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Hans Dreier

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Hans Dreier
Born(1885-08-21)August 21, 1885
Bremen, Germany
DiedOctober 24, 1966(1966-10-24) (aged 81)
Bernardsville, New Jersey, United States
OccupationArt director
Years active1919-1951

Hans Dreier (August 21, 1885 – October 24, 1966) was a German motion picture art director. He was Paramount Pictures' supervising art director from 1927 until his retirement in 1950, when he was succeeded by Hal Pereira.[1]

Hans Dreier was born in Bremen, Germany in 1885. After studying architecture in Munich, Germany, Dreier worked as imperial supervising architect of the German Cameroon.[1] During World War I, he served in the German Lancers.[2]

He began his career in German films in 1919 as an assistant designer at UFA Studios. At the urging of German director Ernst Lubitsch, Dreier relocated to Hollywood in 1923 to work for Paramount. His first Hollywood film was Forbidden Paradise, directed by Lubitsch and starring Pola Negri.[2] Dreier worked as Paramount's supervising art director from 1927 until his retirement in 1950.

He made contributions to nearly 500 films during his career, including many films directed by Josef von Sternberg and Ernst Lubitsch, as well as the film It's a Gift (1934) starring W. C. Fields.[3] He was nominated for Academy Awards for his art direction on 23 occasions. He won Academy Awards for Best Art Direction (Color) for Frenchman's Creek (1944) and Samson and Delilah (1950). He also won the award for Art Direction (Black and White) for Sunset Boulevard (1950).

Selected filmography

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Obituaries". Variety. November 1, 1966. p. 11.
  2. ^ a b Hambley, John; Downing; Patrick (1979). The Art of Hollywood a Thames Television Exhibition At the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: Thames. p. 37.
  3. ^ Deschner, Donald (1966). The Films of W.C. Fields. New York: Cadillac Publishing by arrangement with The Citadel Press. p. 103. Introduction by Arthur Knight
  4. ^ a b c "Hall of Fame: Hans Dreier". Art Directors Guild. September 16, 2020.
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