American Cinematographer - January 2009 - (Page 92)

In Memoriam Robert C. Jessup, ASC, 1930-2008 obert C. Jessup, ASC, who lent his talents to features, commercials, telefilms and series over the course of four decades, died on Aug. 14 at the age of 78. Born on May 23, 1930, Jessup grew up in New Jersey before moving to Des Moines, Iowa, to attend Drake University. In 1951, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and was assigned to the 1st Combat Camera Unit as a sound mixer. Later that year, he was assigned to the 2nd Photo Squadron in Japan, where he worked as a sound recordist and a camera assistant in the Documentary Film Unit. Jessup was then reassigned to the 1354th Video Production Squadron, where he worked as an audio engineer before transitioning to television cameraman. After an honorable discharge in 1955, Jessup worked as a cameraman and lighting director at TV stations in Florida and Indiana. In 1958, he settled in Dallas, Texas, taking a job as a camera assistant with Jamieson Film Co. Climbing the ranks in Jamieson’s camera department, he advanced from operator to cinematographer in 1960, and he headed the department for most of the next decade, notching credits on such projects as Night Fright (1967) and the telefilms In the Year 2889, Creature of Destruction and Mars Needs Women (all 1967). In 1969, Jessup’s work on The Banyan Tree earned him a cinematography award at the Atlanta Film Festival, and he set out to work as a freelancer. By the mid-1970s, he was president of Film Production Services Inc., a company that provided crews and equipment to productions shooting in the Midwest and South. That didn’t slow his accomplishments behind the camera, however; earning first-unit credits on such features as R Sugar Hill (1974), Race With the Devil (1975) and Drive-In (1976), he also shot second unit for such cinematographers as Robert Surtees, ASC (The Great Waldo Pepper, 1975) and Ernest Laszlo, ASC (Logan’s Run, 1976). After their collaboration on Logan’s Run, Laszlo recommended Jessup for ASC membership, and Jessup was officially made a member on March 1, 1976. In a letter to Lester Shorr, ASC, the Society’s president at the time, Jessup wrote, “This is an honor I do not take lightly, and I can assure you that I will do everything in my power to live up to the ideals, standards and goals represented by the ASC.” Over the next two decades, Jessup returned to his TV roots, shooting episodes of the series The Dukes of Hazzard (1979) and Dallas (1978-79) and a number of telefilms, including two directed by Ron Howard, Cotton Candy (1978) and Skyward (1980). Other credits include the theatrical features The Big Brawl (1980), Deadly Blessing (1981), Silent Rage (1982) and Porky’s Revenge (1985). Jessup is survived by two brothers and one sister. — Jon D. Witmer I 92 http://www.theasc.com http://www.theasc.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - January 2008

American Cinematographer - January 2009 Contents Editor’s Note Short Takes: Triangle of Need Production Slate: Frost/Nixon, The Wrestler Close Focus An Old Soul Brothers in Arms A Cut Above Post Focus: HPA Awards, Still Me New Products & Services International Marketplace Classified Ads Ad Index In Memoriam: Robert C. Jessup, ASC Clubhouse News ASC Close-Up: Gabriel Beristain

American Cinematographer - January 2008

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