Ray Gosnell, assistant director to some of Hollywood’s great helmers, died at his Los Angeles residence at 81 on August 14. The cause of death was lung cancer. After a stint as a producer, Gosnell was an agent in his later years, specializing in representing cinematographers, editors, set decorators and other below-the-line talent.
As first AD for director George Roy Hill on The Sting, Gosnell shared a Director’s Guild of America award. He also served as right hand for Hill on Hawaii, Slaughterhouse Five and The Great Waldo Pepper. In the 1960s and 1970s he worked with many other notable directors, including John Huston, Stanley Kramer, Peter Bogdonavich, J. Lee Thompson, Lewis Milestone, Delbert Mann, Elliot Silverstein and William Wyler. He was a partner in Smith Gosnell Nicholson & Associates for 16 years up to the time of his death. He is survived by his wife Beverly, two children, six grandchildren, and a sister.
