# Aaron Stell

Aaron Stell (March 26, 1911 – January 7, 1996) was an American film editor with one hundred feature film credits and many additional credits for his television work. Stell worked for more than a decade at the start of his career at Columbia Pictures (1943–1955 credits), which was a major Hollywood studio in that era. Among his most noted films are Touch of Evil (directed by Orson Welles-1958), To Kill a Mockingbird (directed by Robert Mulligan-1962), and Silent Running (directed by Douglas Trumbull-1972).
Touch of Evil, which was directed by Orson Welles, proved difficult for Stell; he was not the initial editor but instead chosen for re-editing, and he noted that Welles became "ill, depressed, and unhappy with the studio's impatience" in the process.
Stell had been selected as a member of the American Cinema Editors. He was nominated for the American Cinema Editors Eddie award for To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). He was also nominated for Eddies for his television work on an episode of Ben Casey (1961) and on the mini-series Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones (1980). In 1996 he shared the American Cinema Editors Career Achievement Award with Desmond Marquette.
Stell died in Los Angeles at age 84.

## Selected filmography

Editor :
| Year | Film | Director | Notes | Other notes |
| 1943 | Cowboy in the Clouds | Benjamin H. Kline | First collaboration with Benjamin H. Kline | |
| 1944 | Cowboy Canteen | Lew Landers | First collaboration with Lew Landers | |
| 1944 | Sundown Valley | Benjamin H. Kline | Second collaboration with Benjamin H. Kline | |
| 1944 | She's a Soldier Too | William Castle | First collaboration with William Castle | |
| 1944 | Swing in the Saddle | Lew Landers | Second collaboration with Lew Landers | |
| 1944 | Cowboy from Lonesome River | Benjamin H. Kline | Third collaboration with Benjamin H. Kline | |
| 1944 | Cyclone Prairie Rangers | Benjamin H. Kline | Fourth collaboration with Benjamin H. Kline | |
| 1944 | Saddle Leather Law | Benjamin H. Kline | Fifth collaboration with Benjamin H. Kline | |
| 1945 | I Love a Mystery | Henry Levin | | |
| 1945 | Sagebrush Heroes | Benjamin H. Kline | Sixth collaboration with Benjamin H. Kline | |
| 1945 | Sing Me a Song of Texas | Vernon Keays | First collaboration with Vernon Keays | |
| 1945 | Rough Ridin' Justice | Derwin Abrahams | First collaboration with Derwin Abrahams | |
| 1945 | The Return of the Durango Kid | Derwin Abrahams | Second collaboration with Derwin Abrahams | |
| 1945 | Boston Blackie's Rendezvous | Arthur Dreifuss | First collaboration with Arthur Dreifuss | |
| 1945 | Rustlers of the Badlands | Derwin Abrahams | Third collaboration with Derwin Abrahams | |
| 1945 | Outlaws of the Rockies | Ray Nazarro | First collaboration with Ray Nazarro | |
| 1945 | Blazing the Western Trail | Vernon Keays | Second collaboration with Vernon Keays | Uncredited |
| 1945 | Prison Ship | Arthur Dreifuss | Second collaboration with Arthur Dreifuss | |
| 1946 | Frontier Gunlaw | Derwin Abrahams | Fourth collaboration with Derwin Abrahams | |
| 1946 | Blondie's Lucky Day | Abby Berlin | First collaboration with Abby Berlin | |
| 1946 | It's Great to Be Young | Del Lord | First collaboration with Del Lord | |
| 1946 | Blondie Knows Best | Abby Berlin | Second collaboration with Abby Berlin | |
| 1946 | Terror Trail | Ray Nazarro | Second collaboration with Ray Nazarro | |
| 1946 | Alias Mr. Twilight | John Sturges | First collaboration with John Sturges | |
| 1946 | Singin' in the Corn | Del Lord | Second collaboration with Del Lord | |
| 1947 | Millie's Daughter | Sidney Salkow | First collaboration with Sidney Salkow | |
| 1947 | Bulldog Drummond at Bay | Sidney Salkow | Second collaboration with Sidney Salkow | |
| 1947 | Sport of Kings | Robert Gordon | | |
| 1947 | The Son of Rusty | Lew Landers | Third collaboration with Lew Landers | |
| 1947 | The Last Round-Up | John English | First collaboration with John English | |
| 1948 | The Sign of the Ram | John Sturges | Second collaboration with John Sturges | |
| 1948 | Song of Idaho | Ray Nazarro | Third collaboration with Ray Nazarro | |
| 1948 | Jungle Jim | William Berke | First collaboration with William Berke | |
| 1948 | Loaded Pistols | John English | Second collaboration with John English | |
| 1949 | Riders of the Whistling Pines | John English | Third collaboration with John English | |
| 1949 | The Lost Tribe | William Berke | Second collaboration with William Berke | |
| 1949 | Rim of the Canyon | John English | Fourth collaboration with John English | |
| 1950 | Blondie's Hero | Edward Bernds | First collaboration with Edward Bernds | |
| 1950 | The Palomino | Ray Nazarro | Third collaboration with Ray Nazarro | |
| 1950 | Beauty on Parade | Lew Landers | Fourth collaboration with Lew Landers | |
| 1950 | Customs Agent | Seymour Friedman | First collaboration with Seymour Friedman | |
| 1950 | On the Isle of Samoa | William Berke | Third collaboration with William Berke | |
| 1950 | Rookie Fireman | Seymour Friedman | Second collaboration with Seymour Friedman | |
| 1950 | Chain Gang | Lew Landers | Fifth collaboration with Lew Landers | |
| 1950 | The Tougher They Come | Ray Nazarro | Fourth collaboration with Ray Nazarro | |
| 1950 | Counterspy Meets Scotland Yard | Seymour Friedman | Third collaboration with Seymour Friedman | |
| 1951 | Gasoline Alley | Edward Bernds | Second collaboration with Edward Bernds | |
| 1951 | The Big Gusher | Lew Landers | Sixth collaboration with Lew Landers | |
| 1951 | Chain of Circumstance | Will Jason | | |
| 1951 | The Barefoot Mailman | Earl McEvoy | | |
| 1952 | The Sniper | Edward Dmytryk | First collaboration with Edward Dmytryk | |
| 1952 | A Yank in Indo-China | Wallace Grissell | | |
| 1952 | Brave Warrior | Spencer Gordon Bennet | First collaboration with Spencer Gordon Bennet | |
| 1952 | Eight Iron Men | Edward Dmytryk | Second collaboration with Edward Dmytryk | |
| 1953 | Jack McCall, Desperado | Sidney Salkow | Third collaboration with Sidney Salkow | |
| 1953 | Ambush at Tomahawk Gap | Fred F. Sears | First collaboration with Fred F. Sears | |
| 1953 | The Juggler | Edward Dmytryk | Third collaboration with Edward Dmytryk | |
| 1954 | Massacre Canyon | Fred F. Sears | Second collaboration with Fred F. Sears | |
| 1954 | The Outlaw Stallion | Fred F. Sears | Third collaboration with Fred F. Sears | |
| 1954 | The Law vs. Billy the Kid | William Castle | Second collaboration with William Castle | |
| 1954 | Human Desire | Fritz Lang | | |
| 1954 | The Black Dakotas | Ray Nazarro | Fifth collaboration with Ray Nazarro | |
| 1955 | Creature with the Atom Brain | Edward L. Cahn | | |
| 1955 | Devil Goddess | Spencer Gordon Bennet | Second collaboration with Spencer Gordon Bennet | |
| 1955 | Hell's Horizon | Tom Gries | | |
| 1956 | The Bold and the Brave | Lewis R. Foster | | |
| 1956 | 5 Steps to Danger | Henry S. Kesler | | |
| 1957 | Fear Strikes Out | Robert Mulligan | First collaboration with Robert Mulligan | |
| 1957 | Beginning of the End | Bert I. Gordon | | |
| 1957 | Time Limit | Karl Malden | | |
| 1958 | Touch of Evil | Orson Welles | | |
| 1958 | The Proud Rebel | Michael Curtiz | | |
| 1958 | Tarzan's Fight for Life | H. Bruce Humberstone | | |
| 1958 | Lonelyhearts | Vincent J. Donehue | | |
| 1959 | The Giant Gila Monster | Ray Kellogg | First collaboration with Ray Kellogg | |
| 1959 | The Killer Shrews | Ray Kellogg | Second collaboration with Ray Kellogg | |
| 1960 | My Dog, Buddy | Ray Kellogg | Third collaboration with Ray Kellogg | |
| 1960 | Wake Me When It's Over | Mervyn LeRoy | | |
| 1961 | The Secret Ways | Phil Karlson | | |
| 1962 | Six Black Horses | Harry Keller | | |
| 1962 | To Kill a Mockingbird | Robert Mulligan | Second collaboration with Robert Mulligan | |
| 1963 | Love with the Proper Stranger | Robert Mulligan | Third collaboration with Robert Mulligan | |
| 1965 | Baby the Rain Must Fall | Robert Mulligan | Fourth collaboration with Robert Mulligan | |
| 1965 | Inside Daisy Clover | Robert Mulligan | Fifth collaboration with Robert Mulligan | |
| 1966 | Not with My Wife, You Don't! | Norman Panama | | |
| 1967 | Welcome to Hard Times | Burt Kennedy | First collaboration with Burt Kennedy | |
| 1968 | The Stalking Moon | Robert Mulligan | Sixth collaboration with Robert Mulligan | |
| 1969 | Flareup | James Neilson | | |
| 1970 | The Grasshopper | Jerry Paris | | |
| 1972 | Silent Running | Douglas Trumbull | | |
| 1972 | The Trial of the Catonsville Nine | Gordon Davidson | | |
| 1973 | Your Three Minutes Are Up | Douglas Schwartz | | |
| 1973 | Willie Dynamite | Gilbert Moses | | |
| 1974 | The Take | Robert Hartford-Davis | | |
| 1975 | Lepke | Menahem Golan | | |
| 1975 | Cornbread, Earl and Me | Joseph Manduke | | |
| 1975 | The Four Deuces | William H. Bushnell | | |
| 1976 | The Killer Inside Me | Burt Kennedy | Second collaboration with Burt Kennedy | |
| 1986 | Native Son | Jerrold Freeman | | |
Director :
| Year | Film |
| 1964 | The Gallant One |
| 2004 | Remnants of Auric Healing |
Producer :
| Year | Film | Director | Credit |
| 1964 | The Gallant One | Himself | Producer |
Writer :
| Year | Film | Director |
| 1964 | The Gallant One | Himself |

### Short documentaries

Editor :
| Year | Film | Director | Notes |
| 1950 | The Soundman | Himself | Uncredited |
Director :
| Year | Film |
| 1950 | The Soundman | Uncredited |

### Shorts

Editor :
| Year | Film | Director |
| 1948 | Go Chase Yourself | Jules White |
| 1952 | Corny Casanovas | Jules White |
| 1952 | He Cooked His Goose | Jules White |
Producer :
| Year | Film | Director | Credit |
| 1949 | The Sound Man | — | Producer |

### TV movies

Editor :
| Year | Film | Director |
| 1970 | But I Don't Want to Get Married! | Jerry Paris |
| 1970 | Wild Women | Don Taylor |
| 1970 | Crowhaven Farm | Walter Grauman |
| 1972 | The Couple Takes a Wife | Jerry Paris |
| 1973 | Fade In | Jud Taylor |
| 1975 | The Trial of Chaplain Jensen | Robert Day |
| 1975 | Shell Game | Glenn Jordan |
| 1976 | One of My Wives Is Missing | Glenn Jordan |
| 1977 | Night Terror | E. W. Swackhamer |
| 1977 | The Amazing Howard Hughes | William A. Graham |
| 1978 | Deadman's Curve | Richard Compton |
| 1978 | Steel Cowboy | Harvey Laidman |
| 1978 | One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story | William A. Graham |
| 1979 | Can You Hear the Laughter? The Story of Freddie Prinze | Burt Brinckerhoff |
| 1979 | Orphan Train | William A. Graham |
| 1980 | Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones | William A. Graham |
| 1980 | Rage! | William A. Graham |
| 1980 | My Kidnapper, My Love | Sam Wanamaker |
| 1981 | Isabel's Choice | Guy Green |
| 1981 | Incident at Crestridge | Jud Taylor |
| 1982 | A Question of Honor | Jud Taylor |
| 1982 | American Eagle | William A. Graham |

### TV pilots

Editor :
| Year | Film | Director |
| 1965 | My Island Family | Henry Koster |
| 1977 | The Displaced Person | Glenn Jordan |

### TV series

Editor :
| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1954 | Ford Theatre | 4 episodes |
| 1954 | Father Knows Best | 2 episodes |
| 1954−55 | The Adventures of Rin-Tin-Tin | 6 episodes |
| 1956 | The People's Choice | 3 episodes |
| 1956 | The Count of Monte Cristo | 9 episodes |
| 1957 | The New Adventures of Charlie Chan | 2 episodes |
| 1959 | Death Valley Days | 2 episodes |
| 1963 | Ben Casey | 1 episode |
| 1970 | The Most Deadly Game | 1 episode |
| 1977 | The Amazing Howard Hughes | 2 episodes |
| 1977 | The Amazing Spider-Man | 1 episode |
| 1977 | Space Academy | 1 episode |
| 1978 | The Paper Chase | 1 episode |
| 1980 | Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones | 2 episodes |
| 1985 | Otherworld | 1 episode |