Knorr, Arthur, 1898-1966.

Producer and director Arthur James Knorr (1898-1966), who specialized in staging spectacles, was responsible for a wide variety of productions over the course of a long and prolific career.

Born in Atlanta, Indiana, Knorr grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He took up the study of art while enrolled in the Pittsburgh Academy, a college preparatory and business school. After graduating in 1916, he entered the Carnegie Institute of Technology's School of Design, where he studied painting, design, and stage craft. Military service during World War I interrupted these studies. After the war, Knorr moved to New York City during the summer of 1920, where he began working in the field of commercial art. In 1922, he started designing posters for the Capitol Theatre, and later was appointed art director. While with the Capitol, he designed sets and lighting for the prologs or stage productions that accompanied films. By 1929, Knorr had been appointed a producer at the Capitol Theatre, where he now was responsible for devising and producing, as well as designing, stage shows. Around this same time, Knorr married a fellow graduate of the Pittsburgh Academy, Ruth Gray. She had been a dancer in touring companies of the Music Box Revue and in editions of George White's Scandals, but she appears to have retired from performing after marrying Knorr. In 1936, Knorr became production executive at the Roxy Theatre, where he would remain for the next decade. In addition to managing many special individual events (such as ice skating shows and various benefits), by 1948, Knorr had become increasingly involved with television production. He served as a producer for the Texaco Star Theater television show with Milton Berle in its earliest years (1948-1952). He staged many industrial shows as well during the latter part of his career. Around 1959, Knorr began an association with the Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants that lasted until the time of his death.

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