Stephen Frankfurt_Hernandez/Meza
Stephen Frankfurt
Stephen Frankfurt was a graphic designer and art director, as well as a senior executive at agencies like Frankfurt Gips Balkind, Kenyon & Eckhardt, Partners & Shevack, and Young & Rubicam. He was born on December 17, 1931 in Manhattan, New York City, and died on September 28, 2012 in Bronx, New York City. He is known for his work on To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), L.A. Doctors (1998) and Inside America (1965). He was married to Kay Gadda and Suzie Frankfurt.
With his early work at Young & Rubicam New York’s office, the recognition of Frankfurt’s creativity began with his Bufferin commercial back in 1963. Then again when he made the Eastern Airlines commercial. Involving most of his work into commercials, he soon came under the radar of film makers.
One of Frankfurt’s biggest successes came from his opening credits for “To Kill a Mockingbird”. Frankfurt’s work on the opening credits to “To Kill a Mockingbird” was styled to connect points of interest in the film, exposed by being taken out of the cigar box, to the names displayed for credits. He also worked for days to create the ideal scene with the marbles hitting each other. To perform this, his team had a magnet placed inside one marble, and another hidden underneath the cigar box.
Frankfurt’s filmography includes:
L.A. Doctors: (TV Series) (title credits) 1998
Network: (title designer - uncredited) 1976
Rosemary’s Baby: (title designer - uncredited) 1968
Inside America: (TV Mini-Series) (narrative script - 1 episode) 1965
To Kill a Mockingbird: (title designer: main titles) 1962
Frankfurt on the topic of creating the opening for “To Kill a Mockingbird”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMgK-r8uxm8
Frankfurt’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” - Opening Title:
Frankfurt’s Eastern Airlines Commercial:
Frankfurt’s Bufferin Commercial: