Mellor began his career in the photographic labs at Paramount in the
mid-20's. By 1934, he had graduated to full-time director of
photography, working primarily on the studio's lesser productions. At
the same time, he continued to serve his apprenticeship by assisting
veteran cinematographer Victor Milner as
first camera operator on A-grade features. Mellor left Paramount in
1943, to join the U.S. Army Photographic Unit, shooting documentary
wartime footage under the aegis of director
George Stevens.
After the war, Mellor found regular work with most of the major
studios: United Artists (1946, 1948-49), Universal (1947-48), MGM
(1950-54) and 20th Century Fox (1957-62). He acquired a solid
reputation for versatility across every genre of filmmaking. He
excelled at outdoor and location photography, best exemplified by
William A. Wellman's austere black &
white pioneering saga
Karawane der Frauen (1951), and
Anthony Mann's powerful revenge
western Nackte Gewalt (1953). In
stark contrast, Mellor (working again with George Stevens), also shot
the black & white melodrama
Ein Platz an der Sonne (1951)
(with John F. Seitz), using diffuse
lighting and soft focus lenses. The romantic look of the film with its
lingering close-ups, contributed to the New York Times (August 29,
1951) reviewing the picture as "a work of beauty, tenderness, power and
insight". In the same vein, the Stevens-directed
Giganten (1956), with its sweeping vistas, and
the lush, warm look of
Glut unter der Asche (1957), offer nothing
like the suitably harsh, barren desert visuals of
Stadt in Angst (1955),
shot in widescreen Panavision.
Mellor died from a heart attack while filming
Die größte Geschichte aller Zeiten (1965)
(Stevens again the director) and was replaced by
Loyal Griggs. While the film was not a
commercial success, its stylized visuals nonetheless garnered Mellor a
posthumous Oscar nomination.
