Clarence Sinclair Bull (May 22, 1896 – June 8, 1979) was a portrait photographer who worked for movie studios during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was head of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer stills department for nearly 40 years.
Biography
[edit]Clarence Sinclair Bull was born in Sun River, Montana, in 1896.[1] His career began when Samuel Goldwyn hired him in 1920 to photograph publicity stills of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio's stars. He is most famous for his photographs of Greta Garbo, taken between 1926 and 1941. Bull's first portrait of Garbo was a costume study for the silent romantic drama film Flesh and the Devil in September 1926.[2]
Bull was able to study with the great Western painter, Charles Marion Russell. He also served as an assistant cameraman in 1918.[3] Bull was skilled in the areas of lighting, retouching and printing.[4] He was most commonly credited as "C.S. Bull."[5]
Bull died on June 8, 1979, in Los Angeles, California, aged 83.[1]
Gallery
[edit]- Photographs by Clarence Sinclair Bull
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Charles Laughton, 1934 (publicity photo for film The Barretts of Wimpole Street)
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Una Merkel, 1934
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Madge Evans, circa 1935
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Greta Garbo (publicity photo for film Ninotchka, 1939)
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Hedy Lamarr, 1940
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American actress Lynne Carver, 1940
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Van Heflin, 1941
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Conrad Veidt, 1941
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Judy Garland, 1943
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June Allyson, 1944
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Clarence Bull". Hollywood Grave Hunter. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
- ^ "Clarence Sinclair Bull - The man who shot Garbo". Garbo Forever. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
- ^ "Clarence Sinclair Bull (American, 1895-1979)". ArtNet. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
- ^ "The Great Hollywood MGM Photographer Clarence Sinclair Bull". Vintage Movie Star Photos. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
- ^ "About Clarence Sinclair Bull's Life". Andrew Weiss Gallery. Archived from the original on July 12, 2013. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
Further reading
[edit]- Pepper, Terence (1989). The Man Who Shot Garbo: The Hollywood Photographs of Clarence Sinclair Bull. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-671-69700-5. OCLC 20461098.