The Secret of the Purple Reef

Last updated
The Secret of the Purple Reef
Directed by William Witney
Written byHarold "Yabo" Yablonsky
Based on"The Silent Reefs",
1952–53 short story,
The Saturday Evening Post
by Dorothy Cottrell
Produced by Gene Corman
Starring Richard Chamberlain
Peter Falk
Robert Earl Jones
Jeff Richards
CinematographyKay Norton
Edited byPeter C. Johnson
Music by Buddy Bregman
Production
company
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release date
  • December 11, 1960 (1960-12-11)
Running time
81 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$86,000

The Secret of The Purple Reef is a 1960 20th Century Fox CinemaScope DeLuxe Color film based on a short story by Dorothy Cottrell entitled "The Silent Reefs". It starred soon-to-be-famous actors Richard Chamberlain and Peter Falk. It is a Caribbean-based mystery involving the disappearance of a ship called the Cloud.

Contents

Although considered a "B" film, The Secret of The Purple Reef is notable in that it introduces Richard Chamberlain and Peter Falk to moviegoers as part of their early film career.

It was Richard Chamberlain's film debut, made before finding fame as Dr Kildare. In 1986 Chamberlain called it "easily the worst movie ever made, or at least the most boring". [1]

Plot

Brothers Mark (Jeff Richards) and Dean Christopher (Richard Chamberlain) and show up in a mid-'50s four door Citroën Traction Avant in early era San Juan, Puerto Rico. They arrive to solve the mystery of the circumstances of their father's drowning death in the Caribbean. They run up against a gang of unruly pirates who seem to know more than they reveal. One of the film's highlights is several scenes of an E.G. Van de Stadt designed 35 foot sailing yacht, the Starwright. The vessel adds to the Caribbean charm and plays an integral part of moving the pirates to other parts of the island.

Cast

Production

The story was published in 1953. [2]

Robert L. Lippert brought Peter Falk to Hollywood to appear in Murder Inc . Lippert liked him so much he used him on this film, which was shot in Puerto Rico. [3] Filming took place in July 1960. [4] [5]

Margia Dean enjoyed working with direction Witney and later hired him when she produced The Long Rope (1961). [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Murder, Inc.</i> (1960 film) 1960 film by Stuart Rosenberg

Murder, Inc. is a 1960 American gangster film starring Stuart Whitman, May Britt, Henry Morgan, Peter Falk, and Simon Oakland. The Cinemascope film was directed by Burt Balaban and Stuart Rosenberg. The screenplay was based on the true story of Murder, Inc., a Brooklyn gang that operated in the 1930s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Richards (actor, born 1924)</span> American baseball player and actor

Jeff Richards was an American minor league baseball player with the Portland Beavers, who later became an actor. He was sometimes credited as Dick Taylor and Richard Taylor.

<i>I Shot Jesse James</i> 1949 film by Samuel Fuller

I Shot Jesse James is a 1949 American Western film directed by Samuel Fuller about the murder of Jesse James by Robert Ford and Robert Ford's life afterwards. The story is built around a fictional rivalry between Ford and his eventual killer Edward Kelley over a woman. I Shot Jesse James is Samuel Fuller's first movie, and stars Reed Hadley as Jesse James and John Ireland as Bob Ford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert L. Lippert</span> American film producer

Robert Lenard Lippert was an American film producer and cinema chain owner. He was president and chief operating officer of Lippert Theatres, Affiliated Theatres and Transcontinental Theatres, all based in San Francisco, and at his height, he owned a chain of 139 movie theaters.

<i>Desire in the Dust</i> 1960 film by William F. Claxton

Desire in the Dust is a 1960 film released by the Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation, directed by William F. Claxton, produced by Robert L. Lippert and starring Raymond Burr, Martha Hyer and Joan Bennett. The screenplay was written by Charles Lang based on a novel by Harry Whittington.

<i>Seven Women from Hell</i> 1961 film by Robert D. Webb

Seven Women from Hell is a 1961 war drama directed by Robert D. Webb and starring Patricia Owens, Denise Darcel, Margia Dean, Yvonne Craig and Cesar Romero about women prisoners in a Japanese World War II prison camp, interned with other prisoners.

The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come is a DeLuxe Color 1961 CinemaScope film directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. It stars Jimmie Rodgers and Luana Patten and includes the film debut of George Kennedy.

<i>The Bandit Queen</i> (film) 1950 film by William A. Berke

The Bandit Queen is a 1950 American Western film directed by William Berke. and starring Barbara Britton, Willard Parker and Phillip Reed. as the leaders of a Robin Hood type band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorothy Cottrell</span> Australian writer

Ida Dorothy Ottley Cottrell was an Australian writer. Born in Picton, she contracted infantile paralysis as a child and spent the rest of her life in a wheelchair. Her first novel, The Singing Gold, was published in 1928. She wrote a story Wilderness Orphan (1936) which was the basis for the feature film Orphan of the Wilderness (1936). She lived for a time in the US and also worked as an artist and cartoonist.

Marguerite Louise Skliris-Alvarez, known as Margia Dean, is an American former beauty queen and stage and screen actress of Greek descent.

<i>Stagecoach to Fury</i> 1956 film by William F. Claxton

Stagecoach to Fury is a 1956 American Western film directed by William Claxton and starring Forrest Tucker and Mari Blanchard. It was the first film from Robert L. Lippert's Regal films; the B picture unit of 20th Century Fox set up to provide second features shot in CinemaScope.

<i>Loan Shark</i> (film) 1952 film by Seymour Friedman

Loan Shark is a 1952 American crime film noir directed by Seymour Friedman and starring George Raft.

The Big Show is a 1961 DeLuxe Color and CinemaScope drama film directed by James B. Clark, starring Esther Williams and Cliff Robertson. The cast also includes Robert Vaughn, Margia Dean, Nehemiah Persoff and David Nelson, who was best known to audiences of the time for The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet television show.

<i>The Return of Jesse James</i> 1950 film by Arthur Hilton

The Return of Jesse James is a 1950 American western film directed by Arthur Hilton and starring John Ireland, Ann Dvorak and Henry Hull. It was produced and distributed by the independent Lippert Pictures. The film's art direction was by Frank Paul Sylos and Vin Taylor.

<i>The Oregon Trail</i> (1959 film) 1959 film

The Oregon Trail is a 1959 American CinemaScope and colour Western film directed by Gene Fowler Jr. and starring Fred MacMurray, William Bishop and Nina Shipman.

<i>The Long Rope</i> (1961 film) 1961 film by William Witney

The Long Rope is a 1961 American Western film directed by William Witney and written by Robert Hamner. The film stars Hugh Marlowe, Alan Hale, Jr., Robert J. Wilke, Chris Robinson, William Kerwin and Jeff Morris. The film was released in February 1961, by 20th Century Fox.

<i>Texas Manhunt</i> 1949 film

Texas Manhunt, also known as Red Desert, is a 1949 American Western film directed by Ford Beebe and starring Don "Red" Barry and Tom Neal.

<i>Mask of the Dragon</i> 1951 film

Mask of the Dragon is a 1951 American mystery thriller film directed by Sam Newfield and starring Richard Travis, Sheila Ryan and Michael Whalen. It was released by the independent company Lippert Pictures. The film's sets were designed by the art director Harry Reif. Part of it was set in a television studio, which was considered novel at the time.

Tales of Robin Hood is a 1951 American film directed by James Tinling.

Pier 23 is a 1951 American film noir movie. It was directed by William Berke for Lippert Pictures.

References

  1. "Richard Chamberlain, In Pursuit of Boredom - The Washington Post". The Washington Post .
  2. Hass, V. P. (Mar 29, 1953). "A sea mystery of merit; suspense, villainy, heroism". Chicago Daily Tribune. ProQuest   178494141.
  3. "FILMLAND EVENTS". Los Angeles Times. Jul 11, 1960. ProQuest   167727205.
  4. Scheuer, P. K. (Jul 12, 1960). "Taboo in tel-aviv broken by dietrich". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest   167725251.
  5. Weaver, Tom (2006). Interviews with B Science Fiction and Horror Movie Makers: Writers, Producers, Directors, Actors, Moguls and Makeup. McFarland. p. 98. ISBN   9780786428588.
  6. "Margia Dean Interview".