Sail a Crooked Ship

Last updated
Sail a Crooked Ship
Sail a Crooked Ship poster.jpg
theatrical poster
Directed by Irving Brecher
Screenplay by Ruth Brooks Flippen
Bruce Geller
Based onSail a Crooked Ship (novel)
by Nathaniel Benchley
Produced byPhilip Barry Jr.
Starring Robert Wagner
Dolores Hart
Carolyn Jones
Frankie Avalon
Ernie Kovacs
Frank Gorshin
Cinematography Joseph Biroc
Edited by William A. Lyon
Music by George Duning
Production
company
Distributed byColumbia Pictures
Release date
  • December 1961 (1961-12)
Running time
88 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1,150,000 (US/Canada) [1]

Sail a Crooked Ship is a 1961 American black-and-white comedy heist film starring Robert Wagner, Dolores Hart, Carolyn Jones, Frankie Avalon, Ernie Kovacs and Frank Gorshin. It was directed by Irving Brecher and was based on the 1960 novel of the same name by Nathaniel Benchley. [2]

Contents

Sail a Crooked Ship was Kovacs' last movie, released shortly before he was killed in a car crash.

Hart's other 1961 film, Francis of Assisi , inspired her to retire from acting two years later and become a Roman Catholic nun.

Plot

When Gilbert Barrows (Robert Wagner) disobeys his boss and tries to refit an old Liberty Ship for cargo use instead of scrapping it, he inadvertently puts it into the hands of a colorful group of crooks led by good-hearted screw-up Bugsy G. Fogelmeyer (Ernie Kovacs) and brainy sociopath George M. Wilson (Frank Gorshin). The crooks plan to use the ship to make their getaway after they pull a bank robbery in Boston, and they kidnap Barrows and his girlfriend Elinor Harrison (Dolores Hart) his boss's daughter to prevent leaving any witnesses behind. With the help of Bugsy's nephew Rodney J. Fogelmeyer (Frankie Avalon), Gilbert and Elinor manage to foil the crooks' plans by using Elinor's bra as a slingshot and attracting the Coast Guard.

Cast

Production

The film was based on a novel published in 1960. The New York Times called it "slightly daffy". [3]

Producer Philip Barry thought the novel would make a good film. He pitched it to MGM for whom he had made The Mating Game but that studio passed. Barry went on to sign a three picture deal at Columbia Studios. [4] In June 1960 Barry said his first film for Columbia would be Sail a Crooked Ship which he described as " Some Like It Hot without drag". He hoped to star Jack Lemmon and hired William Bowers to write the script. [5]

"I can't remember how many opinions were brought to bear on the script," said Barry later. "The ship has changed course quite a few times since I read the book." [4]

In January 1961 Ernie Kovacs was cast. [6] Also that month Columbia announced the lead role would be played by Robert Wagner. He and then-wife Natalie Wood formed their own company, Rona Productions, which signed a three picture deal with Columbia for Wagner's services. The first film was Sail a Crooked Ship and the second would be The Interns. [7] Wagner would get a percentage of the profits. [8] (In the end, Wagner's marriage to Wood ended in 1961 and he only made the one film for Columbia).

In March it was announced the female leads would be Joan Collins and Jean Seberg. [9] These roles would end up being played by Carolyn Jones and Dolores Hart.

Following the hijacking of the Portuguese ship Santa Maria the studio briefly considered renaming the film Steal a Crooked Ship to cash in. [10]

Barry wanted further work on the script but Bowers was on another project, so he hired other writers. (Bowers ended up not being credited at all.) Filming started April 1961 without a completed script. Barry said during the shoot, "basically we are in the same position as a play in New Haven with a third act that needs work before it gets to Broadway." [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernie Kovacs</span> American comedian, actor, and writer (1919–1962)

Ernest Edward Kovacs was an American comedian, actor, and writer.

<i>Bugsy</i> 1991 biographical film by Barry Levinson

Bugsy is a 1991 American biographical crime drama film directed by Barry Levinson and written by James Toback. The film stars Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Harvey Keitel, Ben Kingsley, Elliott Gould, Bebe Neuwirth, and Joe Mantegna. It is based on the life of American mobster Bugsy Siegel and his relationship with wife and starlet Virginia Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabian Forte</span> American singer and actor (born 1943)

Fabian Anthony Forte, professionally known as Fabian, is an American singer and actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frankie Avalon</span> American actor and singer (born 1940)

Francis Thomas Avallone , better known as Frankie Avalon, is an American actor, singer, and former teen idol. He had 31 charting U.S. Billboard singles from 1958 to late 1962, including number one hits, "Venus" and "Why" in 1959.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barry Levinson</span> American filmmaker

Barry Lee Levinson is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. His best-known works are mid-budget comedy drama and drama films such as Diner (1982), The Natural (1984), Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), Bugsy (1991), and Wag the Dog (1997). Levinson won the Academy Award for Best Director for Rain Man (1988). In 2021, he co-executive produced the Hulu miniseries Dopesick and directed the first two episodes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Wagner</span> American actor (born 1930)

Robert John Wagner Jr. is an American actor of stage, screen, and television. He is known for starring in the television shows It Takes a Thief (1968–1970), Switch (1975–1978), and Hart to Hart (1979–1984). He later had recurring roles on Two and a Half Men (2007–2008) and NCIS (2010–2019).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Quine</span> American actor (1920–1989)

Richard Quine was an American director, actor, and singer.

Nathaniel Goddard Benchley was an American writer from Massachusetts.

<i>Where the Boys Are</i> 1960 film by Henry Levin

Where the Boys Are is a 1960 American CinemaScope comedy film directed by Henry Levin and starring Connie Francis, Dolores Hart, Paula Prentiss, George Hamilton, Yvette Mimieux, Jim Hutton, and Frank Gorshin. It was written by George Wells based on the 1960 novel of the same name by Glendon Swarthout. The screenplay concerns four female college students who spend spring break in Fort Lauderdale. The title song "Where the Boys Are" was sung by Connie Francis, who also co-starred in a supporting role.

<i>Beach Party</i> 1963 film by William Asher

Beach Party is a 1963 American film and the first of seven beach party films from American International Pictures (AIP) aimed at a teen audience. This film is often credited with creating the beach party film genre.

<i>North to Alaska</i> 1960 film by Henry Hathaway, John Wayne

North to Alaska is a 1960 American comedy Western/Northern film directed by Henry Hathaway and John Wayne (uncredited). The picture stars Wayne along with Stewart Granger, Ernie Kovacs, Fabian, and Capucine. The script is based on the 1939 play Birthday Gift by Ladislas Fodor and is set during the Nome gold rush.

<i>Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine</i> 1965 film by Norman Taurog

Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine is a 1965 Pathécolor comedy film directed by Norman Taurog and distributed by American International Pictures. Starring Vincent Price, Frankie Avalon, Dwayne Hickman, Susan Hart and Jack Mullaney, and featuring Fred Clark, the film is a parody of the then-popular spy trend, made using actors from AIP's beach party and Edgar Allan Poe films. The film was retitled Dr G. and the Bikini Machine in England due to a threatened lawsuit from Eon, holder of the rights to the James Bond series.

<i>Pajama Party</i> (film) 1964 beach party film directed by Don Weis

Pajama Party is a 1964 beach party film starring Tommy Kirk and Annette Funicello. This is the fourth in a series of seven beach films produced by American International Pictures. The other films in this series are Beach Party (1963), Muscle Beach Party (1964), Bikini Beach (1964), Beach Blanket Bingo (1965), How to Stuff a Wild Bikini (1965), Ski Party (1965) and The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1966).

Irving S. Brecher was a screenwriter who wrote for the Marx Brothers among many others; he was the only writer to get sole credit on a Marx Brothers film, penning the screenplays for At the Circus (1939) and Go West (1940). He was also one of the numerous uncredited writers on the screenplay of The Wizard of Oz (1939). Some of his other screenplays were Shadow of the Thin Man (1941), Ziegfeld Follies (1945) and Bye Bye Birdie (1963).

<i>Our Man in Havana</i> (film) 1959 British spy comedy film

Our Man in Havana is a 1959 British spy comedy film shot in CinemaScope, directed and produced by Carol Reed, and starring Alec Guinness, Burl Ives, Maureen O'Hara, Ralph Richardson, Noël Coward and Ernie Kovacs. The film is adapted from the 1958 novel Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene. The film takes the action of the novel and gives it a more comedic touch. The movie marks Reed's third collaboration with Greene.

<i>The Wackiest Ship in the Army</i> (film) 1960 film by Richard Murphy

The Wackiest Ship in the Army is an American 1960 Eastmancolor CinemaScope comedy-drama war film directed by Richard Murphy and starring Jack Lemmon, Ricky Nelson, and Chips Rafferty. It was filmed at Pearl Harbor and Kauai.

Stewart Bridgewater Linder was an American film editor with 25 credits. He shared the Academy Award for Best Film Editing for the 1966 film Grand Prix, which was the very first film on which Linder was credited as an editor. Linder is particularly noted for his long collaboration (1982–2006) with the director Barry Levinson. Perhaps the best remembered film from their collaboration, which extended over 20 films, was Rain Man (1988), which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Linder won an ACE Eddie award for editing this film, and was nominated for both the Academy Award and the BAFTA Award for Best Editing.

<i>Guns of the Timberland</i> 1960 film by Robert D. Webb

Guns of the Timberland is a 1960 American Technicolor lumberjack Western film directed by Robert D. Webb and starring Alan Ladd, Jeanne Crain, Gilbert Roland and Frankie Avalon.

<i>The George Raft Story</i> 1961 film by Joseph M. Newman

The George Raft Story is a 1961 American biographical film directed by Joseph M. Newman that stars Ray Danton as Hollywood film star George Raft. The picture was retitled Spin of a Coin for release in the United Kingdom, a reference to Raft's character's nickel-flipping trick in Scarface (1932), the film that launched his career as an actor known for portraying gangsters.

<i>The Inspector</i> (1962 film) 1962 film by Philip Dunne

The Inspector is a 1962 CinemaScope DeLuxe Color British-American drama film directed by Philip Dunne, starring Stephen Boyd and Dolores Hart. Hart plays Lisa Held, a Dutch-Jewish girl who has survived the horror of Auschwitz concentration camp.

References

Notes

  1. "Big Rental Pictures of 1962". Variety. 9 Jan 1963. p. 13. Please note these are rentals and not gross figures
  2. "Screenplay Info" on TCM.com
  3. In a Bit of a Mulligatawny: SAIL A CROOKED SHIP. By Na- thaniel Benchley. 320 pp. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company. $3.95. By LENARD KAUFMAN. New York Times (22 May 1960: BR34.
  4. 1 2 3 TIME LAG DAMPENS PRODUCER'S ZEAL: Philip Barry Jr. Has Many a Slip in Putting Idea on Film By MURRAY SCHUMACH Special to The New York Times. 11 May 1961: 41.
  5. Barry Will Film Book of Benchley: Lemmon May Get Lead Role Los Angeles Times 24 June 1960: A8.
  6. Ketti Frings Seeks Douglas for Film Los Angeles Times 18 Jan 1961: C8.
  7. WAGNER STEPS UP WORK IN MOVIES: Actor Forms Concern, Signs 3-Picture Columbia Deal By HOWARD THOMPSON. New York Times 21 Jan 1961: 18.
  8. Natalie: 'Much Can Happen, and It Did' Los Angeles Times 18 Mar 1962: A10.
  9. Entertainment: Bob Wagner Will Do 'The Interns' Jean Seberg Hit in Paris Los Angeles Times 6 Mar 1961: C12.
  10. Producers Rushing Films on Piracy Los Angeles Times 3 Feb 1961: A9.