Wikipedia

Cedric Gibbons

Austin Cedric Gibbons(March 23, 1890[1]– July 26, 1960) was an Americanart directorfor the film industry. He also made a significant contribution to motion picture theater architecture from the 1930s to 1950s. Gibbons designed theOscarstatuette in 1928, but tasked the sculpting toGeorge Stanley,a Los Angeles artist.[2][3]He was nominated 39 times for theAcademy Award for Best Production Designand won the Oscar 11 times, both of which are records.[4]

Cedric Gibbons
Gibbons in 1936
Born
Austin Cedric Gibbons

(1890-03-23)March 23, 1890
New York City,U.S.
DiedJuly 26, 1960(1960-07-26)(aged 70)
Los Angeles, California,U.S.
Resting placeCalvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles
Occupations
  • Art director
  • set decorator
Years active1919–1956
Spouses
​
​
(m.1930;div.1941)​
​
​
(m.1944)​
Relatives

Early life

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In addition to his credits as set decorator and art director, Cedric Gibbons is credited for directing one feature film,Tarzan and His Mate(1934)

Cedric Gibbons was born in New York City in 1890[1]to Irish architect Austin P. Gibbons and American Veronica Fitzpatrick Simmons. The family moved to Manhattan after the birth of their third child.[5]Cedric studied at theArt Students League of New Yorkin 1911.[6]He began working in his father's office as a juniordraftsman,then in the art department atEdison StudiosunderHugo Ballinin New Jersey in 1915. He was drafted and served in theUS Navy Reservesduring World War I atPelham Bayin New York.[7]

Career

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Gibbons joinedGoldwyn Studios,[when?]and began a long career withMetro-Goldwyn-Mayerin 1924, when the studio was founded.[8]

In 1925, when he was first working in the art department at MGM, he was in competition withRomain De Tirtofffor a more substantial position, while working with Joseph Wright, Merrill Pye and Richard Day on some 20 films.[9]Tirtoff is better known as Erte. When studio executiveIrving Thalbergsummoned Gibbons to work onBen Hur(1925), he used knowledge of the up-and-comingart moderne(that was to become known asart deco) to advance in the MGM art department.[9]

Gibbons was one of the original 36 founding members of TheAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciencesand designed theAcademy Awardsstatuette in 1928,[3]a trophy for which he himself would be nominated 39 times, winning 11,[10]the last time forBest Art DirectionforSomebody Up There Likes Me(1956).

He retired from MGM as art director and the head of the art department on April 26, 1956, due to ill health with over 1,500 films credited to him; however, other designers did major work on these films, some credited, some not, during Gibbons' tenure as head of the art department.[9]Even so, his actual hands-on art direction is considerable and his contributions lasting.[11][12]

Personal life and death

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Gibbons married 22 year old, Texas born, Gwendolyn Weller in New York City on January 16 1926 after having known her for one week. (On the marriage certificate he stated that he had been born in Dublin, Ireland.) They divorced shortly thereafter on the grounds of "desertion." Gibbons at first failed to pay the promised $6,000 per year alimony. [13][14]

In 1930, Gibbons married actressDolores del Ríoand co-designed their house withDouglas Honnold[15]in Santa Monica, an intricateArt Decoresidence influenced byRudolf Schindler.[16][17]The couple divorced in 1941. In October 1944, he married actressHazel Brooks,[18]with whom he remained until his death.[19]

Gibbons' nieceVeronica "Rocky" BalfewasGary Cooper's wife and briefly an actress known as Sandra Shaw.[20][21]

Gibbons' second cousin[citation needed]Frederick "Royal" Gibbons—a musician, orchestra conductor, and entertainer[22]who worked with him at MGM—was the father ofBilly Gibbonsof the rock bandZZ Top.[23][24]

Despite holding a US birth certificate,[25]Gibbons claimed on census forms that he was born in Ireland and that his family emigrated to the US during his early childhood.[26][27]His press marriage announcement also stated that he was a native of Ireland.[28]The reasons for this misstatement are unknown.

Gibbons died in Los Angeles on July 26, 1960, after a long illness at age 70 and was buried under a modest marker at theCalvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles.[29]Dorothy Kilgallen,journalist and gossip columnist, a friend of his second wife, reported his age as 65 at the time of his death.

Legacy

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Gibbons' set designs, particularly those in such films asBorn to Dance(1936) andRosalie(1937), heavily inspired motion picture theater architecture in the late 1930s through 1950s.

Among the classic examples are the Loma Theater in San Diego, the Crest theaters in Long Beach, California and Fresno, California, and the Culver Theater in Culver City, California, some of which are still extant. The style sometimes is referred to asArt Decoor asArt Moderne.The style is found in the theaters that were managed by theSkouras brothers,whose designer Carl G. Moeller used the sweeping scroll-like details in his creations.[30]

The iconic Oscar statuettes that Gibbons designed, which were first awarded in 1929, still are being presented to winners atAcademy Awardsceremonies each year.

Gibbons was inducted into theArt Directors Guild Hall of Famein February 2005.[31]

Academy Awards

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Awards for Art Direction

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Nominations for Art Direction

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See also

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Bibliography

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  • "Cedric Gibbons Architect of Style",LA Modernismcatalog, May 2006, pp. 16–17 by Jeffrey Head

Notes

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References

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  1. ^ab"B-M-1893-0022033 - Historical Vital Records of NYC".RetrievedSeptember 8,2023.
  2. ^Nichols, Chris (February 25, 2016)."Meet George Stanley, Sculptor of the Academy Award Los Angeles Magazine".Los Angeles Magazine.RetrievedJanuary 22,2019.
  3. ^ab"Oscar Statuette".Oscars.org | Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.July 25, 2014.RetrievedJanuary 22,2019.
  4. ^"Nominee Facts – Most Nominations and Awards"ArchivedApril 2, 2016, at theWayback Machine,Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences;retrieved November 29, 2015.
  5. ^Pawlak, Debra Ann (January 12, 2012).Bringing up Oscar: The story of the men and women who founded the Academy.Simon and Schuster.ISBN978-1-60598-216-8.
  6. ^Hogan, David J. (June 1, 2014).The Wizard of Oz FAQ: All That's Left to Know About Life According to Oz.Rowman & Littlefield.ISBN978-1-4803-9720-0.
  7. ^Gutner, Howard (September 17, 2019).MGM Style: Cedric Gibbons and the Art of the Golden Age of Hollywood.Rowman & Littlefield.ISBN978-1-4930-3858-9.
  8. ^"Cedric Gibbons, M-G-M Artist, 65".The New York Times.July 27, 1960.RetrievedDecember 2,2017.
  9. ^abcGutner, Howard (October 1, 2019).MGM Style: Cedric Gibbons and the Art of the Golden Age of Hollywood.Rowman & Littlefield.ISBN978-1-4930-3858-9.
  10. ^"Cedric Gibbons and Hazel Brooks papers".oac.cdlib.org.RetrievedDecember 21,2019.
  11. ^Stephens, Michael L. (September 2, 2015).Art Directors in Cinema: A Worldwide Biographical Dictionary.McFarland.ISBN978-1-4766-1128-0.
  12. ^"The Architectural Digest Greenroom at the 2013 Oscars".Architectural Digest.January 31, 2013.RetrievedJanuary 22,2019.
  13. ^"Gibbons-Weller Marriage Certificate".New York City Vital Records.1926.RetrievedApril 19,2024.
  14. ^""Delores Del Rio's New Husband May Have to Support 2 Wives"".New York Daily News.October 9, 1930. p. 3.RetrievedApril 19,2024.
  15. ^Bingen, Steven; Sylvester, Stephen X.; Troyan, Michael (February 25, 2011).MGM: Hollywood's Greatest Backlot.Santa Monica Press.ISBN978-1-59580-893-6.
  16. ^"Inside Oscar Statuette Designer Cedric Gibbons' Restored Art Deco Home (Exclusive Photos)".The Hollywood Reporter.May 16, 2016.RetrievedJuly 11,2019.
  17. ^"Cedric Gibbons Crafts a California Home That Evokes Hollywood Glamour".Architectural Digest.February 29, 2008.RetrievedAugust 25,2019.
  18. ^"Hazel Brooks".Los Angeles Times.October 27, 1944. p. 13.RetrievedApril 23,2020.
  19. ^"Cedric Gibbons and Hazel Brooks papers".oac.cdlib.org.RetrievedJuly 11,2019.
  20. ^Meyers, Jeffrey (February 27, 2001).Gary Cooper: American Hero.Cooper Square Press.ISBN978-1-4616-6098-9.
  21. ^Frankel, Glenn (February 21, 2017).High Noon: The Hollywood Blacklist and the Making of an American Classic.Bloomsbury Publishing USA.ISBN978-1-62040-950-3.
  22. ^Catalog of Copyright Entries: Musical compositions.Library of Congress, Copyright Office. 1944.
  23. ^Welling, David (June 30, 2010).Cinema Houston: From Nickelodeon to Megaplex.University of Texas Press.ISBN978-0-292-77398-1.
  24. ^Jasinski, Laurie E. (February 22, 2012).Handbook of Texas Music.Texas A&M University Press.ISBN978-0-87611-297-7.
  25. ^"B-M-1893-0022033 - Historical Vital Records of NYC".a860-historicalvitalrecords.nyc.gov.RetrievedSeptember 8,2023.
  26. ^"Cedric Gibbons discovered in 1930 United States Federal Census".Ancestry.com.
  27. ^"Adrie Gibbons discovered in 1920 United States Federal Census".Ancestry.com.
  28. ^"Miss Del Rio-Gibbons to Wed in County Seat".Santa Maria Times.August 2, 1930. p. 1.
  29. ^Wilson, Scott (August 17, 2016).Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.McFarland.ISBN978-0-7864-7992-4.
  30. ^Bitetti, Marge; Ball, Guy (2006).Early Santa Ana.Arcadia Publishing.ISBN978-0-7385-3100-7.
  31. ^McNary, Dave (October 26, 2005)."Art Directors paint quintet with honors".Variety.RetrievedJuly 11,2019.
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