He married Marguerite Vanière, whom he met as one of the dancers in the chorus line of Evergreen (1934), and with whom he had three children, Richard (b. 1938), Robert (b. 1948) and Loretta (b. 1953). Their parents told them that they could take up any career but the theatre, because of the uncertainty of that profession. Robert taught for more than 40 years at Yale where he developed what came to be known as Crabtree's catalyst.
After doing Gasbags (1941) with the Crazy Gang, Crabtree was used by Carol Reed on Kipps (1941) at Fox. For that company he also did Inspector Hornleigh Goes to It (1941); and Once a Crook (1941), and another short for Asquith, Rush Hour (1941).
Crabtree had filmed some of Gainsborough's biggest successes and the studio promoted him to director for Madonna of the Seven Moons (1945) with Calvert and Granger.[2]Phyllis Calvert later recalled:
Arthur was a very good cinematographer, but there weren't enough directors, and so people who were scriptwriters or were behind the camera were suddenly made directors. It wasn't that Crabtree was an unsatisfactory director, just that we found ourselves very satisfactory – we did it ourselves. But the fact that he had been a lighting cameraman was wonderful for us, because he knew exactly how to photograph us.[3]
The film was a commercial success. So too was Crabtree's second effort as director, They Were Sisters (1945) with Calvert and Mason, and his third, Caravan (1946) with Granger.[4]
^"Film Gossip". The Telegraph (SECOND ed.). Brisbane. 19 November 1935. p. 6. Retrieved 27 October 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^Madonna of the Seven Moons – Sue Harper explores the wider cultural resonances of an escapist gypsy romance and how it tapped into 1940s feminine fantasy History Today; London Vol. 45, Iss. 8, (1 Aug 1995): 47.
^Brian MacFarlane, An Autobiography of British Cinema, Methuen 1997 p 110
^"Menuhin music in British film". The Sun. No. 2201. Sydney. 17 June 1945. p. 3 (SUPPLEMENT TO THE SUNDAY SUN WEEK END MAGAZINE). Retrieved 27 October 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^"MAGAZINE". The South Coast Express. Vol. 1, no. 2. Queensland, Australia. 15 September 1949. p. 5. Retrieved 27 October 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^"NOTES ON FILMS". The Sunday Herald (Sydney). No. 38. New South Wales, Australia. 9 October 1949. p. 4 (Features). Retrieved 27 October 2017 – via National Library of Australia.