Sol Polito, A.S.C. (born Salvatore Polito, November 12, 1892 – May 23, 1960) was a Sicilian-American cinematographer. He is best known for his work with directors

Michael Curtiz Michael Curtiz (; born Manó Kaminer; from 1905 Mihály Kertész; ; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed classic films from the silen ...

and

Mervyn LeRoy Mervyn LeRoy (; October 15, 1900 – September 13, 1987) was an American film director and producer. During the 1930s, he was one of the two great practitioners of economical and effective film directing at Warner Bros., Warner Brothers studios, ...

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

studios in the 1930s and 1940s.

Biography

Salvatore Polito was born November 12, 1892, in Palermo, Italy, and immigrated to the United States in 1905."Salvatore Polito". National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; ''Naturalization Records of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Central Division (Los Angeles), 1887–1940; Microfilm Roll: ''93''; Microfilm Serial: ''M1524''. Ancestry.com, ''U.S. Naturalization Records, 1840–1957 atabase online Provo, Utah: Ancestry.com Operations Inc., 2010. Retrieved 2017-03-01. He attended school in New York City and began working in the motion picture industry as a still photographer. After experience as a lab assistant and camera assistant, he was promoted to lighting cameraman in 1917. Polito married Frances (Francesca) D'Angelis in New York in 1914. The union produced two sons. The elder son

Gene Polito Eugene Emmanuel Polito (September 13, 1918 – November 28, 2010) was an American cinematographer, mechanical engineer and academic. His numerous film and television credits included ''Futureworld'', '' Up in Smoke'' and '' Lost in Space''. Biog ...

(1918-2010) also became a cinematographer. Younger son S. Robert Polito (1922–2015) became a physician. Polito moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1919 to continue his career at

First National Pictures First National Pictures was an American motion picture production and distribution company. It was founded in 1917 as First National Exhibitors' Circuit, Inc., an association of independent theatre owners in the United States, and became the count ...

and

He worked on more than 170 films at various studios, but is best known for his work at Warner Bros. with directors

and

. Polito died in Los Angeles on May 23, 1960, aged 67,"Sol Polito". Ancestry.com. ''California, Death Index, 1940–1997'' atabase on-line Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2000. Retrieved 2017-03-01. and was entombed in the Mausoleum at Calvary Cemetery in East Los Angeles, California.

Accolades

Polito received three

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

nominations: *

1939 This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...

: ''

The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex ''The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex'', for a time also entitled ''Elizabeth the Queen'', is a 1939 American historical romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, and Olivia de Havilland. Based on ...

'', Best Cinematography (Color), shared with W. Howard Greene *

1941 The Correlates of War project estimates this to be the deadliest year in human history in terms of conflict deaths, placing the death toll at 3.49 million. However, the Uppsala Conflict Data Program estimates that the subsequent year, 1942, wa ...

: ''

Sergeant York Alvin Cullum York (December 13, 1887 – September 2, 1964), also known by his rank as Sergeant York, was an American soldier who was one of the most decorated United States Army soldiers of World War I. He received the Medal of Honor fo ...

'', Best Cinematography (Black and White) *

1942 The Uppsala Conflict Data Program project estimates this to be the deadliest year in human history in terms of conflict deaths, placing the death toll at 4.62 million. However, the Correlates of War estimates that the prior year, 1941, was th ...

: '' Captains of the Clouds'', Best Cinematography (Color)

Select filmography

References

External links

*
Sol Polito
at Great Cinemagraphers, Internet Encyclopedia of Cinematographers * {{DEFAULTSORT:Polito, Sol 1892 births 1960 deaths American cinematographers People from New York City Italian emigrants to the United States