Biography
Albert Arnold "Buddy" Gillespie was a American special effects expert and art director employed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios from 1925 to 1965. He came to Hollywood in the early 1920s and by 1925 he was working as a set designer and art director at the newly formed Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio under the supervision of Cedric Gibbons. The studio made him head of the special effects department in 1936. Gillespie became known for his extensive work and expertise with miniatures. He received 12 Academy Award nominations, three of which resulted in Oscars: THIRTY SECONDS OVER TOKYO (1944), GREEN DOLPHIN STREET (1947), and BEN-HUR (1959). He shared a 1963 Class III Academy Scientific Award with Douglas Shearer for the development of an improved background process projection system.