Katherine Orrison (born November 18, 1948) is an American set decorator, art director, producer, costumer, author and film historian specializing in the films of

Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...

, the life and career of actor

Henry Wilcoxon Harry Frederick Wilcoxon (8 September 1905 – 6 March 1984), known as Henry Wilcoxon, was an actor born in Roseau, Dominica, British West Indies, and who was a leading man in many of Cecil B. DeMille's films, also serving as DeMille's associ ...

, and the epic film ''

The Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments ( Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ ...

''.

Early life and education

Orrison was born in

Anniston, Alabama Anniston is the county seat of Calhoun County in Alabama and is one of two urban centers/principal cities of and included in the Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 23,106. Acc ...

to John M. Orrison and Mary H. Orrison. She spent time visiting her grandparents in Pompano Beach, Florida when she was young. She was inspired to pursue film after seeing ''

'' film when she was 9 years old. She even started putting lamb's blood on her doorposts after seeing the film. Orrison graduated from the Sacred Heart Convent in

Cullman, Alabama Cullman is the largest city and county seat of Cullman County, Alabama, United States. It is located along Interstate 65, about north of Birmingham and about south of Huntsville. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 14,775, with an ...

in 1966. She later attended the

Pasadena Playhouse College of Theater Arts The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic performing arts venue located 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California, United States. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engage ...

(in Pasadena, California). She married Peter Coe, but their marriage was annulled in 1969. After the annulment, Orrison worked for various companies like Filmation and Disney on animated films and commercials from 1969 to 1980. She then attended the American Film Institute in Beverly Hills, California from 1980 through 1982.

Career

After leaving the American Film Institute, Orrison worked in the Hollywood

film industry The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, p ...

for over twenty years as an animation checker,

associate producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

production manager In the cinema of the United States, a unit production manager (UPM) is the Directors Guild of America–approved title for the top below-the-line staff position, responsible for the administration of a feature film or television production. Non- ...

, art director,

set decorator The set decorator is the head of the set decoration department in the film and television industry, responsible for selecting, designing, fabricating, and sourcing the " set dressing" elements of each set in a Feature Film, Television, or New Media ...

and costumer. Her body of work included ''

Miracle Mile Miracle Mile may refer to: Places in the United States * Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, California, a district of Los Angeles * Miracle Mile (Coral Gables), a shopping area in Coral Gables, Florida * Miracle Mile (Manhasset), New York, a premium sh ...

'' (1988) and ''

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

'' (1991). She also restored and decorated the Mayan Theater in downtown Los Angeles. Orrison wrote for ''Cult Movies'' magazine writing on topics like ''

Lawrence of Arabia Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British archaeologist, army officer, diplomat, and writer who became renowned for his role in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918) and the Sinai and Palestine Campaign (1915–191 ...

'', actresses Yvonne De Carlo and

Joan Woodbury Joan Elmer Woodbury (December 17, 1915 – February 22, 1989) was an American actress beginning in the 1930s and continuing well into the 1960s. Early life Woodbury was born in Los Angeles, California on December 17, 1915. Her father was Elmer ...

, the re-modeling of

Cecil B. De Mille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...

's home in

Los Feliz LOS, or Los, or LoS may refer to: Science and technology * Length of stay, the duration of a single episode of hospitalisation * Level of service, a measure used by traffic engineers * Level of significance, a measure of statistical significanc ...

, and ''

Blade Runner ''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott, and written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Dick' ...

''. In addition, she wrote in their book review column. She worked for ''Cult Movies'' for over ten years. Orrison was a film historian in various television documentaries. Orrison is also an author: she wrote a biography of

called ''Lionheart in Hollywood'' which she worked on for two and a half years. Another one of her books was titled ''Written in Stone: Making Cecil B. DeMille's Epic "The Ten Commandments"''. She has also collaborated on screenplays like ''Rave-On Macbeth'' (2002) a European screenplay. On September 7, 1971, Orrison married

Sherman Labby Sherman Labby (November 30, 1929, Hollywood, California – May 31, 1998, Los Angeles, California) was an American storyboard artist and production illustrator. After many years as a magazine illustrator, and like many in his craft, his first moti ...

. He is also involved in the film industry as a production illustrator and

storyboard artist A storyboard artist (sometimes called a story artist or visualizer) creates storyboards for advertising agencies and film productions. Work A storyboard artist visualizes stories and sketches frames of the story. Quick pencil drawings and mark ...

. He died in 1998 from the effects of muscular dystrophy.

Selected filmography

Bibliography

References

External links

Katherine Orrison webpage
*
Katherine Orrison papers on Written in Stonen, MSS 8178
a
L. Tom Perry Special Collections

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...