Boxoffice barometer (1962)

The Power Behind the Scenes PRODUCERS * Unsung Heroes Who Make or Break the Pictures 14 Wah 31 of S eciSon 3 Eicf Sit m3 j^JOTION PICTURE producers, aware of the truth of the old adage that there is nothing new under the sun, have found new ways to treat the old. Thus old stories with new interpreta- tions, new stories based on old themes, old films reproduced with new stars, new settings and new types of handling come to life on the screen for another season in which 14 producers make 31 of the top hits. Walt Disney produced the most hits, being credited with four. Ross Hunter is next with three and 12 others have two hits each. Then there are 110 producers who have one hit each—and it is no small feat to have one hit to your credit for a season. Disney, who has staunchly remained a producer of the family-type film, is the only one whose hit pictures for the sea- son are all Boxoffice Blue Ribbon Award winners. However, they are quite varied in their story content and in their general appeal. “The Absent-Minded Professor” is an amusing farce about a mythical new substance called “flubber,” starring Fred MacMurray and Nancy Olson. “Greyfriars Bobby,” starring Donald Crisp, Laurence Naismith and Alex MacKenzie, is a poignant classic of a dog’s loyalty to his master beyond the master’s death and what the dog came to mean to underprivileged children. “One Hundred and One Dalmatians” is a full-length cartoon, with the comedy built around a “dognapping” incident. “The Parent Trap” is a penetrating, dramatic expose of the problems created by divorce for children involved, with humorous episodes bordering on slap- stick. Hayley Mills stars in a dual role with Maureen O’Hara and Brian Keith. Ross Hunter’s three hits range from the sophisticated and melodramatic “Back Street,” the sinister, spine-ting- ling “Midnight Lace” to the ingenuously corny “Tammy Tell Me True”—the last one a Boxoffice Blue Ribbon Award winner. Susan Hayward and John Gavin emote in luxurious settings in “Back Street,” Doris Day and Rex Harrison induce audience goose pimples in “Mid- night Lace,” and Sandra Dee is rustic innocence personified in romantic inter- ludes with John Gavin in “Tammy Tell Me True.” Of Robert Arthur’s two top films “Come September” < starring a livelier Rock Hudson and Gina Lollobrigida) is a flashy spoof of a playboy turned mor- alist and having tables turned on him. “The Great Impostor” takes a news story and builds it into an entertaining film starring Tony Curtis, who creates audience sympathy for his prototype. William Castle’s “Homicidal” and “13 Ghosts” are two terror-teasers but both are also fun from the fear angle and are exhibited with promotional gim- micks. There is a “fright break” just be- fore the climax in “Homicidal” and “13 Ghosts” features “ghost-viewers.” Stanley Donen’s “The Grass Is Greener” is a society drama with a tri- angle situation which resolves itself as a quadrangle comprised of Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons. It is quite different from his black-and-white “Surprise Package,” with light-hearted treatment of gang- sters double-crossing each other, util- izing the talents of Yul Brynner, Noel Coward and Mitzi Gaynor. Michael Garrison’s “The Crowded Sky” is as somber in its way as “The Dark at the Top of the Stairs” for both are tense dramas which build up to smashing climaxes. The first is an action picture with psychological overtones starring Dana Andrews and Rhonda Fleming. The second is based on Wil- liam Inge’s Broadway stage hit dealing with marital problems in which Robert Preston stars in masterful fashion with Dorothy McGuire, Eve Arden and An- gela Lansbury. William Goetz’s “Cry for Happy” de- tails zany efforts by servicemen to es- tablish a Japanese orphanage, with Glenn Ford and Donald O’Connor carry- ing the screwball roles. “Song Without End” is a music-laden drama on the life of Franz Liszt, wherein Dirk Bo- garde portrays the Hungarian genius with distinction, assisted by Capucine and Genevieve Page as his two great loves. Fred Kohlmar’s service comedy, “The Wackiest Ship in the Army,” which sets a new high in that field for male pa- trons, stars Jack Lemmon and Ricky Nelson. It is overshadowed by the pow- erful drama Kohlmar produced in “The Devil at 4 O’clock,” featuring high tragedy with Spencer Tracy and Frank Sinatra in superb roles. Jerry Lewis is better than average in his two hits, starring in both his produc- tions, “CinderFella” (a Boxoffice Blue Ribbon Award winner) and “The Ladies Man,” in which he assembles diva Helen Traubel and no less than 31 beautiful girls. Michael Relph’s satirical treatment of crime in “The League of Gentlemen” is a welcome change, starring Jack Hawkins with Nigel Patrick and Roger Livesey. Relph’s “Man in the Moon” is also a spoof, this time of astronauts and the space race, starring Kenneth More with Shirley Anne Field. Peter Rogers contributes two comedies in the farce tradition. “Carry On, Con- stable,” the first, is one of a popular series and outdoes the old Keystone Kops of silent days. It stars Kenneth Connor and Leslie Phillips. The second, “Please Turn Over,” is a satire on best- sellers by teenagers and contains double- talk ably interpreted by Julia Lockwood and Dilys Laye. Jerry Wald’s two, “Return to Pey- ton Place” and “Wild in the Coun- try” are quite different. The first is a sequel and is well acted by Carol Lyn- ley, Jeff Chandler, Eleanor Parker and Mary Astor. The second makes a dra- matic star of Elvis Presley, with Hope Lange, Tuesday Weld and John Ireland. Hal Wallis has the highly popular Shirley MacLaine and Dean Martin in his “All in a Night’s Work,” escapist- fare comedy. He utilizes Elvis Presley’s unique talents in an overseas comedy, “G. I. Blues,” with dancer Juliet Prowse. Lawrence Weingarten has a political drama, “Ada,” in which Susan Hayward and Dean Martin make a provocative romantic team and outwit Wilfrid Hyde White. His second hit is a frothy com- edy, “The Honeymoon Machine,” with video star Steve McQueen, Brigid Baz- len and Dean Jagger. Whether the critics will admit this is a productive season of which the in- dustry can be proud, certainly the pub- lic has shown how it feels at the box- office.—V.W.S. Producers credited with 1960-61 hit films are listed below: Four Winners WALT DISNEY: The Absent-Minded Professor (BV); Greyfriars Bobby (BV); One Hundred and One Dal- matians (BV); The Parent Trap (BV). Three Winners ROSS HUNTER: ++ Back Street (U-l); Midnight Lace (U-l); Tam- my Tell Me True (U-l). Two Winners ROBERT ARTHUR: Come Septem- ber (U-l); The Great Impostor (U-l). WILLIAM CASTLE; Homicidal (Col); 13 Ghosts (Col). STANLEY DONEN: The Grass Is Greener (U-l); Surprise Package (Col). MICHAEL GARRISON: The Crowded Sky (WB); The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (WB). ■H- Pre-release.