Joseph Arthur Ball (August 16, 1894 – August 27, 1951) was an American inventor, physicist, and executive at

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films running through a special ...

. He was the

technical director A technical director (TD) is usually a senior technical person within e.g. a software company, engineering firm, film studio, theatre company or television studio. This person usually has the highest level of skill within a specific technical f ...

of the first color movie ( ''Becky Sharp''), and one of only three founding technicians of the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motion ...

. He was awarded an

Academy Honorary Award The Academy Honorary Award – instituted in 1950 for the 23rd Academy Awards (previously called the Special Award, which was first presented at the 1st Academy Awards in 1929) – is given annually by the Board of Governors of the Academy of M ...

at the 11th Academy Awards for his contributions to color film photography. He held many patents in color photography and was credited with creating the three-component process.

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* 1894 births 1951 deaths 20th-century American inventors Academy Honorary Award recipients {{US-film-bio-stub