Wuthering Heights Academy Award Oscar from 1939
FREE ESTIMATE. To auction, buy, consign or sell an Academy Award Oscar, please email Nate at [email protected] or call the Nate D. Sanders Auction House (http://www.NateDSanders.com) at (310) 440-2982.
Gregg Toland, Aclaimed Cinematographer
Gregg Toland, the celebrated cinematographer who won an Academy Award Oscar in 1939 for the film Wuthering Heights, was born in Charleston, Illinois, on May 29, 1904.
Though he was nominated 5 times for an Oscar for best cinematography, he won only one time, for Wuthering Heights, in 1939. After the Oscar win, he worked with Orson Welles on Citizen Kane, where he developed his signature method, called “deep focus” because both background and foreground images are shown clearly.
Though he did not win an Academy Award for his work on Citizen Kane, Toland perhaps did some of his best work on this film, which led to him becoming the highest paid cinematographer in the industry, making up to $200,000 over three years.
Toland also became the first cinematographer to receive prominent billing in the credits for the films he worked on, a change from what at that time was standard practice of listing up to seven other names.
Toland died at age 44 in 1948 of heart disease. A brilliant career cut short. His name lives on, however, as possibly the most brilliant cinematographer in history. Certainly, the work he did on Wuthering Heights, which won the Academy Award for best film for 1939, was shot with “moody and atmospheric” cinematography, according to Turner Classic Movies.
Sam Goldwyn, who produced the film, considered Wuthering Heights his “favorite film and proudest achievement,” again, according to Turner Classic Movies.
April 2014 Auction: Gregg Toland’s Academy Award Oscar
The Oscar Toland won for Wuthering Heights is currently on auction this April. The statue is gold-plated, stands on a film reel and is 10 inches tall, 11.5 inches tall including the base. The award weighs 5.6 pounds. The plaque on the base reads: “Academy First Award To Gregg Toland For Black-and-White Cinematography of “Wuthering Heights”. Though there is some chipping to the gold plating, and some wear to the base, overall it is in very good condition.
The minimum bid for this Oscar is $125,000.
Oscars from the Golden Era of Film sell very well. The 1939 Academy Award winning movie Gone with the Wind was bought by Michael Jackson in 1999 for a record-breaking $1.5 million, for example.
And, even though these Oscars are highly prized items, as Forbes notes, “refreshingly, certain famous buyers are treating the statuettes for what they are: movie memorabilia.” To wit: David Copperfield, who bought the 1943 Best Director Oscar for $232,000, keeps the statue in his bedroom.
To bid on this or other April auction items, go to our current catalogue. The April auction ends on the 29th, at 5:00 PDT.
FREE ESTIMATE. To auction, buy, consign or sell an Academy Award Oscar, please email Nate at [email protected] or call the Nate D. Sanders Auction House (http://www.NateDSanders.com) at (310) 440-2982.
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