Lenwood Ballard "Bill" Abbott, A.S.C. (June 13, 1908 – September 28, 1985) was an American special effects expert,

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

and

cameraman A camera operator, or depending on the context cameraman or camerawoman, is a professional operator of a film camera or video camera as part of a film crew. The term "cameraman" does not imply that a male is performing the task. In filmmaking ...

. He became the head of the Special Effects Department at

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

in 1957, a post he held until retirement in 1970. He was called out of retirement, however, to work on the TV series ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. The ...

'' in 1972 (Abbott had worked on the film on which the series was based). Abbott was a member of the American Society of Cinematographers.

Awards and nominations

He was four times a winner or co-winner of an

Academy Special Achievement Award The Special Achievement Award is an Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for visual effects for '' Doctor Dolittle'' in 1968, ''

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 ...

'' in 1971 (shared with

A. D. Flowers A. D. Flowers (February 22, 1917July 5, 2001) was an American special effects artist best known for his work on ''Tora! Tora! Tora!,'' which won him an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects at the 43rd Academy Awards. He was also a credited spec ...

), '' The Poseidon Adventure'' in 1972 and ''

Logan's Run ''Logan's Run'' is a science fiction novel by American writers William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson. Published in 1967, the novel depicts a dystopic Malthusianism future society in which both population and the consumption of resource ...

'' in 1976.

Selected filmography

* '' The Day the Earth Stood Still'' (1951) * ''

The Enemy Below ''The Enemy Below'' is a 1957 DeLuxe Color war film in CinemaScope about a battle between an American destroyer escort and a German U-boat during World War II. Produced and directed by Dick Powell, the movie stars Robert Mitchum and Curt Jürg ...

'' (1957) * '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' (1961 film) * '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' TV series (1964-1968) * '' Lost in Space'' (TV Series 1965–1968) * '' The Sound of Music'' (1965) * ''

The Time Tunnel ''The Time Tunnel'' is an American color science fiction TV series written around a theme of time travel adventure starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. The show was creator-producer Irwin Allen's third science-fiction television series and ...

'' TV series (1966-1967) * '' Fantastic Voyage'' (1966) * '' Planet of the Apes'' (1968) * ''

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'' is a 1969 American Western buddy film directed by George Roy Hill and written by William Goldman. Based loosely on fact, the film tells the story of Wild West outlaws Robert LeRoy Parker, known as Butch C ...

'' (1969) * ''

Patton George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a General (United States), general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, Mediterranean Theater ...

'' (1970) * ''

'' (1972) * '' The Poseidon Adventure'' (1972) * '' The Towering Inferno'' (1974) * ''

'' (1976) * '' The Swarm'' (1978) * ''

When Time Ran Out ''When Time Ran Out...'' is a 1980 American disaster film directed by James Goldstone and starring Paul Newman, Jacqueline Bisset and William Holden. The supporting cast features James Franciscus, Ernest Borgnine, Red Buttons, Burgess Meredith, ...

'' (1980)

Awards and nominations

Selected filmography

References

External links

See also