Scalawag (film)
| Scalawag | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Kirk Douglas |
| Written by | Sid Fleischman Albert Maltz |
| Starring | Kirk Douglas Mark Lester Neville Brand |
| Cinematography | Jack Cardiff |
| Edited by | John C. Howard Antonietta Zita |
| Music by | John Cameron |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates | 30 May 1973 (Milan, Italy) 16 October 1973 (Chicago) 4 December 1973 (Yugoslavia) 12 July 1974 (West Germany) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Scalawag is a 1973 film directed by Kirk Douglas, his first of two films directed, the other being Posse. The film is a western re-telling of Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Plot
 | This article needs a plot summary. (April 2021) |
Cast
- Kirk Douglas as Peg
- Mark Lester as Jamie
- Neville Brand as Brimstone / Mudhook
- George Eastman as Don Aragon
- Don Stroud as Velvet
- Lesley-Anne Down as Lucy-Ann
- Danny DeVito as Fly Speck
- Mel Blanc as Barfly the Parrot (voice)
- Phil Brown as Sandy
- Davor Antolic as Rooster
- Stole Arandelovic as Beanbelly
- Fabijan Sovagovic as Blackfoot
- Shaft Douglas as Beau
Production
The film was based on an original story by Albert Maltz. It was announced in 1966 and was going to be a co production between Kirk Douglas' Joel Production and Malcolm Stuart's Coldwater Productions. Douglas would star. It would be the first time Maltz would receive screen credit in 19 years.[1]
Filming was delayed. Douglas raised the money. He hired his wife as producer, his son as stills photographer and another son as office boy. "So if this film stinks we've got the whole Douglas family to blame," said Douglas. He added, "My phone doesn't ring any more. I have to find my own work."[2]
In 1972 Douglas said he would produce and direct it as well as star and that the script was by Sid Fleischman. Filming was to start in Yugoslavia in June 1972.[3] By May the cast included Mark Lester, Lesley Anne Down and Danny DeVito.[4] Douglas said he rewrote the screenplay.[2]
"I wanted to get back the old feeling of movies I experienced as a kid," said Douglas, "pirates, derring-do, people getting killed, but you don't see any blood."[2]
"It's a version of Treasure Island set in the old West on horseback," said Douglas. "There's adventure, violence, and there's romance - a girl sings a romantic song while dreaming of a good looking guy. Yes it's old fashioned but that's what I liked as a kid. I guess I haven't lost either my love of romance or my sense of innocence."[5]
Douglas said, "There was no pretentiousness about" the shoot. "We lived under primitive conditions with no toilets and learned one Yugoslavian phrase to save our lives - 'Bex bela luka'. That means 'no garlic'. You see old movies on the Late Show and everybody asks why they don't make movies like that anymore. Critics have made it fashionable to be pretentious and incoherent."[2]
References
- ^ Martin, Betty (24 June 1966). "Kirk Douglas will produce and star in 'Scalawag'". Los Angeles Times. p. c13.
- ^ a b c d Reed, Rex (4 March 1973). "Rex Reed reports: Doin' what comes naturally, Kirk takes on Mr. Hyde". Chicago Tribune. p. e8.
- ^ Haber, Joyce (28 May 1972). "New Hollywood even in London". Los Angeles Times. p. f10.
- ^ Murphy, Mary (31 May 1972). "MOVIE CALL SHEET: Katharine Ross in 'Kill' With Garner". Los Angeles Times. p. h10.
- ^ Siskel, Gene (17 October 1973). "Kirk's Innocent". Chicago Tribune. pp. b8.
External links
- Scalawag at IMDb
- Scalawag at AllMovie
- Scalawag at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
- Scalawag at the TCM Movie Database
- Scalawag at Rotten Tomatoes
- 1973 films
- 1970s adventure films
- British adventure films
- Bryna Productions films
- Films directed by Kirk Douglas
- Films produced by Kirk Douglas
- Films scored by John Cameron (musician)
- Films set in the 1840s
- Paramount Pictures films
- Treasure Island films
- 1973 directorial debut films
- 1970s English-language films
- 1970s British films