Victor Milner

Victor Milner, A.S.C.
Victor Milner and Madeleine Carroll in The General Died at Dawn
Born	(1893-12-15)December 15, 1893 New York, New York
Died	October 29, 1972(1972-10-29) (aged 78) Los Angeles, California
Occupation	Cinematographer
Board member of	A.S.C. (President 1937 to 1939)
Spouse(s)	Margaret Schneider

Victor Milner, A.S.C. (December 15, 1893 – October 29, 1972) (sometimes Victor Miller) was an American cinematographer. He was nominated for ten cinematography Academy Awards, winning once for 1934 Cleopatra. Milner worked on more than 130 films, including dramas (Broken Lullaby), comedies (Unfaithfully Yours), film noir (Dark City), and Westerns (The Furies). He worked for large production companies like Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Universal, and Paramount during his film career.

Victor Milner was born on December 15, 1893 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When he was 12, his family moved to New York City. As a teenager, he was sometimes put in charge of operating the projector at movies when the movie projector's girlfriend came to visit. Milner later got his projectioner's license and worked as a projectionist. In 1912, he taught Calvin Coolidge how to use a camera.

Milner was hired by Eberhard Schneider, a film equipment manufacturer. He worked as a projectionist and also ran supply runs for Schneider. During this time, Milner shot Hiawatha: The Indian Passion Play in 1913 as his first film. In 1914, he managed to photograph a mine strike in Trinidad, Colorado.

Milner was later sent to Galveston, Texas to embark on a destroyer; however his orders never arrived by mail. Instead, Milner was hired as a private photographer and was able to travel extensively, even spending nine months in the Belgian Congo taking pictures of the wildlife and people. Milner was later hired by Pathe Freres News Reel, and his first responsibility there was to film marathon races at Union Heights. As part of his job, Milner went on a world tour with the New York Giants and the Chicago White Sox.