Vincent Korda

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Vincent Korda (born June 20, 1896 in Pusztatúrpásztó , Austria-Hungary , † January 4, 1979 in London , Great Britain ) was a Hungarian film architect who, like his older brother, the director Alexander Korda , made a successful career in British film . His other older brother, Zoltan Korda , also became a director in the UK.

Life

Vincent Korda had studied painting in Budapest , Vienna , Florence and Paris , where he also settled as a painter. His brother Alexander then hired him as a designer for the film Marius . In 1932 Vincent also moved to London, where Alexander played a key role in building up the British film industry and enjoyed great success. Vincent subsequently equipped almost all major and prestigious projects for him, including numerous historical, costume and colonial epics that often celebrated British history and the Empire, for example in The Private Life of Henry VIII , The Scarlet Flower , Bosambo , Danger at the Doro pass and four feathers . He also fitted out London's most famous stage - the Old Vic Theater  . He took on further equipment work for his brother Zoltan's films.

He created futuristic backdrops for the science fiction film What Will Coming, but his most important work was the remake The Thief of Baghdad (1940), which created a degree of magnificence and imagination previously unknown in British film. For his numerous backdrop ideas for palaces, seraglio, an Arab model city, treasure sanctuary, artificial mountain landscape and more in this film, he was awarded an Oscar for “best production design”.

Only a little later after the completion of the film, he and his brother Alexander left London for Hollywood , where he had remained largely inactive on film since the USA entered the war in 1941. Only after his return in 1945 did he work again as a set designer or production designer. From the mid-1950s, Vincent Korda was hardly responsible for the sets for the film. His last works were the US large-scale production The Longest Day and the episode film The Yellow Rolls-Royce .

His son is the writer and editor Michael Korda .

Filmography (selection)

literature

  • Michael Korda : ... and always only the best. The turbulent life of the Kordas, the most glamorous clan in film history (OT: Charmed Lives. A Family Romance ). Heyne, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-453-01984-9

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Korda, Vincent
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Hungarian film architect
DATE OF BIRTH June 20, 1896
PLACE OF BIRTH Pusztatúrpásztó , Austria-Hungary
DATE OF DEATH 4th January 1979
Place of death London , UK