Leroy Coleman, 92, set designer and art director in a career that
spanned more than 40 years, 30 films, and 18 television series, passed
away Saturday, June 2nd, in Oceanside.
Working with MGM, 20th Century Fox, and Warner Bros., his most notable
works as Art Director are, "The Ballad of Cable Hogue" and "Ride the
High Country", working with Sam Peckinpah. Other films include "The
Venetian Affair", "Support Your Local Sheriff!", and "Speedway".
Born May 7th, 1915, in Chappell, Nebraska, Coleman began his career as
an apprentice for the architectural firm of Sumner Spaulding. He moved
to Selznick Pictures in Culver City, and studied motion picture design
at Chouinard School of Art.
In 1938, he was hired as a set designer for MGM, where he worked with
Art Directors Randall Duell, Urie McCleary, George Davis and others.
In 1952, he began work in live television for MGM and NBC studios,
listed as Art Director for such series as "Matinee Theater", "The Thin
Man", and "Please Don't Eat the Daisies".
In 1970, he moved to R. Duell & Associates, theme park designers of
Magic Mountain, Six Flags Over Texas, Astroworld, King's Island, and
the Great America parks. He was lead designer of Opryland and in 1973,
became the company's President and COO. He retired in 1980.
In 2002, Coleman was honored by the Set Designers & Model Makers,
Local 847, IATSE, of which he was a founding member.
His wife of 60 years, Mary Margaret Winter, preceded him in death in
1998. He is survived by daughter Nancy Coleman-Frank, son Curtis
Winter Coleman, grandchildren Melissa, Christopher, Meghan, and
Katharina, and great- grandchildren Leighton, Carrington , and Cole.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the Oceanside
Museum of Art, 704 Pier View Way, Oceanside, CA 92054.
Published in the Los Angeles Times on 6/12/2007.
By: CRAIG TENBROECK - Staff Writer
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/06/12//obituaries/feature/6_11_0719_22_51.txt
OCEANSIDE -- Leroy Arthur Coleman, a retired Hollywood art director,
World War II veteran and theme-park designer, died June 2 at Tri-City
Medical Center in Oceanside, according to family members.
He was 92.
During a Tinseltown career that started in the 1930s and spanned
several years, Coleman conceived and designed sets for several films
and television series, including "Support Your Local Sheriff!" and
"Speedway," starring Elvis Presley and Nancy Sinatra.
Coleman particularly enjoyed working with famed director Sam Peckinpah
on Westerns such as "The Ballad of Cable Hogue" and "Ride the High
Country," according to Nancy Coleman-Frank, one of Coleman's two children.
Later in life, Coleman left Hollywood behind to design amusement parks
for the firm of R Duell & Associates, where he would eventually serve
as president and chief operating officer. For two years, Coleman lived
in Nashville, Tenn., as lead designer for the Opryland amusement park,
family members said.
Opryland, which opened in 1972 along the Cumberland River, combined
traditional theme-park attractions with musical shows.
"Opryland was his baby," Coleman-Frank said. "He was very proud of it."
Born to a farming family on May 7, 1915, in Chappell, Neb., Coleman
was the youngest of five children. When he was still a boy, the family
moved to Southern California, Coleman-Frank said.
After graduating from Long Beach Polytechnic High School, Coleman
became an apprentice for the architecture firm Sumner Spaulding. A few
years later, he was working as a draftsman for Selznick Pictures in
Culver City while spending his nights studying motion-picture design
at Chouinard School of Art, Coleman-Frank said.
His art, both personal and professional, was always defined by his
attention to detail, according to granddaughter Melissa Holritz.
"He just had a precision about the way he did things that was just
remarkable," Holritz said.
In 1938, Cole became a set designer for MGM and married Mary Margaret
Winter, his wife of 60 years. The couple would eventually have two
children, Nancy and Curtis.
"He was very quiet," Coleman-Frank said when asked to describe her
father's personality. "Not at all outgoing, but just as sweet and kind
as he could be."
Coleman's career as a set designer and art director was interrupted by
World War II. He served for a year in the South Pacific as a U.S. Army
Rifleman.
Having worked primarily in the medium of film, Coleman switched to
live television in 1952, working on programs such as "Matinee Theater"
and "The Thin Man," Coleman-Frank said.
Coleman retired in 1980 and moved to Oceanside several years later.
His wife passed away in 1998.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations Oceanside
Museum of Art, 704 Pier View Way, Oceanside, CA 92054.
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