Ernst Fegté Explained

Ernst Fegté
Birth Date:	28 September 1900
Birth Place:	Hamburg, Germany
Death Place:	Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation:	Art director
Yearsactive:	1925-1975

Ernst Fegté (28 September 1900  - 15 December 1976) was a German art director. He was active in the American cinema from the 1920s to the 1970s, he was the art director or production designer on more than 75 feature films. He worked at Paramount Studios at the height of his career and won an Academy Award for Best Art Direction for Frenchman's Creek (1944). He was also nominated in the same category for three other films: Five Graves to Cairo (1943), The Princess and the Pirate (1944), and Destination Moon (1950). He also worked in television in the 1950s and was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1956 for his work on the series, Medic.

Early years

Born in Hamburg, Germany, Fegté studied art at Hamburg University. He worked in the German cinema and created set murals for Ernst Lubitsch. Fetgé moved to the United States in the 1920s and initially worked in New York, creating backgrounds for various motion pictures produced in that city.

Paramount years

By the late 1920s, Fegté had relocated to Los Angeles where he worked at Paramount Studios for approximately 20 years. He worked under Hans Dreier, Paramount's supervising art director and "developed a more classical, almost baroque sense of set design and decoration."

Fegté's notable films included The Cocoanuts (1929), Animal Crackers (1930), The General Died at Dawn (1936), The Lady Eve (1941), I Married a Witch (1942), The Palm Beach Story (1942), The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1943), and The Uninvited (1944). He won an Academy Award for Best Art Direction for Frenchman's Creek (1944) and was nominated in the same category for Five Graves to Cairo (1943), The Princess and the Pirate (1944), and Destination Moon (1950).

He worked with Paramount's top directors, including Ernst Lubitsch (Design for Living), Fritz Lang (You and Me), Preston Sturges (The Lady Eve, The Palm Beach Story, The Miracle of Morgan's Creek), Billy Wilder (Five Graves to Cairo), René Clair (And Then There Were None, I Married a Witch), and King Vidor (So Red the Rose).

Later years and family

Fegté left Paramount in the mid-1940s. His later works included psychological thrillers and science fiction fare, including Specter of the Rose (1946) and Destination Moon. In the 1950s, Fegté also worked in television, including Adventures of Superman (1952-1953), General Electric Theater (1953), Your Jeweler's Showcase (1953), Cavalcade of America (1953-1954), Medic (1955-1956), and Sergeant Preston of the Yukon (1957-1958).^[1] He was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1956 for art direction on Medic.^[2] He also designed sets for the opera.

Fetge was married to Eileen O'Kane. They had three children: Peter, Quita Lou, and Carol.^[3] He died in Los Angeles in 1976.

Filmography

• Monsieur Beaucaire (1924, backgrounds)^[3]
• The Shock Punch (1925, art director)^[4]
• Wild, Wild Susan (1925, art director)^[5]
• Womanhandled (1925, art director)^[6]
• In Old Kentucky (1927, set decoration)^[7]
• The Trail of '98 (1928)^[8]
• Jealousy (1929)^[8]
• The Letter (1929)^[8]
• Nothing but the Truth (1929)^[8]
• The Talk of Hollywood (1929)
• The Cocoanuts (1929, art director)^[9]
• Animal Crackers (1930, art director)^{[9] [10]}
• Design for Living (1933)^[11]
• Death Takes a Holiday (1934, art director)^[11]
• Murder at the Vanities (1934, art director)^[11]
• Kiss and Make-Up (1934, art director)^[11]
• Ladies Should Listen (1934, art director)^[11]
• We're Not Dressing (1934, art director)^[11]
• Anything Goes (1935, art director)^[11]
• Enter Madame (1935, art director)^[11]
• Paris in Spring (1935, artistic sets)^[12]
• The Princess Comes Across (1935, art director)^[11]
• So Red the Rose (1935, art directors)^[13]
• The General Died at Dawn (1936, art director)^[11]
• Rose of the Rancho (1936, art director)^[14]
• Valiant Is the Word for Carrie (1936, art director)^[15]
• Easy Living (1937)^[11]
• I Met Him in Paris (1937, art director)^[11]
• Swing High, Swing Low (1937)^[11]
• The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938)^[16]
• College Swing (1938)^[11]
• Sing You Sinners (1938)^[11]
• You and Me (1938)^[11]
• Artists and Models Abroad (1938)^[11]
• Cafe Society (1939)^[11]
• Invitation to Happiness (1939)^[11]
• The Great Victor Herbert (1939)^[11]
• Never Say Die (1939)^[11]
• I Want a Divorce (1940, art director)^[11]
• Queen of the Mob (1940, art director)^[11]
• Safari (1940, art director)^[11]
• Birth of the Blues (1941, art director)^[11]
• The Lady Eve (1941, art director)^[11]
• One Night in Lisbon (1941, art director)^[11]
• Virginia (1941, art director)^[11]
• Lucky Jordan (1942, art director)^[11]
• I Married a Witch (1942, art director)^[11]
• The Palm Beach Story (1942, art director)^{[11] [17]}
• Star Spangled Rhythm (1942, art director)^[11]
• Five Graves to Cairo (1943, art director)^[11]
• The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1943, art director)^[11]
• Riding High (1943, art director)^[11]
• Young and Willing (1943, art director)^[11]
• Frenchman's Creek (1944, art director)^[11]
• The Great Moment (1944, art director)^[11]
• The Princess and the Pirate (1944, art director)
• The Uninvited (1944, art director)^[11]
• And Then There Were None (1945, art director)^[11]
• Wonder Man (1945, art director)^[11]
• I've Always Loved You (1946)^[11]
• Mr. Ace (1946, production design)^[18]
• Specter of the Rose (1946, production design)^[11]
• Angel and the Badman (1947, production design)^[11]
• Christmas Eve (1947, art director)^[11]
• An Innocent Affair (1948, art director)^[11]
• A Miracle Can Happen (1948)^[19]
• Canadian Pacific (1949, art director)^[20]
• Destination Moon (1950, production design)^[11]
• Quebec (1951, art director)^[21]
• Superman and the Mole Men (1951, art director)^[11]
• Models Inc. (1952)^[22]
• Run for the Hills (1953)^[23]
• Mohawk (1956)^[24]
• God Is My Partner (1957)^[25]
• Monster from Green Hell (1957)^[26]
• Sierra Stranger (1957, art director)^[27]
• Rockabilly Baby (1957, production design)^[28]
• Tarzan's Fight for Life (1958, art director)^[29]
• The Amazing Transparent Man (1960, production design)^[11]
• Beyond the Time Barrier (1960, production design)^[11]
• Desire in the Dust (1960, art director)^[30]
• B.S. I Love You (1971, art director)^[31]

Awards

Fegté won an Academy Award for Best Art Direction and was nominated for three more:

Won

• Frenchman's Creek (1944) (shared with Hans Dreier and Samuel M. Comer)^[32]

Nominated

• Five Graves to Cairo (1943)^[33]
• The Princess and the Pirate (1944)^[34]
• Destination Moon (1950)^[35]

Notes and References

1. Web site: IMDb.com: Ernst Fegté - Awards . December 15, 2008. IMDb.com.
2. Web site: Ernest Fegte. Television Academy. September 13, 2020.
3. Web site: Hollywood Folk Enjoy Ranch Life. The Press Democrat. July 18, 1951. Newspapers.com.
4. Web site: The Shock Punch (Full Credits). TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
5. Web site: Wild, Wild Susan. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
6. Web site: Womanhandled (Full Credits). TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
7. Web site: In Old Kentucky. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
8. News: Sound Creates Set Problems. Detroit Free Press. October 13, 1929. Newspapers.com.
9. Book: Monkey Business: The Lives and Legends of The Marx Brothers. Simon Louvish. Faber & Faber. 2000. 426. 0571193501.
10. Web site: Animal Crackers. Marx-Brothers.org. September 13, 2020.
11. Book: Art Directors in Cinema: A Worldwide Biographical Dictionary. Michael L. Stephens. McFarland. 1998. 101-103.
12. Web site: Paris In Spring. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
13. Web site: So Red the Rose. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
14. Web site: Rose of the Rancho. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
15. Web site: Valiant Is the Word for Carrie. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
16. News: The Big Broadcast Of 1938. The Austin American. March 12, 1938. Newspapers.com.
17. News: Screwball Comedy at Warfield Delights. The San Francisco Examiner. January 8, 1943. Newspapers.com.
18. Web site: Mr. Ace. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
19. News: Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood in Hollywood. Sioux City Journal. August 15, 1948. Newspapers.com.
20. News: "Big Chief Papoose-Sitter" Title Blushingly Admitted. Spokane Chronicle. September 4, 1948. Newspapers.com.
21. Web site: Quebec. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
22. Web site: Models Inc.. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
23. Web site: Run for the Hills. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
24. Web site: Mohawk. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
25. Web site: God Is My Partner. American Film Institute. September 13, 2020.
26. Web site: Monster From Green Hell. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
27. Web site: Sierra Stranger. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
28. Web site: Rockabilly Baby. American Film Institute. September 13, 2020.
29. Web site: Tarzan's Fight for Life. American Film Institute. September 13, 2020.
30. Web site: Desire in the Dust. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020.
31. Web site: B.S. I Love You. TCM Classic Movies. September 13, 2020. Newspapers.com.
32. Web site: The 18th Academy Awards (1946) Nominees and Winners . July 23, 2011. Oscars.org.
33. Web site: Academy Awards 1944. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and sciences. Oscars.org. September 14, 2020.
34. Web site: Academy Awards 1945. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and sciences. Oscars.org. September 14, 2020.
35. Web site: Academy Awards 1951. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and sciences. Oscars.org. September 14, 2020.