19 Facts About Gregg Toland

Gregg Toland is known for his work as a director of photography for Wuthering Heights, The Westerner, Ball of Fire, The Outlaw, Song of the South and The Bishop's Wife.

Gregg Toland was voted one of the top ten most influential cinematographers in the history of film by the International Cinematographers Guild in 2003.

Gregg Toland was born in Charleston, Illinois, on May 29,1904, to Jennie, a housekeeper, and Frank Gregg Toland.

Gregg Toland's mother moved to California several years after his parents divorced in 1910.

Gregg Toland got his start in the film industry at the age of 15, working as an office boy at the Fox studio.

Gregg Toland worked with many of the leading directors of his era, including John Ford, Howard Hawks, Erich von Stroheim, King Vidor, Orson Welles and William Wyler.

Gregg Toland carried in his wallet a strip of film taken with this lens, of which he was very proud.

Gregg Toland died in his sleep in Los Angeles, California, on September 28,1948, of coronary thrombosis at the age of 44.

However, the visuals were truly a collaboration, as Gregg Toland contributed great amounts of technical expertise that Welles needed so that he could achieve his vision.

For John Ford's The Long Voyage Home, Gregg Toland leaned more heavily on back-projection to create his deep focus compositions, such as the shot of the island women singing to entice the men of the SS Glencairn.

Gregg Toland continued to develop the technologies that would allow for him to create his images in Citizen Kane.

Gregg Toland innovated extensively on Citizen Kane, creating deep focus on a sound-stage, collaborating with set designer Perry Ferguson so ceilings would be visible in the frame by stretching bleached muslin to stand in as a ceiling, allowing placement of the microphone closer to the action without being seen in frame.

Gregg Toland modified the Mitchell Camera to allow a wider range of movement, especially from low angles.

Gregg Toland's lenses were treated with Vard Opticoat to reduce glare and increase light transmission.

Gregg Toland used the Kodak Super XX film stock, which was, at the time, the fastest film available, with an ASA film speed of 100.

Gregg Toland had worked closely with a Kodak representative during the stock's creation before its release in October 1938, and was one of the first cinematographers using it heavily on set.

Gregg Toland collaborated on a number of shots with special-effects cinematographer Linwood G Dunn.

Gregg Toland had already had experience with heavy in-camera compositing, and many of the shots in Kane look similar in composition and dynamics to a number of shots in Ford's The Long Voyage Home.

For one of his final projects, Gregg Toland turned to Technicolor film.