Fenton Hamilton

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Fenton Darnell Hamilton (born October 31, 1904 in Utah , † July 22, 1978 in Los Angeles , California ) was an American electrical engineer , lighting technician and cameraman .

Live and act

Hamilton grew up in Utah as a child and lived in California from adolescence. Here he received an electrical engineering training. In Hollywood in the 1920s, Hamilton was initially hired by the film industry as a lighting technician and served his employer, MGM , as head of their lighting department for around three decades . In this area he was also responsible for putting Greta Garbo in the perfect light in the early sound film years . Later he was also the chief lighting technician at central MGM productions such as Quo Vadis? (1950/51), The Admiral (1959) and Spiel mit mir (1962). At the beginning of the 1970s, Hamilton was awarded a technology Oscar twice in quick succession for its developmental achievements in the lighting sector: the first time in 1970 for the, as the reasoning stated, “the concept and construction of a mobile battery unit for site lighting "And the second time in 1972 for the" development and introduction of the Sunbrute system of xenon arc lamps for film projection ". Then Fenton Hamilton moved behind the camera for the remainder of his life. However, his work as a picture designer is not worth mentioning.

Filmography (as cameraman)

  • 1972: The Limit
  • 1973: Godfather of Harlem ( Black Caesar )
  • 1973: Heiße Hölle Harlem ( Hell Up in Harlem )
  • 1974: The Cradle of Evil ( It's Alive )
  • 1978: The Cradle of Satan ( It Lives Again )

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Fenton Hamilton in the 1910 and 1920 US census on ancestry.com
  2. ↑ Hamilton in: Larry Cohen, The Radical Allegories of an Independent Filmmaker , on books.google.de

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Hamilton, Fenton
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hamilton, Fenton Darnell
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American electrical engineer, lighting technician, and cameraman
DATE OF BIRTH October 31, 1904
PLACE OF BIRTH Utah
DATE OF DEATH July 22, 1978
Place of death Los Angeles , California