Otto Lang (21 January 1908 – 30 January 2006) was a skier and pioneer

ski A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partia ...

instructor from

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

, who lived and worked in the United States. After teaching skiing at a variety of smaller resorts in Austria, he joined the

Hannes Schneider Johann "Hannes" Schneider (24 June 1890 – 26 April 1955) was an Austrian ski instructor of the first half of the 20th century, famous for pioneering the Arlberg technique of instruction. Many consider him the Father of Modern Day Skiing. A ...

Ski School in St. Anton am Arlberg, one of the most prestigious ski schools of the era. Like many instructors who taught Schneider's Arlberg Method, Lang was eventually offered a chance to teach in the U.S., at Pecketts' on Sugar Hill in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. He later moved out west and founded ski schools on

Mount Rainier Mount Rainier (), indigenously known as Tahoma, Tacoma, Tacobet, or təqʷubəʔ, is a large active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest, located in Mount Rainier National Park about south-southeast of Seattle. With a s ...

Mount Baker Mount Baker (Lummi: '; nok, Kw’eq Smaenit or '), also known as Koma Kulshan or simply Kulshan, is a active glacier-covered andesitic stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc and the North Cascades of Washington in the United States. Mount ...

and

Mount Hood Mount Hood is a potentially active stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It was formed by a subduction zone on the Pacific coast and rests in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located about east-southeast of Portlan ...

. After a visit to Sun Valley Resort at the request of his former student

Nelson Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979), sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of t ...

, Lang was offered a position at their ski school. In the 1930s, Sun Valley was one of the world's most glamorous resorts, the first ever to offer ski lifts. Eventually he became the director of the ski school at Sun Valley and became ''the'' ski instructor for Hollywood stars. Later he became a movie director and producer, primarily due to his contacts at Sun Valley, including an ongoing friendship with studio executive

Darryl F. Zanuck Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of ...

. He demonstrated ski techniques in

Jerome Hill James Jerome Hill II (March 2, 1905 – November 21, 1972) was an American filmmaker and artist known for his award-winning documentary and experimental films. Career Hill was the child of railroad executive Louis W. Hill. He was educated at Ya ...

's documentary ''Ski Flight'' (

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

) which premiered at

Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Nicknamed "The Showplac ...

. His 1936 book ''Downhill Skiing'' was recognized in its day as the most comprehensive manual for skiing instruction for the fledgling sport. Ski filmmaker Warren Miller and newsman

Lowell Thomas Lowell Jackson Thomas (April 6, 1892 – August 29, 1981) was an American writer, actor, broadcaster, and traveler, best remembered for publicising T. E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia). He was also involved in promoting the Cinerama widescreen ...

both credited Lang's book as an inspiration for their interest in skiing. Lang was hired by

to assist with the ski sequences of the 1941 movie ''

Sun Valley Serenade ''Sun Valley Serenade'' is a 1941 musical film directed by H. Bruce Humberstone and starring Sonja Henie, John Payne, Glenn Miller, Milton Berle, and Lynn Bari. It features the Glenn Miller Orchestra as well as dancing by the Nicholas Brothers. ...

'' starring

Sonja Henie Sonja Henie (8 April 1912 – 12 October 1969) was a Norway, Norwegian figure skating, figure skater and film star. She was a three-time List of Olympic medalists in figure skating, Olympic champion (Figure skating at the 1928 Winter Olympics, ...

, which ultimately led to his cinematic work. Some of his notable feature films include ''

Call Northside 777 ''Call Northside 777'' is a 1948 reality-based newspaper drama directed by Henry Hathaway. The film parallels the true story of a Chicago reporter who proved that a man jailed for murder was wrongly convicted 11 years before. James Stewart stars ...

'' (1948 - producer), '' 5 Fingers'' (1952 - producer), '' Love is a Many-Splendored Thing'' (1955 - director for scenes filmed in Hong Kong), ''

Search for Paradise ''Search for Paradise'' is a 1957 American documentary film shot in Cinerama. It was directed by Otto Lang and produced by Lowell Thomas with distribution by Cinerama Releasing Corp. Background In October and November 1956, a Cinerama motion pictu ...

'' (working title ''The Search for Shangri-La'') (1956 - director) and ''

Tora! Tora! Tora! ''Tora! Tora! Tora!'' ( ja, トラ・トラ・トラ！) is a 1970 epic film, epic war film that dramatizes the Empire of Japan, Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The film was produced by Elmo Williams and directed by Richard Fleischer, T ...

'' (1970 - associate producer of the Japanese segments). He produced the short films ''Vesuvius Express'' (1953), ''The First Piano Quartette'' (1954) and ''

Jet Carrier ''Jet Carrier'' is a 1954 American short documentary film produced by Otto Lang as a CinemaScope Special. It was nominated for two Academy Awards - one for Best Documentary Short, and the other for Best Two-Reel Short. It was filmed aboard th ...

'' (1954) nominated for Academy Awards. Otto Lang is also an author. His memoir, ''A Bird of Passage – The Story of My Life -- From the Alps of

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

to Hollywood, U.S.A.,'' was published in 1994, and the same year he was presented Ski Film Maker Legend of the Year award at the Crested Butte International Ski Film Festival. ''Around the World in 90 Years – Images From My Life’s Journey,'' published in 2000, is a collection of photographs taken by Mr. Lang during his lifelong travels. The pages include his anecdotal descriptions of the photographs and his life. In 1978 he was inducted into the US

National Ski Hall of Fame The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum is located in Ishpeming, Michigan, the birthplace of organized skiing in the United States. Located in the state's Upper Peninsula, the building includes the hall of fame and museum, as well as a t ...

, and in 2004 he was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award from the North American Snowsports Journalists Association.NASJA.org
/ref> Otto Lang's son Peter, inspired by his father's work with animals on the television shows

Sea Hunt ''Sea Hunt'' is an American action adventure television series that aired in syndication from 1958 to 1961 and was popular for decades afterwards. The series originally aired for four seasons, with 155 episodes produced. It stars Lloyd Bridges a ...

, Flipper, and

Daktari ''Daktari'' ( Swahili for "doctor") is an American family drama series that aired on CBS between 1966 and 1969. The series is an Ivan Tors Films Production in association with MGM Television starring Marshall Thompson as Dr. Marsh Tracy, a veter ...

, is the founder and owner of the renowned

Safari West Safari West is a private wildlife preserve located 12 miles north of the city of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, California, United States, owned and operated by Nancy and Peter Lang. The selection of wildlife emphasizes species native to Africa ...

Wildlife Preserve in

Sonoma County Sonoma County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 488,863. Its county seat and largest city is Santa Rosa. It is to the north of Marin County and the south of Mendocino ...

, California.

Bibliography

* Lang, Otto (1936) ''Downhill Skiing'' New York: H. Holt and company OCLC 2105449 * Lang, Otto (1940) ''Ski Tips'' Portland, OR: Hirsch-Weiss, White Stag * Lang, Otto (1941) ''How To Ski: A Book For Both the Beginner and the Experienced Skier'' New York: The Sun Dial Press OCLC 1862697 * Lang, Otto (1994) ''A Bird of Passage: the story of my life'' Helena, Mont.: SkyHouse Publishers * Lang, Otto (2000) ''Around the World in 90 Years – Images From My Life’s Journey'' Seattle, Wash.: Elton-Wolf Pub.

References

TCM.com Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of Atl ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lang, Otto 1908 births 2006 deaths Sportspeople from Zenica Writers from Zenica American film producers Bosnia and Herzegovina film producers Bosnia and Herzegovina film directors Bosnia and Herzegovina male alpine skiers Yugoslav emigrants to the United States Edgar Award winners

Bibliography

References

External links