A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court | |
---|---|
![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Tay Garnett |
Written by | Edmund Beloin |
Based on | A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court 1889 novel by Mark Twain |
Produced by | Robert Fellows |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Ray Rennahan |
Edited by | Archie Marshek |
Music by | Victor Young, Jimmy Van Heusen (songs) |
Color process | Technicolor |
Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 106 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $3.4 million [2] |
Box office | $3 million [3] |
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is a 1949 American comedy musical film directed by Tay Garnett and starring Bing Crosby, Rhonda Fleming, Sir Cedric Hardwicke and William Bendix. [4]
Based on the novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) by Mark Twain, the film is about a mechanic in 1912 who bumps his head and finds himself in Arthurian Britain in 528, where he is befriended by a knight and gains power by judicious use of technology. When he falls in love with the king's niece, her fiancé Sir Lancelot takes exception, and when he meddles in the politics of the kingdom, trouble ensues.
Filmed from October to December 1947, [5] A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court was released on April 22, 1949 and distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film was a popular success and became one of the highlight films of 1949. [6]
American mechanic Hank Martin is knocked unconscious and awakens in the land and time of King Arthur. Initially captured and sentenced to die, he is freed and claims to be a wizard, awing the aged king and his court with the lighting of a match. Arthur rewards him with a blacksmith shop, a squire and the title of Sir Boss.
Hank begins introducing modern flourishes such as jazz music, safety pins, firearms and simple machinery as he attempts to romance the beautiful Alisande la Carteloise and to start a friendship with Sir Sagramore.
Hank's actions incur the hatred of both Merlin and Morgan le Fay. Sir Lancelot returns early from a quest to confront Hank regarding Alisande, and the men joust. Although Hank humiliates Sir Lancelot, he loses Alisande because of his dishonor.
A young girl, having heard Hank is a great wizard, implores him to save her ill father. The man dies and Hank learns from the girl's widowed mother about injustices the family has faced because of medieval laws. This inspires Hank to visit King Arthur, persuading him to tour his kingdom in disguise and see the wretched condition of his subjects. While the king is away, Merlin and Morgan plot to usurp his throne, and Hank, Sir Sagamore and King Arthur are captured and sold as slaves to Merlin. Alisande, learning of their plight, attempts to help them but is also captured. While in captivity, she admits her love for Hank. She is taken by Merlin and the others are sent to be executed.
Prior knowledge of an eclipse allows Hank to strike fear in his captors, resulting in release of the captives. When Hank rushes to save Alisande from Merlin's clutches, he is shot and returned to his own time.
Heartsick over losing the woman whom he loves, Hank tours a British castle. Its owner, Lord Pendragon, sends him to see his niece, who bears a striking resemblance to Alisande.
The film soundtrack was composed by Jimmy Van Heusen with lyrics by Johnny Burke. The orchestral score was written by longtime Paramount staff composer Victor Young, who also conducted the orchestra for many of Crosby's Decca Records recordings. [8]
The cast made separate recordings of the songs used in the film for Decca Records in December 1947 [10] and the songs were issued as a 78-rpm album set. Crosby's songs were also included in the Bing's Hollywood series.
The film opened on April 7, 1949 [1] at Radio City Music Hall in New York City and, together with the venue's annual Easter pageant and stage show, generated its largest four-day Easter gross to date, with $146,000 in its first week. [11] [12] The following week, with children out of school and the theater opening at 7:45 a.m. to enable six showings a day, it grossed a Radio City Music Hall record of $170,000 and became the number-one film in the United States. [12] [13]
In a contemporary review, Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote:
The solid, reliable humors of Mark Twain’s "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," which have already done yeoman service in two films and a Broadway musical show, have been given another going over—with eminently satisfactory results—in Paramount’s new film of the same title ... And for this we can thank Bing Crosby, primarily and above all, because it is Bing in the role of the Yankee who gives this film its particular charm ... But it is still Bing’s delightful personality, his mild surprises and sweet serenities, and his casual way of handling dialogue that makes this burlesque a success. No one in current operation could qualify, we are sure, to play the Connecticut Yankee the way the old Groaner does. ... Mr. Crosby's "Connecticut Yankee" is that good time to be had by all. [14]
Harrison's Reports also liked the film, calling it "A very good romantic comedy" with "numerous situations that will provoke hearty laughter." [15] Edwin Schallert of the Los Angeles Times wrote: "All in all, I would put this picture well up among Paramount's Crosby features as an effort to accomplish something different ... It is a pleasantly fabulous excursion in the dream classification, and the cutback to the medieval past is effectively enough introduced in this adaptation of the Mark Twain story." [16]
Variety was not quite so enthusiastic: "Picture wears the easy casualness that's a Crosby trademark, goes about its entertaining at a leisurely pace, and generally comes off satisfactorily. It's not high comedy and there’s little swashbuckling." [17] Richard L. Coe of The Washington Post wrote that the idea was "so promising that it's a shame the picture collapses," explaining, "The early half of the picture accepts Bing's particular brand of easy charm ... But social welfare work among the downtrodden peasantry (there's even a scene that reminds you of 'Monsieur Vincent') hardly fits into my idea of cheerful musical comedy." [18] John McCarten of The New Yorker wrote that Crosby was "effortlessly amiable," but that the film lacked the wit of the 1931 Will Rogers version and that the songs were inferior to those of the Rodgers and Hart stage musical. [19]
In 2008, the American Film Institute nominated the film for its Top 10 Fantasy Films list. [20]
Sir Cedric Webster Hardwicke was an English stage and film actor whose career spanned nearly 50 years. His theatre work included notable performances in productions of the plays of Shakespeare and Shaw, and his film work included leading roles in several adapted literary classics.
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is an 1889 novel by American humorist and writer Mark Twain. The book was originally titled A Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Some early editions are titled A Yankee at the Court of King Arthur.
William Bendix was an American film, radio, and television actor, known for his portrayals of rough, blue-collar characters. He gained significant recognition for his role in Wake Island, which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Bendix is also remembered for playing Chester A. Riley, the earnest and clumsy aircraft plant worker, in both the radio and television versions of The Life of Riley. Additionally, he portrayed baseball legend Babe Ruth in The Babe Ruth Story. Bendix frequently co-starred with Alan Ladd, appearing in ten films together; both actors died in 1964.
Road to Bali is a 1952 American comedy film directed by Hal Walker and starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour. Released by Paramount Pictures on November 19, 1952, the film is the sixth of the seven Road to … movies. It was the only entry in the series filmed in Technicolor and was the first to feature surprise cameo appearances from other well-known stars of the day.
Rhonda Fleming was an American film and television actress and singer. She acted in more than 40 films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, and became renowned as one of the most glamorous actresses of her day, nicknamed the "Queen of Technicolor" because she photographed so well in that medium.
A Connecticut Yankee is a musical based on the 1889 novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by American writer Mark Twain. Like most adaptations of the Twain novel, it focuses on the lighter aspects of the story. The music was written by Richard Rodgers, the lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and the book by Herbert Fields. It was produced by Lew Fields and Lyle D. Andrews. It enjoyed an original run on Broadway in 1927 of 421 performances and a number of revivals.
Dinadan is a Cornish knight of the Round Table in the Arthurian legend's chivalric romance tradition of the Prose Tristan and its adaptations, including a part of Le Morte d'Arthur. Best known for his humor and pragmatism, he is a close friend of the protagonist Tristan. Dinadan is the subject of several often comedic episodes until his murder by Mordred and Agravain.
Sagramore, also known as Sagramor and other variations of this name, is a knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend. He appears in many standalone and cyclical chivalric romances and other works, including some where he is the titular protagonist. Sagramore's characterisation varies from story to story, but generally he is characterised as a virtuous but hot-tempered knight who fights fiercely and ragefully.
Unidentified Flying Oddball is a 1979 science fiction comedy film. It is based on Mark Twain's 1889 novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, directed by Russ Mayberry and produced by Walt Disney Productions. Released in the United Kingdom as The Spaceman and King Arthur, then subsequently re-released in the United States as A Spaceman in King Arthur's Court, the film stars Dennis Dugan as NASA employee Tom Trimble who unintentionally travels back in time with his look-alike android Hermes.
A Knight in Camelot is a 1998 television film starring Whoopi Goldberg and Michael York, directed by Roger Young, and loosely based on Mark Twain's 1889 novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. The film was released as part of The Wonderful World of Disney anthology series that featured numerous productions released by the studio.
This is a selection of films and television appearances by British-American comedian and actor Bob Hope (1903-2003). Hope, a former boxer, began his acting career in 1925 in various vaudeville acts and stage performances
A Connecticut Yankee is a 1931 American Pre-Code film adaptation of Mark Twain's 1889 novel, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. It was directed by David Butler to a script by William M. Conselman, Owen Davis, and Jack Moffitt. It was produced by Fox Film Corporation, who had earlier produced the 1921 silent adaptation of the novel, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. A Connecticut Yankee is the first sound film adaptation of Twain's novel. It is unrelated to the 1927 musical also titled A Connecticut Yankee.
New Adventures of a Yankee in King Arthur's Court is a 1988 Soviet adventure film directed by Viktor Gres and based on American author Mark Twain's 1889 novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. The screenplay was written by Mikhail Roshchin, and the film was produced by Dovzhenko Film Studio.
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is an 1889 novel by the American author Mark Twain.
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is a 1921 American silent film adaptation of Mark Twain's 1889 novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. The film was produced by the Fox Film Corporation and directed by Emmett J. Flynn based on a screenplay by Bernard McConville. It is notable as the first film adaptation of Twain's novel and as the second film about time travel to the past.
The Boy's King Arthur was an abridged version of Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur edited by Sidney Lanier and published in 1880. It was intended as a children's edition, alongside Lanier's other "Boy's" works. The original title, including its subtitle, was The Boy's King Arthur being Sir Thomas Malory's History of King Arther and his Knights of the Round Table. It was republished in 1950 under the title King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.
Fred Aldrich was an American character actor of both film and television. Born in New York. He would break into the film industry in 1939, appearing in two films that year in small roles: My Son Is Guilty, and the notable, Confessions of a Nazi Spy, which starred Edward G. Robinson and George Sanders. In the course of his thirty-year career he would appear in over 170 films, in small and bit roles. With the advent of television, Aldrich would work in that medium as well, making his first small screen appearance on I Love Lucy, on which he would appear multiple times over the life of the series.
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is a studio album of phonograph records by Bing Crosby and other stars of the Paramount movie A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court featuring songs from the film. All of the songs were written by Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke.
Marvin Wesley Vye Jr. was an American character actor. He is best known for portraying Prince Ken Arok in the comedy film Road to Bali.