Harold Michelson

{{Short description|American artist}} {{Infobox person | name = Harold Michelson | image = | caption = | birth_date = {{birth date|1920|2|15}} | birth_place = [[New York City]], New York, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2007|3|1|1920|2|15}} | death_place = [[Woodland Hills, California]], U.S. | occupation = Production designer, art director, illustrator | spouse = {{marriage|Lillian Farber|1947}} | children = 3 }}

'''Harold Michelson''' (February 15, 1920 – March 1, 2007) was an American [[production designer]] and [[art director]]. In addition, he worked as an [[illustrator]] and/or [[storyboard artist]] on numerous films from the 1940s through the 1990s.

==Biography== A native of New York City, Michelson worked with the [[Bureau of Engraving and Printing]] in Washington, D.C. after graduating from high school. He then served as a [[Bombardier (air force)|bombardier]]-navigator in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II, flying more than 40 missions over Germany.

After the war, Michelson became an illustrator. He worked on [[magazines]] while attending the [[Art Students League of New York]] before moving on to Chicago and Los Angeles, where he illustrated movie posters. He ultimately became an illustrator for [[Columbia Pictures]] before being traded to [[Paramount Pictures]], where he worked as illustrator and storyboard artist on ''[[The Ten Commandments (1956 film)|The Ten Commandments]]''. He then worked as a storyboard artist on ''[[Ben-Hur (1959 film)|Ben-Hur]]'' for [[MGM]] and ''[[Spartacus (film)|Spartacus]]'' for [[Universal Pictures]].

Throughout the remainder of the 1960s, he worked as either illustrator or storyboard artist on films such as ''[[West Side Story (1961 film)|West Side Story]]'', ''[[The Birds (film)|The Birds]]'', ''[[Cleopatra (1963 film)|Cleopatra]]'', ''[[Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (film)|Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?]]'' and ''[[The Graduate]]''. During the 1970s, he was an illustrator for films like ''[[Fiddler on the Roof (film)|Fiddler on the Roof]]'' and ''[[Cross of Iron]]''; in the 1980s, he worked on ''[[Firestarter (1984 film)|Firestarter]]'' and ''[[The Cotton Club (film)|The Cotton Club]]'', and he was a visual consultant on the 1986 remake of ''[[The Fly (1986 film)|The Fly]]''.

His career as an art director started in television, beginning with ''[[Matinee Theatre]]'' and moving to programs such as ''[[Gomer Pyle, USMC]]'' and ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]''. He served as art director on several films and began working as production designer with the 1971 [[Cannes Film Festival]] Jury Grand Prize-winning film ''[[Johnny Got His Gun]]'', and he continued to work as an illustrator and storyboard artist.

Michelson worked on two films for [[Mel Brooks]], first as production designer on ''[[History of the World, Part I]]'' and later as art director for ''[[Spaceballs]]''. Michelson's other art direction credits include the films ''[[Mommie Dearest (film)|Mommie Dearest]]'', ''[[Planes, Trains & Automobiles]]'' and ''[[Dick Tracy (1990 film)|Dick Tracy]]''. He also served as a consultant for producer [[Danny DeVito]] on films such as ''[[Hoffa (film)|Hoffa]]'' and ''[[Death to Smoochy]]''.

==Death and legacy== Michelson died at the [[Motion Picture & Television Fund]] retirement home, following a long illness, at the age of 87.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-mar-08-me-passings8.1-story.html |title=Harold Michelson, 87; film production designer, art director |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=March 8, 2007}}</ref>

The documentary film ''Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story'' describes the life and career of Michelson and his wife [[Lillian Michelson|Lillian]], who became a respected film researcher.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/27/movies/harold-and-lillian-review.html |title=Review: 'Harold and Lillian' Introduces a Hollywood Power Couple |first=Monica |last=Castillo |newspaper=The New York Times |date=April 27, 2017 |page=C11}}</ref>

==Awards and honors== Michelson shared his first Academy Award nomination for his production designs on ''[[Star Trek: The Motion Picture]]'', contributing to the interior and exterior design on the newly refit [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)|USS ''Enterprise'']]. He shared a second nomination for his art direction on the 1983 film ''[[Terms of Endearment]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://variety.com/2007/film/markets-festivals/production-designer-michelson-dies-1117960540/ |title=Production designer Michelson dies |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=March 5, 2007 |issn=0042-2738}}</ref>

In 1999 Michelson was honored with the [[Art Directors Guild]]'s Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2002, he received the Outstanding Achievement in Production Design award from the [[Hollywood Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/production-designer-harold-michelson-dies-131358 |title=Production designer Harold Michelson dies |first=Carolyn |last=Giardina |magazine=The Hollywood Reporter |date=March 6, 2007 |issn=0018-3660}}</ref>

He was inducted into the [[Art Directors Guild Hall of Fame]] in 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.adg.org/?name=HALL-OF-FAME&art=hall_of_fame&VIEW=29248 |title=Hall of Fame: Harold Michelson |website=Art Directors Guild |accessdate=May 15, 2017}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * {{IMDb name|0585118}} * {{IMDb title| id=4683668 | title = Harold and Lillian:A Hollywood Love Story (2015)}} {{Memory Alpha}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Michelson, Harold}} [[Category:1920 births]] [[Category:2007 deaths]] [[Category:American art directors]] [[Category:20th-century American illustrators]] [[Category:American production designers]] [[Category:American storyboard artists]] [[Category:Film poster artists]] [[Category:20th-century American Jews]] [[Category:21st-century American Jews]]