Bumstead designed for Eastwood
Art director dies at 91
Bumstead, who served as production designer or art director on more than 100 films, recently completed design duties on director Clint Eastwood companion films "Flags of Our Fathers" and "Red Sun, Black Sand."
"Bummy was one of a kind. He seamlessly bridged the gap between what I saw on the page and what I saw through the camera lens," Eastwood said.
Bumstead worked on 13 films for Eastwood, including "Mystic River," "Million Dollar Baby," "Unforgiven" and "High Plains Drifter."
He also received Oscar noms for his work on "Vertigo" and "Unforgiven." Over his nearly 70-year career in the motion picture business, Bumstead worked with directors including Martin Scorsese, George Roy Hill, Billy Wilder and Alfred Hitchcock.
Born and raised in Ontario, Calif., he won a football scholarship to USC. After a back injury ended his football career, he continued studying architecture at USC, working in the art department at RKO during the summers.
After graduating, he worked with Hans Dreier, the head of production design at Paramount Studios, until the start of WWII. Bumstead enlisted in the Navy and was stationed in Washington, D.C.
When he returned to the Par lot after the war, he had his first shot at art directing, working on films such as "Saigon" and "Streets of Laredo."
He later moved to Universal, where he earned his first Academy Award for his work on "To Kill a Mockingbird." He served as art director on films including "The Bridges at Toko-Ri," "Beau Geste" and "The Front Page." He moved up to production designer for Hitchcock's "Family Plot," "Slaughterhouse Five," "The World According to Garp" and Scorsese's "Cape Fear."
He received the Art Directors Guild lifetime achievement award, the Hollywood Film Festival outstanding achievement in production design award and a special award from the American Film Institute.
He is survived by his wife, Lena; three sons and a daughter; two stepdaughters; and 11 grandchildren.
