John Alton

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John Alton , born Johann Altmann (born October 5, 1901 in Sopron , German Ödenburg , Austria-Hungary ; † June 2, 1996 in Santa Monica , California ) was an American cameraman .

Life

Born in Hungary, Johann Altmann fled to the United States with his parents from the turmoil of the Russian October Revolution. In 1924 the young man, now called John Alton, began his work as a laboratory technician at MGM . Soon the desire to work as a cameraman grew in him, so he switched to Paramount . Alton went to Europe with Ernst Lubitsch in 1927 to shoot background motifs for the film The Student Prince . He stayed in Paris for a few years and became the director of the camera department at Joinville Studios. In 1932 Alton traveled to Argentina to work on the country's first talky-about film. He stayed there for seven years and worked on over a dozen films, including one as a director. Alton was recognized by the Argentine film industry for his achievements and his training activities for Argentine cinematographers. He returned to Hollywood with the journalist Rozalia Kiss, whom he married there and with whom he stayed until her death in 1987.

He went to the B-film production company Republic , where he established himself as a talented cameraman who can deliver effective work quickly and under various circumstances. His high-contrast black and white photos and the sometimes unusual angle of view were Alton's special note. With this technique he was made for the film noir because he masterfully brought out the oppressive and gloomy mood of these films. Equally outstanding was his ability to make outdoor scenes look like studio recordings.

During the Second World War Alton did his army service and made it to the captain. Back in Hollywood, he worked at RKO and Monogram , again production companies for B films. During this time Alton worked a lot with the director Anthony Mann . When he moved to MGM in 1949 to film Deadly Frontier , Alton followed him. Vincente Minnelli noticed him and made him his preferred cameraman. It was Minnelli who had Alton shoot his first color film in 1951. He and his colleague Alfred Gilks received an Oscar for the musical film An American in Paris . A special highlight of this film were the recordings of the ballet scenes. In 1954 he wrote the book Painting with Light about his artistic conception of camera technology .

The now well-known Alton often worked with Richard Brooks , with whom he made his last cinema production, Elmer Gantry , in 1960 . Difficulties with some studio executives, both personal and political, resulted in Alton and director Charles Crightton being withdrawn from The Prisoner of Alcatraz Birdman of Alcatraz (1962). Crightton was replaced by John Frankenheimer , with Burnett Guffey replacing Alton . Alton decided to leave the film industry and travel with his wife Rozalia. There was a small comeback in 1966 when he was behind the camera again for the pilot episode of the television series Cobra, Take Over ( Mission: Impossible ). In 1993 he emerged from oblivion when he gave an interview to producer Todd McCarthy as part of a documentary about the work of the cameramen.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Alton, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Altmann, Johann (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American cameraman
DATE OF BIRTH October 5, 1901
PLACE OF BIRTH Ödenburg , Austria-Hungary
DATE OF DEATH June 2, 1996
Place of death Santa Monica , California, United States