Ted Voigtlander, 75; Won Emmys for ‘Little House’ Cinematography

Ted Voigtlander, a cinematographer whose awards over a 45-year career included 3 Emmys and 16 nominations for television’s highest honor, died Wednesday of cancer at a Los Angeles hospital. He was 75.

Voigtlander, a graduate of the University of Idaho, was a musician and scientist who traveled to California when he found that having a degree in bacteriology didn’t guarantee a job in that field. When the dance band broke up, he took a clerical job at the old Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios and eventually was assigned to help a photographer set up a studio. From that came an interest in photography and, eventually, a job in 1943 as an assistant photographer.

In all, he photographed 52 movies for MGM before becoming a TV cinematographer in 1961 with the series “The Islanders.” He went on to win Emmys for “It’s Good to Be Alive--the Roy Campanella Story,” a 1974 General Electric drama; “The Fighter,” a 1977 segment of “Little House on the Prairie”; and “The Craftsman,” a 1978 “Little House.”

Voigtlander was named to the American Society of Cinematographers in 1963 and was a former director of that group.

Survivors include his wife, Mary, a son, daughter and granddaughter. A memorial service will be held Wednesday at 2 p.m. at Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church.