Norbert Brodine
Encyclopedia
Nobert Brodine was a film cinematographer. The Saint Joseph, Missouri
-born cameraman worked on over 100 films in his career before retiring from film making in 1955 after working on a Little Rascals television series.
Brodine's films include the sought after lost film
A Blind Bargain
(1922) starring Lon Chaney
, This Thing Called Love
(1929), The Death Kiss
(1932), Counsellor at Law
(1933), The House on 92nd Street
(1945), Somewhere in the Night (1946), Boomerang
and Kiss of Death
(both 1947), Thieves' Highway
(1949), The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
(1951) and 5 Fingers
(1952).
Brodine began his cameraman career working in a camera shop and later building on that experience in the Army Signal Corps during World War I
. After studying at Columbia University
, he began working as a still photographer in Hollywood before moving to motion pictures in 1919. Began working exclusively for Hal Roach Studios in 1937 and then moved on to 20th Century Fox
in 1943.
Brodine shot several films with Laurel and Hardy
at both Roach and Fox, such as Pick a Star
(1937), Swiss Miss
(1938), The Dancing Masters
(1943), and The Bullfighters
(1945). He put his outdoor camera skills to good use on semi-documentary films shot on location for films like Kiss of Death. Brodine moved back to Hal Roach Studios to end his career in the 1950s.
Saint Joseph, Missouri
Saint Joseph is the second largest city in northwest Missouri, only second to Kansas City in size, serving as the county seat for Buchanan County. As of the 2010 census, Saint Joseph had a total population of 76,780, making it the eighth largest city in the state. The St...
-born cameraman worked on over 100 films in his career before retiring from film making in 1955 after working on a Little Rascals television series.
Brodine's films include the sought after lost film
Lost film
A lost film is a feature film or short film that is no longer known to exist in studio archives, private collections or public archives such as the Library of Congress, where at least one copy of all American films are deposited and catalogued for copyright reasons...
A Blind Bargain
A Blind Bargain
A Blind Bargain is a silent horror film starring Lon Chaney and Raymond McKee, released through Goldwyn Pictures. The movie was directed by Wallace Worsley and is based on Barry Pain's 1897 novel, The Octave of Claudius...
(1922) starring Lon Chaney
Lon Chaney, Sr.
Lon Chaney , nicknamed "The Man of a Thousand Faces," was an American actor during the age of silent films. He was one of the most versatile and powerful actors of early cinema...
, This Thing Called Love
This Thing Called Love
This Thing Called Love is a US romantic comedy film starring Edmund Lowe, Constance Bennett, Ruth Taylor, Roscoe Karns, Zazu Pitts, and Jean Harlow. Harlow appears in a cameo role, as she was not yet famous....
(1929), The Death Kiss
The Death Kiss
The Death Kiss is a mystery film starring David Manners as a crusading studio writer, Adrienne Ames as an actress, Bela Lugosi as a studio manager, and Edward Van Sloan as a film director. The comedy thriller features three leading players from the previous year's Dracula , and was the first film...
(1932), Counsellor at Law
Counsellor at Law
Counsellor at Law is a 1933 American drama film directed by William Wyler. The screenplay by Elmer Rice is based on his 1931 play of the same title.-Plot:...
(1933), The House on 92nd Street
The House on 92nd Street
The House on 92nd Street is a 1945 black-and-white spy film directed by Henry Hathaway. The film, shot mainly in New York City, was released shortly after the end of World War II. The House on 92nd Street was made with the full cooperation of the Federal Bureau of Investigation , and its head, J....
(1945), Somewhere in the Night (1946), Boomerang
Boomerang (1947 film)
Boomerang! is a 1947 film based on the true story of a vagrant who was accused of murder, only to be found innocent through the efforts of the prosecutor...
and Kiss of Death
Kiss of Death (1947 film)
Kiss of Death is a 1947 film noir movie directed by Henry Hathaway and written by Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer from a story by Eleazar Lipsky. The story revolves around the film's protagonist, a former robber, and the antagonist, the ruthless, violent Tommy Udo...
(both 1947), Thieves' Highway
Thieves' Highway
Thieves' Highway is a 1949 film noir directed by Jules Dassin. The screenplay was written by A. I. Bezzerides, based on his novel Thieves' Market.-Plot:...
(1949), The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel is a 1951 biographical film about Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in the later stages of World War II. It stars James Mason in the title role, was directed by Henry Hathaway, and was based on the book Rommel by Brigadier Desmond Young, who served in the Indian Army in...
(1951) and 5 Fingers
5 Fingers
5 Fingers, known also as Five Fingers, is a 1952 American 20th Century Fox spy film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and produced by Otto Lang. The screenplay by Michael Wilson and Mankiewicz was based on Operation Cicero by L.C...
(1952).
Brodine began his cameraman career working in a camera shop and later building on that experience in the Army Signal Corps 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...
. After studying at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, he began working as a still photographer in Hollywood before moving to motion pictures in 1919. Began working exclusively for Hal Roach Studios in 1937 and then moved on to 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
in 1943.
Brodine shot several films with Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
at both Roach and Fox, such as Pick a Star
Pick a Star
Pick a Star is a 1937 musical comedy film starring Rosina Lawrence, Jack Haley, Patsy Kelly and Mischa Auer, directed by Edward Sedgwick, produced by Hal Roach, and released through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer...
(1937), Swiss Miss
Swiss Miss
Swiss Miss is a brand name for cocoa powder and pudding products sold by American food company, ConAgra Foods, Inc. Created with a blend of "dark European cocoa", Swiss Miss is a well-established brand of instant hot chocolate in America...
(1938), The Dancing Masters
The Dancing Masters
The Dancing Masters is a 1943 Laurel and Hardy feature film. The plot involves the team running a ballet school, and getting involved with an inventor...
(1943), and The Bullfighters
The Bullfighters
The Bullfighters is a late Laurel and Hardy feature film. The plot involves the team working as private detectives who've come to Mexico City hot on the trail of Hattie Blake, a.k.a. Larceny Nell. Meanwhile, Stan Laurel is found to resemble a famous matador, Don Sebastian...
(1945). He put his outdoor camera skills to good use on semi-documentary films shot on location for films like Kiss of Death. Brodine moved back to Hal Roach Studios to end his career in the 1950s.