Gary Graver | |
|---|---|
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| Born | July 20, 1938 Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Died | November 16, 2006(2006-11-16) (aged 68) |
| Other names | Robert McCallum |
| Education | Grant High School |
| Occupations |
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| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
Gary Foss Graver (July 20, 1938 – November 16, 2006)[1] was an Americanfilm director, editor, screenwriter andcinematographer. He was a prolific filmmaker, working in various roles on over 300 films,[1] but is best known asOrson Welles' final cinematographer, working over a period of six years on Welles' epic filmThe Other Side of the Wind which was released in 2018, 48 years after it was started.
Graver began his career in the late 1960s as a cinematographer and editor of variousB-movies, including several films byRoger Corman, before providing additional camerawork onJohn Cassavetes'sA Woman Under the Influence (1974). He continued to serve as the cinematographer of numerous horror films from the late 1970s and through the 1980s, includingThe Toolbox Murders (1978),Trick or Treats (1982), which he also wrote, edited, and directed;Mortuary (1983),They're Playing with Fire (1984), andTwisted Nightmare (1988).
Under the pseudonym ofRobert McCallum, Graver was also a prolific director ofadult films, working as a cinematographer and director on 135 features.[2]
Graver was born July 20, 1938, inPortland, Oregon, to Raleigh and Frances Graver.[3] His father was a native Oregonian, while his mother was born inWashington state.[3] Graver was raised in Portland,[4] where he attendedGrant High School.[5] As a teenager, he produced and starred in his own radio show, and built a movie theatre in his parents' basement where he showed his own16 mm films.[5] He also acted in stage productions for thePortland Civic Theatre.[6]
At age twenty, Graver moved to Hollywood to become an actor, and studied acting withLee J. Cobb.[6] He was drafted into the U.S. military in the early 1960s and was assigned to the Navy Combat Camera Group, where he was trained as a professional cameraman while touring inVietnam, thePhilippines, andJapan.[6]
After returning to civilian life, Graver began his career in Los Angeles working on documentaries for a year before starting to work on larger budget features. Graver wrote and directed his first film,The Embracers, in 1966.[7] He would subsequently serve as the cinematographer and editor on theB-filmsThe Mighty Gorga,The Fabulous Bastard from Chicago, andSatan's Sadists (all 1969).[7]
In 1970, Graver made an unannounced inquiry toOrson Welles, saying he wanted to work with the director. Welles told Graver that only one other person had ever called him to say they wanted to work with him—Gregg Toland who, had worked with Welles onCitizen Kane.[8]
From that day forward, Orson Welles was the central figure in Gary Graver's life: more important than his wife, his children, his bank account, and his health. For the rest of Orson's life (and his own) Graver belonged to the great director."[8] Soon after, Welles and Graver started work on the unfinished filmThe Other Side of the Wind, in addition to other projects Welles had in the works includingF for Fake (1973), which he co-shot with French cinematographerFrançois Reichenbach; andFilming Othello (1978)[1]
Graver's work for Welles was unpaid, and during the shooting of one scene inThe Other Side of the Wind, Welles used as a prop his 1941Oscar that he won as the co-writer ofCitizen Kane. When shooting was finished, he handed the statuette to Graver saying, "Here, keep this." Graver understood this to be a gift in lieu of payment for his work. Graver held onto the award for several years until he ran into financial trouble in the 1990s, and in 1994 he sold it for $50,000. The purchaser, a company called Bay Holdings, then attempted to sell it at auction throughSotheby's in London. When Welles's daughterBeatrice Welles learned of the intended sale, she successfully sued both Graver and the holding company to stop it. She eventually took possession of the statuette before attempting to sell it herself, howeverChristie's withdrew it from auction afterthe Academy objected to the sale.[9]
Besides his work with Welles, Graver also worked for other Hollywood directors includingRoger Corman andFred Olen Ray. The bulk of his output wasB-movies since, as he put it, "I knew how to make a movie without much money."[4] While working onThe Other Side of the Wind between 1970 and 1976, Graver worked as a cinematographer and editor in various other B-horror films such asBlood Mania (1970),Dracula vs. Frankenstein (1971), andInvasion of the Bee Girls (1973).[7] The following year, Graver contributed additional camerawork onJohn Cassavetes'sA Woman Under the Influence (1974).[7] In 1977, he served as cinematographer forRon Howard'sGrand Theft Auto, followed by the cult horror filmThe Toolbox Murders (1978).[7]
In 1982, Graver wrote, directed, edited, and produced the slasher filmTrick or Treats,[10] after which he served as cinematographer on the slasher filmMortuary (1983), and the comedyChattanooga Choo Choo (1984). He directed the thriller filmMoon in Scorpio starringBritt Ekland in 1987, followed by a cinematography credit onTwisted Nightmare (1988).[7] The following year, Graver provided additional cinematography onSteven Spielberg'sAlways (1989), working on the film's Montana unit.[7]
Throughout his career in mainstream cinema, Graver also worked as a writer and director ofpornographic films, often credited as Robert McCallum.[2] Graver's work in the adult film industry resulted in more than 135 films includingUnthinkable, which won theAVN Award for Best All-Sex Video in 1985. Graver was later inducted into theAVN Hall of Fame for his contributions to the adult film industry.[2]
Graver died on November 16, 2006, at his home in Rancho Mirage, California after a lengthy battle with cancer.[11] His widow, former actressJillian Kesner, died the following year of complications of a staph infection, which she contracted after having been diagnosed with leukemia.[12] Graver had two sons from previous marriages.[1]
Graver's memoirMaking Movies with Orson Welles, co-written by Andrew J. Rausch, was published posthumously by Scarecrow Press in 2008.[13]
| Year | Title | Cinematographer | Editor | Director | Screenwriter | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | The Embracers | No | No | Yes | Yes | Alternate title:The Great Dream |
| 1968 | The Kill | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Short film |
| 1969 | The Mighty Gorga | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
| 1969 | The Fabulous Bastard from Chicago | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
| 1969 | Satan's Sadists | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
| 1969 | One Million AC/DC | Yes | No | No | No | Written byEd Wood |
| 1970 | Horror of the Blood Monsters | Yes | No | No | No | Uncredited |
| 1970 | Blood Mania | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1970 | The Hard Road | Yes | No | Yes | No | |
| 1971 | Dracula vs. Frankenstein | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1971 | London | Yes | No | No | No | Short film written and directed byOrson Welles |
| 1973 | Midnight Intruders | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | |
| 1973 | And When She Was Bad... | No | No | Yes | Yes | |
| 1973 | Bummer | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1973 | F for Fake | Yes | No | No | No | Documentary film Co-credit withFrançois Reichenbach |
| 1973 | Invasion of the Bee Girls | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1974 | A Woman Under the Influence | Yes | No | No | No | Additional camerawork[7] |
| 1976 | Black Heat | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1976 | Woman in the Rain | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1976 | Charlie Siringo | Yes | No | No | No | Television film |
| 1977 | Moonshine County Express | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1977 | Grand Theft Auto | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1978 | Doctor Dracula | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1978 | The Toolbox Murders | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1978 | Sunset Cove | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1978 | Deathsport | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1978 | Death Dimension | Yes | No | No | No | Also producer |
| 1978 | The One Man Jury | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1978 | Filming Othello | Yes | No | No | No | Documentary film |
| 1979 | Smokey and the Hotwire Gang | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1979 | Sunnyside | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1979 | The Glove | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1980 | Scout's Honor | Yes | No | No | No | Television film |
| 1980 | The Attic | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1981 | Texas Lighting | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | |
| 1981 | Hollywood High Part II | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1981 | Smokey Bites the Dust | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1982 | Trick or Treats | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 1982 | Eating Raoul | Yes | No | No | No | Second unit cinematographer[7] |
| 1982 | Homework | No | No | No | Yes | Second unit director[7] |
| 1982 | The Sword and the Sorcerer | Yes | No | No | No | Additional cinematography[7] |
| 1983 | Lost | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1983 | Mortuary | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1984 | Chattanooga Choo Choo | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1984 | They're Playing with Fire | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1987 | Party Camp | No | No | Yes | No | |
| 1987 | Moon in Scorpio | Yes | No | Yes | No | |
| 1988 | Twisted Nightmare | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 1989 | Always | Yes | No | No | No | Additional cinematography (Montana unit)[7] |
| 1991 | Ted & Venus | Yes | No | No | No | Second unit cinematographer[7] |
| 1992 | Roots of Evil | No | No | Yes | No | |
| 2018 | The Other Side of the Wind | Yes | No | No | No | Shot between 1970 and 1976 |
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