---
name: "W. Howard Greene"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/w-howard-greene"
roles: ["Cinematographer"]
born: "16 August 1895"
died: "28 February 1956"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 68
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-20T00:23:37.984021+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."
---

# W. Howard Greene

Cinematographer. Born 16 August 1895 in River Point, Rhode Island, USA. Died 28 February 1956.

## Details

- **Work:** Cinematographer
- **Born:** 16 August 1895, River Point, Rhode Island, USA
- **Died:** 28 February 1956
- **Active:** 1937–1941
- **Also known as:** William Howard Greene, William H. Greene, William H. 'Duke' Greene, W.H. Greene, Howard Greene, Duke Green
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar (1 won · 5 nominated)
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1930s 78 (1), 1940s 58 (1)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._Howard_Greene, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q504191, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0338946/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/85855

## Streaming the US now

- **Pluto TV:** [*A Star Is Born*](https://film.one/film/a-star-is-born-1937.md) (78)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

W. Howard Greene (1895–1956) was an American cinematographer known for his work in early colour processes, particularly Technicolor. He began specialising in colour photography in the 1920s, shooting colour sequences for films such as *Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ* (1925) using the two-colour subtractive process.

Greene photographed many landmark Technicolor features in the 1930s and 1940s, including *Legong: Dance of the Virgins* (1935), *The Garden of Allah* (1936), *A Star Is Born* (1937), *The Adventures of Robin Hood* (1938), *Phantom of the Opera* (1943) and *When Worlds Collide* (1951). He received two honorary Academy Awards for colour cinematography, one shared for *The Garden of Allah* and one for *A Star Is Born*, and won a competitive Oscar for *Phantom of the Opera* (shared with Hal Mohr).

*Sources: imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org, catalog.afi.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Blossoms in the Dust* (1941), Fi1m 58, Director of Photography, Cinematography — [page](https://film.one/film/blossoms-in-the-dust.md)
- *A Star Is Born* (1937), Fi1m 78, Director of Photography, Cinematography — [page](https://film.one/film/a-star-is-born-1937.md)

## Complete filmography (37)

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

- *Meet Mrs. Swenson* (1956), Director of Photography
- *The Violent Men* (1955), Director of Photography
- *The Girls of Pleasure Island* (1953), Director of Photography
- *The Brigand* (1952), Director of Photography
- *When Worlds Collide* (1951), Director of Photography
- *Quebec* (1951), Director of Photography
- *Al Jennings of Oklahoma* (1951), Director of Photography
- *High Lonesome* (1950), Director of Photography
- *The Big Cat* (1949), Director of Photography
- *Tycoon* (1947), Director of Photography
- *Salome, Where She Danced* (1945), Director of Photography
- *Can't Help Singing* (1944), Director of Photography
- *The Climax* (1944), Director of Photography
- *Gypsy Wildcat* (1944), Director of Photography
- *Cobra Woman* (1944), Director of Photography
- *Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves* (1944), Director of Photography
- *Phantom of the Opera* (1943), Director of Photography
- *It's All True* (1943), Cinematography
- *Arabian Nights* (1942), Assistant Director of Photography
- *Jungle Book* (1942), Director of Photography
- *Blossoms in the Dust* (1941), Director of Photography — Fi1m 58, [page](https://film.one/film/blossoms-in-the-dust.md)
- *The Shepherd of the Hills* (1941), Director of Photography
- *North West Mounted Police* (1940), Director of Photography
- *Untamed* (1940), Director of Photography
- *The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex* (1939), Assistant Director of Photography
- *The Bill of Rights* (1939), Director of Photography
- *Jesse James* (1939), Director of Photography
- *The Declaration of Independence* (1938), Director of Photography
- *Men with Wings* (1938), Director of Photography
- *Nothing Sacred* (1937), Director of Photography
- *A Star Is Born* (1937), Director of Photography — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/a-star-is-born-1937.md)
- *Under Southern Stars* (1937), Director of Photography
- *Give Me Liberty* (1936), Director of Photography
- *The Garden of Allah* (1936), Cinematography
- *The Trail of the Lonesome Pine* (1936), Director of Photography
- *Mystery of the Wax Museum* (1933), Additional Camera
- *Doctor X* (1932), Camera Operator

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 1 won, 5 nominated

- 1952: Best Cinematography, Color (nominated), for *When Worlds Collide*
- 1944: Best Cinematography, Color (won), for *Phantom of the Opera*
- 1943: Best Cinematography, Color (nominated), for *Arabian Nights*
- 1942: Best Cinematography, Color (nominated), for *Blossoms in the Dust*
- 1941: Best Cinematography, Color (nominated), for *North West Mounted Police*
- 1940: Best Cinematography, Color (nominated), for *The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex*

*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/w-howard-greene