Elmer Raguse

RAGUSE, ELMER (Elmer Roy Raguse) Born May 9, 1901, Springfield, Massachusetts. A ham radio enthusiast at 16, Raguse was a chief telegraph operator on ships for the Marconi Wireless Company before joining the phonograph record industry in 1924. He designed the first electrical recording system for Bell Telephone and installed it for Columbia Records and the Victor Talking Machine Company, which hired him as Assistant Supervisor of Recording; Raguse designed and built portable recording equipment used by Victor around the world.

In 1928, Elmer supervised the recording of music and effects scores for the last of the L&H and Our Gang silents at Victor’s studios in Camden, New Jersey. He was sent to the Roach studios in Culver City to install sound recording equipment, and also insulate and redesign the stages. Raguse worked on 30 L&H films, sometimes without credit, and also recorded the sound for most of the foreign-language pictures.

He remained as chief sound engineer until Henry Ginsberg fired him in a cost-cutting move in December 1931. Raguse worked at Fox and for radio producer C.P. MacGregor until Roach rehired him in January 1934; he remained there through 1957. He then worked for Desilu and finally returned to theatrical films with 20th Century-Fox. He retired to Florida in 1967.

His work on Topper, Of Mice and Men, and other films earned him five Oscar nominations for sound recording and two for special effects. Elmer’s brother Roy and nephew Richard also worked at the Roach studio. Died of heart failure March 2, 1972, Palm Beach, Florida; age 70.