Tycoon (1947 film)

Last updated

Tycoon
Tycoon FilmPoster.jpeg
Film poster
Directed by Richard Wallace
Written by Borden Chase
John Twist
Based onTycoon
1934 novel
by C.E. Scoggins
Produced byStephen Ames
Starring John Wayne
Anthony Quinn
Laraine Day
CinematographyW. Howard Greene
Harry J. Wild
Edited byFrank Doyle
Music by Leigh Harline
Production
company
Distributed byRKO Pictures
Release date
  • December 27, 1947 (1947-12-27)
Running time
128 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$3.2 million [1]
Box office$2.5 million (US rentals) [2]

Tycoon is a 1947 American Technicolor romance film directed by Richard Wallace and starring John Wayne. It is based on the 1934 novel of the same name by C.E. Scoggins.

Contents

Plot

Johnny Munroe (John Wayne) travels to South America to build a mountain railroad tunnel for Frederick Alexander (Sir Cedric Hardwicke), a wealthy industrialist. Complications arise when Alexander insists upon a shorter, more dangerous passage and when his daughter Maura (Laraine Day) develops a romantic interest with Johnny.

Cast

Production

Maureen O'Hara was originally cast as Wayne's leading lady, but RKO put her in Sinbad the Sailor instead. [3] Set in the Andes, the film was originally intended to be filmed at RKO's Estudios Churubusco in Mexico but at the last minute production was shifted to Lone Pine, California. [3]

Reception

Though successful, the film did not earn back its huge production costs of RKO's most expensive production up to that time. [4] [ self-published source ] It ended up losing $1,035,000. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

Edward Cedric Hardwicke was an English actor, who had a distinguished career on the stage, as well as being known for his portrayal of Dr. Watson in the Granada TV series Sherlock Holmes.

Cedric Hardwicke English actor

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 a number of adapted literary classics.

<i>Becky Sharp</i> (film) 1935 film by Rouben Mamoulian, Lowell Sherman

Becky Sharp is a 1935 American Technicolor historical drama film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and starring Miriam Hopkins who was nominated for the Best Actress Oscar. Other supporting cast were William Faversham, Frances Dee, Cedric Hardwicke, Billie Burke, Alison Skipworth, Nigel Bruce, and Alan Mowbray.

Nicholas John Tate is an Australian actor popularly known for his roles as pilot Alan Carter in the 1970s science fiction television series Space: 1999, and James Hamilton in the 1980s Australian soap opera Sons and Daughters.

<i>The Hunchback of Notre Dame</i> (1939 film) 1939 film by William Dieterle

The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1939 American romantic drama film starring Charles Laughton and Maureen O'Hara. Directed by William Dieterle and produced by Pandro S. Berman, the film is based on Victor Hugo's 1831 novel.

<i>The Devil and Miss Jones</i> 1941 film by Sam Wood

The Devil and Miss Jones is a 1941 comedy film starring Jean Arthur, Robert Cummings, and Charles Coburn. Directed by Sam Wood from a screenplay by Norman Krasna, the film was the product of an independent collaboration between Krasna and producer Frank Ross. Their short-lived production company released two films through RKO Radio Pictures. The film was well received by critics upon its release and garnered Oscar nominations for Coburn and Krasna.

<i>Climax!</i> American anthology TV series

Climax! is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS programs of that era to be broadcast in color, using the massive TK-40A color cameras pioneered and manufactured by RCA, and used primarily by CBS' arch-rival network, NBC. Many of the episodes were performed and broadcast live, but, although the series was transmitted in color, only black-and-white kinescope copies of some episodes survive to the present day. The series finished at #22 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1955-1956 season and #26 for 1956-1957.

<i>The Invisible Man Returns</i> 1940 film by Joe May

The Invisible Man Returns is a 1940 American horror science fiction film directed by Joe May. The film stars Cedric Hardwicke, Vincent Price, Nan Grey and John Sutton. The film is a sequel to the 1933 film The Invisible Man, and the second film in the Invisible Man film series. The film is about Sir Geoffrey Radcliffe (Price) who is condemned for a murder he did not commit, which leads to him begging Dr. Frank Griffin (Sutton) to inject him with the invisibility serum despite Griffin's warning that the serum will drive him mad.

Laraine Day American actress

Laraine Day was an American actress, radio and television commentator and a former Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract star. As a leading lady, she was paired opposite major film stars including Robert Mitchum, Lana Turner, Cary Grant, Ronald Reagan, Kirk Douglas, and John Wayne. As well as her numerous film and television roles, she acted on stage, conducted her own radio and television shows, and wrote two books. Owing to her marriage to Leo Durocher and her involvement with his baseball career, she was known as "The First Lady of Baseball". Her best-known films include Foreign Correspondent, My Son, My Son, Journey for Margaret, Mr. Lucky, The Locket, and the Dr. Kildare series.

<i>Stanley and Livingstone</i> 1939 film by Henry King, Otto Brower

Stanley and Livingstone is a 1939 American adventure film directed by Henry King and Otto Brower. It is loosely based on the true story of Welsh reporter Sir Henry M. Stanley's quest to find Dr. David Livingstone, a Scottish missionary presumed lost in Africa, who finally met on November 10, 1871. Spencer Tracy plays Stanley, while Cedric Hardwicke portrays Livingstone. Other cast members include Nancy Kelly, Richard Greene, Walter Brennan, Charles Coburn and Henry Hull.

Constantin Romanovich Bakaleinikov was a Russian-born composer who worked in Hollywood, California.

<i>Commandos Strike at Dawn</i> 1942 film by John Farrow

Commandos Strike at Dawn is a 1942 war film directed by John Farrow and written by Irwin Shaw from a short story entitled "The Commandos" by C. S. Forester that appeared in Cosmopolitan magazine in June 1942. Filmed in Canada, it starred Paul Muni, Anna Lee, Lillian Gish in her return to the screen, Cedric Hardwicke and Robert Coote.

<i>Green Light</i> (1937 film) 1937 film by Frank Borzage

Green Light is a 1937 American film directed by Frank Borzage.

<i>Forever and a Day</i> (1943 film) 1943 drama film

Forever and a Day is a 1943 American drama film, a collaborative effort employing seven directors/producers and 22 writers, with an enormous cast of well-known stars.

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.

<i>Baby Face Nelson</i> (film) 1957 film by Don Siegel

Baby Face Nelson is a 1957 film noir crime film based on the real-life 1930s gangster, directed by Don Siegel, co-written by Daniel Mainwaring—who also wrote the screenplay for Siegel's 1956 sci-fi thriller Invasion of the Body Snatchers—and starring Mickey Rooney, Carolyn Jones, Cedric Hardwicke, Leo Gordon as Dillinger, Anthony Caruso, Jack Elam, John Hoyt and Elisha Cook Jr.

<i>Tom Browns School Days</i> (1940 film) 1940 film by Robert Stevenson

Tom Brown's School Days is a 1940 coming-of-age drama film about a teenage boy's experiences at Rugby School, Warwickshire in the early 19th century under the reforming headmastership of Thomas Arnold. It stars Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Freddie Bartholomew and Jimmy Lydon in the title role. The film was based on the 1857 novel, Tom Brown's School Days by Thomas Hughes.

<i>Valley of the Sun</i> (film) 1942 film by George Marshall

Valley of the Sun is a 1942 American Western film directed by George Marshall and starring Lucille Ball and James Craig.

<i>Bride by Mistake</i> 1944 film by Richard Wallace

Bride by Mistake (1944) is an American romantic comedy film directed by Richard Wallace, and starring Alan Marshal and Laraine Day.

<i>The Moon Is Down</i> (film) 1943 film by Irving Pichel

The Moon Is Down is a 1943 American war film starring Cedric Hardwicke and Henry Travers and directed by Irving Pichel. It is based on the 1942 novel of the same name by John Steinbeck. During World War II, German soldiers occupy a small Norwegian town.

References

  1. Richard Jewell & Vernon Harbin, The RKO Story. New Rochelle, New York: Arlington House, 1982. p225
  2. "Top Grossers of 1948", Variety 5 January 1949 p 46
  3. 1 2 p.287 Roberts, Randy & Olson, James Stuart John Wayne, American 1997 University of Kentucky Press
  4. p.131 Reid, John Howard Popular Pictures of the 1940s 2004 Lulu.com
  5. Richard Jewel, 'RKO Film Grosses: 1931-1951', Historical Journal of Film Radio and Television, Vol 14 No 1, 1994 p46