---
name: "Edward Carfagno"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/edward-c-carfagno"
fi1m_id: "edward-c-carfagno"
imdb_id: "nm0137063"
tmdb_id: 10009
wikidata_id: "Q466680"
roles: ["Art direction"]
born: "28 November 1907"
died: "28 December 1996"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 7
average_fi1m_score: 73
average_over: 7
updated: "2026-10-04T18:41:39.423713+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Edward Carfagno

## Identity

Edward Carfagno

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/edward-c-carfagno
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** edward-c-carfagno
- **IMDb ID:** nm0137063
- **TMDB ID:** 10009
- **Wikidata ID:** Q466680
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Carfagno, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q466680, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0137063/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/10009

Art direction. Born 28 November 1907 in Los Angeles, California, USA. Died 28 December 1996.

## Details

- **Work:** Art direction
- **Born:** 28 November 1907, Los Angeles, California, USA
- **Died:** 28 December 1996
- **Active:** 1951–1985
- **Also known as:** Edward C. Carfagno
- **Frequently works with:** [Clint Eastwood](https://film.one/person/clint-eastwood.md)
- **Academy Awards:** 3 Oscars (3 won · 7 nominated)
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1950s 75 (4), 1980s 69 (3)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 74 to 72 across 6 titles
- **Score spread:** 1 at 80+, 6 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Drama 6, History 3, Crime 2, Romance 2, Thriller 2, Action 1
- **Screen time:** 16 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $432m across 7 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Carfagno, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q466680, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0137063/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/10009

## Biography

Edward C. Carfagno was an American art director and production designer. A graduate of the University of Southern California, he began his film career at MGM in 1939 as a draftsman on *The Wizard of Oz* (1939) and remained with the studio for decades, working on many of its major productions.

He received thirteen Academy Award nominations for art direction and won three times: for *The Bad and the Beautiful* (1952), *Julius Caesar* (1953) and *Ben-Hur* (1959). In the later part of his career he worked as a production designer on five films directed by Clint Eastwood, including *Pale Rider* (1985), *Heartbreak Ridge* (1986) and *The Dead Pool* (1988). His final credit was *Pink Cadillac* (1989). He was inducted into the Art Directors Guild Hall of Fame in 2007.

*Sources: imdb.com, latimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (7)

- *Pale Rider* (1985), Fi1m 77, Production design, Production Design — [page](https://film.one/film/pale-rider.md)
- *Tightrope* (1984), Fi1m 66, Production design, Production Design — [page](https://film.one/film/tightrope.md)
- *Sudden Impact* (1983), Fi1m 65, Production Design, Production design — [page](https://film.one/film/sudden-impact.md)
- *Ben-Hur* (1959), Fi1m 76, Art Direction — [page](https://film.one/film/ben-hur.md)
- *Julius Caesar* (1953), Fi1m 76, Art Direction — [page](https://film.one/film/julius-caesar.md)
- *The Bad and the Beautiful* (1952), Fi1m 84, Art Direction — [page](https://film.one/film/the-bad-and-the-beautiful.md)
- *Quo Vadis* (1951), Fi1m 65, Art Direction — [page](https://film.one/film/quo-vadis.md)

## Complete filmography (69)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Pink Cadillac* (1989), Production Design
- *The Dead Pool* (1988), Production Design
- *Bird* (1988), Production Design
- *Heartbreak Ridge* (1986), Production Design
- *Ratboy* (1986), Production Design
- *Pale Rider* (1985), Production Design — Fi1m 77, [page](https://film.one/film/pale-rider.md)
- *City Heat* (1984), Production Design
- *All of Me* (1984), Production Design
- *Tightrope* (1984), Production Design — Fi1m 66, [page](https://film.one/film/tightrope.md)
- *Sudden Impact* (1983), Production Design — Fi1m 65, [page](https://film.one/film/sudden-impact.md)
- *Honkytonk Man* (1982), Production Design
- *Wrong Is Right* (1982), Production Design
- *Beulah Land* (1980), series, Production Design
- *Gideon's Trumpet* (1980), Production Design
- *Little Miss Marker* (1980), Production Design
- *Meteor* (1979), Production Design
- *Time After Time* (1979), Production Design
- *The One and Only* (1978), Production Design
- *Looking for Mr. Goodbar* (1977), as Art Direction
- *Demon Seed* (1977), Production Design
- *The Last Hard Men* (1976), as Art Direction
- *Gable and Lombard* (1976), Production Design
- *The Hindenburg* (1975), Production Design
- *The Phantom of Hollywood* (1974), as Art Direction
- *The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing* (1973), as Art Direction
- *Soylent Green* (1973), as Art Direction
- *Melinda* (1972), as Art Direction
- *Skyjacked* (1972), as Art Direction
- *Earth II* (1971), as Art Direction
- *The Traveling Executioner* (1970), as Art Direction
- *The Moonshine War* (1970), as Art Direction
- *The Trouble with Girls* (1969), as Art Direction
- *The Extraordinary Seaman* (1969), as Art Direction
- *The Shoes of the Fisherman* (1968), as Art Direction
- *Don't Make Waves* (1967), as Art Direction
- *Spinout* (1966), as Art Direction
- *The Glass Bottom Boat* (1966), as Art Direction
- *The Cincinnati Kid* (1965), as Art Direction
- *Signpost to Murder* (1964), as Art Direction
- *36 Hours* (1964), as Art Direction
- *Viva Las Vegas* (1964), as Art Direction
- *Sunday in New York* (1963), as Art Direction
- *Period of Adjustment* (1962), as Art Direction
- *The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm* (1962), as Art Direction
- *Ada* (1961), as Art Direction
- *Go Naked in the World* (1961), as Art Direction
- *All the Fine Young Cannibals* (1960), as Art Direction
- *Ben-Hur* (1959), as Art Direction — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/ben-hur.md)
- *House of Numbers* (1957), as Art Direction
- *Something of Value* (1957), as Art Direction
- *Tea and Sympathy* (1956), as Art Direction
- *Deep in My Heart* (1954), as Art Direction
- *Executive Suite* (1954), as Art Direction
- *The Long, Long Trailer* (1954), as Art Direction
- *Take the High Ground!* (1953), as Art Direction
- *Julius Caesar* (1953), as Art Direction — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/julius-caesar.md)
- *The Story of Three Loves* (1953), as Art Direction
- *The Bad and the Beautiful* (1952), as Art Direction — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/the-bad-and-the-beautiful.md)
- *Quo Vadis* (1951), as Art Direction — Fi1m 65, [page](https://film.one/film/quo-vadis.md)
- *Angels in the Outfield* (1951), as Art Direction
- *Neptune's Daughter* (1949), as Art Direction
- *The Barkleys of Broadway* (1949), as Art Direction
- *Good News* (1947), as Art Direction
- *Cynthia* (1947), as Art Direction
- *The Secret Heart* (1946), as Art Direction
- *The Sailor Takes a Wife* (1945), as Art Direction
- *Between Two Women* (1945), as Art Direction
- *The Thin Man Goes Home* (1944), as Art Direction
- *The Canterville Ghost* (1944), as Art Direction

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 3 won, 7 nominated

- 1976: Best Production Design (nominated), for *The Hindenburg*
- 1969: Best Production Design (nominated), for *The Shoes of the Fisherman*
- 1963: Best Art Direction, Color (nominated), for *The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm*
- 1963: Best Art Direction, Black and White (nominated), for *Period of Adjustment*
- 1960: Best Art Direction, Color (won), for *Ben-Hur*
- 1955: Best Art Direction, Black and White (nominated), for *Executive Suite*
- 1954: Best Art Direction, Black and White (won), for *Julius Caesar*
- 1954: Best Art Direction, Color (nominated), for *The Story of Three Loves*
- 1953: Best Art Direction, Black and White (won), for *The Bad and the Beautiful*
- 1952: Best Art Direction, Color (nominated), for *Quo Vadis*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/edward-c-carfagno