Born: 6 April 1895 [other sources: 24 August], Genaseo, N.Y., as Harold 'Hal' G. Rosson.

Died: 6 September 1988 [other sources: 14 September], Palm Beach, Florida, USA.

Career: Started his career in 1908 as an actor at the Vitagraph Studios in the Flatbush area of Brooklyn, New York. Became asst to doph Irvin Willat at the Mark Dintenfass Studios. In 1912 he divided his time as an office boy in a stockbrokers firm and as asst, extra and handyman at the Famous Players Studio in New York. In 1914 he worked as a ticket seller, ticket taker and projectionist in a little theatre in Brooklyn. Moved to California in Dec 1914 and joined Metro Pictures as asst to property man Danny Hogan and doph Arthur A. Cadwell. When Metro moved back to New York he went with them. Became doph in 1915. During WWI he served in the army. After his demobilization he went to work on the Marion Davies picture, 'The Dark Star', in Fort Lee, N.J., as asst to doph Henry Lyman Broening. He was offered a contract with the Davies Company. In 1920 he was signed by Mary Pickford as a doph but not on her pictures, but on films starring her brother Jack. In 1935 he went to England to work for prod/dir Alexander Korda. Retired in 1958 [only to return for 'El Dorado'].

Was member of the ASC since 1927. Was married to actress Jean Harlow [1933-34]. His sister Helene Rosson [1897-1985] was an actress, his brother Richard [1893-1953] was an actor/director and brother Arthur [1886-1960] was a film director.

Awards: Special 'Oscar' AA [1936; shared] for the color cinematography of 'The Garden of Allah'; 'Oscar' AA nom [1939; color] for 'The Wizard of Oz'; 'Oscar' AA nom [1940; b&w] for 'Boom Town'; 'Oscar' AA nom [1944; b&w; shared] for 'Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo'; 'Oscar' AA nom [1950; b&w] & Golden Globe nom [1951; b&w] for 'The Asphalt Jungle'; 'Oscar' AA nom [1956; b&w] for 'The Bad Seed'; 'George' Award [1957] for outstanding achievement.

Louis B. Mayer once said to cinematographer Hal Rosson: "If it's an MGM film, it has to look like an MGM film." Rosson, one of the pioneers in motion picture photography spent 23 years at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and is one of the photographers who helped create and maintain the "polished look" that was so integral a part of the studio's films.

By 1920 he was a full-fledged cinematographer at Paramount. Rosson recalled that during those days one experimented, listened, and watched to learn and develop one's craft. Technical difficulties were approached and surmounted as they occurred, with no pretensions to "art." In doing so, Rosson became one of the finest exponents of his craft.

He joined MGM in 1930 and it was there that he perfected his own skills and aided that studio in developing the glossy patina which would become an MGM trademark. MGM loaned him to Selznick International for 'The Garden of Allah', and Rosson recalled that while he knew nothing about color film at the time, he decided "to control color, to eliminate color unless it could be used dramatically. I didn't want color to control me." His most outstanding achievement with color was for MGM's 'The Wizard of Oz', though again he modestly described his work as simply a matter of "controlling color." After 1955 he worked at various studios. Rosson was proud of his years at MGM, and fondly recalled its esprit de corps: "The spirit was such that we were proud to be at MGM." [From article by Ronald Bowers.]

Click thumbnails for full-size image

1915        David Harum [Allan Dwan] b&w; 5 reels; or ph Henry Lyman Broening; prod Famous Players Film Company

1916        The Honorable Friend [Edward LeSaint] b&w; 5 reels; prod Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company (JLLFPC)

1916        The Victoria Cross [Edward LeSaint] b&w; 5 reels; prod JLLFPC

1916        Oliver Twist [James Young] b&w; 5 reels; prod JLLFPC

1916        Panthea [Allan Dwan] b&w; cph: Roy Overbaugh; 5 reels; prod Norma Talmadge Film Corp.; shot in the Biograph

                    Studio, New York

1917        The American Consul [Rollin Sturgeon] b&w; 5 reels; prod JLLFPC

1919        The Cinema Murder [George D. Baker] b&w; 6 reels; prod Cosmopolitan Prod. (CP)

1920        Polly of the Storm Country [Arthur Rosson] b&w; prod Chaplin-Mayer Pictures Company

1920        Heliotrope [George D. Baker] b&w; prod CP

1921        Buried Treasure [George D. Baker] b&w; prod CP

1921        Everything for Sale [Frank O'Connor] b&w; 5 reels; prod Realart Pictures (RP)

1921        A Virginia Courtship [Frank O'Connor] b&w; 5 reels; prod RP

1921        A Homespun Vamp [Frank O'Connor] b&w; 5 reels; prod RP

1922        The Cradle [Paul Powell] b&w; 5 reels; prod Famous Players-Lasky Corporation (FPLC)

1922        Through a Glass Window [Maurice Campbell] b&w; 5 reels; prod RP

1922        For the Defense [Paul Powell] b&w; 5 reels; prod FPLC

1922        Garrison's Finish [Arthur Rosson] b&w; prod Jack Pickford Prod.

1922        Dark Secrets [Victor Fleming] b&w; 6 reels; prod FPLC

1923        Quicksands/Boots and Saddles [Jack Conway] b&w; 5 reels (re-release 1927); cph: Glen MacWilliams; prod Agfar

                    Corporation

1923        The Glimpses of the Moon [Allan Dwan] b&w; prod FPLC

1923        Lawful Larceny [Allan Dwan] b&w; 6 reels; prod FPLC

1923        Zaza [Allan Dwan] b&w; prod FPLC

1924        A Society Scandal [Allan Dwan] b&w; prod FPLC

1924        Manhandled [Allan Dwan] b&w; prod FPLC

1924        The Story Without a Name/Without Warning [Irvin Willat] b&w; 6 reels; prod FPLC

1924        Manhattan [R.H. Burnside] b&w; prod FPLC

1924        A Man Must Live [Paul Sloane] b&w; prod FPLC

1924        Too Many Kisses [Paul Sloane] b&w; 6 reels; prod FPLC

1925        The Little French Girl [Herbert Brenon] b&w; 6 reels; prod FPLC

1925        The Street of Forgotten Men [Herbert Brenon] b&w; prod FPLC

1925        Classified [Alfred Santell] b&w; prod Corinne Griffith Prod. (CGP)

1925        Infatuation [Irving Cummings] b&w; prod CGP

1926        Up in Mabel's Room [E. Mason Hopper] b&w; cph: Alex Phillips; prod Christie Film Company

1926        Say It Again [Gregory La Cava] b&w; or ph Edward Cronjager; prod FPLC

1926        Almost a Lady [E. Mason Hopper] b&w; 6 reels; prod Metropolitan Pictures Corporation of California (MPCoC)

1926        For Wives Only [Victor Heerman] b&w; 6 reels; prod MPCoC

1926        Man Bait [Donald Crisp] b&w; 6 reels; prod MPCoC

1926        Jim, the Conqueror [George B. Seitz] b&w; 6 reels; prod MPCoC

1927        Getting Gertie's Garter [E. Mason Hopper] b&w; prod MPCoC

1927        Evening Clothes [Luther Reed] b&w; prod FPLC

1927        Rough House Rosie [Frank Strayer] b&w; cph: James Murray; 6 reels; prod Paramount Famous Lasky Corp. (PFLC)

1927        Service for Ladies [Harry d'Arrast] b&w; prod PFLC

1927        A Gentleman of Paris [Harry d'Arrast] b&w; 6 reels; prod PFLC

1927        Open Range [Clifford Smith] b&w; 6 reels; prod PFLC

1927        Gentlemen Prefer Blondes [Malcolm St. Clair] b&w; prod PFLC

1927        The Dragnet [Josef von Sternberg] b&w; prod PFLC

1928        Sawdust Paradise [Luther Reed] b&w; silent with sound efx & music; prod PFLC

1928        The Docks of New York [Josef von Sternberg] b&w; prod PFLC

1928        Abie's Irish Rose [Victor Fleming] b&w; silent & sound versions; prod PFLC

1928        Three Week-ends [Clarence Badger] b&w; 6 reels; prod PFLC

1928        The Case of Lena Smith [Josef von Sternberg] b&w; prod PFLC

1929        Trent's Last Case [Howard Hawks] b&w; 6 reels; silent & sound (efx & music) versions; prod Fox Film Corp. (FFC)

1929        The Far Call [Allan Dwan] b&w; 6 reels; silent & sound (efx & music) versions; prod FFC

1929        Frozen Justice [Allan Dwan] b&w; silent & sound versions; prod FFC

1929        South Sea Rose [Allan Dwan] b&w

1930        Hello Sister [Walter Lang] b&w

1930        This Mad World [William C. de Mille] b&w; cph: J. Peverell Marley; silent & sound versions; prod MGM

1930        Madam Satan [Cecil B. DeMille] b&w

1930        Soyons gais [Arthur Robison] b&w; French language version of 'Let Us Be Gay' (1930, Robert Z. Leonard; ph: Norbert

                    Brodine)

1930        Passion Flower [William C. de Mille] b&w

1930        En cada puerto un amor [Carlos Borcosque & Marcel Silver] b&w; cph: Leonard Smith; Spanish language version of

                    'Way for a Sailor' (1930, Sam Wood; ph: Percy Hilburn)

1930        The Prodigal/The Southerner [Harry Pollard] b&w

1931        Men Call It Love [Edgar Selwyn] b&w

1931        The Squaw Man/The White Man [Cecil B. DeMille] b&w

1931        Son of India [Jacques Feyder] b&w

1931        Sporting Blood [Charles Brabin] b&w

1931        The Cuban Love Song [W.S. Van Dyke] b&w

1931        Tarzan the Ape Man [W.S. Van Dyke] b&w; cph: Clyde De Vinna; 1st film in Johnny Weissmuller's 12-part 'Tarzan'-

                    series (MGM, 1931-42 & RKO, 1943-48)

1932        Are You Listening? [Harry Beaumont] b&w

1932        When a Fellow Needs a Friend [Harry Pollard] b&w

1932        Red-Headed Woman [Jack Conway] b&w

1932        Downstairs [Monta Bell] b&w

1932        Kongo [William Cowen] b&w

1932        Red Dust [Victor Fleming] b&w; uncred cph (?): Arthur Edeson

1932        Hell Below [Jack Conway] b&w

1933        Hold Your Man [Sam Wood] b&w

1933        The Barbarian/The Arab/Man of the Nile/A Night in Cairo [Sam Wood] b&w

1933        Turn Back the Clock [Edgar Selwyn] b&w

1933        Penthouse/Crooks in Clover [W.S. Van Dyke] b&w; cph: Lucien Andriot

1933        Bombshell/Blonde Bombshell [Victor Fleming] b&w; uncred cph: Chester Lyons

1933        Viva Villa! [Jack Conway; Howard Hawks & William Wellman (uncred)] scheduled as doph, but replaced by James Wong

                    Howe after his marriage to actress Jean Harlow

1933        The Cat and the Fiddle [William K. Howard & (uncred retakes) Sam Wood] b&w + color seq; cph: Charles G. Clarke &

                    Ray Rennahan

1933        This Side of Heaven [William K. Howard] b&w

1934        The Girl from Missouri/100 Per Cent Pure/Born to Be Kissed/Eadie Was a Lady [Jack Conway & (uncred) Sam

                    Wood] replaced by doph Ray June after his marriage to the star (Jean Harlow) had ended

1934        Treasure Island [Victor Fleming] b&w; cph: Ray June & Clyde De Vinna

1934        The Scarlet Pimpernel [Harold Young; Rowland Brown & Alexander Korda (uncred)] b&w; spec pfx: George J. Teague

1935        The Ghost Goes West [René Clair; Alexander Korda re-shot and/or re-shaped some of Clair's material (uncred)] b&w

1935        The Man Who Could Work Miracles [Lothar Mendes] b&w; sfx ph: Jack Cardiff

1935        As You Like It [Paul Czinner] b&w

1936        The Garden of Allah [Richard Boleslawski] c; ph adv (?); ph: Virgil Miller (uncred) & W. Howard Greene; assoc ph:

                    Robert Carney & Wilfred M. Cline; sfx ph: Clarence Slifer & Jack Cosgrove; 'I was under contract to MGM, and Eddie

                    Mannix called me in one day, and said, 'We're loaning you out to David Selznick.' So the next day we started to work on

                    the picture; I went back to the studio that night, I called up Mr. Mannix and said, 'Eddie, I'm not so sure I'm the man for

                    this picture.' He said, 'Why?' I said, 'It's in color! I don't know anything about color... I'm not the man.' He said, 'Oh,

                    forget about it... you're the man. Mr. Selznick wants you to do it, and we want you to do it.' So I went back the next day,

                    photographed it, and won the Academy Award that year for color.' [From interview in 'Behind the Camera: The

                    Cinematographer's Art' by Leonard Maltin, 1971.]

1936        The Devil Is a Sissy/The Devil Takes the Count [W.S. Van Dyke & Rowland Brown] b&w; cph: George Schneiderman

1936        Captains Courageous [Victor Fleming & (uncred fill-in) Jack Conway] b&w; fill-in ph (while H. Rosson was ill): Harold

                    Morzorati; backgrounds & ext ph in October-November 1935

1937        They Gave Him a Gun [W.S. Van Dyke] b&w; sfx: Slavko Vorkapich

1937        The Emperor's Candlesticks [George Fitzmaurice] b&w; uncred cph: Oliver T. Marsh

1937        Double Wedding [Richard Thorpe] b&w; co-uncred cph; ph: William Daniels

1937        A Yank at Oxford [Jack Conway] b&w; studio ph; loc ph: Cyril Knowles

1938        Too Hot to Handle [Jack Conway] b&w; fill-in ph (last few days of filming): Ray June; ph Dutch Guiana: Clyde De Vinna

                    (d: Richard Rosson); sfx ph: A. Arnold Gillespie

1938        That Mothers Might Live [Fred Zinnemann] b&w; short/10m

1938        Gone with the Wind [Victor Fleming (replaced George Cukor); add d: Sam Wood, Sidney Franklin & William Wellman] c;

                    uncred ph 'Burning of Atlanta' seq in December 1938; ph: Ernest Haller & (uncred) Lee Garmes

1938        The Wizard of Oz [Richard Thorpe, replaced by George Cukor (2 days), replaced by Victor Fleming (scrapped existing

                    footage; credited dir), replaced (in February 1939) by King Vidor] b&w-c; color ph; b&w ph: Allen M. Davey; 2uc: John

                    Arnold; spec pfx: Max Fabian

1939        Forgotten Victory [Fred Zinnemann] b&w; short/11m

1939        I Take This Woman/New York Cinderella [Josef von Sternberg; started in October 1938); Frank Borzage (replaced

                    von Sternberg in November 1938; filming suspended in January 1939); W.S. Van Dyke II (re-shot most of the film in

                    December 1939)] b&w; ph (with dir W.S. Van Dyke II); uncred ph (with dir F. Borzage): Charles Lawton Jr.

1940        Edison, the Man [Clarence Brown] b&w

1940        Boom Town [Jack Conway] b&w; sfx ph: A. Arnold Gillespie

1940        Dr. Kildare Goes Home [Harold S. Bucquet] b&w; 5th film of 15-part 'Dr. Kildare/Dr. Gillespie'-series (MGM, 1938-47)

1940        Flight Command [Frank Borzage] b&w; 2uc: Paul Mantz & Frank Clarke

1940        Men of Boys Town [Norman Taurog] b&w

1941        The Penalty [Harold S. Bucquet] b&w; uncred cph (?): Clyde De Vinna; loc ph: Charles Lawton Jr.

1941        Washington Melodrama [S. Sylvan Simon] b&w

1941        The Yearling [Victor Fleming] c; filmed April-June; prod was shelved and resumed in May 1945 with dir Clarence Brown

                    and ph Leonard Smith & Arthur Arling

1941        The Chocolate Soldier [Roy Del Ruth] b&w; fill-in ph (while K. Freund was ill); ph: Karl Freund

1941        Honky Tonk [Jack Conway] b&w; replaced ph William H. Daniels, who fell ill

1941        Johnny Eager [Mervyn LeRoy] b&w

1941        We Were Dancing [Robert Z. Leonard] b&w; ph add scenes; ph: Robert Planck

1941        Tortilla Flat [Victor Fleming] b&w; uncred cph (?); ph: Karl Freund; sfx ph: Warren Newcombe

1942        Somewhere I'll Find You [Wesley Ruggles] b&w

1942        Tennessee Johnson/The Man on America's Conscience [William Dieterle] b&w

1942        Slightly Dangerous [Wesley Ruggles] b&w

1943        An American Romance [King Vidor] c; uncred 2uc: Charles P. Boyle; filmed April-August & October-November

1943        Meet Me in St. Louis [Vincente Minnelli] c; uncred ph 'The Trolley Song' seq; ph: George Folsey

1944        Marriage Is a Private Affair [Robert Z. Leonard] b&w; uncred cph (?); ph: Ray June

1944        Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo [Mervyn LeRoy] b&w; cph: Robert Surtees; + 2ud aerial seq

1944        Between Two Women [Willis Goldbeck] b&w; 14th film of 'Dr. Kildare/Dr. Gillespie'-series

1945        Duel in the Sun [King Vidor & (uncred; finished film) William Dieterle] c; cph: Lee Garmes & Ray Rennahan; addph:

                    Charles P. Boyle & Allen M. Davey; spec pfx: Jack Cosgrove & Clarence Slifer; filmed March 1945-September 1946

1945        No Leave, No Love [Charles Martin] b&w; cph: Robert Surtees

1945        [MGM's Miracle Love Story -] Three Wise Fools [Edward Buzzell] b&w

1946        My Brother Talks to Horses [Fred Zinnemann] b&w

1946        Living in a Big Way [Gregory La Cava] b&w

1947        The Hucksters [Jack Conway] b&w; sfx ph: Warren Newcombe & A. Arnold Gillespie

1947        Homecoming [Mervyn LeRoy] b&w

1948        Command Decision [Sam Wood] b&w

1948        The Stratton Story [Sam Wood] b&w

1949        Any Number Can Play [Mervyn LeRoy] b&w

1949        On the Town [Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen] c; uncred cph (mus seq): Harry Stradling Sr.; 2uc: Charles Schoenbaum (d:

                    Andrew Marton); sfx ph: Warren Newcombe

1949        Key to the City [George Sidney] b&w

1949        The Asphalt Jungle [John Huston] b&w

1950        To Please a Lady/Red Hot Wheels [Clarence Brown] b&w

1950        The Red Badge of Courage [John Huston] b&w

1950        Love Is Better Than Ever/The Light Fantastic [Stanley Donen] b&w

1951        An American in Paris [Vincente Minnelli] c; ph 'I Got Rhythm'-number; ph: Alfred Gilks; ph final ballet seq: John Alton;

                    loc ph Paris: Geoffrey Unsworth

1951        Lone Star [Vincent Sherman] b&w

1951        Singin' in the Rain [Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen] c; replaced doph John Alton

1952        The Story of Three Loves/Equilibrium/Three Stories of Love [Gotfried Reinhardt (seg #1 'The Jealous Lover' & #3

                    'Equilibrium') & Vincente Minnelli (seg #2 'Mademoiselle')] c; ph seg 'Mademoiselle'; other ph: Charles Rosher

1952        I Love Melvin [Don Weis] c

1952        Dangerous When Wet [Charles Walters] c

1952        The Actress [George Cukor] b&w

1953        Ulysses/Ulisse [Mario Camerini & (uncred) Mario Bava] c; spec pfx: Eugen Schüfftan

1953        A Star Is Born [George Cukor] cs/c; ph 'Born in a Trunk' number (dir by Richard Barstow); ph: Sam Leavitt

1954        Mambo [Robert Rossen] b&w

1954        Strange Lady in Town [Mervyn LeRoy] cs/c

1955        Pete Kelly's Blues [Jack Webb] cs/c

1955        The Bad Seed [Mervyn LeRoy] b&w

1956        Toward the Unknown/Brink of Hell [Mervyn LeRoy] c; 2uc: Harold Wellman; aph: Paul Mantz

1957        No Time for Sergeants [Mervyn LeRoy] b&w

1957        The Enemy Below [Dick Powell] cs/c

1957        The Buccaneer [Anthony Quinn] vv/c; prologue ph; ph: Loyal Griggs

1957        Onionhead [Norman Taurog] b&w

1963        Decision at Midnight [Lewis Allen] c; prod for Moral Re-Armament

1965        El Dorado [Howard Hawks] c; spec pfx: Paul K. Lerpae; process ph: Farciot Edouart