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The Cinematic Voyage of The Pirate
Kelly, Garland, and Minnelli at Work
by Earl J. Hess and Pratibha A. Dabholkar
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Book Presentation:
During Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s glory days, the studio’s famous Arthur Freed Unit made an extraordinary string of dazzling musicals. One of its very best was The Pirate. Based on a successful 1942 Broadway production, the film was directed by Vincente Minnelli and starred Gene Kelly and Judy Garland. It showcased some of the brightest work of these three gifted moviemakers and entranced many critics and viewers with exotic set décor and costumes, brilliant Technicolor application, stunning dance routines, and a clever plot about an actor who pretends to be a famous pirate to win the love of a fanciful island girl.
The Cinematic Voyage of The Pirate: Kelly, Garland, and Minnelli at Work follows the model of Hess and Dabholkar’s previous study of Singin’ in the Rain. Drawing on exhaustive research in archives, memoirs, interviews, and newspaper coverage, it takes the reader from the original conception of the story in the mind of a German playwright named Ludwig Fulda, through S. N. Behrman’s Broadway production starring Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, to the arduous task of crafting a suitable screenplay at MGM. Behind-the-scenes issues such as Garland’s personal problems during the making of the film and the shaping of the film by Minnelli and Kelly are among the many subjects detailed here.
While the initial reception of The Pirate reinforced hopes for its success, many audiences did not understand the film’s tongue-in-cheek aspect, and some critical reviews were mixed. This shaded the perception of the film and its significance. As this careful study shows, The Pirate was a commercial and critical success despite some early misperceptions. The movie made a small profit for MGM, and the film grew in public appeal over time.
The Pirate has been studied by film historians, gender studies scholars, and film studies professionals since it was released in 1948. The Cinematic Voyage of The Pirate contributes to a growing literature asserting the importance of single-film production history and the significance of the film musical in the golden age of Hollywood.
About the authors:
Earl J. Hess is emeritus professor, Lincoln Memorial University. Pratibha A. Dabholkar is emerita professor, University of Tennessee. The authors are married to each other and have also published two other film history books on Gene Kelly and his film musicals: Singin’ in the Rain: The Making of an American Masterpiece, 2009 and Gene Kelly: The Making of a Creative Legend, 2020. More information about the authors and their work can be found at https://www.love-and-learning.info.
Press Reviews:
"In a scholarly page-turner that leaves no stone untouched, Earl J. Hess and Pratibha A. Dabholkar's The Cinematic Voyage of The Pirate is not just a phenomenally well-researched dissertation on the 1948 M-G-M musical but more like a meticulously well-explored dissection of this trailblazing film in which every aspect of its history is examined."—ARSC Journal (Association for Recorded Sound Collections)
"This is a first-rate piece of work. The book does a fabulous job of covering every possible aspect of The Pirate’s production history. Readers will find this book a good read; scholars will treat it as an important and lasting resource. Overall, the balance of topics and treatments is well-nigh perfect."—Rick Altman, author of The American Film Musical and Film/Genre
"Hess and Dabholkar make another important contribution to the study of the American movie musical. This book is the final word on the seminal Kelly-Garland-Minelli musical The Pirate. It is a model for how to do a historical and critical analysis of a single film."—Gerald R. Butters, Jr., author of Banned in Kansas: Motion Picture Censorship, 1915-1966
See the publisher website: University of Missouri Press
See The Pirate (1948) on IMDB ...
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