William Cameron Menzies defined and solidified the role of art director as having overall control of the look of the motion picture, collaborating with producers like David O. Selznick and Samuel Goldwyn; with directors such as D. W. Griffith, Raoul Walsh, Alfred Hitchcock, Lewis Milestone, and Frank Capra. And with actors as varied as Ingrid Bergman, W. C. Fields, Cary Grant, Clark Gable, John Barrymore, Barbara Stanwyck, Ronald Reagan, Gary Cooper, Vivien Leigh, Carole Lombard, Mary Pickford, Gloria Swanson, and David Niven.
In his new book, William Cameron Menzies: The Shape of Films to Come, film historian James Curtis creates a portrait of a man in his time that makes clear how the movies were forever transformed by his startling, visionary work.
Learn more about this month's TCM Spotlight of William Cameron Menzies.
