Mark Dintenfass Studios. In 1912 he divided his time as an office boy in a stockbrokers firm and as and assistant, extra, and handyman at the Famous Players Studio in New York.
In December 1914, Rosson moved to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and joined Metro Pictures
Metro Pictures
Metro Pictures Corporation was an American motion picture production company founded in late 1915 by Richard A. Rowland . Louis B. Mayer who worked for Metro Pictures Corporation early on. It is not to be confused with MGM which is a much later franchise concerning itself, Goldwyn and Louis B....
. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he served in the army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. After his demobilization he went to work on the Marion Davies
Marion Davies
Marion Davies was an American film actress. Davies is best remembered for her relationship with newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, as her high-profile social life often obscured her professional career....
film The Dark Star. He was offered a contract with the Davies Company. In 1920 he was signed by Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
working primarily with her brother Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford
Jack Pickford was a Canadian-born American actor. He was best known for his tabloid lifestyle, marriage to the top starlets of his day, and being of the famous Pickford acting family.-Early life:...
.
After a very long and successful career in Hollywood, Rosson retired in 1958; he returned in 1966 for the Howard Hawks film El Dorado starring John Wayne
John Wayne
Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...
. He was married to actress Jean Harlow
Jean Harlow
Jean Harlow was an American film actress and sex symbol of the 1930s. Known as the "Blonde Bombshell" and the "Platinum Blonde" , Harlow was ranked as one of the greatest movie stars of all time by the American Film Institute...
[1933-34]. His sister Helene Rosson
Helene Rosson
Helene Rosson was an American silent film actress.Rosson entered film in 1915 and starred in 37 films over her ten year career until 1925....
[1897-1985] was an actress, his brother Richard [1893-1953] was an actor/director (who had played the romantic lead in The Patchwork Girl of Oz
The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1914 film)
The Patchwork Girl of Oz is a silent film made by L. Frank Baum's The Oz Film Manufacturing Company. It was based on the book The Patchwork Girl of Oz....
) and brother Arthur
Arthur Rosson
Arthur Rosson was an English film director. He directed 61 films between 1917 and 1948.He was born in London and died in Los Angeles, California. Rosson came from a film-making family. His brother, Harold Rosson, was an Academy Award-nominated cinematographer and several other family members were...
[1886-1960] was a film director.
Awards
Harold Rosson was nominated for five Academy AwardsAcademy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
: The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
(1939), Boom Town
Boom Town (film)
Boom Town is a 1940 adventure drama Hollywood film starring Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Claudette Colbert, Hedy Lamarr, and Frank Morgan. A story written by James Edward Grant in Cosmopolitan magazine titled "A Lady Comes to Burkburnett" provided the inspiration for the film.-Plot:"Big John"...
(1940), Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo
Thirty Seconds over Tokyo
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo is a 1944 MGM war film. It is based on the true story of America's first retaliatory air strike against Japan four months after the December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The movie was directed by Mervyn LeRoy and produced by Sam Zimbalist. The screenplay by...
(1944), The Asphalt Jungle
The Asphalt Jungle
The Asphalt Jungle is a 1950 film noir directed by John Huston. The caper film is based on the novel of the same name by W. R. Burnett and stars an ensemble cast including Sterling Hayden, Jean Hagen, Sam Jaffe, Louis Calhern, James Whitmore, and, in a minor but key role, Marilyn Monroe, an unknown...
(1950), The Bad Seed
The Bad Seed (film)
The Bad Seed is a 1956 American horror-thrillerfilm directed by Mervyn LeRoy. It is based upon a play by Maxwell Anderson, which in turn is based upon William March's 1954 novel The Bad Seed. The play was adapted by John Lee Mahin for the screenplay of the film...
(1956). He was awarded an Honorary Oscar
Academy Honorary Award
The Academy Honorary Award, instituted in 1948 for the 21st Academy Awards , is given by the discretion of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to celebrate motion picture achievements that are not covered by existing Academy Awards, although prior winners of...
for the color cinematography of the 1936 David O. Selznick
David O. Selznick
David O. Selznick was an American film producer. He is best known for having produced Gone with the Wind and Rebecca , both of which earned him an Oscar for Best Picture.-Early years:...
production The Garden of Allah.
He is interred in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Hollywood, CA.
External links
- http://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/09/obituaries/harold-g-rosson-93-oz-cinematographer.html?scp=1&sq=Harold+Rosson&st=nyt