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Finding Aid for the Robert Luthardt Papers, ca. 1900-1978, bulk 1960-1975
2090
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Title: Robert Luthardt Papers,
Date (inclusive): ca. 1900-1978
Date (bulk): (bulk 1960-1975)
Collection number: 2090
Creator: Luthardt, Robert, 1917-1977
Extent:
51 boxes (25.5 linear ft.)
4 cartons (4 linear ft.)
10 oversize boxes
Abstract: Robert Luthardt (1917-1977) was an art director and production designer for the motion picture and television industries,
and a designer of restaurants and private residences. The collection consists of production files containing photographic
and other research materials, plans for many of his set designs, and materials related to his work on commercial and residential
interiors.
Repository:
University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90095-1575
Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library,
Department of Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of
the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the
copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC
Regents do not hold the copyright.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Gift of Robert Luthardt Jr., 1980.
[Identification of item], Robert Luthardt Papers (Collection 2090). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, UCLA.
UCLA Catalog Record ID:
4233344
Robert Luthardt was born on March 3, 1917. A native of Chicago, Luthardt became an art director and production designer for
the motion picture and television industries. He trained under French-Hungarian art director Alexander Trauner and assisted
him on several Billy Wilder productions, including
The Apartment and
Irma La Douce. Other credits included
Funny Girl,
The April Fools,
Carnal Knowledge,
Hearts of the West,
Lipstick,
Kiss Me, Stupid and
The Cheap Detective. He was nominated for an Oscar at the 1966 Academy Awards for his work on
The Fortune Cookie. In addition, Luthardt became the art director for several long-running television shows and was a charter member of the
Society of Motion Pictures and Television Art Directors; he also designed several restaurants and interiors, including projects
for Billy Wilder. He died on October 1, 1977.
The collection consists of Robert Luthardt's files for twenty three film and television productions, seven television series,
and several commercial and residential interior design projects. The bulk of the material consists of photographic documentation
related to the design of productions and sets. Of particular interest are several boxes of photographs taken in the Les Halles
district of Paris for Billy Wilder's 1964 film
Irma La Douce, and photographs of the predominently African-American neighborhood Hough in Cleveland, Ohio for Jules Dassin's 1968 film
Up Tight. Other photographs of note include a series of enlarged photographic prints documenting historic churches and landmarks in
Mexico, by noted photographers Hugo Brehme, Rafael García, Antonio Garduño, and Guillermo Kahlo; images of the California
and Nevada deserts, including Twentynine Palms and Las Vegas in the 1960s; and numerous files of photographs documenting the
streets of Los Angeles and New York. In addition, the collection contains some personal photographs, scripts and photo albums
related to television series from the 1970s, and sketches and plans for interior design projects.
Arranged in the following series:
- Film productions, ca. 1960-1978 (28 boxes, 1 carton), subseries A-B as follows:
- Production files, ca. 1960-1978.
- Additional screenplays, ca. 1960-1975.
- Television productions, 1965-1975 (11 boxes, 1 carton), subseries A-B as follows:
- Feature films, 1965-1974.
- Series, 1971-1975.
- Research materials, 1928-1974 (9 boxes, 1 carton), subseries A-B as follows:
- Location photographs, 1960-1974.
- Miscellaneous, 1928-1972.
- Interior design, 1964-1974 (2 boxes, 1 carton).
- Mexico photographs, ca. 1900-1930 (4 boxes), subseries A-E as follows:
- Hugo Brehme, ca. 1910-1920.
- Rafael García, ca. 1910.
- Antonio Garduño, ca. 1910.
- Guillermo Kahlo, ca. 1901-1920.
- Anonymous, ca. 1900-1930.
- Miscellaneous, 1946-1977 (2 boxes).
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Luthardt, Robert, 1917-1977--Archives.
Motion picture art directors--California--Los Angeles--Archives.
Interior decorators--California--Los Angeles--Archives.
Quartier des Halles (Paris, France)--Photographs.
Hough (Cleveland, Ohio)--Photographs.
Deserts--California--Photographs.
Deserts--Nevada--Photographs.
Monuments--Mexico--Photographs.
Brehme, Hugo--Photographs.
García, Rafael--Photographs.
Garduño, Antonio--Photographs.
Kahlo, Guillermo--Photographs.
Design drawings.
Hugo Brehme. [Photographs of Popocatepetl, Oaxaca, and rural scenes in Mexico, ca. 1890-1900]. Available in the Department
of Special Collections.