Thomas Little

Thomas Kane Little (born August 27, 1886 in Ogden , Utah , † March 5, 1985 in Santa Monica , California ) was an American production designer for films.

Life

Thomas Little gained his first experience as a set designer at the theater before he found regular work in film from 1932. In 1935 he received a contract with 20th Century Fox , where he was henceforth one of the busiest outfitters for well-known directors such as John Ford , Henry King , Fritz Lang , Ernst Lubitsch , Alfred Hitchcock and Howard Hawks . He worked particularly often with his colleagues Richard Day , Joseph C. Wright and Lyle R. Wheeler .

Little was nominated a total of 21 times for an Oscar in the category Best Production Design. He won the trophy six times, including for John Ford's social study Schlagende Wetter (1941) and for the film musical The Queen from Broadway (1942). By 1953 he was involved in more than 490 film productions. He then withdrew from the film business. Thomas Little died in Santa Monica in 1985 at the age of 98 . His grave is in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale , California .

Filmography (selection)

1932: Graf Zaroff - Genie des Böse ( The Most Dangerous Game ) - Directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack , Irving Pichel
1933: King Kong and the White Woman ( King Kong ) - Directed by Merian C. Cooper , Ernest B. Schoedsack
1933: King Kong's Son ( The Son of Kong ) - Directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack
1934: dance with me! ( The Gay Divorcee ) - Director: Mark Sandrich
1935: Roberta - Director: William A. Seiter
1935: I dance myself into your heart ( Top Hat ) - Director: Mark Sandrich
1936: The Prisoner of Shark Island ( The Prisoner of Shark Iceland ) - Director: John Ford
1936: A Message to Garcia - Directed by George Marshall
1936: The Crucible ( Pigskin Parade ) - Director: David Butler
1936: Signals to London ( Lloyd's of London ) - Director: Henry King
1936: Mississippi Melody ( Banjo on My Knee ) - directed by John Cromwell
1936: One in a Million - Directed by Sidney Lanfield
1937: In Old Chicago - Directed by Henry King
1937: In the seventh heaven ( Seventh Heaven ) - Director: Henry King
1937: Thin Ice - Director: Sidney Lanfield
1937: Recruit Willie Winkie ( Wee Willie Winkie ) - Director: John Ford
1937: Ali Baba Goes to Town - directed by David Butler
1938: Vier Mann - Ein Schwur ( Four Men and a Prayer ) - Director: John Ford
1938: Alexander's Ragtime Band - directed by Henry King
1938: Kidnapped ( Kidnapped ) - Directed by Otto Preminger
1938: Suez - Director: Allan Dwan
1938: The Golden Whip ( Kentucky ) - Director: David Butler
1938: Charlie Chan in Honolulu - Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone
1939: Jesse James, Man Without a Law ( Jesse James ) - directed by Henry King
1939: The Little Princess ( The Little Princess ) - Director: Walter Lang
1939: The Hound of the Baskervilles ( The Hound of the Baskervilles ) - Director: Sidney Lanfield
1939: love and life of the phone maker A. Bell ( The Story of Alexander Graham Bell ) - Director: Irving Cummings
1939: Young Mr. Lincoln ( Young Mr. Lincoln ) - Director: John Ford
1939: Charlie Chan in Reno - Director: Norman Foster
1939: Second Fiddle - Directed by Sidney Lanfield
1939: Charlie Chan on Treasure Island ( Charlie Chan at Treasure Island ) - Director: Norman Foster
1939: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes ( The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes ) - Director: Alfred L. Werker
1939: Night Over India ( The Rains Came ) - directed by Clarence Brown
1939: Drums Along the Mohawk ( Drums Along the Mohawk ) - Director: John Ford
1939: Swanee River - Directed by Sidney Lanfield
1940: The Grapes of Wrath ( The Grapes of Wrath ) - Director: John Ford
1940: Johnny Apollo - Director: Henry Hathaway
1940: Revenge for Jesse James ( The Return of Frank James ) - Director: Fritz Lang
1940: Trek to Utah ( Brigham Young ) - Director: Henry Hathaway
1940: gallop to happiness ( Down Argentine Way ) - Director: Irving Cummings
1940: The Mark of Zorro ( The Mark of Zorro ) - Director: Rouben Mamoulian
1940: Tin Pan Alley - Director: Walter Lang
1941: Tall, Dark and Handsome - Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone
1941: Raid of the Ogalalla ( Western Union ) - Director: Fritz Lang
1941: Tobacco Road ( Tobacco Road ) - Director: John Ford
1941: King of the Toreros ( Blood and Sand ) - Director: Rouben Mamoulian
1941: Manhunt ( Man Hunt ) - Director: Fritz Lang
1941: Adopted Happiness ( Sun Valley Serenade ) - Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone
1941: A Yank in the RAF - Director: Henry King
1941: horrors of the Company ( Great Guns ) - Director: Monty Banks
1941: Schlagende Wetter ( How Green Was My Valley ) - Director: John Ford
1941: I Wake Up Screaming - Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone
1942: Adventures in the South Seas ( Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake ) - Director: John Cromwell
1942: Roxie Hart - Director: William A. Wellman
1942: Night in the Harbor ( Moontide ) - Director: Archie Mayo
1942: The Queen of Broadway ( My Gal Sal ) - directed by Irving Cummings
1942: This Above All - Directed by Anatole Litvak
1942: Six Fates ( Tales of Manhattan ) - Directed by Julien Duvivier
1942: The Secret Agents ( A-Haunting We Will Go ) - Director: Alfred L. Werker
1942: Orchestra Wives - Director: Archie Mayo
1942: Ritt zum Ox-Bow ( The Ox-Bow Incident ) - Director: William A. Wellman
1942: The Black Pirate ( The Black Swan ) - Director: Henry King
1943: Hello Frisco, Hello - Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone
1943: Die Wunderpille ( Jitterbugs ) - Director: Malcolm St. Clair
1943: Coney Island - Director: Walter Lang
1943: Heaven Can Wait ( Heaven Can Wait ) - Director: Ernst Lubitsch
1943: Guadalcanal Diary - Hell in the Pacific ( Guadalcanal Diary ) - Director: Lewis Seiler

1943: Die Tanzmeister ( The Dancing Masters ) - Director: Malcolm St. Clair

1943: Das Lied von Bernadette ( The Song of Bernadette ) - Director: Henry King

1943: The Gang's All Here - Director: Busby Berkeley

1943: The Orphan of Lowood ( Jane Eyre ) - directed by Robert Stevenson

1944: The lifeboat ( Lifeboat ) - Director: Alfred Hitchcock

1944: Five Heroes ( The Sullivans ) - Directed by Lloyd Bacon

1944: At home in Indiana ( Home in Indiana ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1944: Mission in the Pacific ( Wing and a Prayer ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1944: Wilson - directed by Henry King

1944: Sweet and Low-Down - Director: Archie Mayo

1944: The big bang ( The Big Noise ) - Director: Malcolm St. Clair

1944: Laura - Director: Otto Preminger

1944: Irish Eyes Are Smiling - Directed by Gregory Ratoff

1944: Keys of the Kingdom ( The Keys of the Kingdom ) - Director: John M. Stahl

1945: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn ( A Tree Grows in Brooklyn ) - Director: Elia Kazan

1945: Scandal at Court ( A Royal Scandal ) - Director: Otto Preminger

1945: The Bullfighter ( The Bullfighters ) - Director: Malcolm St. Clair

1945: The daring adventures of Captain Eddie ( Captain Eddie ) - Director: Lloyd Bacon

1945: Love Fair ( State Fair ) - Director: Walter Lang

1945: The House on 92nd Street ( The House on 92nd Street ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1945: Murder on their wedding night ( Fallen Angel ) - Director: Otto Preminger

1945: Deadly Sin ( Leave Her to Heaven ) - Director: John M. Stahl

1946: White Oleander ( Dragonwyck ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1946: The Dark ( The Dark Corner ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1946: Somewhere in the Night ( Somewhere in the Night ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1946: Cluny Brown on Free Feet ( Cluny Brown ) - Director: Ernst Lubitsch

1946: Anna and the King of Siam ( Anna and the King of Siam ) - Director: John Cromwell

1946: Centennial Summer - Director: Otto Preminger

1946: My Darling Clementine ( My Darling Clementine ) - Director: John Ford

1946: The Razor's Edge ( The Razor's Edge ) - Director: Edmund Goulding

1947: The Ghost and Mrs. Muir ( The Ghost and Mrs. Muir ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1947: The Miracle of Manhattan ( Miracle on 34th Street ) - Director: George Seaton

1947: The kiss of death ( Kiss of Death ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1947: It began in Schneider's opera house ( Mother Wore Tights ) - Director: Walter Lang

1947: Der Scharlatan ( Nightmare Alley ) - Director: Edmund Goulding

1947: Amber, the great courtesan ( Forever Amber ) - Director: Otto Preminger

1947: Taboo of the Righteous ( Gentleman's Agreement ) - Director: Elia Kazan

1947: Daisy Kenyon - Director: Otto Preminger

1947: Captain from Castile ( Captain from Castile ) - Director: Henry King

1948: Password 777 ( Call Northside 777 ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1948: Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! - Director: F. Hugh Herbert

1948: Belvedere, the misunderstood genius ( Sitting Pretty ) - Director: Walter Lang

1948: Die Frau im Ermine ( That Lady in Ermine ) - Director: Ernst Lubitsch

1948: Cry of the City ( Cry of the City ) - Director: Robert Siodmak

1948: The Snake Pit ( The Snake Pit ) - Director: Anatole Litvak

1948: Green Grass of Wyoming - Directed by Louis King

1948: Mistress of the Dead City ( Yellow Sky ) - Director: William A. Wellman

1949: A Letter to Three Wives ( A Letter to Three Wives ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1949: Strangers ( House of Strangers ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1949: ... and heaven laughs at it ( Come to the Stable ) - Director: Henry Koster

1949: I Was a Male War Bride ( I Was a Male War Bride ) - Director: Howard Hawks

1949: Danger in Frisco ( Thieves' Highway ) - directed by Jules Dassin

1949: The Commander ( Twelve O'Clock High ) - directed by Henry King

1950: So unlucky ( When Willie Comes Marching Home ) - Director: John Ford

1950: Three returned home ( Three Came Home ) - Director: Jean Negulesco

1950: Vaudeville Princess ( Wabash Avenue ) - Director: Henry Koster

1950: Cheaper by the Dozen ( Cheaper by the Dozen ) - Director: Walter Lang

1950: The Sniper ( The Gunfighter ) - Director: Henry King

1950: Under Secret Orders ( Panic in the Streets ) - Director: Elia Kazan

1950: Faustrecht der Großstadt ( Where the Sidewalk Ends ) - Director: Otto Preminger

1950: The Broken Arrow ( Broken Arrow ) - Director: Delmer Daves

1950: Hatred is blind ( No Way Out ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1950: All About Eve ( All Above Eve ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1950: The Hero of Mindanao ( American Guerrilla in the Philippines ) - Director: Fritz Lang

1950: Okinawa ( Halls of Montezuma ) - Director: Lewis Milestone

1951: Fourteen Hours ( Fourteen Hours ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1951: On the Riviera (On the Rivera)

1951: Island of the Angry Gods ( Bird of Paradise ) - Director: Delmer Daves

1951: The House on Telegraph Hill - Director: Robert Wise

1951: Frogmen ( The Frogmen ) - Director: Lloyd Bacon

1951: David and Bathsheba ( David and Bathsheba ) - Director: Henry King

1951 People Will Talk - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1951: The Day the Earth Stood Still ( The Day the Earth Stood Still ) - Director: Robert Wise

1951: Rommel, der Wüstenfuchs ( The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1951: The Pirate Queen ( Anne of the Indies ) - Director: Jacques Tourneur

1951: The Last Attack ( Fixed Bayonets! ) - Director: Samuel Fuller

1952: A stranger calls ( Phone Call from a Stranger ) - Director: Jean Negulesco

1952: The Fire Jumpers of Montana ( Red Skies of Montana ) - Director: Joseph M. Newman

1952: Viva Zapata! - Director: Elia Kazan

1952: The Cicero Case ( Five Fingers ) - Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

1952: Down the Mask ( Deadline - USA ) - Director: Richard Brooks

1952: With a Song in My Heart ( With a Song in My Heart ) - Director: Walter Lang

1952: In the dozen nubile ( Belles on Their Toes ) - Director: Henry Levin

1952: Kurier nach Trieste ( Diplomatic Courier ) - Director: Henry Hathaway

1952: We're Not Married ( We're Not Married! - Director): Edmund Goulding

1952: Temptation on 809 ( Don't Bother to Knock ) - Directed by Roy Ward Baker

1952: Fünf Perlen ( O. Henry's Full House ) - Director: Henry King u. a.

1952: Honey, I'm Getting Younger ( Monkey Business ) - directed by Howard Hawks

1952: The Snows of Kilimanjaro ( The Snows of Kilimanjaro ) - Director: Henry King

1952: King of the Gauchos ( Way of a Gaucho ) - Director: Jacques Tourneur

Awards

Oscar

Best production design

Nominated:

1942: King of the Toreros (with Richard Day , Joseph C. Wright )
1944: The Gang's All Here (with James Basevi , Joseph C. Wright)
1945: Laura (with Lyle R. Wheeler , Leland Fuller )
1946: Mortal Sin (with Lyle R. Wheeler, Maurice Ransford )
1946: Key to the Kingdom of Heaven (with James Basevi, William S. Darling , Frank E. Hughes )
1947: On a knife's edge (with Richard Day, Nathan Juran , Paul S. Fox )
1948: A World at Your Feet (with Lyle R. Wheeler, Maurice Ransford, Paul S. Fox)
1950: ... and heaven laughs at it (together with Lyle R. Wheeler, Joseph C. Wright, Paul S. Fox)
1951: Everything about Eva (with Lyle R. Wheeler, George W. Davis , Walter M. Scott )
1952: On the Riviera (with Lyle R. Wheeler, Leland Fuller, Joseph C. Wright, Walter M. Scott)
1952: David and Bathsheba (with Lyle R. Wheeler, George W. Davis, Paul S. Fox)
1952: The House on Telegraph Hill (with Lyle R. Wheeler, John DeCuir , Paul S. Fox)
1952: Fourteen hours (with Lyle R. Wheeler, Leland Fuller, Fred J. Rode )
1953: Viva Zapata! (in cooperation with Lyle R. Wheeler, Leland Fuller, Claude E. Carpenter )
1953: Snow on Kilimanjaro (with Lyle R. Wheeler, John DeCuir, Paul S. Fox)

Won:

1942: Storming Weather (with Richard Day, Nathan Juran)
1943: This Above All (with Richard Day, Joseph C. Wright)
1943: The Queen of Broadway (with Richard Day, Joseph C. Wright)
1944: The Song of Bernadette (with James Basevi, William S. Darling)
1945: Wilson (together with you Wiard )
1947: Anna and the King of Siam (with Lyle R. Wheeler, William S. Darling, Frank E. Hughes)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME	Little, Thomas
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Little, Thomas Kane (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American production designer
DATE OF BIRTH	August 27, 1886
PLACE OF BIRTH	Ogden , Utah
DATE OF DEATH	March 5th 1985
Place of death	Santa Monica , California