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Horner (Harry) papers
6107
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
USC Libraries Special Collections
Title: Harry Horner papers
creator:
Horner, Harry
Identifier/Call Number: 6107
Physical Description:
1.5 Linear Feet
5 boxes
Date (inclusive): 1924-2000
Abstract: The Harry Horner papers consist of correspondence, notebooks, sketchbooks, programs, clippings, scripts, and scrapbooks, 1924-2000,
created and collected by director and production designer Harry Horner. The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence,
both professional and personal. It also includes two of Horner's personal sketchbooks; clippings and related ephemera pertaining
to Max Reinhardt; film scripts; and biographical statements written by Horner. Harry Horner was born in Czechoslovakia in
1910, and after graduating from the University of Vienna with a degree in architecture, he joined Max Reinhardt's repertory
company in Vienna. He came to New York with Reinhardt in 1935 and became a US citizen in 1940. Horner became a noted production
designer and director in Hollywood, on Broadway, for operatic productions and large pageants. He won 2 Academy Awards and
was nominated for an additional six. He died in Los Angeles in 1994.
Harry Horner, two-time Academy Award-winning production designer, director and producer, was born in Czechoslovakia in 1910
and raised in Vienna. After graduating from the University of Vienna with a degree in architecture, he worked as an architect
for a year, then turned to acting under the guidance of Max Reinhardt. For two years (1933-1935) he appeared in a number of
Reinhardt productions in Vienna and Salzburg, and then in 1935 he traveled to New York with "The Eternal Road" as Reinhardt's
assistant, and in 1937 took over as designer of the show (succeeding Norman Bel Geddes). From this success, he went on to
design a number of Broadway productions.
Horner served in the US military during World War II (he became a citizen in 1940), during which time he designed a production
of "Winged Victory" for both stage and film and wrote, designed and directed the Air Force training show "You Bet Your Life".
After leaving the military, Horner moved to Los Angeles and continued his career as a production designer and director. He
was nominated for several Academy Awards (production design for "Our Town", "The Little Foxes", "Separate Tables", "Double
Life", "Born Yesterday" and "They Shoot Horses, Don't They") and won for "The Heiress" (1951) and "The Hustler" (1962). Horner
very often worked as both production designer and director on films. His first effort in this dual role was "Beware, My Lovely"
starring Ida Lupino and Robert Ryan. He also directed for television, continued to work on Broadway productions, and for the
Metropolitan and San Francisco Operas. Horner also worked in Canada and England, where he produced Francois Truffaut's "Farenheit
451".
Horner died in Los Angeles in 1994.
The Harry Horner papers consist of correspondence, notebooks, sketchbooks, programs, clippings, scripts, and scrapbooks, 1924-2000,
created and collected by Harry Horner. The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence, related to both Horner's work
as a production designer and director for Broadway, Hollywood, and operas, and personal correspondence. Also included are
two of Horner's personal sketchbooks, depicting nudes and some studies for set designs; clippings and related ephemera pertaining
to Max Reinhardt; a number of film scripts, some of which include notes and letters by and from Horner regarding work on those
scripts; and biographical statements written by Horner.
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE. Advance notice required for access.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian.
Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended
to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
[Box/folder no. or item name], Harry Horner papers, Collection no. 6107, Special Collections, USC Libraries, University of
Southern California
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Joan Horner, February 6, 2015.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Motion picture producers and directors -- Archival resources
Set designers -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Set designers -- New York (State) -- New York -- Archival resources
Clippings
Correspondence
Notebooks
Scripts (documents)
Horner, Harry -- Archives
Feuchtwanger, Lion -- Correspondence
Reinhardt, Max -- Archives