Special Effects 1944: Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo – Photographic (with Donald Jahraus and Warren Newcombe) [8] Albert Arnold " Buddy" Gillespie (October 14, 1899 – May 3, 1978) was an American cinema special effects artist. [1] Biography [ edit ]

O'Laughlin, M (1992). The Book of Irish Families Great & Small. Kansas City: Irish Genealogical Foundation. p. 125. ISBN 0-940134-08-X. Accessed via Open Library. MARIE ANTOINETTE was of course based upon historic fact and, even with some opulent Hollywood flourishes was probably reasonably close to the actual events of the time, being the grass roots people power revolt in late 18th Century Paris which resulted in the downfall of the extremely unpopular Monarchy of King Louis XVI and his consort, the aforementioned Marie Antoinette - Queen of all she surveyed. The groundswell of popular unrest would see both figures not only unceremoniously de-throwned and imprisoned, but ultimately tried and executed by way of that most French of industrial modes of dispatch, the feared guillotine. Hello friends and fellow aficionados of the lost artform of the traditional matte painter. This issue we will be taking a look at two of my favourite Golden Era Hollywood motion pictures that both fit the bill inasmuch as being top shelf prestige productions as well as each being beautiful examples of the matte painter's skill from an era long since passed. Both of today's films were important Metro Goldwyn Mayer pictures from the 1930's, MARIE ANTOINETTE made in 1938 and A TALE OF TWO CITIES made in 1935. Gillespie ( / ɡ ɪ ˈ l ɛ s p i/ ghil- ESP-ee) is both a masculine given name and a surname in the English language. Variants include Gillaspie and Gillispie.Scores and scores of the figurines were made and used in the film, and given their fragility even then, only a few seem to have survived until today. I know of at least one in a private collection, and -- gratefully and celebratorily! -- two more are in proud residence as TREASURES OF THE OZ MUSEUM in Wamego, KS. Let them eat cake"... The jig is most definitely up. Upper wall, cornices and ceiling painted in. Matt Yuricich said it wasn't unusual for the artist to jokingly draw in weird, rude things like dogs screwing etc into detail such as this. Lee LeBlanc did it apparently and so did Howard Fisher at times! Letter E, Column 157". The electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language (eDIL). Archived from the original on 6 December 2014 . Retrieved 30 November 2014. Gillespie married Nell Hill in 1944. She died in 2000. They had one child, Thomas Scott Gillespie (1944–61). A. Arnold was previously married to aviator Ruth Elder, with whom he had a son, William Trent Gillespie (1940–2008).

The two journeys were made in May and October 2017, and the Fine Arts company summarized their assignment in the following words: "Conservation treatment of the two flying monkey props from THE WIZARD OF OZ film, [including] stabilization, repair, aesthetic compensation, and mounting for display in custom-fabricated cases." As can be seen by the images in this month’s video blog, the miniature monkeys are now permanently stored in a case in Wamego that insures both climate control and limited exposure to the elements. As Clint sagely comments, “This is the ideal means of extending their lives, especially as they were not made to last. It’s always important to realize – or to be reminded – that these things were built for a single purpose, more than eighty years ago.” My favourite matte in the whole film and one of the most stirring mattes - not to mention scenes - ever! One of the most common types of matte were the 'top up' where a ceiling would be added in later partially as a matter of cost cutting in avoiding needless set construction, and partly to conceal gantries, lighting rigs and studio rigging.

Actress in a Supporting Role

All joking towards one side: There are many hundreds of unique or remarkable rarities among Wamego’s holdings, and in some ways, this isn’t really surprising. At last count, it was estimated that the Museum contains some twenty-five thousand individual pieces. Unfortunately, only about twenty-five hundred can be displayed at any given time, and particularly in the case of THIS month’s treasure, the public viewings are, indeed, very few and far between. That’s why these two items were selected to launch our 2021 series. The MGM collection of matte artists were especially adept at might be termed technical illustration. A. Arnold Gillespie". International Dictionary of Film and Filmmakers . Retrieved 2010-10-28. Special Effects Technician and Art Director. Nationality: American. Born: A. Arnold Gillespie in El Paso, Texas, 14 October 1899. Education: Attended Columbia University, New York; Art Students League, New York. Career: 1922–24 – assistant art director at Paramount; 1924–36 – art director, MGM; 1936–65 – head of MGM's special effects department, working on some 600 films. Awards: Academy Award for Thirty Seconds over Tokyo , 1944; Green Dolphin Street , 1947; Plymouth Adventure , 1952; Ben-Hur 1959; Technical Award, 1963. Died: 3 May 1978. He was born on October 14, 1899, in El Paso, Texas. Gillespie joined MGM as a set designer in 1925, a year after it was founded. He was educated at Columbia University and the Arts Students League. His first project was the silent film Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, released that same year. He worked at the studio in various capacities until 1962. In 1936, he became the head of MGM's Special Effects Department. [2] Being rather small in dimensions, the MGM mattes were executed on tilt down draftsman's tables rather than on studio easels as elsewhere, with the Metro artists seated close to the piece rather than standing and applying paint with a long handled brush. Almost all were rendered on heavy duty card or in some cases hardboard (or masonite as they call it in America).

The production is first rate though not as 'glittering' perhaps as MARIE ANTOINETTE, with TALE having a somewhat darker edge to it out of necessity. Far less need here for the gauzy soft focus modelled lighting upon the female lead as was deemed important for the former film. Both films were products of the extremely well resoursed and substantial studio facilities that were MGM, undoubtedly the envy of all of the other studios in Hollywood at the time and for years to come. MGM were theprestige production house for grand, opulent motion pictures where it seemed, money was no object. MARIE ANTOINETTE in particular was a Rolls Royce production all the way, and it looked it - beautifully photographed by William Daniels - with uncredited work by George Folsey and Leonard Smith; stunning vast sets by the legendary Cedric Gibbons and an all star cast to boot. Norma Shearer, the sister of MGM's chief sound department man Douglas Shearer, looked the part as the doomed Marie, and although a little shrill at times she was generally excellent, especially in the second half of the two and three quarter hour epic. Tyrone Power is the dashing though not entirely necessary love interest, with not a lot to do. Reginald Gardiner is sensational and practically oozes venom from every pore of his skin with each scene he's in, though it really is the great Robert Morley, as the fragile and somewhat effete King Louis who absolutely steals the show hands down with a beautifully nuanced, multi layered performance which would earn him (and Norma Shearer) Oscar nominations.The miniatures were also and separately filmed “head on,” to be shown – in the distance – as they approached the Haunted Forest and immediately terrified Dorothy and her friends. The live-actor monkeys did the actual flying into and landing on the set; after they captured the Kansas girl and her pet, laid waste to the Scarecrow, fought with the Tin Man, and scared the poor Cowardly Lion into submission, they soared upwards again. But their retreat across the remote sky was again performed by the manipulated rubber crew, operated not unlike some varying contingents of marionettes. Another jaw dropping matte shot with superb blend to the live action columns, something that the Newcombe department were experts at. As already mentioned, Newcombe always dictated a soft matte rather than a hard matte line, with the soft join usually just sweeping across the frame with the artist expertly working the join to blend the two as one with fantastic results. The dreaded and much feared Bastille - the very symbol of oppression. Virtually all matte art here with just the main square and the crowd being actual. Apparently these sequences were directed by Val Lewton and Jacques Tourneur He is also in need of a better editor and a graphic designer. The book cover design, its execution, and its eye-assaulting colors are amateurish and abysmal. This is usually the case when an author "knows a friend" who is handy with Corel Draw. That's a cheap way to whip up a book cover, right? Never get friends to design book covers. Hire a pro, as Gillespie always advocates in hid book. He should have followed his own advice when he needed to publish his book. I am embarrassed for the old chap. Beautiful pastel draftsmanship. In my 2012 blog Matthew Yuricich In His Own Words, (which can be found right here) Matt explained that MGM had a highly skilled artist by the name of Bill Myers who's job it was to 'lay out' the proposed matte for the painters to work on. Apparently Myers' draftsman's skills were second to none and according to Yuricich made the matte painters job all that much easier.