Sir Arthur Hallam Rice Elton, 10th Baronet (10 February 1906 – 1 January 1973) was a pioneer of the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

documentary film industry. Educated at

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

and

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Jesus College was established in 1496 on the site of the twelfth-century Benedictine nunnery of St Radegund's Priory, Cambridge, St ...

, he was a schoolfriend of

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman, (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architect ...

. After graduation, he worked as a scriptwriter in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and in 1931 was recruited into the

Empire Marketing Board The Empire Marketing Board was formed in May 1926 by the Colonial Secretary Leo Amery to promote intra-Empire trade and to persuade consumers to 'Buy Empire'. It was established as a substitute for tariff reform and protectionist legislation and ...

Film Unit (later the

GPO Film Unit The GPO Film Unit was a subdivision of the UK General Post Office. The unit was established in 1933, taking on responsibilities of the Empire Marketing Board Film Unit. Headed by John Grierson, it was set up to produce sponsored documentary film ...

) by

John Grierson John Grierson (26 April 1898 – 19 February 1972) was a Scottish documentary maker, often considered the father of British and Canadian documentary film. In 1926, Grierson coined the term "documentary" in a review of Robert J. Flaherty's '' ...

. He worked as a director and producer on many films over the next two decades, mainly for the government, though 1932's ''Voice of the World'' was sponsored by

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

, the first example of industrial sponsorship of a documentary film. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he became supervisor of films at the Ministry of Information, and afterwards he became an advisor to the Shell Petroleum Company and production head of Shell Films. Elton married Margaret Ann Bjornson (d.1995) in 1948. On inheriting the Elton Baronetcy title and

Clevedon Court Clevedon Court is a manor house on Court Hill in Clevedon, North Somerset, England, dating from the early 14th century. It is owned by the National Trust and is designated as a Grade I listed building. The house was built and added to over man ...

on the death of his father in 1951, Elton restored the building and donated it to the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

in lieu of death duties. He took a keen interest in the town of

Clevedon Clevedon (, ) is a seaside town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, England. It recorded a parish population of 21,281 in the United Kingdom Census 2011, estimated at 21,442 in 2019. It lies ...

, becoming chairman of the printing company which produced the local paper. He was also prominent in the campaign to restore

Clevedon Pier Clevedon Pier is a seaside pier in the town of Clevedon, Somerset, England on the east shore of the Severn Estuary. It was described by Sir John Betjeman, as "the most beautiful pier in England" and was designated a Grade I listed building in ...

. On Elton's death, his collection of material relating to British industrial development (valued at over a quarter of a million pounds) was given to the Ironbridge Museum. He was succeeded by his son Charles, who is a

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

producer.

External links

* *

References

* Jonathan Dawson Arthur Elton in: Ian Aitken (ed) ''Encyclopedia of the Documentary Film'', NY Routledge, 2006, pp. 56–6

1906 births 1973 deaths Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain English film directors English male screenwriters People educated at Marlborough College British documentary filmmakers Civil servants in the General Post Office British documentary film producers 20th-century English screenwriters 20th-century English male writers {{UK-film-director-stub

External links

See also

References