Harry Horner

American art director

Born: July 24, 1910 · Died: December 5, 1994

Famous Persons

Who was Harry Horner?

Harry Horner (July 24, 1910 – December 5, 1994) was a Czech-born American art director who made a successful career in Hollywood as an Oscar-winning art director and as a feature film and television director. He was the father of Academy Award-winning film composer James Horner. Horner was born in the town of Holice, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary (in what is now the Czech Republic). He began his career working with Max Reinhardt in Vienna. When Reinhardt moved to the United States in the early 1930s, Horner travelled with Max Reinhardt's production group acting as his stage manager.

Historical significance

Max Reinhardt's staging of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (1934) for the summer Hollywood Bowl season in Los Angeles, Harry Horner was the production's stage manager and also an actor in the production. Following Max Reinhardt to New York, Harry Horner assisted Reinhardt in his staging of the Biblical musical spectacle The Eternal Road (Der Weg der Verheissung); the production had music by Kurt Weill; conducted by Harry Horner; opening at the Manhattan Opera House 1/7/1937-5/15/1937 with scenic design, costume design and lighting by Norman Bel Geddes.

Sources and further reading

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MLA

“Harry Horner.” thisDay, thisday.info/people/harry-horner/. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

APA

Harry Horner. (n.d.). thisDay. Retrieved October 19, 2026, from https://thisday.info/people/harry-horner/

Chicago

“Harry Horner.” thisDay. Accessed October 19, 2026. https://thisday.info/people/harry-horner/.

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