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IMDbPro

Joseph F. Biroc(1903-1996)

  • Cinematographer
  • Camera and Electrical Department
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
Joseph F. Biroc
Clip: That was Emilio
Play clip0:54
13 Ghosts
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15 Photos
Joseph Biroc was destined to become one of the most versatile cinematographers in Hollywood, working on films of almost every genre. He started as a lab assistant in 1918, based at Paragon Studio, located in America's first 'film capital', Ft.Lee, New Jersey. From there, he moved on to the Paramount facility in Long Island as a camera assistant, and, by 1927, found himself in Hollywood. Under contract to RKO, he took on a number of jobs as second cameraman, frequently uncredited. One of his first A-grade features was the western Cimarron (1931), assisting Edward Cronjager. Serving his apprenticeship under George J. Folsey, Biroc became a fully-fledged lighting cameraman in 1940, but World War II put his career on hold.

During the war years, Biroc advanced to the rank of captain with the U.S. Army Signal Corps and was afforded the unique distinction of being the first American cameraman to film the liberation of Paris in 1944. After the war, he worked with Joseph Walker as co-director of photography on the perennial Christmas favourite It's a Wonderful Life (1946). During the 1950's, Biroc tackled a variety of subjects, ranging from the tough film noir Cry Danger (1951) to the sci-fi cult classic Red Planet Mars (1952). He also filmed the first ever movie shot in 3-D, Bwana Devil (1952). A turning point in his career came when he met the idiosyncratic director Robert Aldrich, while shooting an episode of the TV series China Smith (1952). This led to a productive collaboration, encompassing sixteen motion pictures. The most memorable of these include the brilliantly atmospheric thriller Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964), (Biroc used candles, shadows and silhouettes to effectively convey mystery and impending danger); and the sun-drenched all-star character study, The Flight of the Phoenix (1965).

Another fruitful collaboration was with producer Irwin Allen, who hired Biroc to head the Action Unit (with Fred J. Koenekamp leading the First Unit) for the filming of his 14 million dollar disaster epic, The Towering Inferno (1974), undertaken on eight of 20th Century Fox's biggest sound stages. In charge of shooting the most dramatic (and dangerous) scenes , Biroc worked with legendary special effects men A.D. Flowers and L.B. Abbott (who was persuaded to come out of retirement for this project). Biroc employed eight cameras in tandem, covering as many angles and positions as possible, zoom lenses used to conveying a sense of movement where physical space was restrictive. Timing was also of critical importance: the LA Fire Department overseeing the security aspects of the propane-fed pyrotechnics, limited periods where the fire was at its most intense to no more than 20 to 30 seconds. Scenes had to be shot within this limited time frame. As destroyed sets were rebuilt or repaired, there were delays with continuity, sometimes over several weeks. As Biroc later remarked "it wasn't only a question of everyone and everything having to be in the right place after that long an interval of time, it was also a matter of our being able to pick up on the look and mood created by Fred's unit" (American Cinematographer, Feb. 1975). For his work on 'Towering Inferno', Biroc became - deservedly- co-recipient (with Koenekamp) of the 1974 Academy Award for Best Cinematography.

For the remainder of the decade, Biroc did some of his best work for the small screen. He imbued a sense of realism (and was accordingly nominated for an Emmy) to one of the best political mini-series ever filmed, the gripping Washington: Behind Closed Doors (1977), a fictionalisation of Watergate and the Nixon administration. In stark thematic contrast, he worked with Mel Brooks on the seminal comedy western Blazing Saddles (1974), and with Jim Abrahams and David Zucker on the equally hilarious airborne farce Airplane! (1980). With an impressive 159 credits as cinematographer to his name, Biroc retired in 1986 and was two years later awarded the ASC Lifetime Achievement Award.
BornFebruary 12, 1903
DiedSeptember 7, 1996(93)
BornFebruary 12, 1903
DiedSeptember 7, 1996(93)
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
  • Won 1 Oscar

Photos15

Joseph F. Biroc
George Reeves and Joseph F. Biroc in Adventures of Superman (1952)
George Reeves and Joseph F. Biroc in Adventures of Superman (1952)
Joseph F. Biroc
Samuel Fuller and Joseph F. Biroc in Run of the Arrow (1957)
Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Joseph F. Biroc, David Abel, Willard Barth, and Mark Sandrich in Shall We Dance (1937)
Joseph F. Biroc, Frank Flanagan, Mervyn LeRoy, and Roger Shearman
Irwin Allen and Joseph F. Biroc
James Wong Howe and Joseph F. Biroc
Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Joseph F. Biroc, Willard Barth, and Mark Sandrich in Follow the Fleet (1936)
Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Joseph F. Biroc, and Willard Barth
Howard Hawks, Joseph F. Biroc, and Willard Barth in Bringing Up Baby (1938)

Known for

Fred Astaire, William Holden, Paul Newman, Richard Chamberlain, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, and Jennifer Jones in The Towering Inferno (1974)
The Towering Inferno
7.0
  • Camera and Electrical Department(as Joseph Biroc, action sequences)
  • 1974
Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
Escape from the Planet of the Apes
6.3
  • Cinematographer(as Joseph Biroc)
  • 1971
James Stewart and Donna Reed in It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
It's a Wonderful Life
8.6
  • Cinematographer(as Joseph Biroc)
  • 1946
Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, and Joseph Cotten in Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)
Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte
7.5
  • Cinematographer(as Joseph Biroc)
  • 1964

Credits

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IMDbPro

Cinematographer

  • Bob Terry in The Forsaken Westerns (2017)
    The Forsaken Westerns
  • Dick Butkus, Missy Crider, Sandy Faison, Tricia Leigh Fisher, Johnny Galecki, and Harriet Nelson in Time Out for Dad (1987)
    Time Out for Dad
  • Keith Carradine, Mare Winningham, and Huckleberry Fox in A Winner Never Quits (1986)
    A Winner Never Quits
  • Outrage! (1986)
    Outrage!
    • (as Joseph Biroc)
  • A Death in California (1985)
    A Death in California
    • (as Joseph Biroc)
  • Hell Town (1985)
    Hell Town
  • Hell Town (1985)
    Hell Town
  • The Jerk, Too (1984)
    The Jerk, Too
    • (as Joe Biroc)
  • Casablanca (1983)
    Casablanca
  • Airplane II: The Sequel (1982)
    Airplane II: The Sequel
    • (as Joe Biroc)
  • Marilu Henner, Peter Boyle, Frederic Forrest, David Patrick Kelly, and Lydia Lei in Hammett (1982)
    Hammett
    • (as Joseph Biroc)
  • Desperate Lives (1982)
    Desperate Lives
    • (as Joe Biroc)
  • Peter Falk, Vicki Frederick, and Laurene Landon in ...All the Marbles (1981)
    ...All the Marbles
    • (as Joseph Biroc)
  • Airplane! (1980)
    Airplane!
    • (as Joseph Biroc)
  • Lee Purcell, Clu Gulager, and Kenny Rogers in The Gambler (1980)
    The Gambler
    • (as Joe Biroc)

Camera and Electrical Department

  • Fred Astaire, William Holden, Paul Newman, Richard Chamberlain, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, and Jennifer Jones in The Towering Inferno (1974)
    The Towering Inferno
    • (as Joseph Biroc)
  • Frank Sinatra, Ursula Andress, Anita Ekberg, and Dean Martin in 4 for Texas (1963)
    4 for Texas
    • (as Joseph Biroc)
  • James Mason and Pamela Mason in Charade (1954)
    Charade
  • Humphrey Bogart and Florence Marly in Tokyo Joe (1949)
    Tokyo Joe
    • (uncredited)
  • James Stewart and Donna Reed in It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
    It's a Wonderful Life
    • (uncredited)
  • The Story of Samba (1943)
    The Story of Samba
  • Randolph Scott, Pat O'Brien, and Anne Shirley in Bombardier (1943)
    Bombardier
    • (uncredited)
  • Freddie Bartholomew, Cedric Hardwicke, and Jimmy Lydon in Tom Brown's School Days (1940)
    Tom Brown's School Days
    • (uncredited)
  • Lucille Ball, John Carradine, Wendy Barrie, Joseph Calleia, Allen Jenkins, Patric Knowles, Chester Morris, Elisabeth Risdon, C. Aubrey Smith, and Kent Taylor in Five Came Back (1939)
    Five Came Back
    • (uncredited)
  • Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby (1938)
    Bringing Up Baby
    • (uncredited)
  • Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in Shall We Dance (1937)
    Shall We Dance
    • (uncredited)
  • Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in Swing Time (1936)
    Swing Time
    • (uncredited)
  • Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in Top Hat (1935)
    Top Hat
  • Katharine Hepburn and Charles Boyer in Break of Hearts (1935)
    Break of Hearts
    • (uncredited)
  • Gloria Stuart, John Beal, Gloria Shea, and Virginia Weidler in Laddie (1935)
    Laddie
    • (uncredited)

Videos2

13 Ghosts
Clip 0:54
13 Ghosts
13 Ghosts
Clip 1:10
13 Ghosts

Personal details

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    • February 12, 1903
    • New York City, New York, USA
    • September 7, 1996
    • Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA(undisclosed)

Did you know

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  • Trivia
    Was a member of the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) since 1948.

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