Biographical Overview & Key Facts

Subject:

Cedric Gibbons

Role / Field:

Pioneering American art director, famed for designing the Oscar statuette and winning 11 Academy Awards.

Born:

1893-03-23

Died:

1960-07-26

Century / Era:

1893s Historical Era

Database Source:

2Day Chrono-Wiki & Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Origins & Early Life

Austin Cedric Gibbons (March 23, 1890 – July 26, 1960) was an American art director for the film industry. He also made a significant contribution to motion picture theater architecture from the 1930s to 1950s. Gibbons designed the Oscar statuette in 1928, but tasked the sculpting to George Stanley, a Los Angeles artist. He was nominated 39 times for the Academy Award for Best Production Design and won the Oscar 11 times, both of which are records.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Cedric Gibbons was born in New York City in 1890 to Irish architect Austin P. Gibbons and American Veronica Fitzpatrick Simmons. The family moved to Manhattan after the birth of their third child. Cedric studied at the Art Students League of New York in 1911. He began working in his father's office as a junior draftsman, then in the art department at Edison Studios under Hugo Ballin in New Jersey in 1915.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

He was drafted and served in the US Navy Reserves during World War I at Pelham Bay in New York. In 1918, Gibbons joined Goldwyn Studios, first serving as an assistant to Hugo Ballin. In 1924, Goldwyn Studios merged with Metro Pictures and Louis B. Mayer Pictures to become Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). In 1925,...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Albert Szent-Györgyi — Contemporary (Born in 1893) (1893): Pioneering Hungarian biochemist, Nobel laureate for Vitamin C and muscle research.
• Alexander Cunningham — Contemporary (Died in 1893) (1893): Pioneering British archaeologist and founder of the Archaeological Survey of India.
• Alfred Rosenberg — Contemporary (Born in 1893) (1893): Baltic German Nazi philosopher and convicted war criminal, key ideologue of the Third Reich.
• Adam Clayton — Contemporary (Born in 1960) (1960): Irish-English bassist and founding member of the globally renowned rock band U2.
• Adam Schiff — Contemporary (Born in 1960) (1960): Long-serving Democratic politician, former Congressman, and current U.S. Senator from California.
• Aimee Mann — Contemporary (Born in 1960) (1960): Literary American singer-songwriter known for sardonic lyrics about the underdog.
• Akira Kurosawa — Shared historical date (03-23 · Born) (1910): Master of Japanese cinema, known for dynamic style and epic storytelling.
• Ama Ata Aidoo — Shared historical date (03-23 · Born) (1942): Pioneering Ghanaian writer, poet, and academician celebrated for feminist themes.
• Aishwarya Lekshmi — Shared historical date (07-26 · Born) (1990): Acclaimed Indian actress working primarily in Malayalam and Tamil cinema.
• Albert Bandura — Shared historical date (07-26 · Died) (2021): Pioneering psychologist known for Social Cognitive Theory and self-efficacy.
• 1893 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1893
• March 23 (03-23) On This Day — Historical birthdays and events on March 23
• 1960 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1960
• July 26 (07-26) On This Day — Historical events and memorials on July 26

Frequently Asked Questions about Cedric Gibbons