Jo Mielziner

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Jo Mielziner (1901-1976) was an American theatrical scenic, costume, and lighting designer born in Paris, France. His Broadway debut was in 1924 with The Guardsman, in which he designed the sets and lighting. He is considered the most influential set designer of his time, designing the scenery and usually the lighting for over 200 productions. During World War II, he worked as a camouflage specialist with the United States Air Force. He designed, along with Eero Saarinen, the Vivian Beaumont Theater in the Lincoln Center. His Broadway work includes the original productions of Winterset, Strange Interlude, Carousel, South Pacific, Guys and Dolls, The King and I, A Streetcar Named Desire, Death of a Salesman, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Gypsy: A Musical Fable, and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, as well as the film Picnic, and the ballet Who Cares?.

In the course of his career, he won five Tony Awards. His influence extended outside of the theatre. He was acquainted with the American artist Edward Hopper, who is said to have modeled his well-known painting, Early Sunday Morning after Mielziner's set for Elmer Rice's play Street Scene, produced in 1929.