The Film Crew of Hollywood: Profiles of Grips, Cinematographers, Designers, a Gaffer, a Stuntman and a Makeup Artist

255 Pages·2013·13.74 MB·English

by  James C. Udel

The Film Crew
of Hollywood
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The Film Crew
of Hollywood
Profiles of Grips,
Cinematographers, Designers,
a Gaffer, a Stuntman
and a Makeup Artist
J C. U
AMES DEL
McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Jefferson, North Carolina, and London
LIBRARYOFCONGRESSCATALOGUING-IN-PUBLICATIONDATA
Udel, James C., 1959–
The film crew of Hollywood : profiles of grips, cinematographers,
designers, a gaffer, a stuntman and a makeup artist / James C. Udel.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-7864-6484-5
♾
softcover : acid free paper
1. Motion pictures—Production and direction.
2. Motion picture producers and directors—United States—Interviews. I. Title.
PN1995.9.P7.U34 2014 791.4302'33'092273—dc23 2013035497
BRITISHLIBRARYCATALOGUINGDATAAREAVAILABLE
© 2014 James C. Udel. All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying
or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publisher.
On the cover: Gaffer Earl Gilbert (frame right, pointing)
instructs the placement of his favorite Kansas arc
lights for a scene in George Stevens’ The Greatest
Story Ever Told(Earl Gilbert Collection)
Manufactured in the United States of America
McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Box 611, Jefferson, North Carolina 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
Table of Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1. Dan Striepeke, Makeup Artist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2. Carl Manoogian, Key Grip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3. Gene LeBell, Stuntman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
4. William Fraker, Cinematographer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
5. Earl Gilbert, Gaffer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
6. Tommy May, Key Grip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
7. George Barris, Motion Picture Automotive Designer . . . 135
8. Albert Brenner, Production Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
9. Richard Kline, Cinematographer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
10. Gaylin Schultz, Key Grip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
v
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Preface
This book is intended for everyone who loves classic films and television. While most
movie buffs are aware of their favorite actor, director, and even some writers, the missing
piece of filmdom’s puzzle has been the crew. An in-depth look at ten individual career paths
encompassing the end of the studio system through the independent age of Hollywood, this
book focuses on the work of Dan Striepeke, Carl Manoogian, Gene LeBell, Bill Fraker,
Earl Gilbert, Tommy May, George Barris, Albert Brenner, Richard Kline, and Gaylin
Schultz. Covering fifty years of Hollywood production from the perspective of cinematog-
raphers, grips, production designers, a makeup artist, an automotive designer, a stuntman,
and a gaffer, this compilation of interviews includes rare, behind-the-scenes photos and the
facts behind them. The book reveals production facts from the famous films The Greatest
Story Ever Told, Rosemary’s Baby and Catch 22, naming just a fraction of the hundreds
covered in the process. The crew interviews include humorous on-set anecdotes and never-
published accounts of everything from camera placement and film emulsion to proprietary
gadgets created to solve production problems.
Giving these largely unsung individuals a moment in the spotlight, to share recollections
of their triumphs, films, and friendships, the book also serves to enhance the appreciation
of these crews and the great shows to which they contributed.
During the course of over thirty years in the motion picture industry, working on
everything from professional wrestling to Pee-wee’s Playhouse and from Miami Vice to The
Rockford Files, I have come to know some fascinating individuals within the various crafts.
I was forced to quit due to a severe back injury incurred while on the neo-classic Being John
Malkovich, but still had a desire to participate in the field I loved, and did so by telling the
histories of those I met along the way. Beginning with interviews at the Motion Picture
Home, I was soon contributing to a Hollywood trade magazine that published shorter ver-
sions of the stories drawn from the retired locals, who were experienced in every walk of
production life. Receiving a first-rate education in film history during the course of the
conversations, I shot them in the hopes of making a documentary. After the movie concept
proved too expensive without corporate funding, I decided to turn them into a book proj-
ect.
The Film Crew of Hollywood is important because it captures and preserves these his-
tories before they are lost to the world—the personal triumphs and tragedies of the aging
crews who plied their skills for so long without recognition. These chapters illustrate the
methods devised for motion picture-making during a time where arc lights ruled the night,
and shiny boards filled the shadows.
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2 Preface
Research for this book was exhaustingly inclusive. Each person’s entire career was cat-
alogued and turned into a time line to aid in the interview process. The end result allowed
for a flow to the Q & A that often produced more information than bargained for, yet
proved to be priceless in shaping the big picture. In addition to sources such as IMDb,
Wikipedia, Google, and the Ephraim Katz Film Encyclopedia, certain movies were also
viewed in order to be able to discuss the craft within specific scenes. This structured method
of questioning prompted additional recollections from the subjects and the substance of the
project grew.
There are few published works that strictly focus on individual crew member accom-
plishments; among them are Barbara Baker’s Let the Credits Roll and Roy P. Webber’s
Dinosaur Films of Ray Harryhausen. This book fills the void between just knowing movies
and learning the intricate details of their creation from those who lived it. Gaining personal
perspective beyond the average writer in the field because of my own below-the-line grip
experience, I was able to ask the proper technical questions for an open dialogue between
writer and subject.
Finally, The Film Crew of Hollywood is different because it focuses on the production
of specific movies and on the people who made them, as told in their own language.
With current consumer demand dictating content through digital downloads on every-
thing from smart phones to laptop theaters, connection to the hard-lit heyday of the past
is like appreciation of any fine art made generations before: It requires time and study to
get it. In listening to this last generation of greats tell their stories of artistic providence,
well-planned mechanics, and paying dues, one can only hope that the next wave of film-
folk who read Profileswill be as enlightened as I have been by the extraordinary experiences
of these men.
Introduction
Growing up in Baltimore during the ’50s post-war boom, I was hardly groomed for
literary success. While the town had its share of local culture including the Walters Art
Gallery, Center Stage, and Sabatinos restaurant, the bulk of my artistic awakening came
from my father, through the films he took me to see. Although I was born to the burgh
of Barry Levinson and John Waters, my heroes were Brooks Robinson and Johnny U; but
then Dad’s influence as the city’s finest portrait photographer set me on a path to life in
the film business. Drafted as his assistant at ten, I started humping gear to help, since a
war injury had left him minus a leg. Taken to movies on afternoons off, I was exposed to
everything from Buster Keaton and the Marx Brothers to the modern movies Lawrence of
Arabia,Cat Ballou, and The Guns of Navarone. Dad pointed out strong composition within
the pictures, and answered endless questions pertaining to the how and why of their pho-
tography. After the father-son phase of blind allegiance bowed to making it on my own, I
left the family studio to work for others. Starting with local production gigs at Lee Bonner
Films with Mark Birnbaum (where my sole qualification for employment was as kid brother
to the director’s girlfriend), I began in the biz like many greats—through nepotistic cun-
ning!
Ultimately moving to New York City at age 17, I did everything from rental house
work to production assistant chores in pursuit of the gold-plated dance ticket known as a
union card. Unable to break into the I.A. after years of effort (despite charm and attempted
bribery) I was compelled to seek my fortune elsewhere. Packing all that I was into a thirty-
foot truck (including a wife and fourteen-month-old son) we “hauled house” across the
country and moved to Tinseltown on a hunch.
Chasing the dream by working my way up the food chain, I built sets, assisted art
director Sidney J. Bartholomew and did a stint with Roger Corman until I was able to get
my card within our first year out west. Working for the next twenty years in Los Angeles
as a production grip and occasional still photographer, I came to understand the difficulty
of producing great motion pictures like those from my childhood, and I began to have a
curiosity about the guys who made them, and where they ended up. I started with visits to
the Motion Picture Retirement Home armed with a list of my favorite flicks and room
numbers of folks living there who worked on them; before long I found faces to fit the
credits and subjects willing to share their stories. While their recollections grew richer as
my visits became more frequent, the idea of a “golden age” project became my passion. I
submitted requests to do a documentary (tentatively titled Tales from the Home); a corporate
refusal dashed that plan to the rocks. Yet all was not lost. A Hollywood trade magazine ran
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