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Lyle Reynolds Wheeler (February 2, 1905 – January 10, 1990) was an American motion picture art director. He received five Academy Awards — for Gone with the Wind (1939), Anna and the King of Siam (1946), The Robe (1953), The King and I (1956) and The Diary of Anne Frank (1959).
Lyle Wheeler studied at the University of Southern California, then worked as a magazine artist and industrial designer. In 1936 he was hired by David O. Selznick to work as a set designer for Selznick's motion picture production company. Wheeler proved to be a creative genius when it came to designing quality sets at reasonable costs and was very much in demand in the industry. By the end of World War II, Wheeler had joined Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation, where he remained as chief art director until the end of the 1950s.
In a career spanning 40 years, Wheeler created sets for more than 350 motion pictures, many of which are considered film classics. His credits include A Star is Born, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, State Fair, The Dolly Sisters, Forever Amber, The Fan, The Pride of St. Louis, The Seven Year Itch, and Carousel and in particular, Gone With the Wind, for which he drew some of the earliest examples of storyboards for film, illustrating not only the art design, but the framing, composition and even the color for nearly every shot in the film, greatly influencing the production. He also created matte paintings for all the ceilings for the sets as well as large set pieces like the facade of Tara. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction 29 times, winning five. In 1951, he was nominated for four different films, three in 1952 and twice for two films in one year.
His television credits include the long-running CBS series, Perry Mason.
Late in life, Wheeler suffered financial reverses and was forced to sell his home. He lost his five Academy Award statuettes when he was unable to pay a bill in excess of $30,000 at a storage facility. His 1959 Oscar for The Diary of Anne Frank was purchased and returned to Wheeler in 1989 by a fan.
Lyle Wheeler died January 10, 1990, at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital, of pneumonia. He was cremated, and his ashes stored in the vault at the Chapel of the Pines Crematory in Los Angeles.
Academy Awards
Best Art Direction, Black and White
Best Art Direction, Color
Best Production Design
Known For
Gone with the Wind
(1939)
Art Direction
Rebecca
(1940)
Art Direction
Warlock
(1959)
Art Direction
The Robe
(1953)
Art Direction
Titanic
(1953)
Art Direction
Niagara
(1953)
Art Direction
Laura
(1944)
Art Direction
Viva Zapata!
(1952)
Art Direction
The Fly
(1958)
Art Direction
River of No Return
(1954)
Art Direction
Dragonwyck
(1946)
Art Direction
The Gunfighter
(1950)
Art Direction
The Day the Earth Stood Still
(1951)
Art Direction
Nightmare Alley
(1947)
Art Direction
The Seven Year Itch
(1955)
Art Direction
Bus Stop
(1956)
Art Direction
Full Filmography
Art
The Garden of Allah
(1936)
Set Decoration
Nothing Sacred
(1937)
Art Direction
The Prisoner of Zenda
(1937)
Art Direction
A Star Is Born
(1937)
Art Designer
The Young in Heart
(1938)
Art Direction
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
(1938)
Art Direction
Gone with the Wind
(1939)
Art Direction
Intermezzo: A Love Story
(1939)
Art Direction
Made for Each Other
(1939)
Art Direction
Rebecca
(1940)
Art Direction
That Hamilton Woman
(1941)
Art Direction
Bataan
(1943)
Art Direction
Winged Victory
(1944)
Art Direction
Laura
(1944)
Art Direction
Wing and a Prayer
(1944)
Art Direction
The Big Noise
(1944)
Art Direction
Irish Eyes Are Smiling
(1944)
Art Direction
Dragon Seed
(1944)
Art Direction
Thunderhead - Son of Flicka
(1945)
Art Direction
Where Do We Go from Here?
(1945)
Art Direction
A Royal Scandal
(1945)
Art Direction
Leave Her to Heaven
(1945)
Art Direction
Within These Walls
(1945)
Art Direction
The Caribbean Mystery
(1945)
Art Direction
State Fair
(1945)
Art Direction
Nob Hill
(1945)
Art Direction
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
(1945)
Art Direction
Don Juan Quilligan
(1945)
Art Direction
Circumstantial Evidence
(1945)
Art Direction
Hangover Square
(1945)
Art Direction
Doll Face
(1945)
Art Direction
Diamond Horseshoe
(1945)
Art Direction
Fallen Angel
(1945)
Art Direction
Junior Miss
(1945)
Art Direction
The Bullfighters
(1945)
Art Direction
The Dolly Sisters
(1945)
Art Direction
Molly and Me
(1945)
Art Direction
A Bell for Adano
(1945)
Art Direction
My Darling Clementine
(1946)
Art Direction
Dragonwyck
(1946)
Art Direction
Centennial Summer
(1946)
Art Direction
Cluny Brown
(1946)
Art Direction
Anna and the King of Siam
(1946)
Art Direction
Behind Green Lights
(1946)
Art Direction
Shock
(1946)
Art Direction
Colonel Effingham's Raid
(1946)
Art Direction
Do You Love Me
(1946)
Art Direction
Gentleman's Agreement
(1947)
Art Direction
Forever Amber
(1947)
Art Direction
The Foxes of Harrow
(1947)
Art Direction
Nightmare Alley
(1947)
Art Direction
Kiss of Death
(1947)
Art Direction
Daisy Kenyon
(1947)
Art Direction
Call Northside 777
(1948)
Art Direction
Give My Regards to Broadway
(1948)
Art Direction
Sitting Pretty
(1948)
Art Direction
That Wonderful Urge
(1948)
Art Direction
Road House
(1948)
Art Direction
Cry of the City
(1948)
Art Direction
Apartment for Peggy
(1948)
Art Direction
Fury at Furnace Creek
(1948)
Art Direction
The Iron Curtain
(1948)
Art Direction
Deep Waters
(1948)
Art Direction
Unfaithfully Yours
(1948)
Art Direction
Yellow Sky
(1948)
Art Direction
You Were Meant for Me
(1948)
Art Direction
The Street with No Name
(1948)
Art Direction
The Luck of the Irish
(1948)
Art Direction
Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay!
(1948)
Art Direction
The Walls of Jericho
(1948)
Art Direction
That Lady in Ermine
(1948)
Art Direction
Thieves' Highway
(1949)
Art Direction
The Fan
(1949)
Art Direction
It Happens Every Spring
(1949)
Art Direction
Sand
(1949)
Art Direction
Father Was a Fullback
(1949)
Art Direction
Slattery's Hurricane
(1949)
Art Direction
Twelve O'Clock High
(1949)
Art Direction
Pinky
(1949)
Art Direction
The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend
(1949)
Art Direction
Mr. Belvedere Goes to College
(1949)
Art Direction
Down to the Sea in Ships
(1949)
Art Direction
I Was a Male War Bride
(1949)
Art Direction
Dancing in the Dark
(1949)
Art Direction
House of Strangers
(1949)
Art Direction
Prince of Foxes
(1949)
Art Direction
A Letter to Three Wives
(1949)
Art Direction
You're My Everything
(1949)
Art Direction
Come to the Stable
(1949)
Art Direction
Under My Skin
(1950)
Art Direction
Cheaper by the Dozen
(1950)
Art Direction
A Ticket to Tomahawk
(1950)
Art Direction
All About Eve
(1950)
Art Direction
Where the Sidewalk Ends
(1950)
Art Direction
The Gunfighter
(1950)
Art Direction
American Guerrilla in the Philippines
(1950)
Art Direction
Three Came Home
(1950)
Art Direction
Whirlpool
(1950)
Art Direction
The Big Lift
(1950)
Art Direction
Mother Didn't Tell Me
(1950)
Art Direction
The Jackpot
(1950)
Art Direction
Broken Arrow
(1950)
Art Direction
Love That Brute
(1950)
Art Direction
I'll Get By
(1950)
Art Direction
Mister 880
(1950)
Art Direction
My Blue Heaven
(1950)
Art Direction
Panic in the Streets
(1950)
Art Direction
No Way Out
(1950)
Art Direction
Stella
(1950)
Art Direction
When Willie Comes Marching Home
(1950)
Art Direction
Wabash Avenue
(1950)
Art Direction
Two Flags West
(1950)
Art Direction
The Day the Earth Stood Still
(1951)
Art Direction
The Secret of Convict Lake
(1951)
Art Direction
Halls of Montezuma
(1951)
Art Direction
You're in the Navy Now
(1951)
Art Direction
The Guy Who Came Back
(1951)
Art Direction
The Model and the Marriage Broker
(1951)
Art Direction
As Young as You Feel
(1951)
Art Direction
Follow the Sun
(1951)
Art Direction
The House on Telegraph Hill
(1951)
Art Direction
Mr. Belvedere Rings the Bell
(1951)
Art Direction
Love Nest
(1951)
Art Direction
Let's Make It Legal
(1951)
Art Direction
David and Bathsheba
(1951)
Art Direction
People Will Talk
(1951)
Art Direction
The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
(1951)
Art Direction
Bird of Paradise
(1951)
Art Direction
Fourteen Hours
(1951)
Art Direction
The 13th Letter
(1951)
Art Direction
Rawhide
(1951)
Art Direction
Fixed Bayonets!
(1951)
Art Direction
The Frogmen
(1951)
Art Direction
I'd Climb the Highest Mountain
(1951)
Art Direction
Anne of the Indies
(1951)
Art Direction
Golden Girl
(1951)
Art Direction
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
(1952)
Art Direction
Night Without Sleep
(1952)
Art Direction
Diplomatic Courier
(1952)
Art Direction
Les Miserables
(1952)
Art Direction
Return of the Texan
(1952)
Art Direction
Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie
(1952)
Art Direction
Monkey Business
(1952)
Art Direction
With a Song in My Heart
(1952)
Art Direction
Way of a Gaucho
(1952)
Art Direction
My Pal Gus
(1952)
Art Direction
Something for the Birds
(1952)
Art Direction
Don't Bother to Knock
(1952)
Art Direction
Viva Zapata!
(1952)
Art Direction
What Price Glory
(1952)
Art Direction
Belles on Their Toes
(1952)
Art Direction
The Outcasts of Poker Flat
(1952)
Art Direction
5 Fingers
(1952)
Art Direction
We're Not Married!
(1952)
Art Direction
Deadline - U.S.A.
(1952)
Art Direction
Titanic
(1953)
Art Direction
The President's Lady
(1953)
Art Direction
Dangerous Crossing
(1953)
Art Direction
Taxi
(1953)
Art Direction
The I Don't Care Girl
(1953)
Art Direction
Mister Scoutmaster
(1953)
Art Direction
Tonight We Sing
(1953)
Art Direction
Beneath the 12-Mile Reef
(1953)
Art Direction
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
(1953)
Art Direction
Pickup on South Street
(1953)
Art Direction
Niagara
(1953)
Art Direction
How to Marry a Millionaire
(1953)
Art Direction
The Robe
(1953)
Art Direction
Inferno
(1953)
Art Direction
Man in the Attic
(1953)
Art Direction
Call Me Madam
(1953)
Art Direction
A Blueprint for Murder
(1953)
Art Direction
Treasure of the Golden Condor
(1953)
Art Direction
The Glory Brigade
(1953)
Art Direction
The Girl Next Door
(1953)
Art Direction
King of the Khyber Rifles
(1953)
Art Direction
Vicki
(1953)
Art Direction
The Desert Rats
(1953)
Art Direction
Powder River
(1953)
Art Direction
White Witch Doctor
(1953)
Art Direction
There's No Business Like Show Business
(1954)
Art Direction
Gorilla at Large
(1954)
Art Direction
The Siege at Red River
(1954)
Art Direction
Broken Lance
(1954)
Art Direction
The Egyptian
(1954)
Art Direction
Demetrius and the Gladiators
(1954)
Art Direction
Black Widow
(1954)
Art Direction
Three Young Texans
(1954)
Art Direction
Woman's World
(1954)
Art Direction
Garden of Evil
(1954)
Art Direction
River of No Return
(1954)
Art Direction
Three Coins in the Fountain
(1954)
Art Direction
Good Morning, Miss Dove
(1955)
Art Direction
A Man Called Peter
(1955)
Art Direction
The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing
(1955)
Art Direction
Untamed
(1955)
Art Direction
Seven Cities of Gold
(1955)
Art Direction
The Virgin Queen
(1955)
Art Direction
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
(1955)
Art Direction
The Seven Year Itch
(1955)
Art Direction
Daddy Long Legs
(1955)
Art Direction
The Racers
(1955)
Art Direction
Soldier of Fortune
(1955)
Art Direction
The Left Hand of God
(1955)
Art Direction
The Tall Men
(1955)
Art Direction
Violent Saturday
(1955)
Art Direction
House of Bamboo
(1955)
Art Direction
The Girl Can't Help It
(1956)
Art Direction
Carousel
(1956)
Art Direction
The King and I
(1956)
Art Direction
On the Threshold of Space
(1956)
Art Direction
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit
(1956)
Art Direction
Love Me Tender
(1956)
Art Direction
The Last Wagon
(1956)
Art Direction
The Proud Ones
(1956)
Art Direction
D-Day the Sixth of June
(1956)
Art Direction
Bus Stop
(1956)
Art Direction
The Bottom of the Bottle
(1956)
Art Direction
23 Paces to Baker Street
(1956)
Art Direction
Hilda Crane
(1956)
Art Direction
The Lieutenant Wore Skirts
(1956)
Art Direction
The Revolt of Mamie Stover
(1956)
Art Direction
The Best Things in Life Are Free
(1956)
Art Direction
Between Heaven and Hell
(1956)
Art Direction
Bigger Than Life
(1956)
Art Direction
The Three Faces of Eve
(1957)
Art Direction
April Love
(1957)
Art Direction
The Enemy Below
(1957)
Art Direction
The Sun Also Rises
(1957)
Art Direction
Peyton Place
(1957)
Art Direction
Desk Set
(1957)
Art Direction
An Affair to Remember
(1957)
Art Direction
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?
(1957)
Art Direction
A Hatful of Rain
(1957)
Art Direction
The Wayward Bus
(1957)
Art Direction
Boy on a Dolphin
(1957)
Art Direction
The Barbarian and the Geisha
(1958)
Art Direction
The Long, Hot Summer
(1958)
Art Direction
South Pacific
(1958)
Art Direction
The Gift of Love
(1958)
Art Direction
The Young Lions
(1958)
Art Direction
Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys!
(1958)
Art Direction
The Hunters
(1958)
Art Direction
The Fly
(1958)
Art Direction
From Hell to Texas
(1958)
Art Direction
The Bravados
(1958)
Art Direction
Fraulein
(1958)
Art Direction
Mardi Gras
(1958)
Art Direction
The Fiend Who Walked The West
(1958)
Art Direction
The Diary of Anne Frank
(1959)
Art Direction
Warlock
(1959)
Art Direction
Journey to the Center of the Earth
(1959)
Art Direction
The Alligator People
(1959)
Art Direction
Beloved Infidel
(1959)
Art Direction
Blue Denim
(1959)
Art Direction
Say One for Me
(1959)
Art Direction
The Best of Everything
(1959)
Art Direction
The Man Who Understood Women
(1959)
Art Direction
A Private's Affair
(1959)
Art Direction
Holiday for Lovers
(1959)
Art Direction
The Story on Page One
(1959)
Art Direction
Return of the Fly
(1959)
Art Direction
The Story of Ruth
(1960)
Art Direction
From the Terrace
(1960)
Art Direction
Let's Make Love
(1960)
Art Direction
Wild River
(1960)
Art Direction
Can-Can
(1960)
Art Direction
Seven Thieves
(1960)
Art Direction
Young Jesse James
(1960)
Art Direction
Advise & Consent
(1962)
Production Design
The Cardinal
(1963)
Production Design
The Best Man
(1964)
Production Design
In Harm's Way
(1965)
Production Design
The Big Mouth
(1967)
Production Design
Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows
(1968)
Production Design
Marooned
(1969)
Production Design
Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon
(1970)
Production Design
The Love Machine
(1971)
Production Design
Doctors' Wives
(1971)
Production Design
Stand Up and Be Counted
(1972)
Production Design
Posse
(1975)
Production Design and Set Decoration
Flight to Holocaust
(1977)
Art Direction
Perfect Gentlemen
(1978)
Production Design
Acting