James Trittipo

After the Hollywood Palace series ended in January 1971, Jim embarked on stage set designing. Making a transition from working in the television format into film production was difficult for television art directors because experience in the television medium was looked down upon by the privileged film entrepreneurs; the entertainment Hollywood film industry was dealing with the "runaway production" problem engulfing the film capital! Two musical stage projects developed with the producers asking Jim to design the scenery. A revival of "A Funny Thing On The Way To The Forum" for the Los Angeles Center Theatre Group (Gordon Davidson) and the Broadway revival of "On The Town" became the focus of his creative contribution. Noel Taylor was hired to design costumes for the LA Center production. Jim invited "New York resident" Noel Taylor to live in his Coldwater Canyon (Gloaming Way) residence for the design, (meetings, costume construction, preview rehearsal period). In exchange, Noel gave Jim keys to his New York apartment while Jim was designing, supervising scenic construction and painting for the planned New York "On The Town" revival. Jim hired, (his "Hollywood Palace" assistant art director Hub Braden's twin brother), John Braden to assist him in New York. Trittipo was a fair draftsman and had become dependent upon a skilled artist to do all the design construction drawings, paint elevations, and sketches. The 1971 summer period was a bi-coastal travel "stress time" exchange having to be in both coasts at the same time. Jim Trittipo's untimely death in the fall of 1971 left both stage productions in the lurch! John Braden was required to finish designing, supervising scenic construction, painting, and theater set ups for the "On The Town" musical. In Los Angeles, Jim's Center Theater design assistant took the credit for finishing the stage set ups for "A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum". This production, after the Fall 1971 LA run, opened on Broadway in the Spring of 1972 with the same cast, costumes, and scenery.

In the Spring of 1968, Jim designed one of Andy Williams Specials "Kaleidoscope and Company" (air date 4-28-1968) with guests Simon and Garfunkel, Ray Charles, Cass Elliot, and Burt Bacharach with an orchestra background set. The idea for the specials' title was Jim's concept for Andy William's solo opening. Andy walking in a mirrored Kaleidoscope singing his favorite medleys. Each segment was transformed into a different kaleidoscope image. The first set was a 8' x 8' mirrored square box. The second set was a 10' x 10' mirrored triangle. The third set was another 8' x 8' mirrored box with a mirrored back wall and a double reflective front mirror. The preceding set units were open in the front and back. This last box was a real kaleidoscope reflection. The camera lens shot through (reduced in scale and size) mirrored camera port box/triangular units reflecting Andy's full figure pose with no head shot inserts. The show opening and closing graphics imitated the kaleidoscope images. Cass Malloy performed on a super-sized 6' high x 24' diameter drum, matching her flamboyant full figure's floral psychedelic print gown. Burt Bacharach, seated at a black concert grand piano, with a full orchestra behind him. His set was a circular silver mirror framed portal in white with black detailed trim. Visually, the sets were spectacularly stunning.

The New York television scenic designer/art director Tom John, during the 1965 winter season, was in Los Angeles designing the CBS Television City production, for a CBS dramatic special, "Death of A Salesman". Jim and Tom, close friends, would join at the CBS art department to review and discuss Tom's design concepts and for a social dinner. Returning to the top floor art department after watching the show's studio rehearsal, answering Tom's inquiry regarding a gauche (painted) set illustration (24" high by 42" wide), Jim explained the production sketch was from the historic "Gone With The Wind" film, depicting the horse carriage being raced by Rhett Butler with Scarlett, through the burning fringes of Atlanta's warehouse district. The sketch had become a fixture in the art department. Neither Jim nor Tom were sober, deciding to split the studio illustration in half, using a mat knife; they gleefully divided the sketch in order for each to have a 'souvenir'.

From 1964 through 1971 during the production of "The Hollywood Palace" - Jim was extremely inventive and creative designing scenic backgrounds. His "design look" initially was for his scenery being painted an overall tech shadow white, without any color. Jack Denton, the lighting director, would "gel" his stage Fresnel's to paint the scenery with color. When ABC engaged the color camera for 1966, Nick Vaniff informed Jim that the Network wanted painted colorful sets! No more white scenery. Surprisingly, Jim was not really comfortable painting sets in color. Experimenting, he was gradually able to utilize color with a greater design competence. Relying on a performer's costume color, his sense of color design combined a range of shades to complement the performer. When he designed for the stage, he had a better color sense in painting his scenery.

Jim Trittipo has younger twin siblings, John and Joan. John became an architect working in the San Diego and Laguna Beach areas during the mid-late 1960-1980's. Joan, also an artist, followed their father and mother's retirement from Gambrier, Ohio, when the family's restaurant was sold in 1962. John married, both he and his wife, and sister followed their parents to live in Laguna Beach, California.

Designing scenery on a variety of ABC Studios television productions, Trittipo was a co-art director on the "Frank Sinatra Show" (1958-1960). Part of Sinatra's show contract was for his appearance in filmed dramatic scenarios; Serge Krisman was the art director for Sinatra's dramatic 'filmed' shows. Trittipo designed the 'video-taped' musical-variety shows, which were performed at the ABC TV Studio-stage at 1735 North Vine Street; which ABC renovated into the "Jerry Lewis Theater" (June-December, 1963); renamed "The Hollywood Palace" (January, 1964-1978), where Frank Sinatra was featured as guest host and performer on the show and series. Because of Trittipo's previous 1958-1960 Sinatra Show association, Frank Sinatra asked Trittipo to design two of his NBC Television Sinatra Specials.

"The Nut House!!" (a September-October 1953 television comedy production) was initially a CBS television comedy show pilot video taped on Stage 31, with a "live" audience, at the CBS Hollywood Television City Studio, located at Beverly Boulevard and Fairfax Boulevard. The CBS Studio is adjacent the famous "Farmer's Market" in Los Angeles. The black and white taped pilot's format was comedy joke-sketches, delivered one after another, in a machine gun rat-a-tat sequence, performed by the young and strong up-and-coming group of New York City and Hollywood comedians, musicians and performers. The unsold comedy series pilot eventually was "canned"; eventually broadcast as a one-time CBS comedy special recouping production development expenses producing the pilot. The premise for "The Nut House!!" comedy television pilot's material and joke-sketch format became the foundation for NBC's successful 1967-1973 "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In" comedy television series, video-taped with a "live" audience. CBS's New York network program division-production scheduling and advertising marketing, in 1963-1964, was not ready for this type of television weekly delivered night-time comedy show format."The Nut House!!" was video-taped in black and white in spite of the fact the CBS Hollywood Television City facility had color camera equipment moth-balled in the hall-way storage wings, the scenic drop storage rack area adjacent the studios in house drapery department. Although CBS had the capability to video-tape color programs since the initial installation in 1955, most CBS network color televised-product was performed in Burbank at the NBC Television Studio facility. The initial production charge and expense to unwrap the color cameras including technical mechanics to video-tape in color for a television pilot was forfeited usually for a pilot presentation. ABC's Hollywood-Vine Studio Theatre Stage, converted from black and white to color during the summer of 1965, the famous musical-variety series "The Hollywood Palace" was finally televised in full color transmission in September 1965. This ABC Network move into color broadcasting forced CBS Television City to purchase, install and convert their Hollywood facility into a new complete color television transmission broadcasting agency. The black and white CBS Network transmission era was eventually phased out replaced with film and video tape full color programing and advertising commercials.

Not accepted by Yale, Jim studied theatrical design in the drama department, at Carnegie Institute of Technology. A fellow design major was Romain Johnston, where they established a life friendship. Upon graduation, Trittipo went to New York City to design for the stage. Early 50's television offered Jim work with first time directors Franklin Schaffner and Don Medford on live television's first science fiction anthology series "Tales of Tomorrow" from 1951-1953. Two memorable set designs were "Frankenstein's Lab" and "Captain Nemo's Submarine" for the ABC TV show. Upon Romain's graduation, Jim assisted Romain in finding work at NBC TV, on "The Voice of Firestone". When ABC bought the Hollywood film studio and lot, located at Prospect and Talmadge, in the late 50's, Jim moved West, working as a staff ABC TV set designer-art director. While working for ABC TV-New York, Trittipo was a member of United Scenic Artist's #829. After moving West, Trittipo joined the Society of Motion Pictures and Television Art Directors Society #876, in the early 60's. During the first Spring 1964 season "Hollywood Palace", Jim was hospitalized with hepatitis in a Culver City Hospital; Trittipo had Nick Vanoff, the show's producer, bring Romain West to art direct the last three shows of the season. When the Vanoff-Harbach ABC TV "King Sister's variety series pilot" was picked up as a mid-season replacement, Romain Johnston was hired as the show's art director. Romain moved West and stayed.

One of Jack Stewart's first credits as a television assistant art director was working with famous EMMY winning production designer James (Jim) Trittipo (b.1929-d.1971, age 43) on the Hallmark Hall of Fame George Schaefer directed TV dramatic Special "The File On Devlin" starring Judith Anderson. "The File on Devlin" was video-taped in color on Stage 2 and 4 at the Burbank NBC Television studio during the late 1969 summer. CBS Television City art department manager Robert Tyler Lee had convinced his friend Jim Trittipo to use Jack as his assistant scenic designer and set decorator. NBC's Burbank facility did not have an IATSE contract requiring a set decorator on a production's television show staff.