Elmer Raguse

Elmer R. Raguse (May 9, 1901 – March 2, 1972) was an American sound engineer mostly associated with the Hal Roach Studios. He was nominated for eight Academy Awards in the categories Best Sound Recording and Best Effects.

Elmer Roy Raguse
Born	(1901-05-09)May 9, 1901 Springfield, Massachusetts, United States
Died	March 2, 1972(1972-03-02) (aged 70) Palm Beach, Florida, United States
Occupation	Sound engineer
Years active	1929-1966

Editor Richard Currier said, "In pictures, if you can't get an effect one way, you figure out another way of getting it. But with Raguse, there was only one line you could follow, and that was that." He wanted to record a gunshot on a project Raguse was involved in, but he refused on the grounds that it would break the light valve. Currier questioned him on it, imagining the valve couldn't be prohibitively expensive. Raguse confirmed it would be twenty cents, so Currier fired the gun in defiance.^[1]

Selected filmography

Best Sound

• General Spanky (1936)^[2]
• Topper (1937)^[3]
• Merrily We Live (1938)^[4]
• Of Mice and Men (1939)^[5]
• Captain Caution (1940)^[6]
• Topper Returns (1941)^[7]

Best Effects

• One Million B.C. (1940)^[6]
• Topper Returns (1941)^[7]