Eva Monley (April 29, 1923 â€" November 12, 2011) was a Kenyan
location scout, production manager and film producer. Monley, an
expert on filming in Africa, helped many of Hollywood's best known
film directors and producers film on location throughout the
continent, including Steven Spielberg, Otto Preminger, John Ford, and
David Lean.Monley was born in Berlin, Germany on April 29, 1923. She
fled Nazi Germany with her mother, eventually settling in Kenya
Colony, which later became the independent nation of Kenya. Over time,
Monley achieved fluency in the Swahili language and became an expert
on East African cultures.Monley took a position as a secretary in
Nairobi. While working that job, Monley was hired in her first job
involving film. Monley worked as a script supervisor and assistant for
the 1950 movie, King Solomon's Mines. King Solomon's Mines shot on
location throughout Kenya Colony, Belgian Congo and Tanganyika
(present-day Tanzania). Once production had finished, Monley was hired
in a similar position as assistant and script supervisor for the 1951
film The African Queen, directed by John Huston. A string of
behind-the-scenes positions for American and British film productions
soon followed including The Snows of Kilimanjaro in 1952, White Witch
Doctor in 1953, and Mogambo, a 1953 movie directed by John Ford.In
addition to her work with productions based in Africa, Monley worked
outside Africa as well. She worked on two films produced in India, The
Rains of Ranchipur, which was directed by Jean Negulesco and starred
Lana Turner, and 1956's Bhowani Junction, a George Cukor-directed film
adaptation of the novel. She also worked as the location manager for
Lawrence of Arabia for two years.
location scout, production manager and film producer. Monley, an
expert on filming in Africa, helped many of Hollywood's best known
film directors and producers film on location throughout the
continent, including Steven Spielberg, Otto Preminger, John Ford, and
David Lean.Monley was born in Berlin, Germany on April 29, 1923. She
fled Nazi Germany with her mother, eventually settling in Kenya
Colony, which later became the independent nation of Kenya. Over time,
Monley achieved fluency in the Swahili language and became an expert
on East African cultures.Monley took a position as a secretary in
Nairobi. While working that job, Monley was hired in her first job
involving film. Monley worked as a script supervisor and assistant for
the 1950 movie, King Solomon's Mines. King Solomon's Mines shot on
location throughout Kenya Colony, Belgian Congo and Tanganyika
(present-day Tanzania). Once production had finished, Monley was hired
in a similar position as assistant and script supervisor for the 1951
film The African Queen, directed by John Huston. A string of
behind-the-scenes positions for American and British film productions
soon followed including The Snows of Kilimanjaro in 1952, White Witch
Doctor in 1953, and Mogambo, a 1953 movie directed by John Ford.In
addition to her work with productions based in Africa, Monley worked
outside Africa as well. She worked on two films produced in India, The
Rains of Ranchipur, which was directed by Jean Negulesco and starred
Lana Turner, and 1956's Bhowani Junction, a George Cukor-directed film
adaptation of the novel. She also worked as the location manager for
Lawrence of Arabia for two years.
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