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David Abel is a Director of Photography and Cinematography Néerlandais born on 15 december 1883

David Abel

David Abel
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Nationality Pays-bas
Birth 15 december 1883
Death 12 november 1973 (at 89 years)

David Abel, A.S.C., né le 15 décembre 1883 à Amsterdam (Pays-Bas), décédé le 12 novembre 1973 à Los Angeles (Californie), est un directeur de la photographie néerlandais, ayant fait carrière aux États-Unis.

Biography

Installé aux États-Unis (ses parents — d'origine russe — et lui y émigrent lorsqu'il est enfant), David Abel débute en 1916 comme chef opérateur. À ce poste, il exerce sur cent-dix films américains (dont plus de la moitié muets), régulièrement jusqu'en 1937, année où il se retire quasiment, avant trois ultimes films respectivement sortis en 1942, 1944 et 1945.

Dans les années 1930, il travaille essentiellement au sein de la RKO Pictures et ainsi, collabore à plusieurs films musicaux produits par ce studio, dont cinq avec le couple Fred Astaire - Ginger Rogers : La Joyeuse Divorcée (1934), Le Danseur du dessus (1935), En suivant la flotte (1936) et L'Entreprenant Monsieur Petrov (1937), tous quatre réalisés par Mark Sandrich (qu'il retrouve par ailleurs), ainsi que Sur les ailes de la danse (1936), réalisé par George Stevens.

Parmi les autres réalisateurs qu'il assiste, citons Harry Beaumont (ex. : Beau Brummel en 1924, avec John Barrymore et Mary Astor), Frank Borzage (Le destin se joue la nuit en 1937, avec Charles Boyer et Jean Arthur), ou encore John Cromwell (ex. : Ann Vickers en 1933, avec Irene Dunne et Walter Huston).


David Abel est inhumé au Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

Best films

Holiday Inn (1942)
(Director of Photography)
Swing Time (1936)
(Director of Photography)
The Gay Divorcee (1934)
(Director of Photography)

Usually with

Max Steiner
Max Steiner
(8 films)
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire
(6 films)
Source : Wikidata

Filmography of David Abel (58 films)

Display filmography as list

Cameraman

The Affairs of Susan, 1h50
Directed by William A. Seiter
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Romance
Actors Joan Fontaine, George Brent, Dennis O'Keefe, Walter Abel, Don DeFore, Rita Johnson
Roles Director of Photography
Rating65% 3.2891453.2891453.2891453.2891453.289145
The plot concerns Susan Darell (Joan Fontaine), an actress from New York, who is about to be married, even though they have only known each other for a few weeks. Complications set in when her fiancé Richard Aiken (Walter Abel) gives a party to celebrate. He discovers that Susan has had three previous boyfriends when he sees their pictures in her living room. At the party he talks to the three former beaus of Susan, each of whom describes Susan as an entirely different person. They tell him how they met and fell in love with her. The first one to talk to Richard is Broadway producer Roger Berton (George Brent), who met Susan on a vacation island. He discovered her acting talent and cast her in role in his new production of Joan of Arc. The next beau is Mike Ward (Don DeFore), an industrialist Millionaire, whom he met when making a deal with the producer. He discovered that Susan was too much of a cosmopolitan girl for his taste. The third man was a novelist named Bill Anthony (Dennis O'Keefe), who met Susan in a park. While spending time with Bill, Susan began an intellectual era, but she decides not to go through with their plans to marry, leaving Bill at the altar. The fiancé Richard Aiken hesitates in going through with the wedding because he is not sure just who is the real Susan. All the other three men agree that they still love Susan, and she ultimately chooses the Broadway producer to be her husband.
Follow the Boys, 2h2
Directed by John Rawlins, A. Edward Sutherland
Origin USA
Genres Drama, War, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Musical theatre, Romantic comedy, Musical
Themes Films about music and musicians, Musical films
Actors George Raft, Vera Zorina, Jeanette MacDonald, Charley Grapewin, Charles Butterworth, Elizabeth Patterson
Roles Director of Photography
Rating59% 2.950042.950042.950042.950042.95004
Durant la Seconde Guerre mondiale, le studio Universal Pictures, comme les autres studios Hollywoodiens, a soutenu l'effort de guerre et le moral des troupes et des civils en réunissant toutes ses stars devant la caméra pour une comédie musicale.
Holiday Inn, 1h40
Directed by Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Charles C. Coleman, Mark Sandrich, Oscar Rudolph
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Musical theatre, Musical, Romance
Themes Dance films, Films about music and musicians, Christmas films, Musical films
Actors Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Marjorie Reynolds, Walter Abel, Virginia Dale, Irving Berlin
Roles Director of Photography
Rating72% 3.6478553.6478553.6478553.6478553.647855
Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby), Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire), and Lila Dixon (Virginia Dale) have a musical act popular in the New York City nightlife scene. On Christmas Eve, Jim prepares to give his last performance as part of the act before marrying Lila and retiring with her to a farm in Connecticut. At the last minute, Lila decides she is not ready to stop performing, and that she has fallen in love with Ted. She tells Jim that she will stay on as Ted's dancing partner. While heartbroken, Jim follows through with his plan and bids the act goodbye.
History is Made at Night, 1h35
Directed by Frank Borzage, Arthur Ripley
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy-drama, Romance
Actors Charles Boyer, Colin Clive, Jean Arthur, Leo Carrillo, Frank Borzage, Ivan Lebedeff
Roles Director of Photography
Rating72% 3.6403353.6403353.6403353.6403353.640335
Irene Vail (Jean Arthur) decides to divorce her husband, the rich ship owner Bruce Vail (Colin Clive), after he falsely accuses her of having an affair. Bitterly jealous and possessive of Irene, Vail learns that he can prevent the divorce from being finalized if he can provide evidence that she has been involved with another man within six months of filing for divorce. Vail pays his driver, Michael (Ivan Lebedeff), to go to Irene's hotel room in Paris and pretend to be her lover, with the intention of having a private detective catch them in a compromising position. However, an unknown man overhears Irene's startled cry upon finding Michael in her room. A struggle ensues when the man defends Irene against Michael's unwanted advances, and ends with Michael on the floor, unconscious. When Vail and the detective burst into the room, the man threatens them with a gun, demands Irene's jewelry, and takes Irene hostage.
Shall We Dance, 1h49
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Romantic comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Dance films, Films about music and musicians, Films about classical music and musicians, Jazz films, Musical films
Actors Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edward Everett Horton, Eric Blore, Jerome Cowan, Ben Alexander
Roles Director of Photography
Rating74% 3.7466253.7466253.7466253.7466253.746625
Peter P. Peters (Fred Astaire), an American ballet dancer billed as "Petrov", dances for a ballet company in Paris owned by the bumbling Jeffrey Baird (Edward Everett Horton). Peters secretly wants to blend classical ballet with modern jazz dancing, and when he sees a photo of famous tap dancer Linda Keene (Ginger Rogers), he falls in love with her. He contrives to meet her, but she is less than impressed. They meet again on an ocean liner traveling back to New York, and Linda warms to Petrov. Unknown to them, a plot is launched as a publicity stunt "proving" that they are actually married. Outraged, Linda becomes engaged to the bumbling Jim Montgomery (William Brisbane), much to the chagrin of both Peters and Arthur Miller (Jerome Cowan), her manager, who secretly launches more fake publicity. Peters and Keene, unable to squelch the rumor, decide to actually marry and then immediately get divorced. Linda begins to fall in love with her husband, but then discovers him with another woman, Lady Denise Tarrington (Ketti Gallian), and leaves before he can explain. Later, when she comes to his new show to personally serve him divorce papers, she sees him dancing with dozens of women, all wearing masks with her face on them: Peters has decided that if he cannot dance with Linda, he will dance with images of Linda. Seeing that he truly loves her, she happily joins him onstage.
Follow the Fleet, 1h50
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Dance films, Seafaring films, Films about music and musicians, Transport films, Musical films, United States Armed Forces in films
Actors Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Randolph Scott, Harriet Nelson, Astrid Allwyn, Betty Grable
Roles Director of Photography
Rating70% 3.546893.546893.546893.546893.54689
Seaman "Bake" Baker (Fred Astaire) and Sherry (Ginger Rogers) are former dance partners, now separated, with Baker in the Navy and Sherry working as a dance hostess in a San Francisco ballroom, Paradise.
Swing Time
Swing Time (1936)
, 1h43
Directed by George Stevens
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Dance films, Films about music and musicians, Musical films
Actors Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Victor Moore, Eric Blore, Helen Broderick, Frank Jenks
Roles Director of Photography
Rating74% 3.744353.744353.744353.744353.74435
John "Lucky" Garnett (Fred Astaire) is a gambler and dancer. He is set to marry Margaret (Betty Furness), but his friends hold him up so that he is late for the wedding. Margaret's father phones to call off the wedding, but Lucky doesn't get that message. His friends bet him that he won't be getting married and he agrees to the bet. Margaret's father tells Lucky that he must earn $25,000 in order to demonstrate his good intentions.
Make Way for a Lady, 1h5
Directed by David Burton
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Comedy-drama, Romantic comedy
Actors Herbert Marshall, Anne Shirley, Gertrude Michael, Margot Grahame, Clara Blandick, Willie Best
Roles Director of Photography
Rating55% 2.764462.764462.764462.764462.76446
June Drew (Anne Shirley) is the daughter of widowed Christopher Drew (Herbert Marshall), who suffers in silence as his daughter tries to "match" him with every eligible woman in sight.
Top Hat
Top Hat (1935)
, 1h41
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Romantic comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Dance films, Films about music and musicians, Musical films
Actors Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edward Everett Horton, Erik Rhodes, Eric Blore, Helen Broderick
Roles Director of Photography
Rating76% 3.846683.846683.846683.846683.84668
An American dancer, Jerry Travers (Fred Astaire) comes to London to star in a show produced by the bumbling Horace Hardwick (Edward Everett Horton). While practicing a tap dance routine in his hotel bedroom, he awakens Dale Tremont (Ginger Rogers) on the floor below. She storms upstairs to complain, whereupon Jerry falls hopelessly in love with her and proceeds to pursue her all over London.
The Case of the Curious Bride, 1h20
Directed by Michael Curtiz
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Crime
Actors Warren William, Margaret Lindsay, Donald Woods, Claire Dodd, Allen Jenkins, Phillip Reed
Roles Director of Photography
Rating65% 3.296043.296043.296043.296043.29604
Rhoda Montaine learns that her first husband, Gregory Moxley, is still alive, which makes things awkward for her, since she has remarried Carl, the son of wealthy C. Phillip Montaine. She turns to Perry Mason for help, but when he goes to see Moxley, he finds only his corpse. Rhoda is arrested for murder.
I Dream Too Much, 1h37
Directed by John Cromwell
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Romantic comedy, Romance
Themes Films about music and musicians, Musical films
Actors Henry Fonda, Lily Pons, Eric Blore, Lucille Ball, Osgood Perkins, Mischa Auer
Roles Director of Photography
Rating53% 2.656282.656282.656282.656282.65628
Annette Monard Street (Lily Pons) is an aspiring singer, who falls in love with and marries Jonathan Street (Henry Fonda), a struggling young composer.
The Gay Divorcee, 1h47
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Origin USA
Genres Comedy, Musical, Romance
Themes Films about music and musicians, Musical films
Actors Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Alice Brady, Edward Everett Horton, Betty Grable, Eric Blore
Roles Director of Photography
Rating73% 3.6955053.6955053.6955053.6955053.695505
Mimi Glossop (Ginger Rogers) arrives in England to seek a divorce from her geologist husband Cyril, whom she hasn't seen for several years. Under the guidance of her domineering and much-married aunt Hortense (Alice Brady), she consults incompetent and bumbling lawyer Egbert Fitzgerald (Edward Everett Horton), once a fiancé of her aunt. He arranges for her to spend a night at a seaside hotel and to be caught in an adulterous relationship, for which purpose he hires a professional co-respondent, Rodolfo Tonetti (Erik Rhodes). But Egbert forgets to arrange for private detectives to "catch" the couple.
This Man Is Mine, 1h16
Directed by John Cromwell
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Romance
Actors Irene Dunne, Constance Cummings, Ralph Bellamy, Kay Johnson, Charles Starrett, Sidney Blackmer
Roles Director of Photography
Rating59% 2.999872.999872.999872.999872.99987
Tony and Jim Dunlap are happily married. However, the dull-but-dependable Jim had been in love with Fran Harper, a school friend of Tony's, before he was married to Tony, and Fran has just been divorced. Now Fran is coming their way, bringing her pick-up boyfriend Mort Holmes along, and she intends to steal Jim from Tony. Tony sees Fran as a reminder of her own mother, who left Tony's father and caused him to drink himself to death. Thus, Tony is determined to avoid meeting Fran. However, they meet at the house of their friends Jud and Bee McCrae, and Fran goes off with Jim after everyone has left. When Tony finds that Jim and Fran have been together, she threatens to divorce him. However, Tony eventually beats Fran at her own game, and wins Jim back.