20th Century-Fox Dynamo (February 1960)

HEEDING PUBLIC AND EXHIBITION REQUEST A Sequel To”Blue Denim” Seldom in the annals of civilization has contem- porary youth had to cope with as many and complex problems as those with which today’s youngsters are wrestling. Their approaches to solutions vary radi- cally and, economists, as well as sociologists, con- tend, from seemingly day to day. But, this is not a youth seeking escape or delibe- rate evasion of its problems. This definitely was proved by the millions who saw “Blue Denim”, one of the more successful motion pictures of last year. The impact this picture has had on not only youth, but moviegoers of all ages, and particularly parents, is evidenced by several thousand letters received by its producer, Charles Brackett. No motion picture produced and publicly exhib- ited last year spurred such vocal and written com- mendation from people in all walks of life as did “Blue Denim.” Hundreds, in their letters, expressed an interest in knowing what happened to the pregnant girl and the ’teenager who rendered her in that condition, after their parents came to their rescue. This interest was indicated in the flinging of such questions as “what happened to the youngsters?”, “was it a per- manent solution their parents provided?”, “did the girl give birth to a healthy child?”, “how happy are they in their marriage?”, “how radically did their lives change, if there was a change?”, etc., etc. Certainly, no motion picture produced by this company has developed so much public interroga- tion regarding the future of its characters as has “Blue Denim.” Many leaders in youth welfare, including nation- ally celebrated social authorities, in lauding the studio for creating so moving a story about “nicer youngsters” and successfully “avoiding sensational- im in telling this story that some day had to be told”, have urged it to “follow through” on the further experiences of the two involved youngsters. Magazine writers and editorialists are among those who have influenced the production of a sequel to the picturization of the play by James Leo Herlihy and William Noble. Parents Magazine, which gave rare, high praise to “Blue Denim”, was among the publications that pointed up the wisdom of a sequel, “explored with the same dignity and insight that went into the treatment of the problem of decent young people whose early sex drives get them into trouble.” It was after due consideration, many discussions and consultations with exhibitors who queried hun- dreds of patrons who had seen “Blue Denim”, that Buddy Adler and producer Brackett agreed to film a sequel for release this year. No title has yet been selected for the sequel. However, Carol Lynley and Brandon de Wilde will re-enact the roles they played in “Blue Denim”. MacDonald Carey and Marsha Hunt will again portray Miss Lynley’s parents. A treatment of the story approach for the sequel is now being written. Filming is scheduled to start in the Spring. Brackett is hoping to have the sequel completed for domestic release in September. MARSHA HUNT MACDONALD CAREY Memory of the pictured foursome's performances in "Blue Denim", superbly acted, in fact, by the entire cast, has much to do with the tremendously numerous public and exhibitors' requests that the studio create a sequel to that extremely popular 1959 screenplay. Such a sequel is being written. 80