Oscar-winning Film Editors No Longer With Us
Academy Award-winning film editors who have passed away, in order of death date.
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- Editor
- Editorial Department
Gene Havlick was born on 16 March 1894 in Enid, Oklahoma, USA. She was an editor, known for You Can't Take It with You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and Lost Horizon (1937). She died on 11 May 1959 in Hollywood, California, USA.March 16, 1894 – May 11, 1959
Won for:
LOST HORIZON (1937)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Director
Paul Weatherwax was born on 8 July 1900 in Sturgis, Michigan, USA. He was an editor and director, known for The Naked City (1948), Exclusive (1937) and Men on Call (1930). He died on 13 September 1960 in West Hollywood, California, USA.July 8, 1900 – September 13, 1960
Won for:
THE NAKED CITY (1948)
AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS (1956)- Editor
- Director
- Writer
Ralph Dawson was born on 18 April 1897 in Westboro, Massachusetts, USA. He was an editor and director, known for The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Anthony Adverse (1936) and The High and the Mighty (1954). He died on 15 November 1962 in Woodland Hills, California, USA.April 18, 1897 – November 15, 1962
Won for:
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM (1935)
ANTHONY ADVERSE (1936)
THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (1938)- Editor
- Actress
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Anne Bauchens was a pioneering film editor who had a long-standing partnership with director Cecil B. DeMille. In fact, she first edited a DeMille film in 1915 and then edited all of his films for 38 years, beginning with We Can't Have Everything (1918) and ending with The Ten Commandments (1956). She was nominated for four Oscars and won one, for North West Mounted Police (1940).February 2, 1882 – May 7, 1967
Won for: NORTH WEST MOUNTED POLICE (1940)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Robert Kern was born on 29 March 1885 in Wilton Junction [now Wilton], Iowa, USA. He was an editor, known for The Thin Man (1934), National Velvet (1944) and David Copperfield (1935). He was married to Ruth Eleanor. He died on 30 May 1972 in Orange, California, USA.March 29, 1885 – May 30, 1972
Won for: NATIONAL VELVET (1945)- William A. Lyon was born on 21 January 1903 in Texas, USA. He was an editor, known for From Here to Eternity (1953), The Caine Mutiny (1954) and Picnic (1955). He died on 18 March 1974 in Los Angeles, California, USA.January 21, 1903 – March 18, 1974
Won for:
FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1953)
PICNIC (1955) - Editor
- Editorial Department
Hugh S. Fowler was born on 24 July 1912 in Missouri, USA. He was an editor, known for Patton (1970), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) and Planet of the Apes (1968). He died on 2 August 1975 in Los Angeles, California, USA.July 24, 1912 – August 2, 1975
Won for: PATTON (1970)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Frank P. Keller was born on 4 February 1913 in Pennsylvania, USA. He was an editor, known for Bullitt (1968), Pocketful of Miracles (1961) and The Hot Rock (1972). He died on 25 December 1977 in Hollywood, California, USA.February 4, 1913 – December 25, 1977
Won for: BULLITT (1968)- Editor
- Editorial Department
William Holmes was born on 23 February 1904 in Illinois, USA. He was an editor, known for Sergeant York (1941), Dark Victory (1939) and I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932). He was married to Ova T.. He died on 2 February 1978 in Los Angeles, California, USA.February 23, 1904 – February 2, 1978
Won for: SERGEANT YORK (1941)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
Frank Santillo was born on 8 October 1912 in New Mexico, USA. He was an editor, known for Grand Prix (1966), The Catered Affair (1956) and Ride the High Country (1962). He died on 30 June 1978 in Los Angeles, California, USA.October 8, 1912 – June 30, 1978
Won for: GRAND PRIX (1966)- Editor
- Producer
- Editorial Department
Henry Berman was born on 1 January 1914 in New Castle, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an editor and producer, known for Grand Prix (1966), The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) and Babe (1975). He died on 12 June 1979 in Los Angeles, California, USA.January 1, 1914 – June 12, 1979
Won for: GRAND PRIX (1966)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Conrad Nervig had the distinction of being the first-ever recipient of an Academy Award for best editing. This was for Eskimo (1933), a drama shot in semi-documentary style by outdoor and action specialist W.S. Van Dyke in the northernmost inhabited settlement in Alaska. The entire dialogue was in an Inuit language and subtitles were used in translation. The South Dakota-born Nervig had started in the industry with Goldwyn Pictures in 1922 and remained after the merger with Metro, spending his entire career at MGM until his retirement in 1954. He worked on many classic films across diverse genres, including A Tale of Two Cities (1935), Maytime (1937), The Big Store (1941) and The Bad and the Beautiful (1952). He won a second Oscar for King Solomon's Mines (1950) in collaboration with Ralph E. Winters.
Here is an interesting footnote to Nervig's life: as a naval officer en route to Rio (where he was assigned as a replacement aboard the U.S.S. Glacier), Nervig was a passenger on the ill-fated collier U.S.S. Cyclops during her penultimate voyage. The ship disappeared without trace in March 1918 in the Bermuda Triangle, along with 306 crew and passengers. Fifty-one years after the event (in 1969), Nervig published his recollections -- entitled "The Cyclops Mystery" -- in "The Naval Institute Proceedings".24 June 1889 – 26 November 1980
Won for: ESKIMO (1933)- Editor
- Actor
Cotton Warburton is the great great uncle of author and filmmaker Dustin Warburton. Irvine "Cotton" Warburton (born October 8, 1911 in San Diego and died April 21, 1982 in Culver City, CA) was an All-American college quarterback (1933) who became a film editor; he won an Academy Award for his work on Mary Poppins in 1964. Warburton attended San Diego High School, and won the California high school quarter mile in 1930. He brought his speed to the USC Trojans football team, and was chosen as an All-American quarterback in 1933. Cotton was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1975.October 8, 1911 – June 21, 1982
Won for: MARY POPPINS (1964)- Sound Department
- Editor
- Editorial Department
Verna Fields was born on 21 March 1918 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. She was an editor, known for Jaws (1975), American Graffiti (1973) and Paper Moon (1973). She was married to Sam Fields. She died on 30 November 1982 in Encino, California, USA.March 21, 1918 – November 30, 1982
Won for: JAWS (1975)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
American motion picture editor, who, in 1977, was voted by 100 of his peers as the best his profession had ever produced. Hornbeck began his distinguished career in the industry, aged fourteen, as a film winder with the New York Motion Picture Company on 42nd Street and Broadway. In 1916, he joined Mack Sennett's Keystone Film Company and worked for twelve years as chief editor on numerous two-reel comedies. In 1934, Hornbeck went to England and became supervising editor for Alexander Korda's London Films, where he worked on such classics as The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934), Things to Come (1936) and The Thief of Bagdad (1940). He was known to be a meticulous craftsman, always wearing white gloves on both hands when handling celluloid.
In 1941, Hornbeck returned to America to collaborate with Frank Capra on the 'Why We Fight' series of documentaries in the Army Signal Corps Photographic Unit. After the war, he edited Capra's classic It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and MGM's State of the Union (1948). From 1949 to 1953, he was under contract to Paramount and won an Academy Award in for A Place in the Sun (1951). His other outstanding contributions during this decade include Shane (1953), The Barefoot Contessa (1954) and Giant (1956), in which his editing effectively disguised James Dean's untimely demise prior to completion of the picture.
After briefly free-lancing, Hornbeck joined Universal as supervising editor in 1960 and remained in that capacity until his retirement in 1976.August 23, 1901 – October 11, 1983
Won for: A PLACE IN THE SUN (1951)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
Hal C. Kern was born on 14 July 1894 in Anaconda, Montana, USA. He was an editor, known for Gone with the Wind (1939), Rebecca (1940) and Spellbound (1945). He died on 24 February 1985 in Los Angeles, California, USA.July 14, 1894 – February 24, 1985
Won for: GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)- Adrienne Fazan was born on 9 May 1906 in Germany. She was an editor, known for An American in Paris (1951), Gigi (1958) and Singin' in the Rain (1952). She died on 23 August 1986 in Los Angeles, California, USA.May 9, 1906 – August 23, 1986
Won for: GIGI (1958) - Editorial Department
- Editor
- Producer
Starting as a film editor at age 17, George Amy found his niche at Warner Brothers in the 1930s. It was Amy's editing that was one of the main reasons Warners' films got their reputation for their fluid style and breakneck pace. He was a favorite of such top Warners directors as Michael Curtiz and Howard Hawks, and won an Academy Award for editing Hawks' Air Force (1943). Although Amy directed several shorts and a few features on his own for Warners, they didn't meet with much success. In the 1950s he turned to editing and directing for television.October 15, 1903 – December 18, 1986
Won for: AIR FORCE (1943)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Thrice Oscar-winning editor Daniel Mandell started out in show business as one of "The Flying Mandells" with Ringling Brothers Circus. He then turned his acrobatic skills to performing on the vaudeville circuit. Following service with the Marines in World War I and subsequently taking part in the post-Armistice occupation, he joined a longtime friend in the editing department of MGM. For five years he plied his trade with Columbia (1924-29), before his career really took off after being hired by independent film maker Samuel Goldwyn (at RKO: 1930-1932 and 1941-1952; at United Artists: 1936-1940). Mandell quickly became Goldwyn's number one editor and was assigned the lion's share of prestige pictures: Dodsworth (1936), Dead End (1937), Wuthering Heights (1939) (his own personal favorite), The Westerner (1940), The Little Foxes (1941), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) and Guys and Dolls (1955). Mandell considered timing to be of paramount importance in his work and believed that his performing background had given him an vital insight into audience reaction.
Mandell's other fruitful collaboration was with the director Billy Wilder, for whom he worked on five films, notably Witness for the Prosecution (1957), The Apartment (1960) and The Fortune Cookie (1966).August 13, 1895 – June 8, 1987
Won for:
PRIDE OF THE YANKEES (1942)
THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES (1946)
THE APARTMENT (1960)- Director
- Editorial Department
- Actor
Hal Ashby was born the fourth and youngest child in a Mormon household, in Ogden, Utah, to Eileen Ireta (Hetzler) and James Thomas Ashby, on September 2, 1929. His father was a dairy farmer. After a rough childhood that included the divorce of his parents, his father's suicide, his dropping out of high school, getting married and divorced all before he was 19, he decided to leave Utah for California. A Californian employment office found him a printing press job at Universal Studios. Within a few years, he was an assistant film editor at various other studios. One of his pals while at MGM was a young messenger named Jack Nicholson. He moved up to being a full fledged editor on The Loved One (1965) and started editing the films of director Norman Jewison.
A highlight of his film editing career was winning an Oscar for the landmark In the Heat of the Night (1967). Itching to become a director, Jewison gave him a script he was too busy to work on called The Landlord (1970). It became Ashby's first film as a director. From there he delivered a series of well-acted, intelligent human scaled dramas that included The Last Detail (1973), Shampoo (1975), Bound for Glory (1976), Coming Home (1978) and Being There (1979). Great reviews and Oscar nominations became common on Ashby films.
Ashby was always a maverick and a contrary person and success proved difficult for Ashby to handle. He became unreliable due to his dependence on drugs and a reclusive lifestyle. He actually collapsed while making The Rolling Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together (1982) in Arizona. Although he recovered, he was never the same after that. He began taking too much time in post production on his films and actually had a couple of his later projects taken away from him to be edited by others. He tried to straighten himself out, but in the 1980s, he was considered by many to be unemployable. Just when he felt he was turning a corner in his life, he developed cancer that spread to his liver and colon. He died on December 27, 1988. Actor Sean Penn dedicated his first film as a director, The Indian Runner (1991) to Ashby and John Cassavetes, even though Penn was never directed by either one. Because he did not have a set visual style, many mistake this for no style at all. His career is not discussed as often as the careers of some of his contemporaries.September 2, 1929 – December 27, 1988
Won for: IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT (1967)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
James E. Newcom was born on 29 August 1905 in Wayne, Indiana, USA. He was an editor and producer, known for Gone with the Wind (1939), Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) and Rebecca (1940). He died on 6 October 1990 in San Diego, California, USA.August 29, 1905 – October 6, 1990
Won for: GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)- Editorial Department
- Editor
John D. Dunning was born on 5 May 1916 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an editor, known for Ben-Hur (1959), Battleground (1949) and Betrayed (1954). He died on 25 February 1991 in Santa Monica, California, USA.May 5, 1916 – February 25, 1991
Won for: BEN-HUR (1959)- Editor
- Director
- Editorial Department
Gene Milford was born on 19 January 1902 in Lamar, Colorado, USA. She was an editor and director, known for On the Waterfront (1954), Lost Horizon (1937) and Wait Until Dark (1967). She was married to Dorothy Hunter. She died on 23 December 1991 in Santa Monica, California, USA.January 19, 1902 – December 23, 1991
Won for:
LOST HORIZON (1937)
ON THE WATERFRONT (1954)- Editor
- Sound Department
- Editorial Department
Douglas Stewart was born on 27 March 1919 in Canada. He was an editor, known for The Right Stuff (1983), The Shootist (1976) and Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978). He was married to Gloria J. Stewart. He died on 3 March 1995 in Los Angeles, California, USA.March 29, 1919 – March 3, 1995
Won for: THE RIGHT STUFF (1983)- Actor
- Director
- Editor
Robert Parrish was an Academy Award-winning film editor who also directed and acted in movies. As a child he appeared in films during the early 1930s, such as City Lights (1931) by Charles Chaplin and Lewis Milestone's All Quiet on the Western Front (1930). As an editor he won an Academy Award for Body and Soul (1947), the 1947 Robert Rossen film that starred John Garfield as a money-grubbing, two-timing boxer on the make. Parrish also worked on All the King's Men (1949), an account of the rise and fall of a Louisiana politician that won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Parrish then moved on to direct films during the 1950s and 1960s. Among his best received works was the brooding western Saddle the Wind (1958).January 4, 1916 – December 4, 1995
Won for: BODY AND SOUL (1947)- Editor
- Producer
Ms. McLean was a pioneering female film editor for 20th Century Fox. She began her Hollywood career in the 1930s and earned her first film credit for editing The Affairs of Cellini (1934). She joined Fox in 1935 as one of only eight female film editors working in Hollywood in the 1930s. She became Fox' editing division chief in 1949 and retired from the studio in 1969.November 16, 1903 – March 28, 1996
Won for: WILSON (1944)- Director
- Editor
- Editorial Department
Although born in North Dakota, Francis D. Lyon's film career began in England as an editor on several prestigious J. Arthur Rank productions. Coming to Hollywood, he worked as an editor or supervising editor on numerous films, and won an Academy Award for editing Body and Soul (1947). Turning to directing in 1955, Lyon's output has been mostly routine, although Disney's The Great Locomotive Chase (1956), based on a true Civil War incident, was an exciting, well-made adventure. In the 1960s, after churning out several low-grade sci-fi epics, Lyon turned to episodic TV series.July 29, 1905 – October 8, 1996
Won for: BODY AND SOUL (1947)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Charles Nelson was born on 15 April 1901 in Sweden. He was an editor, known for Gilda (1946), The Big Heat (1953) and Picnic (1955). He died on 19 January 1997 in Los Angeles, California, USA.April 15, 1901 – January 19, 1997
Won for: PICNIC (1955)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
New York-born William Reynolds was a self-effacing editor with a distinguished sixty-year career in the motion picture industry, noted for his unobtrusive, seamless work on movies of every genre, from romantic melodramas to gangster films. A graduate of Princeton University, he started in the business, moving props as part of the 20th Century Fox swing gang. Displaying a keen interest in the art of editing, he was taken under the wing of the experienced Robert L. Simpson, whom he accompanied to Paramount as assistant in 1935. After just two years, Reynolds was promoted to full editor, his most prestigious assignment being Algiers (1938). In 1942, he moved across to 20th Century Fox, but wartime service put a temporary halt to his career. However, he did manage to sustain continuity by editing U.S. Army training films.
From 1946, Reynolds was part of a top-notch editing team assembled by Darryl F. Zanuck, himself a former editor and famous for his hands-on approach to post-production. During the remainder of his tenure at Fox, Reynolds cut some of the studio's best films, including the excellent sci-fi classic The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951); and glossy romances and musicals like Three Coins in the Fountain (1954) and Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955). Reynolds was a frequent collaborator and preferred editor for directors like Robert Wise and Joshua Logan. He did some of his most acclaimed work after free-lancing for three years, back at Fox, on The Sound of Music (1965) -- winning an Oscar and caustically commenting, "when in doubt, cut to Julie Andrews" (NY Times, July 22 1997)). Free-lancing again from 1970, he edited the first half of The Godfather (1972) (Francis Ford Coppola assigned the second half to Peter Zinner) and The Sting (1973) (which Reynolds regarded as one of his most demanding assignments). However, towards the end of his career, he was also involved in several significant commercial failures: Heaven's Gate (1980) -- on which he also acted as executive producer, Pirates (1986) and Ishtar (1987). In 1977, Reynolds was named by his peers in a Film Comment poll as one of the three best-ever film editors.June 14, 1910 – July 16, 1997
Won for:
THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965)
THE STING (1973)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Peter Taylor was born on 28 February 1922 in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, UK. He was an editor, known for The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), The Third Man (1949) and Summertime (1955). He was married to Elizabeth Holden and Franca Silvi. He died on 17 December 1997 in Rome, Lazio, Italy.February 18, 1922 – December 17, 1997
Won for: THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI (1957)- Editor
- Director
- Editorial Department
Educated at UCLA, Harold F. Kress entered the film business in the late 1930s as an editor. Although he directed a few documentaries and made a stab at directing features, his real niche was as an editor, and he became one of the most respected editors in the industry, winning an Academy Award for editing How the West Was Won (1962) and another for The Towering Inferno (1974).June 26, 1913 – September 18, 1999
Won for:
HOW THE WEST WAS WON (1963)
THE TOWERING INFERNO (1974)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
David Bretherton was born on 29 February 1924 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an editor, known for Cabaret (1972), Westworld (1973) and Clue (1985). He died on 11 May 2000 in Los Angeles, California, USA.February 29, 1924 – May 11, 2000
Won for: CABARET (1972)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
Gene Ruggiero was born on 20 June 1910 in North Hempstead, New York, USA. He was an editor and producer, known for Around the World in 80 Days (1956), The Shop Around the Corner (1940) and Ninotchka (1939). He died on 19 February 2002 in Ogden, Utah, USA.June 20, 1910 – February 19, 2002
Won for: AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS (1956)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
Fredric Steinkamp was born on 22 August 1928. He was an editor and producer, known for Out of Africa (1985), Tootsie (1982) and Three Days of the Condor (1975). He died on 20 February 2002 in Santa Monica, California, USA.August 22, 1928 – February 20, 2002
Won for: GRAND PRIX (1966)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Director
American film editor who occasionally directed, but won Oscars in his primary field. The son of Harry W. Gerstad, silent film cinematographer, Harry Donald Gerstad grew up in Hollywood. In his late teenage years he got work as a laboratory assistant at Hal Roach Studios, then Warner Bros., and finally at Republic Pictures.
Following the Second World War, he began editing feature films at RKO, working frequently with director Edward Dmytryk, who mentored Gerstad and helped him find work. In 1949 Gerstad was hired by Stanley Kramer as editorial supervisor and moved to Kramer's unit at Columbia Pictures. He won an Academy Award for his editing of Champion (1949) and shared the Oscar with Elmo Williams for High Noon (1952). He was one of several Kramer staff to work on the TV series Adventures of Superman (1952), and directed episodes as well as editing them. In the 1960s he worked for Bing Crosby Productions and 20th Century-Fox as editorial supervisor, as well as for John Wayne's Batjac Productions. He retired in 1973 and lived the remainder of his life in Palm Springs, where he died in 2002 at 93.June 11, 1909 – July 17, 2002
Won for:
CHAMPION (1949)
HIGH NOON (1952)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
Ralph Winters and his wife Teddy have five grandchildren. He is a two-time Academy Award-winning editor, an incredibly intelligent, kind, unique and loving man who began using a computer when in his 90s and lived to see the publication of his memoirs, "Some Cutting Remarks: Seventy Years a Film Editor", which he wrote on his own PC. He was highly admired and sought-after by up-and-coming editors for his advice and experience, and always gave of himself to these young people. An interviewer once asked him whether he would someday enjoy directing movies. His answer: "You betcha". Ralph E. Winters was incredibly loved and is desperately missed.June 17, 1909 – February 26, 2004
Won for: BEN-HUR (1959)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Academy Award winner film editor and also recipient of the Eddie award from the American Cinema Editors, Stu Linder is best remembered for his editing in several films from director Barry Levinson.
Stewart Bridgewater Linder was born on November 8, 1931 in Geneva, Illinois. He began his career as assistant editor on The Misfits (1961) and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), working alongside Hollywood's Golden era directors such as John Huston and John Ford. Thanks to his meticulous work on Seconds (1966), director John Frankenheimer offered him the editing duties on Grand Prix (1966). Along with editors Fredric Steinkamp, Henry Berman and Frank Santillo they composed some of the most fascinating car races ever created, and for their work in the film they won the Academy Award of Best Editing.
After the film's success Linden became an important editor, at times working as an editorial assistant in films for Mike Nichols in the early 1970's. With Diner (1982), a long collaboration with director Barry Levinson has started, spanning for more than 20 years. Their stylistic choices, rhythm and experience can be viewed in countless films and of many different stories and settings, from drama to comedy and suspense. Among the titles Levinson & Linder made together are The Natural (1984), Young Sherlock Holmes (1985), Tin Men (1987), Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), Avalon (1990), Bugsy (1991), Sleepers (1996), Wag the Dog (1997) and Rain Man (1988), where Linder was once again nominated for a Best Editing Oscar and Levinson won as Best Director.
The duo collaboration was abruptly ended while filming Man of the Year (2006), when Linden was found dead after suffering a heart-attack on January 12, 2006. It would be their 18th film together.November 8, 1931 – January 12, 2006
Won for: GRAND PRIX (1966)- Music Department
- Editor
- Producer
Peter Zinner was born on 24 July 1919 in Vienna, Austria. He was an editor and producer, known for The Deer Hunter (1978), The Godfather (1972) and An Officer and a Gentleman (1982). He was married to Christa Zinner. He died on 13 November 2007 in Santa Monica, California, USA.July 24, 1919 – November 13, 2007
Won for: THE DEER HUNTER (1978)- Editor
- Additional Crew
- Editorial Department
Herbert Neil Travis was born on 12th October 1936 and studied Advertising and Theatre Arts at the University of California in his native Los Angeles. He began his career as an assistant editor at Paramount studios in his early twenties,becoming second editor on a series of television shows for Fox and in 1970 received his first credit as a film cutter for 'The Travelling Executioner'. His career spanned some four decade,the highlight probably being the Academy Award he received for his work on' Dancing With Wolves',paring an extremely long director's cut down to the finished product. A member of the American Cinema Editors society he received a career achievement award in 2010 and his last,Emmy-nominated,work was editing the 79th Academy Awards. Neil Travis died of natural causes on March 28 2012 at his home in Arroyo Grande,California.October 12, 1936 – March 28, 2012
Won for: DANCES WITH WOLVES (1990)- Additional Crew
- Editor
- Editorial Department
Tom Rolf was born on 31 December 1931 in Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden. He was an editor, known for WarGames (1983), The Right Stuff (1983) and Taxi Driver (1976). He died on 14 July 2014 in Saint-Calais, Sarthe, France.December 31, 1931 – July 14, 2014
Won for: THE RIGHT STUFF (1983)- Editor
- Producer
- Director
Elmo Williams was born James Elmo Williams in Lone Wolf, Oklahoma. Orphaned at 16, he attended schools in Oklahoma and New Mexico before moving to Los Angeles. In 1933 he struck up a relationship with film editor Merrill G. White, who hired Williams as his assistant on a business trip to England. He learned the basics of film editing from White and soon gained a reputation as a first-rate editor, doing much work at RKO. In 1947 Williams edited the documentary Design for Death (1947), which earned an Oscar as Best Documentary, and in 1952 he received an Oscar for his editing of the western classic High Noon (1952). He soon branched out into directing, turning out several low-budget efforts for Lippert Pictures and Republic Pictures. Williams journeyed to Europe in 1958 to work as editor and second-unit director on The Vikings (1958) and wound up staying there for several years when he was hired to produce and direct the TV series Tales of the Vikings (1959).
Upon his return to the US, Williams was hired by 20th Century-Fox as a second-unit director. In that capacity, and as associate producer, he was sent back to Europe to work on the WW II epic The Longest Day (1962), helping to stage the film's spectacular battle scenes. He had another extended stay in Europe when he was given the job of Managing Director of European Production for Fox, a position he held until 1966, when he returned to the US to work on another World War II epic, Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970). In 1970 Williams was appointed Vice President in charge of Worldwide Production at Fox, a job he left in 1973 to go into independent production.April 30, 1913 – November 25, 2015
Won for: HIGH NOON (1952)- Editor
- Director
- Actor
Jim Clark was born on 24 May 1931 in Boston, Lincolnshire, England, UK. He was an editor and director, known for The Mission (1986), The Killing Fields (1984) and Marathon Man (1976). He was married to Laurence Méry-Clark and Jessica Andrew. He died on 25 February 2016 in the UK.May 24, 1931 – February 25, 2016
Won for: THE KILLING FIELDS (1984)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Music Department
Gerald B. Greenberg was born on 29 July 1936 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an editor, known for The French Connection (1971), Apocalypse Now (1979) and Kramer vs. Kramer (1979). He died on 22 December 2017 in Santa Monica, California, USA.July 29, 1936 – December 22, 2017
Won for: THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Thomas Stanford was born in 1924 in Germany. He was an editor, known for West Side Story (1961), Jeremiah Johnson (1972) and Suddenly, Last Summer (1959). He died on 23 December 2017 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA.November 18, 1924 – December 23, 2017
Won for: WEST SIDE STORY (1961)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
After harrowing experiences as a nurse at Sir Archibald McIndoe's pioneering plastic surgery hospital in East Grinstead, Anne Coates started to fulfil her long-held ambition to be a film director with a company called Religious Films. The work consisted of patching up prints of devotional shorts before sending them out to Britain's churches. This led to a job in the cutting room at Pinewood, where she worked on "The Red Shoes" among others before achieving her first screen credit with "The Pickwick Papers".December 12, 1925 – May 8, 2018
Won for: LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962)- Editor
- Actress
- Editorial Department
Françoise Bonnot was born on 17 August 1939 in Bois-Colombes, Hauts-de-Seine, Île-de-France, France. She was an editor and actress, known for Z (1969), Missing (1982) and The Tenant (1976). She was married to Henri Verneuil. She died on 9 June 2018 in Paris, France.August 17, 1939 – June 9, 2018
Won for: Z (1969)- Editor
- Editorial Department
David Brenner was born on 3 November 1962 in Hollywood, California, USA. He was an editor, known for Independence Day (1996), Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) and Born on the Fourth of July (1989). He was married to Amber Brenner. He died on 17 February 2022 in West Hollywood, California, USA.November 3, 1962 – February 17, 2022
Won for: BORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY (1989)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
Mike Hill was born in 1949 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. He was an editor and producer, known for Rush (2013), Frost/Nixon (2008) and Apollo 13 (1995). He was married to LeAnne Hill. He died on 5 January 2023 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA.1949 – January 5, 2023
Won for: APOLLO 13 (1995)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
Arthur Robert "Artie" Schmidt began in films as assistant editor to Dede Allen and Jim Clark. His father, Arthur P. Schmidt, had also been a distinguished veteran in the field of film editing, acclaimed for his collaborations with Billy Wilder on masterpieces like Sunset Boulevard (1950) and Some Like It Hot (1959). He was somehow disparaging about his son following in his footsteps. Schmidt Jr. instead attended Santa Clara University, graduated with a Bachelor in English and later went on to teach English in Spain. However, following his father's sudden death from a heart attack in 1965, he was recruited by Paramount as an apprentice, and, in 1970, began his professional career as assistant editor. Five years later, he was tasked to cut the running sequences in John Schlesinger's stylish thriller Marathon Man (1976) in the capacity of associate editor under the auspices of his mentor Jim Clark. From there, he progressed to fully-fledged editor in 1977.
Schmidt varied his editing methodology according to each individual project. His motto was "I always try to let the film and story tell me where to go next." Arguably his best work was for the director Robert Zemeckis. This included both films for which he won Best Editing Oscars, Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) and Forrest Gump (1994), as well as the Back to the Future (1985) trilogy and the black comedy Death Becomes Her (1992). Who Framed Roger Rabbit may well have constituted his toughest career challenge as it required a flawless blending of hand-drawn animation with live action scenes. Schmidt said about his successful collaboration with Zemeckis in a 2014 interview "He's wonderful directing actors and great in the editing room. We always seemed to be in sync."
Schmidt's other contributions of note have included Ruthless People (1986), The Last of the Mohicans (1992) and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003). In 2009, he was awarded the American Cinema Editors Career Achievement Award, fittingly presented to him by Robert Zemeckis.June 17, 1937 – August 5, 2023
Won for:
WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT (1988)
FORREST GUMP (1994)