Otto Lang (producer)

Otto Lang

Otto Lang (* 21st January 1908 in Zenica , Austria-Hungary (now Bosnia ); † thirtieth January 2006 in Seattle , Washington ) was a from Austria originating American skier , film producer and Documentary Film and television director.

Life

After the fall of the monarchy, the family moved to Salzburg. Lang began his professional career as a ski instructor at Semmering , and in 1935 he emigrated to America. Lang, founder of ski schools on Mount Rainier , Mount Baker and Mount Hood in the 1930s, was first known as a double for stars, later he was successful as a film director and producer.

His most famous films include Password 777 (1948, Call Northside 777 ), The Cicero Case (1952, 5 Fingers ) and Torah! Torah! Torah! (1970). He was the producer of the first two and of the last coproducer of the Japan sequences.

In 1937 he was hired as a double for the ski scenes and supervisor for the action shots for the Hollywood comedy Thin Ice , and the following year he worked on the documentary Ski Flight . He then began working as an assistant director for 20th Century Fox . The professional skier was employed by Darryl F. Zanuck and in 1941, as Technical Director, he edited the ski sequences of the romantic musical Sun Valley Serenade with Sonja Henie , which marked the beginning of his film career.

In addition, he turned u. a. the fantasy production Search for Paradise (1957) and for television a. a. The Man from UNCLE , several parts of the series The Twentieth Century Fox Hour and Beethoven: Ordeal and Triumph . White Witch Doctor (1953), whose exterior shots were taken in Africa. As a specialist in international locations, the versatile Austro-American traveled to all continents on behalf of the film industry. In 1994 he wrote his autobiography A Bird of Passage - From the Alps of Austria to Hollywood, USA , and published a volume with photos of his travels under the title Around the World in 90 Years .

In 2002, Salzburg ORF editor Gerald Lehner shot a biographical documentary about life's work with Otto Lang in Seattle. Everything in life is about skiing . This television film, first broadcast in 2003, was also shown at international festivals, for example at the Trento Film Festival in Trento and in the Kleinwalsertal.

Awards

• 1949: Edgar for Call Northside 777 (best feature film)
• 1953: Edgar for 5 Fingers (best feature film)
• 1954: Oscar nomination for Vesuvius Express (Best Short Film)
• 1955: Oscar nomination for Jet Carrier (Best Short Film)
• 1955: Oscar nomination for Jet Carrier (Best Documentary)
• 1955: Oscar nomination for The First Piano Quartette (Best Short Film)

Web links

• Otto Lang in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Obituary of the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation