[3] His brother recruited him as a stage manager for summer stock, where Mielziner discovered his passion for scenic design.
[7] His other Broadway credits include the original productions of Strange Interlude, Sweet and Low, Of Thee I Sing, The Barretts of Wimpole Street, Winterset, Oh, Captain!, Dodsworth, Another Part of the Forest, Carousel, South Pacific, Guys and Dolls, The King and I, A Streetcar Named Desire, Death of a Salesman, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Gypsy, and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie,[8] as well as the film Picnic and the ballet Who Cares?.
[9] During World War II, Mielziner worked as a camouflage specialist with the United States Air Force, until he was transferred to the Office of Strategic Services, a precursor to the CIA, where he served under General William J.
He was acquainted with the American artist Edward Hopper, who is said to have modeled his well-known painting Early Sunday Morning (1930) after Mielziner's set for Elmer Rice's play Street Scene, produced in 1929.
[2] Mielziner resided for many years at The Dakota[15] and can be seen working in his studio in an exterior shot in the film Rosemary's Baby.
[11] Mielziner's scenic designs for the original production of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman were re-created for the 2012 Broadway revival starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Andrew Garfield and Linda Emond.
Director Mike Nichols said he felt he needed Mielziner's original set because it was "intimately connected with the way the play developed."