Grot, Anton Franciszek
(1886 - 1974)
film designer
Born in Kielbasice, Poland, he attended the Technical College in Koenigsberg and majored in interior decoration, illustration and design. In 1909 he came to the United States and was hired by film producer Sigmund Lubin to paint backgrounds and design sets. The Mouse and the Lion was his first film. He worked with Cecil B. DeMile in three major films: The Thief of Baghdad (1925), The Volga Boatman (1926) and The King of Kings (1927). Films designed by Grot include: Gold Diggers of 1933, Gold Diggers of 1935 and Captain Blood. He also worked on: A Midsummer Nights Dream, The Sea Hawk, and Sea Wolf. During this period he invented a ripple machine to simulate rough seas and waves. After WWWII he worked on: Mildred Pierce, Posessed, The Unsuspected and June Bride. He retired in 1948 and painted oil scenes of the California Carmel Coast, as well as portraits and historical subjects.
From: Polish Americans in California; edited by Jacek Przygoda; Los Angeles California, Polish American Historical Association 1978.
Art technician. Engaged by Warner Bros. Art Dept., Hollywood, Cal. (1941).From: "Who's Who in Polish America" by Rev. Francis Bolek, Editor-in-Chief; Harbinger House, New York, 1943