Orson Welles At 100

Genius. Maverick. Charlatan. Egomaniac. Orson Welles was called all of these things during his career (in fact, it was Mr. Welles himself who referred to himself as a "charlatan"). To a large degree the truth about Orson Welles probably depended upon whom one asked, but one thing is certain--he was an enormous talent who would have a lasting impact on Anglophonic pop culture. Indeed, who else but Orson Welles could have directed a film largely considered the greatest of all (Citizen Kane) as well  as creating possibly the most famous radio play of all time (the famous Mercury Theatre of the Air adaptation of War of the Worlds titled "The Invasion from Mars"). Orson Welles was born 100 years ago today, on May 6 1915 in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Although today many, perhaps most people associate Orson Welles with film, he began his career in theatre. He made his stage debut on October 13 1931 at the  Gate Theatre in Dublin, Ireland in a production of Jew Suss. He was part of a repertory theatre company founded by Katharine Cornell in New York City for a time. While his theatrical career was under way Mr. Welles also found work in radio. He first worked in radio in 1935 on The American School of the Air. In 1935 he worked on such radio shows as America's Hour, Cavalcade of America, Columbia Workshop, and The March of Time. Many of the radio actors with whom Orson Welles worked during this period would become part of his famous Mercury Theatre.

When the Federal Theatre Project was established in 1935, Orson Welles was one of those who took advantage of the programme. The Federal Theatre Project was a New Deal programme that was meant to provide employment for those working in the theatre by funding live performances during the Great Depression. As part of the Federal Theatre Project Orson Welles and John Houseman eventually ran two theatres in New York City. It was not unusual for Mr. Welles to use his own money from his jobs in radio to help finance productions. As part of the Federal Theatre Project Orson Welles swiftly established a name for himself. He directed a version of Macbeth that moved the action from Scotland to an unnamed Caribbean island. Nicknamed Voodoo Macbeth, the production proved to be a sensation. Among Mr. Welles' other productions while with the Federal Theatre Project were Horse Eats Hat (an adaptation of Eugène Labiche's play Un Chapeau de Paille d'Italie), Faustus, and The Cradle Will Rock.

Orson Welles left the Federal Theatre Project in 1937 to found one of his greatest claims to fame with John Houseman, the Mercury Theatre. The Mercury Theatre was not simply a repertory theatre company. During its existence the Mercury Theatre would also publish a book, The Mercury Shakespeare, along with accompanying records with abridgements of three of Shakespeare's plays. The Mercury Theatre's first production was an adaptation of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, simply titled Caesar, that alluded to both Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. Over the next few years the Mercury Theatre would stage such productions as George Bernard Shaw's Heartbreak House, William Gillette's Too Much Johnson (for which a two-part filmed sequence was made--some of Mr. Welles's earliest work in film), and  Georg Büchner's play Danton's Death.

Unfortunately, a lack of funding and the company's move to Hollywood following Orson Welles's signing with RKO would result in the dissolution of the troupe in 1941 or 1942.  The Mercury Theatre would have one last hurrah in 1943 in the form of The Mercury Wonder Show, magic-and-variety stage show staged for the troops serving in World War II overseas. Produced by Orson Welles and Joseph Cotten, The Mercury Wonder Show utilised veterans of the Mercury Theatre, including not only Messrs. Welles and Cotten, but Agnes Moorehead as well. Ultimately many of the Mercury Theatre's players would go onto fame in film and later television: Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead, Ray Collins, William Alland, and Everett Sloane among them.

Of course, the Mercury Theatre would gain lasting fame from the radio show spun off from it, The Mercury Theatre on the Air. In 1938 CBS approached Orson Welles and John Houseman about creating a summer replacement series for them. CBS gave Messrs. Welles and Houseman complete creative control over the show. The two of them decided that rather than adapting dramatic works for radio, they would instead adapt literary works. The series debut on July 11 1938 under the title First Person Singular with an adaptation of Dracula. It was with its second production, an adaptation of Treasure Island, that the show became known as The Mercury Theatre on the Air. Given the show used the talents of the Mercury Theatre repertory company, the new name was only fitting.

During its run The Mercury Theatre on the Air adapted such literary works as Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities, John Buchan's The Thirty Nine Steps, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo, and  Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, but their most famous (or perhaps "notorious" would be the better word) episode would be an adaptation of H. G. Wells's War of the Worlds. Officially titled "The Invasion from Mars", the radio play not only updated the novel, but moved the action to the United States. What set it even further apart from a straight adaptation of the novel was the fact  it was done in the form of a fictional newscast (a technique previously used by Monsignor Ronald Knox in 1926 for a drama on BBC Radio).  Unfortunately despite the facts that the programme was announced in radio listings in newspapers well ahead of its broadcast, that disclaimers were aired during the programme, and even that in the broadcast itself the year was given as 1939 (it was 1938, after all), there were those who were convinced that Earth was being invaded by Mars.

Reports of the panic caused by The Mercury Theatre on the Air's "Invasion from Mars" were somewhat exaggerated at the time and have been ever since.  That the radio play did cause some panic there can be no doubt. The switchboards at CBS were jammed with calls from people worried about the Martian invasion. The New York Times itself would receive 832 calls. A month after the broadcast there had been an estimated 12,500 newspaper stories on the broadcast according to Professor Ronald Hand in the book Terror on the Air!: Horror Radio in America, 1931-1952 (including The New York Times, who featured it as the top story on their front page). Immediately following the end of the broadcast of "The Invasion from Mars," police arrived at the CBS studio in New York. They took both John Houseman and Orson Welles to one of the CBS offices for questioning. Neither man was ever arrested. After the police released Houseman and Welles, they faced a rather hostile crowd of reporters. They would eventually have to sneak out of the building through the back door to make it to a rehearsal of their stage production of Danton's Death. The next morning CBS held a press conference where Orson Welles read what was a combination disclaimer and apology. The press conference was filmed for newsreels across the country.

The Mercury Theatre on the Air's radio adaptation of War of the Worlds certainly drew attention to the show. Originally a sustaining programme (a programmed aired without the benefit of a sponsor), the attention brought to Mercury Theatre on the Air a sponsor in the form of Campbell's Soup. Unfortunately in some ways this spelled the end for The Mercury Theatre on the Air. It became The Campbell Playhouse on December 4 1938. With the addition of a sponsor Orson Welles and John Houseman increasingly found themselves at odds. Mr. Houseman left the Mercury Theatre in December 1939. After Campbell Soup began assuming more and more control over the show, Orson Welles left The Campbell Playhouse following its March 31 1940 episode. While The Campbell Playhouse would continue for a time without Mr. Welles, it could no longer really be considered a continuation of The Mercury Theatre on the Air. Orson Welles would be in charge of a summer replacement series in 1946, The Mercury Summer Theatre on the Air. Some of the old Mercury Theatre players, including William Alland and Agnes Moorehead appeared on the show.

Of course, here it must be noted that not long before the debut of The Mercury Theatre on the Air, Orson Welles was the voice of Lamont Cranston on The Shadow. The Mutual radio network hired him to play the role in September 1937. He continued to provide the voice of The Shadow until September 1938. Over the  years he starred in his own radio show (The Orson Welles Show from 1941-1942), The Orson Welles Almanac (1944), and The Black Museum (1952), as well as guest starring on everything from The Jack Benny Programme to Suspense.

Orson Welles's work with the Mercury Theatre (both on stage and on the radio) would lead to his contract with RKO. It was on August 21 1939 that Mr. Welles signed a contract with RKO to make two motion pictures that gave him nearly complete creative control. It was because of his contract with RKO that the Mercury Theatre repertory company moved to Los Angeles. Mr. Welles toyed with various ideas for his first film, including an adaptation of Joesph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. RKO rejected Mr. Welles's first two film proposals before accepting a third one, what would become Citizen Kane (1941).

Citizen Kane would utilise many of the Mercury Theatre's players. Aside from Orson Welles in the lead role, Joseph Cotten, William Alland, Ray Collins, Agnes Moorehead, Erskine Sanford, Everett Sloane, and Paul Stewart all appeared in the film. For many of them it would mark their film debuts. Citizen Kane would prove in many respects a difficult film to make. Many of the executives on RKO's board of governors did not like Mr. Welles and resented the amount of creative control he had been given. Fortunately Orson Welles had some very powerful allies on RKO's board of governors, including RKO studio head George J. Schaefer, millionaire Nelson Rockefeller, and NBC chairman David Sarnoff.

Things would not become any easier for Orson Welles once Citizen Kane was completed. Citizen Kane drew upon major business tycoons Samuel Insull and Harold McCormick for much of its inspiration, but it also drew largely upon publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst as well.  Worse yet, Mr. Hearst assumed that the character of Susan Alexander Kane was based on his mistress Marion Davies; in truth she was based on Harold F. McCormick's second wife, Ganna Walsk. Regardless, the film angered Mr. Hearst, who declared all out war on Citizen Kane and Orson Welles. Every newspaper and radio station he owned was banned from mentioning the film. He pressured several movie theatres not to show the film. Sadly, Citizen Kane would lose $160,000 during its initial run.

Whether Citizen Kane lost money due to Mr. Hearst's campaign against the film or because it was in many ways different from so many films before is perhaps unimportant. Citizen Kane did receive some good reviews upon its initial release, from Anthony Bower of The Nation, New York Daily News critic Kate Cameron, Bosley Crowther of The New York Times,  John O'Hara of Newsweek, and Time magazine, among others. Citizen Kane would be rediscovered in the United States in the Fifties following its release to television. Its reputation would grow until many considered it the greatest film of all time. It would top Sight and Sound's poll of the greatest films of all time from 1962 to 2012, when it was overtaken by Veritgo.

Despite the fact that Citizen Kane would come to be regarded as one of the greatest films of all time, Orson Welles' film career would not always run smoothly. Mr. Welles lost of control of editing his second film, The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) to RKO, and the film ultimately bombed at the box office. Despite this it is still counted among the greatest films of all time. His third film The Stranger (1946), would actually prove to be a success at the box office, grossing $3.216 million. Sadly, Mr. Welles's other films would not prove to be box office smashes, although many are critically acclaimed today: The Lady from Shanghai (1947), Macbeth (1948--performed with authentic Scottish brogues), Touch of Evil (1958), The Trial (1962), and The Chimes at Midnight (1965--based on  Shakespeare's recurring character Sir John Falstaff).

Of course, Orson Welles was an actor as well as a director, and his best known role besides Charles Foster Kane may well have been in a film he did not direct. Quite simply, Orson Welles played the mysterious Harry Lime in Carol Reed's film The Third Man (1949). As hard as it is to believe today, David O. Selznick (who financed the film with Alexander Korda) wanted  Noël Coward for the role of Harry Lime. Fortunately, director Carol Reed wanted Orson Welles for the role. David O. Selznick did not like the idea of Mr. Welles in the role as he considered the actor/director to be box office poison, and Alexander Korda wasn't particularly thrilled about the idea either. Fortunately, Carol Reed was able to get Orson Welles cast in the role in the end.

Despite Messrs. Selznick and Korda's misgivings, not only did The Third Man proved to be a hit at the box office, but Harry Lime proved to be the most popular character in the film. So popular was the character that Orson Welles would reprise the role of Harry Lime in the radio show The Adventures of Harry Lime. The radio show chronicled Lime's adventures before the events of The Third Man, and ran from 1951 to 1952. There would even be a TV show centred on the adventures of Harry Lime, although Michael Rennie played the role on the programme. The Third Man debuted in 1959 and ran for five series. It was a joint production of the BBC, National Telefilm Associates, and Prestige Productions.

Later in his career Orson Welles would become well known for his commercials for the Paul Masson Vineyards in which he intoned "We will sell no wine before its time." He worked on and off on an unfinished film, The Other Side of the Wind. He played Long John Silver in a 1972 film adaptation of Treasure Island, Sheridan Whiteside in a 1972 television adaptation of The Man Who Came to Dinner, and Henry F. Potter in the notorious television remake of It's a Wonderful Life (1946), It Happened One Christmas. His last appearance on film was in Someone to Love in 1987. He died on  October 10 1985.

Over the years Orson Welles was called many things. Critics today are often apt to call him "a genius". Mr. Welles referred to himself as "a charlatan". There can be no doubt that many studio executives referred to him by things that no gentleman would repeat in public. In the end, it is perhaps best to regard Orson Welles as the consummate showman. This was true of Orson Welles when he was working in the theatre. It was true of when he was working in radio. It was true when he was working in film. Mr. Welles had a knack for creating spectacle, often with very little. His 1948 version of Macbeth was made on only a budget of      $800,000, yet he delivered a film that was darker, moodier, and more impressive than many big budget adaptations of "The Scottish Play".

Indeed, Orson Welles's sense for spectacle can be seen in his best known works. If The Mercury Theatre on the Air's "Invasion from Mars" is the best known radio play of all time, it's not only because it scared much of the country. Orson Welles and writer Howard E. Koch crafted a script that was both realistic and yet very dramatic as well. It is easy to see how people could have been fooled into actually believing Earth was being invaded by Martians. By its very nature Citizen Kane had an epic quality to it. Not only did the film tell the life story of a tycoon, but it also utilised storytelling techniques and cinematography that had rarely been seen in film before and made a few innovations in the process. For all Orson Welles's talent, in the end it seems as if he was most interested in putting on a good show. And that he did repeatedly and in multiple media, from theatre to radio to film.

Godspeed Nigel Terry

Nigel Terry, who played King Arthur in Excalibur (1981), Prince John in The Lion in Winter (1968), and the painter of the title in Caravaggio (1986), died on April 30 2015 at the age of 69. The cause was emphysema.

Nigel Terry was born on August 15 1945 in Bristol, Gloucestershire. His family later moved  to Truro, Cornwall. When he was young he had waned to be a painter. While still attending school he participated in the National Youth Theatre in holidays. Nigel Terry worked in both forestry and as a gas station attendant before he studied acting at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London in 1963. He made his stage debut on at the Shaw Theatre in London in a production of The Long and the Short and the Tall by Willis Hall. In his stage career Nigel Terry spent time in repertory with the Oxford Playhouse and the Bristol Old Vic. He also performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Mr. Terry made his television debut in 1967 in an episode of Summer Playhouse. He played Sir Walter Raleigh in the mini-series Kenilworth. In the late Sixties he appeared in episodes of the shows ITV Play of the Week, The Golden Age, Theatre 625, Sherlock Holmes, Boy Meets Girl, Thirty-Minute Theatre, BBC Play of the Month, and Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased). He made his film debut as Prince John in The Lion in Winter in 1968. In 1975 he had an uncredited role in the film Flame.

It was in 1981 that Nigel Terry appeared in what might be his most famous role, that of King Arthur in Excalibur. In the Eighties he also appeared in the films Sylvia (1985), Déjà Vu (1985), Caravaggio (1986), The Last of England (1988), and War Requiem (1989). He appeared in a television production of The Merry Wives of Windsor in 1982. He appeared on the television programmes Ruth Rendell Mysteries and South of the Border.

In the Nineties Nigel Terry was one of the leads on the short lived TV show Covington Cross. He appeared in the mini-series The Orchid House, The Mushroom Picker, and Resort to Murder. He appeared on such TV shows as Zorro, Highlander, In Suspicious Circumstances, Wycliffe, The Vet, Mortimer's Law, and Holby City. He appeared in the films Sight of Land (1991), Edward II (1991), Genghis Khan (1992), and Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992).

In the Naughts Nigel Terry appeared in such films as On Wings of Fire (2001), The Search for John Gissing (2001), Feardotcom (2002), The Ride (2003), Troy (2004), Red Mercury (2005), and Genghis Khan: The Story of a Lifetime (2010). He appeared on such TV shows as The Vice, Cutting It, Walking the Dead, Foyle's War, Spooks, The Time of Your Life, Casualty, Doctor Who, and Agatha Christie's Marple.

Nigel Terry had an aristocratic bearing and a voice to match that made him ideal for playing important historical or legendary figures. It is what made him possibly the best King Arthur to ever appear on the silver screen in Excalibur. That having been said, he was also an actor with an incredible range. Indeed, his best known role had in common with King Arthur beyond the fact that they were both royalty--the scheming Prince John in The Lion in Winter. He was perfect in the role of noble and family patriarch Sir Thomas Grey on Covington Cross (which was sort of a medieval version of Bonanza). Over the years Nigel Terry played such diverse characters as Michelangelo Merisi  da Caravaggio , King Louis XI, and Zarathustra. While Mr. Terry played kings, nobles, and other characters of some importance throughout his career, he was capable of other roles. He was the prosperous farmer and Bathsheba's ardent suitor Boldwood in the 1998 TV adaptation of Far from the Madding Crowd, and an overzealous general in the Doctor Who episode "The Doctor's Daughter". Over the years Nigel Terry appeared in a wide variety of roles, and he played all of them well.

Laurel & Hardy in "The Music Box"

When I was in school at least once a year, every year, our science teacher would tell us that we would not want to miss the next day as we would be covering some very important material. It never failed that following the day the important material would turn out to be two classic Laurel & Hardy shorts. In my four years in high school our science teacher showed some of the best known work Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy ever did: "Them Thar Hills" (1934), "Busy Bodies" (1933), "Helpmates" (1932), and, of course, "The Music Box" (1932).

"The Music Box" has always been my favourite Laurel & Hardy short, and I'm hardly alone in that. It is the favourite of many, perhaps most, of the Laurel & Hardy fans I know. In fact, of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy's many short subjects, it has the highest user rating at IMDB. "The Music Box" has also been imitated several times over the years.

For those who have never seen "The Music Box", its premise is deceptively simple. Laurel & Hardy operate a moving company, the Laurel and Hardy Transfer Company. They are hired by Mrs. Theodore von Schwartzenhoffen (played by Gladys Gale) to move a piano that is a birthday present for her husband, Professor Theodore Von Schwarzenhoffen (played by Billy Gilbert). Unfortunately, the Von Schwarzenhoffen's house turns out to be at the top of some very steep steps. Those steps only turn out to be the beginning of Stan and Ollie's problems in moving the piano.

While "The Music Box" would prove to be one of Laurel & Hardy's most popular and influential shorts, it was actually in part a remake of their earlier silent short "Hats Off" from 1927. "Hats Off" involved Stan and Ollie attempting to sell a washing machine and then having to move said washing machine up the exact same steps where they would try to move the piano five years later. In fact, it was those flight of steps--an actual flight of steps between 923 and 937 Vendome Street in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles--that would provide the inspiration for "Hats Off". Hal Roach had earlier used the location for the 1925 Charley Chase short "Isn't Life Terrible?". Seeing the rather precipitous steps, it occurred to Mr. Roach that men moving a heavy object up them would make for great comedy. Sadly, "Hats Off" is a lost film; it has not been seen since 1930.

Of course, one of the major differences between "Hats Off" and "The Music Box" is that in "Hats Off" it is a washing machine that is being moved, while in "The Music Box" it is a piano. According to Billy Gilbert in an interview in the Sixties, it was decided to use a piano instead of a washing machine because a piano is not only heavy and unwieldy, but also somewhat fragile. Naturally this would not only create more dramatic tension (will the piano come crashing down at any moment?), but also more comedy. The crate that Laurel and Hardy moved in much of the film was actually empty, so that it was actually both lighter and more manoeuvrable than it would have been had it contained a piano. That having been said, for the scene in which it comes careening down all 131 steps an actual piano was used. While an actual piano was used for that scene, however, the piano that is destroyed in the climax of "The Music Box" was actually a mock up of a piano made of balsa wood and a few parts from an actual piano.

Shooting at an actual location did present some problems for the production. While most Laurel & Hardy shorts were shot in sequence, "The Music Box" had to be shot out of sequence because the cast and crew would often have to wait for the proper light from the sun due to changing cloud conditions. Another problem resulted from the sheer superstardom of  Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. During the shoot a special squad of police had to be assigned to the steps due to a crowd of  3500 fans gathered to watch the production. There are some estimates that during lunch breaks Laurel & Hardy signed over 2000 autographs. Not only was much of "The Music Box" shot at an actual location, but many of the sounds there are reportedly authentic as well. Recording engineers were sent to the location to record actual sounds from the area for use as ambient sound for the short.

The steps used in the filming of "The Music Box" are still there. There is even a sign at their top on Descanso Drive identifying them as "the 'Music Box' Steps". Of course, in reality the steps do not and never have led to a mansion at their top. The mansion that features in the film was actually a set at Hal Roach studios.  Despite the difficulty that shooting on location presented, "The Music Box" was shot in a little less than two weeks in December 1931.

"The Music Box" was released on April 16 1932 and proved to be incredibly popular on its first release. In fact, it became the very first short subject to win the Academy Award for Live Action Short Film (Comedy). Of course, this also means that it was the very first Laurel & Hardy short to win an Oscar. They would win one more Academy Award for Best Short Subject, Comedy for "Tit for Tat" (1935). Over the years "The Music Box" has had an enduring impact on popular culture. Two short stories by Laurel & Hardy fan Ray Bradbury were inspired by "The Music Box":  "Another Fine Mess" and "The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair". One of a series of commercials made for Aamco that featured actors Jim McGeorge and Chuck McCann as Laurel & Hardy was a take off on "The Music Box". Blake Edwards's 1986 film A Fine Mess took its primary inspiration from " The Music Box". It was in 1997 that "The Music Box" was chosen by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Seen today "The Music Box" remains one of the finest achievements in motion picture comedy. That it has endured for over eighty years can be chalked up to a number of factors, not the least of which are the players. Stan and Ollie are in top form in "The Music Box". Stan is at his most child-like and innocent, while the frustration of moving the piano gives Ollie ample opportunity to display his patented slow-burn. In some ways "The Music Box" is the quintessential Laurel & Hardy short, in which two simple, sweet natured, but none too bright fellows struggle to accomplish something through mounting difficulties to no avail. Billy Gilbert also gives a great performance as Professor Theodore Von Schwarzenhoffen, M.D., A.D., D.D.S., F.L.D., F-F-F-and-F. Indeed, the professor is one of the best characters Mr. Gilbert ever played. Not only is he excitable and nervous, but he is arguably even downright psychotic. The combination of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy's simple characters with Billy Gilbert's more worldly, but volatile character, proved to be comic magic in "The Music Box".

Of course, another factor in the enduring appeal of "The Music Box" is that it takes a simple situation and plays it for all it is worth. Many Laurel & Hardy shorts operated on the premise of starting out with a gag and then building upon it with more and more gags until reaching the climax. This is particularly true of "The Music Box". Laurel & Hardy attempt to move the piano up the steps, which are enough of an obstacle in and of themselves, only to find themselves consistently stymied by complication after complication. What is worse, moving the piano gets no easier once they reach the top of the steps. In many ways "The Music Box" is one of the most perfectly crafted Laurel & Hardy shorts, with the simple idea of moving a piano providing fodder for a whole thirty minutes.

It is because of the combination of memorable characters placed in the seemingly simple situation of moving a piano that "The Music Box" remains funny today. It proved to be a hit in theatres upon its release in 1932. In the Fifties "The Music Box" and the other Laurel & Hardy shorts found a whole new audience when they entered syndication on television. Today audiences find "The Music Box" as funny as audiences did in the Fifties. In the end "The Music Box" was not simply another comedy short from the Thirties. It has become a comedy classic.

The Late Great Ben E. King

Ben E. King, known for such hits with The Drifters as "There Goes My Baby" and "This Magic Moment" and such hits as a solo artist as "Spanish Harlem" and "Stand By Me", died yesterday, April 30 2015 at the age of 76.

Ben E.King was born Benjamin Earl Nelson on September 28 1938 in Henderson, North Carolina. His family moved to Harlem in New York City where his father operated a luncheonette. It was there that Lover Patterson overheard him singing and hired him to join The Five Crowns, a do-wop group he managed. The Five Crowns were on their way to a successful career when they performed at the Apollo Theatre alongside The Drifters in 1958. The Drifters' manager,  George Treadwell, heard them and was impressed. Mr. Treadwell and The Drifters were at odds, so eventually he fired the entire group in the summer of 1958. With dates at the Apollo and other venues already booked, Mr. Treadwell entered into a deal with Lover Patterson for The Five Crowns (except  James "Poppa" Clark, who had a drinking problem) to become a new version of The Drifters.

Atlantic assigned the legendary songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller (who had already written a string of hits for The Coasters, Elvis Presley, and other artists) to produce this new version of The Drifters. The combination proved to be a success and The Drifters, with Ben E. King as the lead tenor, soon had several hits: "There Goes My Baby" (which went to #2 on the Billboard singles chart); "This Magic Moment" (which went to #16 on the Billboard singles chart), "Save the Last Dance for Me" (which went to #1 on the Billboard singles chart), and "I Count the Tears" (which went to #17 on the Billboard singles chart).

Despite such success Ben E. King would not remain with The Drifters for long. Lover Patterson (who was still Ben E. King's manager) and Ben E. King asked George Treadwell for a raise in salary as well as a portion of the royalties. When Mr. Treadwell refused, Ben E. King ceased touring or making television appearances with The Drifters. He continued to record with the group only until he was replaced by  Rudy Lewis. The Drifters would continue to have hits without Ben E. King, including "Some Kind of Wonderful", "Up On The Roof", "Please Stay" and "On Broadway". As to Ben E. King, he launched a very successful solo career.

Ben E. King remained with Atlantic as a solo artist and was assigned to its Atco label. His first few single as a solo artist (two of which were duets with LaVern Baker) failed to chart, but he had a hit with his fifth single as a solo artist, "Spanish Harlem". Written by Jerry Leiber and Phil Spector, "Spanish Harlem" went to #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Ben E. King would have an even bigger hit with "Stand by Me". Written by Ben E. King, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, "Stand By Me" went to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. With the release of the film Stand By Me, the song re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at #9 in 1986. According to music licensing company BMI in 1999, "Stand by Me" was the fourth most played song of the Twentieth Century.

Ben E. King would never again match the success of "Stand By Me", although he did have further hits in the Sixties. "Amor" went to #18 on the Billboard Hot 100."Don't Play That Song (You Lied)" went to #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Tell Daddy" went to #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. "I (Who Have Nothing)" from 1963 would be his last major hit for a time, reaching #29 on the Billboard  Hot 100. Mr. King continued to release singles and albums throughout the Sixties and into the Seventies. In 1975 he had another hit with "Supernatural Thing, Part 1", which went to #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. His last single was "4th of July" in 1997.

Starting with Spanish Harlem in 1961, Ben E. King released several albums over the years. Spanish Harlem went to #57 on the Billboard album chart. His 1975 album Supernatural reached #39 on the chart. Throughout his career over 25 albums (including compilations) were released by Ben E. King.

Ben E. King certainly had an incredible voice. He had a soulful voice that easily blended Gospel, R&B, and traditional American pop together in one sound. His voice also had an emotive quality that is seen in his biggest hits: "There Goes My Baby", "This Magic Moment", "Stand By Me", and so on. If Ben E. King's songs have remained popular through the years, it is perhaps because of the emotion his vocals lent to them.

Of course, Ben E. King was also a songwriter as well as a vocalist. He co-wrote "Stand By Me" as well as "There Goes My Baby", "Dance with Me", and "We're Gonna Groove" (often performed by Led Zeppelin). "Stand by Me" alone has been covered over 400 times and has become one of the most enduring songs of the 20th Century. Both during his career with The Drifters and his solo career, Ben E. King achieved the sort of lasting success many singers only dream about.

Cinematographer Andrew Lesnie Passes On

Andrew Lesnie, the cinematographer who shot Babe (1995), The Lord of the Rings, King King (2005), and The Hobbit, died April 27 2015 at the age of 59. The cause was a heart attack.

Andrew Lesnie was born in 1956 in Sydney, Australia. He started his career as a camera assistant on the film Patrick in 1979. In the Eighties he served as a documentary cameraman on Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981); an additional photographer on Early Frost (1982) and Dead End Drive-In (1986); and a camera operator on Emoh Ruo (1985) and Tripe (1989). He was director of photography for additional material on The 13th Floor (1988) and second unit director of photography on Farewell to the King (1989). His first cinematography credit came with The Comeback in 1980. In the Eighties he served as cinematographer on such films as The Same Stream (1981), Stations (1983), Fantasy Man (1984), The Man You Know (1984), Unfinished Business (1985), Fair Game (1986), Australian Dream (1987), The Delinquents (1989), Boys in the Island (1990). He also worked in television on the mini-series Cyclone Tracy and the TV movie The Saint: Fear in Fun Park among other projects.

In the Nineties he served as a camera operator on Spider & Rose (1994). He did additional photography for Dark City (1998). He served as cinematographer on The Girl Who Came Late (1992), Fatal Past (1993), Spider & Rose (1994), Babe (1995), Two If by Sea (1996), Doing Time for Patsy Cline (1997), The Sugar Factory (1998), and Babe: Pig in the City (1998).

In the Naughts Andrew Lesnie was cinematographer on The Lord of the Rings, Love's Brother (2004), King Kong (2005), I Am Legend (2007), Bran Nue Dae (2009), The Lovely Bones (2009), and The Last Airbender (2010). He won the Oscar for Best Cinematography for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001).

In the Teeens Mr. Lesnie served as cinematographer on Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), the segment "Reunion" in the anthology film The Turning (2013), Healing (2014), The Water Diviner (2014), and The Hobbit films.

Don Mankiewicz R.I.P.

Screenwriter Don Mankiewicz, who was nominated for the Oscar for  Writing Adapted Screenplay for I Want to Live! (1958) and wrote episodes of such shows as Star Trek and Ironside, died on April 25 2015 at the age of 93.

Don Mankiewicz was born on January 20 1922 in Berlin, where his father was working as a foreign correspondent for The Chicago Tribune at the time. His father was legendary screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz. His younger brother was journalist Frank Mankiewicz. After graduating from high school in Beverly Hills, Don Mankiewicz attended Columbia University, where he received a bachelor's degree in 1942. He left law school to join the United States Army during World War II. He served in the European theatre in military intelligence.

Mr. Mankiewicz sold his first short story to The New Yorker and later worked as a staff writer for the magazine. In 1951 his first teleplay aired, an episode of the anthology series Schlitz Playhouse. During the Fifties he wrote episodes of such shows as Studio One, Lux Video Theatre, The Ford Television Theatre, Kraft Theatre, Armchair Theatre, and One Step Beyond. His first novel, Trial, was published in 1954. He wrote the screenplays for Fast Company (1953), The Big Moment (1954), Trial (1955--based on his novel of the same name), House of Numbers (1957), Le imprese di una spada leggendaria (1958), and I Want to Live! (1958). He was nominated for the Academy Award for I Want to Live!.

In the Sixties Don Makiewicz wrote the pilots for both Ironside and Marcus Welby M.D., as well as the Star Trek episode "Court Martial". He also wrote episodes of Bus Stop, General Electric Theatre, Armstrong Circle Theatre, Profiles in Courage, The Trials of O'Brien, Ironside, Mannix, and Marcus Welby M.D. He was nominated for Outstanding Writing Achievement in Drama for episodes of both Ironside and Marcus Welby M.D. His novel It Only Hurts a Minute was published in 1966. He wrote the film The Chapman Report (1962).

In the Seventies Mr. Mankiewicz wrote the story for the film The Black Bird (1975). He wrote episodes of Sarge, McMillan & Wife, Lanigan's Rabbi, and Rosetti and Ryan, as well as the TV movies The Bait and Sanctuary of Fear. In the Eighties he wrote episodes of Simon & Simon, MacGyver, and The Marshal.

Don Mankiewicz was a very talented writer. In both his film work and his television work he displayed a knack for exploring interpersonal relationships. His plots were always character driven. In fact, he had a knack for getting into his character's heads in a way few writers can. As might be expected, because of this he had a gift for writing dialogue as well. When one watched a movie or teleplay written by Don Mankiewicz, he could expect realistic characters with often complex motivations. It was  rare gift during his career and it might be rarer now.

Godspeed Jayne Meadows

Jayne Meadows, the actress who with Steve Allen formed one of the most famous husband and wife teams in show business, died yesterday at the age of 95.

Jayne Meadows was born Jane Meadows Cotter on September 27 1919 in  Wuchang, China. Her younger sister, Audrey Meadows, was born in 1922. Their father and mother were Episcopal missionaries there. The family returned to the United States in 1927 and settled in  Sharon, Connecticut. It was there that their father became a rector of Christ Church. Both Jayne Meadows and her sister Audrey attended an all girls boarding school. Following graduation, Jayne Meadows moved to New York City to pursue acting.

Jayne Meadows made her debut on Broadway in Spring Again in 1941. She appeared again on Broadway in such productions as Another Love Story, Many Happy Returns, and Kiss Them for Me. She made her film debut in Undercurrent in 1946. In the late Forties she appeared in the films Lady in the Lake (1947), Dark Delusion (1947), Song of the Thin Man (1947), The Luck of the Irish (1948), and Enchantment (1948).

It was in 1954 that Jayne Meadows married television personality Steve Allen. The two became one of the most successful husband and wife teams in show business. Miss Meadows appeared frequently on The Steve Allen Show. In the Fifties she also appeared on such shows as The Colgate Comedy Hour, Your Show of Shows, Robert Montgomery Presents, Kraft Theatre, I've Got a Secret, Suspense, Studio One, The U.S. Steel Hour, The Red Skelton Show, To Tell the Truth, and The Ann Sothern Show. She appeared in the films The Fat Man (1951), David and Bathsheba (1951), It Happened to Jane (1959), and College Confidential (1960). She appeared on Broadway in The Gazebo.

In the Sixties Jayne Meadows appeared on such TV shows as The Art Linkletter Show, The Judy Garland Show, The New Steve Allen Show, What's My Line, The Red Skelton Hour, The Eleventh Hour, The Celebrity Game, Match Game, I've Got a Secret, The Milton Berle Show, Hollywood Squares, Good Morning World, Here Come the Brides, Love American Style, and Here's Lucy. She was a regular on the TV show Medical Centre during its first few seasons.

In the Seventies Jayne Meadows appeared regularly on her husband Steve Allen's show Meeting of the Minds. She appeared on the shows The New Temperatures Rising Show, Adam-12, The Tonight Show, The Girl with Something Extra, The Practice, Switch, The Hallmark Hall of Fame, The Paper Chase, Project U.F.O., and Hawaii Five-O. She appeared in the film Norman... Is That You? (1976).  She appeared one last time on Broadway in Once in a Lifetime.

In the Eighties Miss Meadows appeared on the TV shows Rise and Shine, Aloha Paradise, Trapper John, M.D., Fantasy Island, Hotel, Murder She Wrote, The Love Boat, and St. Elsewhere. She was a a a regular on the show It's Not Easy. She appeared in the films Da Capo (1985) and Murder by Numbers (1990). In the Nineties she appeared on the TV shows Civil Wars, Sisters, Vicki!, Tom. The Nanny, Homicide: Life on the Street, and Diagnosis Murder. She was a regular on the show High Society. She appeared in the films City Slickers (1991), For Goodness Sake (1993), City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold (1994), and The Story of Us (1999).

Although many now are probably more familiar with her work on television, Jayne Meadows started her career in film.  What is more, she was an extremely versatile actress. In Lady in the Lake she played a femme fatale who was a true sociopath. In The Fat Man she was cast in a much more sympathetic role as a nurse. Her guest appearances on television shows also displayed her range as an actress. She played a reporter in the Suspense episode "F.O.B. Vienna" and on the Studio One episode "Drop of a Hat" she played the managing editor of a glossy fashion magazine. Throughout her career Jayne Meadows displayed a great talent for acting.

Of course, many today probably remember Jayne Meadows best as a television personality. From the Fifties to the Nineties she appeared on numerous game shows, talk shows, and variety shows. And she was certainly well suited as a television celebrity. Not only was Miss Meadows beautiful, but she was also vivacious, intelligent, and well spoken. She had one of the most wonderful voices on television, loud but very pleasant nonetheless. There should be little wonder that she was in so much demand for so long for television appearances. Gifted with looks, talent,and wit, she was perfect for the many panel shows and variety shows that proliferated from the Fifties to the Seventies.