EPISODE 150 - “CEDRIC GIBBONS: ARCHITECT OF HOLLYWOOD DREAMS” - 7/27/2026

This week, we’re going behind the scenes of Classic Cinema to focus on an artist who had a huge impact on the visual storytelling of film. You may not even know his name, but he is credited on over 1000 films. What would The Wizard of Oz be without the Emerald City? What would The Women be without Mary Haines’ divine apartment? And what would the Oscar statuette be without this man’s design? Of course, we’re talking about celebrated Art Director CEDRIC GIBBONS — one of the most influential artists in film history. He served at MGM as supervising art director for a record 32 years — from 1925 to 1956. Winner of 11 Academy Awards, nominated for a total of 39, Gibbons created the look and tone we now think of as synonymous with that MGM sparkle. Join us as we discuss his life and career.

SHOW NOTES:

Sources:

MGM Style: Cedric Gibbons and the Art of the Golden Age of Hollywood by Howard Gutner, Simon & Schuster, 2019

Cedric Gibbons and Dolores Del Rio: The Art Director and the Star of Flying Down to Rio in Santa Monica, Architectural Digest April, 1992

Architecture and Film Edited by Mark Lamster, Princeton Architectural Press, 2000

Cedric Gibbons, MGM Artist, 65: Retired Head of Department Dead, Designer of Oscar, Won 11 Academy Awards, The New York Times, July 27, 1960

Designs on Film: A Century of Hollywood Art Direction by Cathy Whitlock, HarperCollins, 2010

New Book on Famed MGM Art Director Cedric Gibbons Reveals Over 100 Never-Before-Seen Photos by Cathy Whitlock, The Hollywood Reporter October 16, 2019

TCM.com;

oscars.org

IMDBpro.com

IBDB.com

wikipedia.com

brittanica.com

Films Mentioned:

Trilby (1915);

Fields of Honor (1918);

Earthbound (1920);

Bunty Pulls the Strings (1921);

A Blind Bargain (1922);

In the Palace of the King (1923);

The Rendezvous (1923);

True As Steel (1924);

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925);

The Trail of '98 (1928);

Our Dancing Daughters (1928);

The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1929);

Anna Christie (1930);

Grand Hotel (1932);

Red Dust (1932);

The Merry Widow (1934);

The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934);

A Tale of Two Cities (1935);

Fury (1936);

Marie Antoinette (1938);

The Wizard of Oz (1939);

The Women (1939);

Pride and Prejudice (1940);

Presenting Lily Mars (1943);

Gaslight (1944);

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944);

The Clock (1945);

The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945);

The Yearling (1946);

Body and Soul (1947);

Little Women (1949);

Madame Bovary (1949);

An American in Paris (1951);

Singin' in the Rain (1952);

The Bad and the Beautiful (1952);

Julius Caesar (1953);

Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956);

Summer and Smoke (1961);

Period of Adjustment (1962)

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