Desmond Dickinson

Desmond Dickinson (born May 25, 1902 as Desmond Evelyn Otho Cockburn Dickinson in Kingston , County Surrey , (now: London ), England ; † March 1, 1986 in County Surrey) was a British cameraman and director who climaxed his career with some reached extravagant literary adaptations shortly after the end of the Second World War .

Live and act

'Des' Dickinson, as he was briefly known in the industry, joined film in 1919 as a laboratory assistant. He then went to production company Gainsborough Pictures , where he began as a camera assistant. In 1927, Dickinson was promoted to chief cameraman.

Des Dickinson's early work was little noteworthy mass-produced, cheap, entertaining films with no artistic challenge. In the early phase of the Second World War, Dickinson directed a few minutes of short films with a storyline and was subsequently involved in the production of educational documentary films for the Ministry of Information, before returning to feature films shortly after the end of the war in 1946.

There he made an impressive new beginning with the top productions " Zwei Welten " and " Der kupferne Berg ", which culminated in Laurence Olivier's legendary Hamlet film in 1947 . After this achievement Desmond Dickinson was brought in 1950/51 to three further, carefully and inspiringly implemented literary adaptations (" Conflict of the Heart", "Dacapo", "Being serious is everything " ).

Dickinson's work in the following years was limited to more conventional entertainment productions: comedies, crime and war films. In 1963/64 he was behind the camera in three popular Agatha Christie films. His career ended in the late 60s and early 70s with a series of rather disappointing, only moderately exciting scary thrillers and horror films. From 1974 to 1977 he was President of the British Society of Cinematographers .

Filmography as a cameraman (selection)

• 1927: A Woman Redeemed
• 1927: Carry On!
• 1927: The Guns of Loos
• 1928: Q-Ships
• 1928: The Price of Divorce
• 1930: Such is the Law
• 1930: Other People's Sins
• 1931: The Great Gay Road
• 1931: Jealousy
• 1932: Here's George
• 1932: Daughters of Today
• 1933: Commissionaire
• 1933: Dick Turpin
• 1934: Danny Boy
• 1934: Song at Eventide
• 1934: Variety
• 1935: The Small Man
• 1935: The City of Beautiful Nonsense
• 1936: King of Hearts
• 1936: Holiday's End
• 1937: Song of the Forge
• 1938: chips
• 1938: Scruffy
• 1938: Calling All Crooks
• 1939: The Arsenal Stadium Mystery
• 1940: The Door With Seven Locks
• 1940: Her Father's Daughter (short film, director)
• 1941: Eating Out With Tommy (short film, director)
• 1942: CEMA (short documentary, co-director, co-screenplay)
• 1942: Via Imperial (documentary, director)
• 1942: Thursday's Child
• 1946: Men of Two Worlds
• 1946: The Copper Mountain (Hungry Hill)
• 1947: Fame is the track
• 1947: Hamlet
• 1948: The History of Mr. Polly
• 1949: The Rival (Madness of the Heart)
• 1949: The Rocking Horse Winner
• 1949: The night began in the morning (Morning Departure)
• 1950: The Woman in Question
• 1950: Conflict of Heart (The Browning Version)
• 1951: Dakapo ( Encore )
• 1951: Being Earnest (The Importance of Being Earnest)
• 1952: Meet Me Tonight
• 1952: The Net
• 1953: Dangerous Vacation (The Man Between)
• 1953: Eterna femmina
• 1953: Meet Mr. Lucifer
• 1954: Major Carrington (Carrington VC)
• 1955: How to love in Paris (Gentlemen Marry Brunettes)
• 1955: The Black Tent
• 1956: The Last Man to Hang?
• 1957: Playing with Fire (Fire Down Below)
• 1957: Operation Tiger (Action of the Tiger)
• 1957: Nights in Tahiti (Le passager clandestin)
• 1957: The Silent War (Orders to Kill)
• 1958: A duel with death (Intent to Kill)
• 1959: Foxhole in Cairo
• 1959: City of the Dead (The City of the Dead)
• 1959: The Black Museum (Horrors of the Black Museum)
• 1960: The sinister hands of Dr. Orlak (The Hands of Orlac)
• 1960: Konga
• 1961: The secret of the yellow daffodils
• 1961: The Whip (The Frightened City)
• 1962: Cairo - Zero o'clock (Cairo)
• 1962: Sparrows Can't Sing
• 1963: Four Women and One Murder (Murder Most Foul)
• 1964: The ABC Murders (The Alphabet Murders)
• 1964: killer ahoy! (Murder Ahoy)
• 1965: Sherlock Holmes' greatest case (A Study in Terror)
• 1967: Circus of Death (Berserk!)
• 1967: Decline and Fall ... of a Birdwatcher
• 1968: storming of the iron coast (Attack on the Iron Coast)
• 1968: Baby Love
• 1968: Crooks and Coronets
• 1969: The monster (trough)
• 1969: The Beast in the Cellar
• 1970: Doctors Wear Scarlet
• 1970: The Fiend
• 1971: Burke and Hare
• 1971: Nobody Ordered Love
• 1971: Who set Aunt Ruth on fire? (Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?)
• 1972: The Tower of Evil
• 1975: The Man From Nowhere
• 1978: Circles (not listed)

literature

• Kay Less : The film's great personal dictionary . The actors, directors, cameramen, producers, composers, screenwriters, film architects, outfitters, costume designers, editors, sound engineers, make-up artists and special effects designers of the 20th century. Volume 2: C - F. John Paddy Carstairs - Peter Fritz. Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-89602-340-3 , p. 384.

Web links

• Desmond Dickinson in the Internet Movie Database (English)