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43-521: Victor Lonzo Fleming (February 23, 1889 – January 6, 1949) was an American film director, cinematographer , and producer. His most popular films were Gone with the Wind , for which he won an Academy Award for Best Director , and The Wizard of Oz (both 1939). Fleming has those same two films listed in the top 10 of the American Film Institute 's 2007 AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies list. Fleming

86-483: A "man's director"; however, he also proved an effective director of women. Under his direction, Vivien Leigh won the Best Actress Oscar , Hattie McDaniel won for Best Supporting Actress , and Olivia de Havilland was nominated. In the opinion of veteran cinematographer Archie Stout , of all the directors he worked with Fleming was the most knowledgeable when it came to camera angles and appropriate lenses. He

129-417: A Holiday (1934); Les Misérables (1935) with Charles Laughton ; Anna Karenina (1935) with Greta Garbo ; Anthony Adverse (1936) with Olivia de Havilland ; and as the original Norman Maine in A Star is Born (1937) with Janet Gaynor , for which he received his third Academy Award nomination. March resisted signing long-term contracts with the studios, enabling him to play roles in films from

172-572: A Hollywood great who "rejected the Hollywood studio system" and "built a brilliant stage and film career" despite lacking the "instant name recognition" of contemporaries like Humphrey Bogart and Cary Grant . March is also remembered for his later character roles such as those in Inherit the Wind , Seven Days in May , and The Iceman Cometh , roles he played during what was considered a downturn in his film career at

215-399: A Salesman (1951). March gained popularity after establishing himself with leading man roles in films such as Honor Among Lovers (1931), Merrily We Go to Hell (1932), Design for Living (1933), Death Takes a Holiday , The Barretts of Wimpole Street (both 1934), Les Misérables , Anna Karenina , The Dark Angel (all 1935), Nothing Sacred (1937), and I Married

258-478: A Witch (1942). His later film roles include Executive Suite , The Bridges at Toko-Ri (both 1954), The Desperate Hours (1955), Inherit the Wind (1960), and Seven Days in May (1964). He made his final film appearance in The Iceman Cometh (1973). March was also known for his stage roles; he made his Broadway debut in the play The Melody Man (1926), and during his stage career he twice won

301-777: A devout Presbyterian Church elder who worked in the wholesale hardware business. March attended the Winslow Elementary School (established in 1855), Racine High School , and the University of Wisconsin–Madison , where he was a member of Alpha Delta Phi . March served in the United States Army during World War I as an artillery lieutenant. He began a career as a banker, but an emergency appendectomy caused him to re-evaluate his life and, in 1920, he began working as an "extra" in movies made in New York City, using

344-473: A role modeled on John Barrymore . He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the 5th Academy Awards in 1932 for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (tied with Wallace Beery for The Champ , although March accrued one more vote than Beery ). This led to roles in a series of classic films based on stage hits and classic novels like Design for Living (1933) with Gary Cooper and Miriam Hopkins ; Death Takes

387-414: A shortened form of his mother's maiden name. He appeared on Broadway in 1926, and by the end of the decade, he signed a film contract with Paramount Pictures . "March's special ability was to suggest genuine mental pain. As a portrayer of tortured and distressed men, he has no equal. The complete physical control which allows him convincingly to sag, stoop and collapse is assisted by a face suggesting at

430-670: A total of five films – Red Dust , The White Sister , Test Pilot , Gone with the Wind , and Adventure . He owned the Moraga Estate in Bel Air, Los Angeles , California, then a horse ranch. Frequent guests to his estate included Clark Gable , Vivien Leigh , Ingrid Bergman , and Spencer Tracy . He died en route to a hospital in Cottonwood, Arizona , after suffering a heart attack on January 6, 1949. His death occurred shortly after completing Joan of Arc (1948) with Ingrid Bergman, one of

473-678: A touch of literary distinction to boy's-own adventure stories. His two most famous films came in 1939, when The Wizard of Oz was closely followed by Gone with the Wind . Fleming's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941), with Spencer Tracy , was generally rated below Rouben Mamoulian 's 1931 pre-Code version, which had starred Fredric March . Fleming's 1942 film version of John Steinbeck 's Tortilla Flat starred Tracy, John Garfield , Hedy Lamarr , and Frank Morgan . Other films that Fleming made with Tracy include Captains Courageous (for which Tracy won his first Oscar), A Guy Named Joe , and Test Pilot . He directed Clark Gable in

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516-657: A variety of studios. He returned to Broadway after a ten-year absence in 1937 with a notable flop, Yr. Obedient Husband , but after the success of Thornton Wilder 's The Skin of Our Teeth , he focused as much on Broadway as on Hollywood . He won two Best Actor Tony Awards : in 1947 for the play Years Ago , written by Ruth Gordon , and in 1957 for his performance as James Tyrone in the original Broadway production of Eugene O'Neill 's Long Day's Journey Into Night . He also had major successes in A Bell for Adano in 1944 and Gideon in 1961, and he played in Ibsen's An Enemy of

559-617: Is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work on one particular motion picture . A number of cinematographers have become directors, including Reed Morano who lensed Frozen River and Beyoncé's Lemonade before winning an Emmy for directing The Handmaid's Tale . Barry Sonnenfeld , originally the Coen brothers ' DP; Jan de Bont , cinematographer on films such as Die Hard and Basic Instinct , directed Speed and Twister . Nicolas Roeg , cinematographer on films such as The Caretaker (1963) and The Masque of

602-683: The 26th Annual Academy Awards ceremony from New York City, with co-host Donald O'Connor in Los Angeles. March's neighbor in Connecticut, playwright Arthur Miller , was thought to favor March to inaugurate the part of Willy Loman in the Pulitzer Prize –winning Death of a Salesman (1949). However, March read the play and turned down the role, whereupon director Elia Kazan cast Lee J. Cobb as Willy and Arthur Kennedy as one of Willy's sons, Biff Loman . Cobb and Kennedy were two actors with whom

645-620: The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and the hunt for Communists in the film community. In July 1940, he was among a number of individuals who were questioned by a HUAC subcommittee which was led by Representative Martin Dies Jr. Later, in 1948, he and his wife sued the anti-communist publication Counterattack for defamation , seeking $ 250,000 in damages. The suit was settled out of court. March died of prostate cancer in Los Angeles on April 14, 1975, at

688-735: The Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play , for his performances in the Ruth Gordon play Years Ago (1947) and in Eugene O'Neill 's Long Day's Journey into Night (1956). He and Helen Hayes are the only actors to have won both the Academy Award and the Tony Award twice. March was born in Racine, Wisconsin , the son of Cora Brown Marcher (1863–1936), a schoolteacher from England, and John F. Bickel (1859–1941),

731-482: The 1960 Stanley Kramer film Inherit the Wind , in which he played a dramatized version of famous orator and political figure William Jennings Bryan . March's Bible-thumping character provided a rival for Tracy's Clarence Darrow -inspired character. In the 1960s, March's film career continued with a performance as President Jordan Lyman in the political thriller Seven Days in May (1964) in which he co-starred with Burt Lancaster , Kirk Douglas , and Edmond O'Brien ;

774-607: The People on Broadway in 1951. During this period, he also starred in films, including I Married a Witch (1942) and Another Part of the Forest (1948). March won his second Oscar in 1946 for The Best Years of Our Lives . March also branched out into television, winning Emmy nominations for his third attempt at The Royal Family for the series The Best of Broadway as well as for television performances as Samuel Dodsworth and Ebenezer Scrooge . On March 25, 1954, March co-hosted

817-599: The Red Death (1964), directed Don't Look Now (1973) and The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976). Ellen Kuras, ASC photographed Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind as well as a number of Spike Lee films such as Summer of Sam and He Got Game before directing episodes of Legion and Ozark. In 2014, Wally Pfister , cinematographer on Christopher Nolan 's three Batman films , made his directorial debut with Transcendence , whilst British cinematographers Jack Cardiff and Freddie Francis regularly moved between

860-454: The UK at the outset of World War II by taking a bet as to how long the country could withstand an attack by Germany. The accuracy of Revere's characterization of Fleming has been disputed, however. According to Victor Fleming: An American Movie Master , Revere had made her comment because she felt she had been cast in the film The Yearling over Flora Robson because Robson was British. However, at

903-540: The advancement of cinematography, including: The A.S.C. defines cinematography as: A creative and interpretive process that culminates in the authorship of an original work of art rather than the simple recording of a physical event. Cinematography is not a subcategory of photography. Rather, photography is but one craft that the cinematographer uses in addition to other physical, organizational, managerial, interpretive and image-manipulating techniques to effect one coherent process. The Academy Award for Best Cinematography

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946-432: The advent of artificial lighting and faster (more light-sensitive) film stocks , in addition to technological advancements in optics, the technical aspects of cinematography necessitated a specialist in that area. Cinematography was key during the silent movie era; with no sound apart from background music and no dialogue, the films depended on lighting, acting, and set. The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC)

989-463: The age of 29, and by the end of the decade, he had signed a film contract with Paramount Pictures . He made seven pictures in 1929. He went on to receive two Academy Awards , for his performances in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931) and The Best Years of Our Lives (1946). His other Oscar-nominated performances were in the films The Royal Family of Broadway (1930), A Star is Born (1937), and Death of

1032-461: The age of 77. He was buried at his estate in New Milford, Connecticut . March is regarded as one of the most eminent Hollywood actors of the 1930s and 1940s. Critic and Turner Classic Movies host Ben Mankiewicz opined that "two actors from Hollywood’s golden age really stand in a tier above the rest ... Spencer Tracy and Fredric March". Boston Globe writer Joan Wickersham described March as

1075-453: The cinematographer what is wanted from a scene visually and allow the cinematographer latitude in achieving that effect. The scenes recorded by the cinematographer are passed to the film editor for editing . In the infancy of motion pictures, the cinematographer was usually also the director and the person physically handling the camera. As the art form and technology evolved, a separation between director and camera operator emerged. With

1118-427: The collegiate organization was named, the (later national) KKK was a small regional organization. As the national KKK became better known, the collegiate organization changed its name in 1922. False rumors based on a misunderstanding of the organization of which March was a member were spread on social media and alleged that March was a white supremacist . The 500-seat theater at the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh

1161-606: The director had worked in the film Boomerang (1947). March later regretted turning down the role and finally played Willy Loman in Columbia Pictures 's 1951 film version of the play , directed by Laslo Benedek . March earned his fifth and final Oscar nomination as well as a Golden Globe Award . He also played one of two leads in The Desperate Hours (1955) with Humphrey Bogart . Bogart and Spencer Tracy had both insisted upon top billing, and Tracy withdrew, leaving

1204-453: The director's vision. Relations between the cinematographer and director vary. In some instances, the director will allow the cinematographer complete independence, while in others, the director allows little to none, even going so far as to specify exact camera placement and lens selection. Such a level of involvement is less common when the director and cinematographer have become comfortable with each other. The director will typically convey to

1247-592: The end than there was Gable in Gable. I think that Gable mimicked Fleming and became that kind of man on the screen.”—Filmmaker Henry Hathaway , from interview in Focus on Film No. 7, 1971 In 1932, Fleming joined MGM and directed some of the studio's most prestigious films. Red Dust (1932), Bombshell (1933), and Reckless (1935) showcasing Jean Harlow , while Treasure Island (1934) starring Wallace Beery and Captains Courageous (1937) with Spencer Tracy brought

1290-654: The few films that he did not make for MGM. Despite mixed reviews, Fleming's film version of the life of Joan received seven Oscar nominations, winning two. It was reported in James Curtis 's book Spencer Tracy: A Biography that Anne Revere once said Fleming was "violently pro- Nazi " and strongly opposed to the United States entering World War II . According to the Fleming biography Victor Fleming: An American Movie Master , by author Michael Sragow , Fleming had once mocked

1333-552: The part available for March. In 1957, March was awarded the George Eastman Award, given by George Eastman House for "distinguished contribution to the art of film". On February 12, 1959, March appeared before a joint session of the 86th United States Congress , reading the Gettysburg Address as part of a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln 's birth. March co-starred with Spencer Tracy in

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1376-638: The part earned March a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actor. March made several spoken word recordings, including a version of Oscar Wilde 's The Selfish Giant issued in 1945 in which he narrated and played the title role, and The Sounds of History , a twelve volume LP set accompanying the twelve volume set of books The Life History of the United States , published by Time-Life . The recordings were narrated by Charles Collingwood , with March and his wife Florence Eldridge performing dramatic readings from historical documents and literature. Following surgery for prostate cancer in 1970, it seemed his career

1419-589: The philanthropist Wallis Annenberg and the actors Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston . Throughout his life, March and Eldridge were supporters of the Democratic Party . In July 1936, March co-founded the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League (HANL) , along with the writers Dorothy Parker and Donald Ogden Stewart , the director Fritz Lang , and the composer Oscar Hammerstein . In 1938, March was one of many Hollywood personalities who were investigated by

1462-546: The program included Josef von Sternberg , Ernest B. Schoedsack , and Lewis Milestone . He showed a mechanical aptitude early in life; while working as a car mechanic, he met the director Allan Dwan , who took him on as a camera assistant. He soon rose to the rank of cinematographer, working with both Dwan and D. W. Griffith , and directed his first film in 1919. Many of his silent films were action movies, often starring Douglas Fairbanks , or Westerns. Because of his robust attitude and love of outdoor sports, he became known as

1505-436: The same time both intelligence and sensitivity"—Australian-born film historian John Baxter . Like Laurence Olivier , March had a rare protean quality to his acting that allowed him to assume almost any persona convincingly, from Robert Browning to William Jennings Bryan to Dr Jekyll - or Mr. Hyde. He received an Oscar nomination for the 4th Academy Awards in 1930 for The Royal Family of Broadway , in which he played

1548-402: The time of the casting, Fleming was working on the film Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde , which featured a British producer and a cast largely composed of British or British Commonwealth actors. Furthermore, Revere did not know Fleming beyond their professional relationship. Cinematographer The cinematographer is a subordinate of the director , tasked with capturing a scene in accordance with

1591-571: The time. March was briefly a member of an interfraternity society composed of leading students formed at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1919 and 1920 named the Ku Klux Klan which is not believed to have been affiliated with the notorious organization of that name. In actuality, March was an outspoken proponent of the civil rights movement for five decades, and worked closely with the NAACP . When

1634-618: The two positions. Fredric March Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel ; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated stars of the 1930s and 1940s. As a performer he was known for his versatility. He received numerous accolades including two Academy Awards , a Golden Globe Award , and two Tony Awards as well as nominations for three BAFTA Awards and three Emmy Awards . March began his career in 1920, by working as an extra in movies filmed in New York City. He made his stage debut on Broadway in 1926 at

1677-650: Was born at the Banbury Ranch near what is now La Cañada Flintridge, California , the son of Eva (née Hartman) and William Richard Lonzo Fleming. He served in the photographic section for the United States Army during World War I , and acted as chief photographer for President Woodrow Wilson in Versailles , France. Beginning in 1918, Fleming taught at and headed Columbia University 's School of Military Cinematography, training over 700 soldiers to cut, edit, shoot, develop, store and ship film; filmmakers that participated in

1720-581: Was formed in 1919 in Hollywood , and was the first trade society for cinematographers. Similar societies were formed in other countries. For example, the British Society of Cinematographers (BSC). Their aims include the recognition of the cinematographer's contribution to the art and science of motion picture making. There are a number of national associations of cinematographers that represent members (irrespective of their official titles) and are dedicated to

1763-613: Was formerly named after March. The University of Wisconsin–Madison had named the 168-seat at the Memorial Union as the Fredric March Play Circle Theater ; however, in 2018, his name was removed, after student protests following reports of March's membership in a student fraternal organization calling itself Ku Klux Klan. UW–Oshkosh pulled March's name from what is now the Theatre Arts Center shortly before

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1806-538: Was over; yet, he managed to give one last performance in The Iceman Cometh (1973) as the complicated Irish saloon keeper, Harry Hope. March was married to actress Florence Eldridge from 1927 until his death in 1975, and they had two adopted children. They appeared in seven films together, the last being Inherit the Wind . March and Eldridge commissioned Wallace Neff to build their house in Ridgeview Drive , Bel Air , in 1934. It has subsequently been owned by

1849-485: Was remembered by Van Johnson as a being a masterful director but a "tough man" to work for. He was close friends with another veteran cinematographer, Charles Schoenbaum . “Fleming wasn’t a joking man, he was a very serious, demanding man, and very positive in what he wanted to get, and most of his leading men were patterned after his own behavior; he was a real tough man. I think there was more Fleming in Clark Gable at

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