Oscar-winning Film Editors No Longer With Us
Academy Award-winning film editors who have passed away, in order of death date.
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- Editor
- Editorial Department
Gene Havlick was born on 16 March 1894 in Enid, Oklahoma, USA. She was an editor, known for You Can't Take It with You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and Lost Horizon (1937). She died on 11 May 1959 in Hollywood, California, USA.March 16, 1894 – May 11, 1959
Won for:
LOST HORIZON (1937)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Director
Paul Weatherwax was born on 8 July 1900 in Sturgis, Michigan, USA. He was an editor and director, known for The Naked City (1948), Exclusive (1937) and Men on Call (1930). He died on 13 September 1960 in West Hollywood, California, USA.July 8, 1900 – September 13, 1960
Won for:
THE NAKED CITY (1948)
AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS (1956)- Editor
- Director
- Writer
Ralph Dawson was born on 18 April 1897 in Westboro, Massachusetts, USA. He was an editor and director, known for The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Anthony Adverse (1936) and The High and the Mighty (1954). He died on 15 November 1962 in Woodland Hills, California, USA.April 18, 1897 – November 15, 1962
Won for:
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM (1935)
ANTHONY ADVERSE (1936)
THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (1938)- Editor
- Actress
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Anne Bauchens was a pioneering film editor who had a long-standing partnership with director Cecil B. DeMille. In fact, she first edited a DeMille film in 1915 and then edited all of his films for 38 years, beginning with We Can't Have Everything (1918) and ending with The Ten Commandments (1956). She was nominated for four Oscars and won one, for North West Mounted Police (1940).February 2, 1882 – May 7, 1967
Won for: NORTH WEST MOUNTED POLICE (1940)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Robert Kern was born on 29 March 1885 in Wilton Junction [now Wilton], Iowa, USA. He was an editor, known for The Thin Man (1934), National Velvet (1944) and David Copperfield (1935). He was married to Ruth Eleanor. He died on 30 May 1972 in Orange, California, USA.March 29, 1885 – May 30, 1972
Won for: NATIONAL VELVET (1945)- William A. Lyon was born on 21 January 1903 in Texas, USA. He was an editor, known for From Here to Eternity (1953), The Caine Mutiny (1954) and Picnic (1955). He died on 18 March 1974 in Los Angeles, California, USA.January 21, 1903 – March 18, 1974
Won for:
FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1953)
PICNIC (1955) - Editor
- Editorial Department
Hugh S. Fowler was born on 24 July 1912 in Missouri, USA. He was an editor, known for Patton (1970), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) and Planet of the Apes (1968). He died on 2 August 1975 in Los Angeles, California, USA.July 24, 1912 – August 2, 1975
Won for: PATTON (1970)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Frank P. Keller was born on 4 February 1913 in Pennsylvania, USA. He was an editor, known for Bullitt (1968), Pocketful of Miracles (1961) and The Hot Rock (1972). He died on 25 December 1977 in Hollywood, California, USA.February 4, 1913 – December 25, 1977
Won for: BULLITT (1968)- Editor
- Editorial Department
William Holmes was born on 23 February 1904 in Illinois, USA. He was an editor, known for Sergeant York (1941), Dark Victory (1939) and I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932). He was married to Ova T.. He died on 2 February 1978 in Los Angeles, California, USA.February 23, 1904 – February 2, 1978
Won for: SERGEANT YORK (1941)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
Frank Santillo was born on 8 October 1912 in New Mexico, USA. He was an editor, known for Grand Prix (1966), The Catered Affair (1956) and Ride the High Country (1962). He died on 30 June 1978 in Los Angeles, California, USA.October 8, 1912 – June 30, 1978
Won for: GRAND PRIX (1966)- Editor
- Producer
- Editorial Department
Henry Berman was born on 1 January 1914 in New Castle, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an editor and producer, known for Grand Prix (1966), The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) and One Step Beyond (1959). He died on 12 June 1979 in Los Angeles, California, USA.January 1, 1914 – June 12, 1979
Won for: GRAND PRIX (1966)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Conrad Nervig had the distinction of being the first-ever recipient of an Academy Award for best editing. This was for Eskimo (1933), a drama shot in semi-documentary style by outdoor and action specialist W.S. Van Dyke in the northernmost inhabited settlement in Alaska. The entire dialogue was in an Inuit language and subtitles were used in translation. The South Dakota-born Nervig had started in the industry with Goldwyn Pictures in 1922 and remained after the merger with Metro, spending his entire career at MGM until his retirement in 1954. He worked on many classic films across diverse genres, including A Tale of Two Cities (1935), Maytime (1937), The Big Store (1941) and The Bad and the Beautiful (1952). He won a second Oscar for King Solomon's Mines (1950) in collaboration with Ralph E. Winters.
Here is an interesting footnote to Nervig's life: as a naval officer en route to Rio (where he was assigned as a replacement aboard the U.S.S. Glacier), Nervig was a passenger on the ill-fated collier U.S.S. Cyclops during her penultimate voyage. The ship disappeared without trace in March 1918 in the Bermuda Triangle, along with 306 crew and passengers. Fifty-one years after the event (in 1969), Nervig published his recollections -- entitled "The Cyclops Mystery" -- in "The Naval Institute Proceedings".24 June 1889 – 26 November 1980
Won for: ESKIMO (1933)- Editor
- Actor
Cotton Warburton is the great great uncle of author and filmmaker Dustin Warburton. Irvine "Cotton" Warburton (born October 8, 1911 in San Diego and died April 21, 1982 in Culver City, CA) was an All-American college quarterback (1933) who became a film editor; he won an Academy Award for his work on Mary Poppins in 1964. Warburton attended San Diego High School, and won the California high school quarter mile in 1930. He brought his speed to the USC Trojans football team, and was chosen as an All-American quarterback in 1933. Cotton was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1975.October 8, 1911 – June 21, 1982
Won for: MARY POPPINS (1964)- Sound Department
- Editor
- Editorial Department
Verna Fields was born on 21 March 1918 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. She was an editor, known for Jaws (1975), American Graffiti (1973) and Paper Moon (1973). She was married to Sam Fields. She died on 30 November 1982 in Encino, California, USA.March 21, 1918 – November 30, 1982
Won for: JAWS (1975)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
American motion picture editor, who, in 1977, was voted by 100 of his peers as the best his profession had ever produced. Hornbeck began his distinguished career in the industry, aged fourteen, as a film winder with the New York Motion Picture Company on 42nd Street and Broadway. In 1916, he joined Mack Sennett's Keystone Film Company and worked for twelve years as chief editor on numerous two-reel comedies. In 1934, Hornbeck went to England and became supervising editor for Alexander Korda's London Films, where he worked on such classics as The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934), Things to Come (1936) and The Thief of Bagdad (1940). He was known to be a meticulous craftsman, always wearing white gloves on both hands when handling celluloid.
In 1941, Hornbeck returned to America to collaborate with Frank Capra on the 'Why We Fight' series of documentaries in the Army Signal Corps Photographic Unit. After the war, he edited Capra's classic It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and MGM's State of the Union (1948). From 1949 to 1953, he was under contract to Paramount and won an Academy Award in for A Place in the Sun (1951). His other outstanding contributions during this decade include Shane (1953), The Barefoot Contessa (1954) and Giant (1956), in which his editing effectively disguised James Dean's untimely demise prior to completion of the picture.
After briefly free-lancing, Hornbeck joined Universal as supervising editor in 1960 and remained in that capacity until his retirement in 1976.August 23, 1901 – October 11, 1983
Won for: A PLACE IN THE SUN (1951)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
Hal C. Kern was born on 14 July 1894 in Anaconda, Montana, USA. He was an editor, known for Gone with the Wind (1939), Rebecca (1940) and Spellbound (1945). He died on 24 February 1985 in Los Angeles, California, USA.July 14, 1894 – February 24, 1985
Won for: GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)- Adrienne Fazan was born on 9 May 1906 in Germany. She was an editor, known for An American in Paris (1951), Gigi (1958) and Singin' in the Rain (1952). She died on 23 August 1986 in Los Angeles, California, USA.May 9, 1906 – August 23, 1986
Won for: GIGI (1958) - Editorial Department
- Editor
- Producer
Starting as a film editor at age 17, George Amy found his niche at Warner Brothers in the 1930s. It was Amy's editing that was one of the main reasons Warners' films got their reputation for their fluid style and breakneck pace. He was a favorite of such top Warners directors as Michael Curtiz and Howard Hawks, and won an Academy Award for editing Hawks' Air Force (1943). Although Amy directed several shorts and a few features on his own for Warners, they didn't meet with much success. In the 1950s he turned to editing and directing for television.October 15, 1903 – December 18, 1986
Won for: AIR FORCE (1943)- Editor
- Editorial Department
Thrice Oscar-winning editor Daniel Mandell started out in show business as one of "The Flying Mandells" with Ringling Brothers Circus. He then turned his acrobatic skills to performing on the vaudeville circuit. Following service with the Marines in World War I and subsequently taking part in the post-Armistice occupation, he joined a longtime friend in the editing department of MGM. For five years he plied his trade with Columbia (1924-29), before his career really took off after being hired by independent film maker Samuel Goldwyn (at RKO: 1930-1932 and 1941-1952; at United Artists: 1936-1940). Mandell quickly became Goldwyn's number one editor and was assigned the lion's share of prestige pictures: Dodsworth (1936), Dead End (1937), Wuthering Heights (1939) (his own personal favorite), The Westerner (1940), The Little Foxes (1941), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) and Guys and Dolls (1955). Mandell considered timing to be of paramount importance in his work and believed that his performing background had given him an vital insight into audience reaction.
Mandell's other fruitful collaboration was with the director Billy Wilder, for whom he worked on five films, notably Witness for the Prosecution (1957), The Apartment (1960) and The Fortune Cookie (1966).August 13, 1895 – June 8, 1987
Won for:
PRIDE OF THE YANKEES (1942)
THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES (1946)
THE APARTMENT (1960)- Director
- Editorial Department
- Actor
Hal Ashby was born the fourth and youngest child in a Mormon household, in Ogden, Utah, to Eileen Ireta (Hetzler) and James Thomas Ashby, on September 2, 1929. His father was a dairy farmer. After a rough childhood that included the divorce of his parents, his father's suicide, his dropping out of high school, getting married and divorced all before he was 19, he decided to leave Utah for California. A Californian employment office found him a printing press job at Universal Studios. Within a few years, he was an assistant film editor at various other studios. One of his pals while at MGM was a young messenger named Jack Nicholson. He moved up to being a full fledged editor on The Loved One (1965) and started editing the films of director Norman Jewison.
A highlight of his film editing career was winning an Oscar for the landmark In the Heat of the Night (1967). Itching to become a director, Jewison gave him a script he was too busy to work on called The Landlord (1970). It became Ashby's first film as a director. From there he delivered a series of well-acted, intelligent human scaled dramas that included The Last Detail (1973), Shampoo (1975), Bound for Glory (1976), Coming Home (1978) and Being There (1979). Great reviews and Oscar nominations became common on Ashby films.
Ashby was always a maverick and a contrary person and success proved difficult for Ashby to handle. He became unreliable due to his dependence on drugs and a reclusive lifestyle. He actually collapsed while making The Rolling Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together (1982) in Arizona. Although he recovered, he was never the same after that. He began taking too much time in post production on his films and actually had a couple of his later projects taken away from him to be edited by others. He tried to straighten himself out, but in the 1980s, he was considered by many to be unemployable. Just when he felt he was turning a corner in his life, he developed cancer that spread to his liver and colon. He died on December 27, 1988. Actor Sean Penn dedicated his first film as a director, The Indian Runner (1991) to Ashby and John Cassavetes, even though Penn was never directed by either one. Because he did not have a set visual style, many mistake this for no style at all. His career is not discussed as often as the careers of some of his contemporaries.September 2, 1929 – December 27, 1988
Won for: IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT (1967)- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Producer
James E. Newcom was born on 29 August 1905 in Wayne, Indiana, USA. He was an editor and producer, known for Gone with the Wind (1939), Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) and Rebecca (1940). He died on 6 October 1990 in San Diego, California, USA.August 29, 1905 – October 6, 1990
Won for: GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)- Editorial Department
- Editor
John D. Dunning was born on 5 May 1916 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an editor, known for Ben-Hur (1959), Battleground (1949) and Betrayed (1954). He died on 25 February 1991 in Santa Monica, California, USA.May 5, 1916 – February 25, 1991
Won for: BEN-HUR (1959)- Editor
- Director
- Editorial Department
Gene Milford was born on 19 January 1902 in Lamar, Colorado, USA. She was an editor and director, known for On the Waterfront (1954), Lost Horizon (1937) and Wait Until Dark (1967). She was married to Dorothy Hunter. She died on 23 December 1991 in Santa Monica, California, USA.January 19, 1902 – December 23, 1991
Won for:
LOST HORIZON (1937)
ON THE WATERFRONT (1954)- Editor
- Sound Department
- Editorial Department
Douglas Stewart was born on 27 March 1919 in Canada. He was an editor, known for The Right Stuff (1983), The Shootist (1976) and Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978). He was married to Gloria J. Stewart. He died on 3 March 1995 in Los Angeles, California, USA.March 29, 1919 – March 3, 1995
Won for: THE RIGHT STUFF (1983)- Actor
- Director
- Editor
Robert Parrish was an Academy Award-winning film editor who also directed and acted in movies. As a child he appeared in films during the early 1930s, such as City Lights (1931) by Charles Chaplin and Lewis Milestone's All Quiet on the Western Front (1930). As an editor he won an Academy Award for Body and Soul (1947), the 1947 Robert Rossen film that starred John Garfield as a money-grubbing, two-timing boxer on the make. Parrish also worked on All the King's Men (1949), an account of the rise and fall of a Louisiana politician that won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Parrish then moved on to direct films during the 1950s and 1960s. Among his best received works was the brooding western Saddle the Wind (1958).January 4, 1916 – December 4, 1995
Won for: BODY AND SOUL (1947)