Floyd Crosby
Encyclopedia
Floyd Delafield Crosby, A.S.C. (December 12, 1899 – September 30, 1985) was an American cinematographer
.
Crosby was born and raised in West Philadelphia
, the son of Julia Floyd (née
Delafield) and Frederick Van Schoonhoven Crosby. In 1940, he married Aliph Van Cortland Whitehead and had two children, one of whom is David Crosby
of The Byrds
and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
.
He served as a cinematographer for the U.S. Army Air Corps film wing and made flight training films in World War II
, giving him experience in film. He left the Air Corps in 1946. Later, he became a cinematographer for numerous directors. He also divorced Aliph in 1960, and married Betty Cormack in the same year. He retired in the late 1960s to Ojai, California
, where he died in 1985.
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
.
Crosby was born and raised in West Philadelphia
West Philadelphia
West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though there is no official definition of its boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Line Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek to the southwest, and...
, the son of Julia Floyd (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Delafield) and Frederick Van Schoonhoven Crosby. In 1940, he married Aliph Van Cortland Whitehead and had two children, one of whom is David Crosby
David Crosby
David Van Cortlandt Crosby is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash , and CPR...
of The Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
Crosby, Stills & Nash (and Young)
Crosby, Stills & Nash is a folk rock supergroup made up of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, also known as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young when joined by occasional fourth member Neil Young...
.
He served as a cinematographer for the U.S. Army Air Corps film wing and made flight training films in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, giving him experience in film. He left the Air Corps in 1946. Later, he became a cinematographer for numerous directors. He also divorced Aliph in 1960, and married Betty Cormack in the same year. He retired in the late 1960s to Ojai, California
Ojai, California
Ojai is a city in Ventura County, California, USA. It is situated in the Ojai Valley , surrounded by hills and mountains. The population was 7,461 at the 2010 census, down from 7,862 at the 2000 census.-History:Chumash Indians were the early inhabitants of the valley...
, where he died in 1985.
Cinematography
During his career, Floyd Crosby was involved in the cinematography of more than 100 full length movies. The vast majority of these films are considered "B-movies".- TabuTabu (film)Tabu is a 1931 film directed by F.W. Murnau. The film is split into two chapters, the first called "Paradise" depicts the lives of two lovers on a South Seas island until they are forced to escape the island when the girl is chosen as a holy maid to the gods...
(1931) – Crosby won an Academy AwardAcademy AwardsAn Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for cinematographyCinematographyCinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
at the fourth Academy Award celebration4th Academy AwardsThe 4th Academy Awards were awarded to films completed and screened in 1930/1931, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. At the ceremony, nine-year-old Jackie Cooper, nominated for Best Actor in "Skippy," fell asleep on the shoulder of Best Actress nominee Marie Dressler...
for his work on this film. - Mato Grosso: the Great Brazilian Wilderness (1931) likely the first sync sound documentary made in the field, in Mato GrossoMato GrossoMato Grosso is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest in area, located in the western part of the country.Neighboring states are Rondônia, Amazonas, Pará, Tocantins, Goiás and Mato Grosso do Sul. It also borders Bolivia to the southwest...
, BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. - The Plow that Broke the PlainsThe Plow That Broke the PlainsThe Plow That Broke the Plains is a short documentary film which shows what happened to the Great Plains region of the United States and Canada when uncontrolled agricultural farming led to the Dust Bowl...
(1936), a New Deal Resettlement AdministrationResettlement AdministrationThe Resettlement Administration was a U.S. federal agency that, between April 1935 and December 1936, relocated struggling urban and rural families to communities planned by the federal government....
documentary directed by Pare LorentzPare LorentzPare Lorentz was an American filmmaker known for his movies about the New Deal. Born Leonard MacTaggart Lorentz in Clarksburg, West Virginia, he was educated at Wesleyan College and West Virginia University. As a young film critic in New York and Hollywood, Lorentz spoke out against censorship in...
. - Traffic with the DevilTraffic with the DevilTraffic with the Devil is a 1946 short documentary film about traffic problems in Los Angeles, directed by Gunther von Fritsch. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short....
(1946), a documentary short nominated for an Academy Award. - Devil Take UsDevil Take UsDevil Take Us is a 1952 short documentary film directed by Herbert Morgan. It was nominated for two Academy Awards, one for Best Documentary Short and the other for Best Two-Reel Short....
(1952), a documentary short nominated for two Academy Awards. - High NoonHigh NoonHigh Noon is a 1952 American Western film directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly. The film tells in real time the story of a town marshal forced to face a gang of killers by himself...
(1952) – A western movie, generally considered to be his most contemporarily praised film. - The Pit and the PendulumThe Pit and the Pendulum (1961 film)The Pit and the Pendulum is a 1961 horror film directed by Roger Corman, starring Vincent Price, Barbara Steele, John Kerr, and Luana Anders. The screenplay by Richard Matheson was based on Edgar Allan Poe's short story of the same name. Set in 16th century Spain, the story is about a young...
(1961) – One of several widescreenWidescreenWidescreen images are a variety of aspect ratios used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ratio greater than the standard 1.37:1 Academy aspect ratio provided by 35mm film....
horror filmHorror filmHorror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
s Crosby shot for director Roger CormanRoger CormanRoger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
.