Sally Menke
Sally Menke | |
---|---|
Born | Sally JoAnne Menke December 17, 1953 Mineola, New York, U.S. |
Died | September 27, 2010 | (aged 56)
Occupation | Film editor |
Years active | 1980–2010 |
Spouse | |
Children | 2 |
Sally JoAnne Menke (December 17, 1953 – September 27, 2010) was an American film editor, who worked in cinema and television.[1][2] Over the span of her 30 year career in film, she accumulated more than 20 feature film credits.
She had a long-time collaboration with director Quentin Tarantino, and edited all of his films until her tragic death. Menke was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Film Editing for Pulp Fiction and Inglourious Basterds.
Early life
Menke was born in Mineola, New York to Charlotte Menke, a teacher, and Dr. Warren Wells Menke, a management professor at Clemson University. She attended the PK Yonge Developmental Research School in Gainesville, Florida and graduated in 1972. She would then move back to New York and study at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts Film Program in 1977, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Film.[3]
Career
Menke edited documentaries for CBS in her early career.[3] The first feature she edited after graduating was Cold Feet, a 1983 comedy. She received more film work in the 1990s, working on films such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Heaven & Earth and Mulholland Falls.[4][5]
Menke met Quentin Tarantino when he was holding interviews for an editor.[6] “A cheap one,” she once recalled, as this would be his debut film. Tarantino sent her the script for Reservoir Dogs and she said that she thought it was "amazing".[6] Menke was hiking in Canada when she learned she got the job.[6] Menke continued working with Tarantino until her death, editing eight films altogether.[6] Tarantino summarized their working relationship in 2007, saying that "The best collaborations are the director–editor teams, where they can finish each other's sentences", and that Menke was his "only, truly genuine collaborator".[7]
She was selected as a member of the American Cinema Editors.[8] On the Motion Picture Editors Guild 2012 listing of the 75 best-edited films of all time, Pulp Fiction was listed 18th.[9]
Personal life
Menke married director Dean Parisot in 1986 and the couple had two children, Lucas and Isabella.[1][3]
Death
Menke had gone hiking the morning of September 27, 2010, with a friend and her dog.[2] Menke's friend left her after an hour when she started to feel unwell in the heat. When Menke failed to come home, her friends alerted the police.[10] Search dogs, a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter, and officers from patrol units spent hours in Griffith Park searching for her.[11] Her locked car was found in a Griffith Park parking lot.[10] Menke's body was found at the bottom of a ravine near 5600 block of Green Oak Drive on September 28, 2010.[10] Her dog was found alive, sitting next to her body.[2][10][11][12] The coroner's office later determined that Menke's death was heat-related. It was 113 °F (45 °C) in downtown Los Angeles the day she died.[13]
Legacy
The Sundance Institute created a memorial fellowship in film editing to honor Menke.
Filmography
Menke's feature film credits as editor are tabulated below. She has two additional credits for editing television documentaries: Hans Bethe: Prophet of Energy (1980) and The Congress (1988).
Awards and nominations
- 1995 – Pulp Fiction (nominated) – Academy Award – "Best Film Editing"[14]
- 1995 – Pulp Fiction (nominated) – American Cinema Editors ACE Eddie Award – "Best Edited Feature Film"
- 1995 – Pulp Fiction (nominated) – BAFTA Film Award – "Best Editing"[15]
- 2003 – Kill Bill: Volume 1 (won) – San Diego Film Critics Society Awards – "Best Editing"
- 2004 – Kill Bill: Volume 1 (nominated) – BAFTA Film Award – "Best Editing"[16]
- 2004 – Kill Bill: Volume 1 (won) – Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards – Sierra Award for "Best Editing"
- 2005 – Kill Bill: Volume 2 (nominated) – American Cinema Editors ACE Eddie Award – "Best Edited Feature Film (Dramatic)"
- 2005 – Kill Bill: Volume 2 (nominated) – Online Film Critics Society OFCS Award – "Best Editing"
- 2010 – Inglourious Basterds (nominated) – Academy Award – "Best Film Editing"[17]
References
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
Weds
was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b c "Sally Menke, longtime film editor for Quentin Tarantino, found dead near Griffith Park". Los Angeles Times. September 28, 2010. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ a b c Fox, Margalit (September 28, 2010). "Sally Menke, Film Editor for Tarantino, Dies at 56". The New York Times. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ Campbell, Christopher (September 28, 2010). "Sally Menke and Quentin Tarantino. A Short Tribute to an Editor - Filmmaker Relationship". IndieWire. Archived from the original on October 1, 2010. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ Pulver, Andrew (September 28, 2010). "Sally Menke, Quentin Tarantino's long-time editor, found dead in LA". The Guardian. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ a b c d Menke, Sally (December 6, 2009). "'Quentin Tarantino and I clicked'". The Guardian. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ Seif, Dena (February 19, 2007). "Editors pick 'Babel,' 'Departed': 'Office,' 'Wire' win at ACE Eddie Awards". Variety. Retrieved 2008-07-14.
- ^ "American Cinema Editors Roster". American Cinema Editors. Archived from the original on September 28, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
- ^ "The 75 Best Edited Films". Editors Guild Magazine. 1 (3). May 2012. Archived from the original on 2015-03-17.
- ^ a b c d Itzkoff, Dave (September 28, 2010). "Sally Menke, Film Editor for Tarantino and Other Directors, Is Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ a b "Quentin Tarantino's film editor found dead after hiking in scorching LA heat". Herald Sun. September 29, 2010. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ Chris, Meteorologist (2009-06-17). "Los Angeles' Hottest Day On Record". weather.com. Archived from the original on 2010-09-30. Retrieved 2010-09-30.
- ^ McLellan, Dennis; Blankstein, Andrew (2010-09-29). "Sally Menke dies at 56; editor on Quentin Tarantino's movies". latimes.com. Retrieved 2013-01-09.
- ^ "Academy Awards – Pulp Fiction". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved September 28, 2010.[permanent dead link ]
- ^ "BAFTA Winners 1994". British Academy Film Awards. British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ "BAFTA Winners 2003". British Academy Film Awards. British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ "Nominees & Winners for the 82nd Academy Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved April 14, 2010.
External links
- Sally Menke at IMDb
- Sally Menke: A Tribute at New Beverly Cinema. Retrieved on 11 October 2010.