Peter Proud (born Ralph Priestman Proud, 6 May 1913, Glasgow - 1989, London) was a British film art director.[1] He made a major contribution to wartime camouflage and deception operations in the Western Desert, especially in the siege of Tobruk.
Early career[]
In 1928, Proud left school at age 15 and started work at the Elstree film studios on Alfred Hitchcock films including Murder! and Rich and Strange.[2] In 1932 he joined Gaumont British as assistant designer to Alfred Junge. The British Film Institute's Ray Durgnat described him as an "ace production designer".[3]
In 1935 he moved to Gainsborough,[4] and in 1936 he became an art director at Warner Bros, where he worked on Michael Powell's film Something Always Happens.[1][2]
Wartime camouflage[]
The dummy 'Net Gun Pit' deceived enemy tactical reconnaissance in the Western Desert campaign of 1941-1942
Proud worked as a camouflage officer under Geoffrey Barkas in the Western Desert in the Second World War, and was responsible for effective camouflage and deception in the Siege of Tobruk.[5][6] With Steven Sykes, he created the dummy port at Ras al Hilal to divert enemy attention from the Eighth Army's vital supply ports.[7] He was a creative camoufleur, inventing the "Net Gun Pit", a quickly-erected structure of netting and canvas, that from the air closely resembled an anti-aircraft gun in a sandbagged pit.[2][8]
Post-war[]
After the war, Proud ran his own production company. He worked on the TV series The Buccaneers and Robin Hood at Nettlefold Studios.[2][9][10]
Filmography[]
Proud worked, mainly as art director, on films including:[1]
- Murder! (1930)
- Orders is Orders (1933)
- My Old Dutch (1934)
- The Man Who Knew Too Much (Alfred Hitchcock, 1934)
- The League of Gentlemen (1960)
- The Guilty Party (1962)
- It's All Over Town (1963)
- Saturday Night Out (1964)
- 1965 film (1965)
- Theatre of Death (1966)
- The Naked Runner (1967)
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Peter Proud". Filmography. British Film Institute. http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b9f65c87f. Retrieved November 13, 2012.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Grant, Alistair (2012). "The Elmbridge Hundred". Peter Proud. Elmbridge Museum. http://www.elmbridgemuseum.org.uk/elmbridgehundred/biographies/biography.asp?id=52. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
- ↑ Durgnat, Ray (31 July 1999). "The Business of Fear". British Film Institute. http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4e85f89ea4f9a. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ↑ "Art & Design in The British Film". (#21) Peter Proud. 23 November 2008; original book 1948.. http://www.articlesandtexticles.co.uk/2008/11/23/art-design-in-the-british-film-21-peter-proud/. Retrieved November 13, 2012.
- ↑ Barkas, 1952. pp121-128.
- ↑ Stroud, 2012. pp91-98, 100-108.
- ↑ Stroud, 2012. pp137-143.
- ↑ Stroud, 2012. pp152-154.
- ↑ Stroud, 2012. p234.
- ↑ Robin Hood (TV). Retrieved 13 November 2012.
Bibliography[]
- Barkas, Geoffrey; Barkas, Natalie (1952). The Camouflage Story (from Aintree to Alamein). Cassell.
- Stroud, Rick (2012). The Phantom Army of Alamein: How the Camouflage Unit and Operation Bertram Hoodwinked Rommel. Bloomsbury.
External links[]
The original article can be found at Peter Proud and the edit history here.