Tag Archive | Burt Lancaster

Irène Papas for Remembrance

Everyone in your life will have a last day with you and you don’t even know when it will be…

In 1973, Irène Papas acted in the Biblical TV miniseries Moses the Lawgiver (Moses, 1974). A co-production of Sir Lew Grade’s British ATV-ITC consortium and Italy’s RAI (Radiotelevisione Italiana) Television, it was made at a cost of about $6 million.

This episodic biopic of the Old Testament Hebrew prophet and lawgiver Moses (Hebrew: Môsheh – c. 12th century BC) (1), well-written by British novelist Anthony Burgess (A Clockwork Orange) along with Vittorio Bonicelli and its director Gianfranco de Bosio, starts with the rescue of infant Moses while afloat on the Nile, by Princess Bithia (meaning: daughter of God), one of Pharaoh’s daughters.

The familiar story then chronicles the period Moses was brought up in the corrupt brilliance of the Pharaoh’s Court; his eventual encounter with the voice of the Lord in the Burning Bush; the Exodus when Moses led the people of Israel from slavery to freedom out of Egypt by way of Sinai; the iconic event when Moses received the tablets of the Ten Commandments from Yahweh (Jehovah) on Mount Sinai; and Moses’ death after setting his eyes on the Promised Land.

Zipporah (Sephora, meaning little bird), Irène’s character in this Teleplay series, is one of seven daughters of Jethro (Raguel/Reuel), a priest of the Midianite tribes, that Moses married and adapted to a quiet life of a shepherd. As I write this, I could particularly recall that scene when Moses bids goodbye to wife Zipporah and his son, before he returned to lead his people from bondage in Egypt.

Fifty-nine year old Burt Lancaster dominates the role of the title character with supporting turns by Anthony Quayle (Aaron), Ingrid Thulin (Miriam), Marina Berti (Eliseba), Mariangela Melato (The Princess Bithia), Laurent Terzieff (Pharaoh Mernefta), etc. Burt’s son by Norma Anderson, 25 year old William “Bill” Lancaster was tasked with the role of young Moses. Under director Gianfranco De Bosio, the filming which started in August 1973 at Rome’s Cinecittà Studio went on to continue on location in Israel which was briefly interrupted by the outbreak of Yom Kippur War, the 1973 Arab-Israeli War fought from 06 to 25 October and ended in an Israeli victory. After the war, some of the cast and crew returned to Israel from Rome and the shooting resumed.

It took a total of six months for entire filming to complete and the theatrical version of Moses the Lawgivercame out in March 1976. As part of the production crew was Mario Bava, a visionary always worth watching, who provided the special effects. The music was composed and orchestrated by Ennio Morricone with additional music, songs and dances by Dov Seltzer.

The two movies of director Moustapha Akkad in which Irène Papas starred are epics in scale, set in highly traditional cultures. Irène took on the role of Hind bint Utbah, wife of Abou Sufyan in The Message (Mohammad, Messenger of God/Al Risalah, 1976). Take note of Irène’s introductory scene in which she walks in the market with a gypsy swing of her hips.

Shot in Panavision on location in Morocco and Libya by Jack Hildyard, the spectacular film about the birth of the Muslim religion was filmed devoutly and with sensitivity by Syrian-American film producer/director Moustapha Akkad. The screenplay by H.A.L. Craig written from the point of view of Mohammed’s uncle Hamza, imparted more emphasis to action than religious angles. Anthony Quinn turns in a powerful, screen-filling performance as Hamza struggling to win religious freedom for Mohammad.

According to title credits, the film’s accuracy and fidelity have been approved by scholars and historians of Islam. In addition, as per Islamic tradition, the impersonation of the Prophet offends against the spirituality of Mohammad’s message, hence, the person of Mohammed is never shown although the audience see the world through his eyes as he sits high in the saddle of his camel as it strides into Mecca. The holiest shrine, Kaaba, was recreated for the film.

The Message was made in two versions with almost separate casts: one in English with well-known actors (3); and the other version in Arabic with actors of the same rank in the Egyptian/Syrian film world. Michael Ansara, Johnny Sekka, Michael Forest co-starred in the English version. Music was composed and conducted by Maurice Jarre.

Iphigenia (Ifigeneia, 1977), a stunning film interpretation of Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides produced by Greek Film Center recounts the Greek legend of Agamemnon’s attempt to sacrifice his young first-born daughter Iphigenia on the altar of Artemis to obtain a fair wind for one thousand ships and also as atonement for having offended Artemis by killing her favourite stag. As Agamemnon prepares to sacrifice his daughter, Artemis at the last moment snatched her from the altar and carried her to heaven.

Billed as Eirini Papa in Iphigenia, Irène chewed the scenery as Clytemnestra, the faithless wife of Agamemnon and wounded mother. Directed by Michael Cacoyannis with eye-popping visuals by Giorgos Arvanitis, Irène’s principal scene-partners in Iphigenia included: Kostas Kazakos as Agamemnon, leader of the Greeks at the siege of Troy; young Tatiana Papamoskou/Papamoschou in an impressive performance as Iphigenia, daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra; and Panos Mihalopoulos as Achilles, the hero of the Iliad, who, in this movie, is to be a match for Iphigenia. The film featured powerful music score by Mikis Theodorakis.

Iphigenia played at Cannes and Chicago International Film Festivals in 1977, and it won Best Film and Best Actress (Tatiana Papamoschou) awards at 1977 Thessaloniki Film Festival. Nothing was too great or too small to escape Cacoyannîs’ attention.

In an interview, Cacoyannîs once commented about Irène’s portrayal of Clytemnestra – that he “had identified Clytemnestra with her (Irène) before I made the film. She wasn’t really cast, she was part of the decision to make the him. I’d had no other image of Clytemnestra in my head. It’s that extraordinary physique of hers, and the power that goes with it. When Irène cracks, it’s like a stone that cracks. There is no sentimental self-pity. Her cries are not hysterical; they are defiant cries against the order of things….”

Although Iphigenia (Greece) was nominated for Oscar for the Best Foreign Language Film in the 50^th Academy Awards 1978, it lost out to Israeli film director Moshé Mizrahi’s Madame Rosa (La vie devant soi, 1977, France) starring Simone Signoret and Samy Ben-Youb. At that time Irène was in the middle of a lawsuit initiated by her against the producers of The Greek Tycoon (1978) which starred Anthony Quinn and Jacqueline Bisset, and directed by J. Lee Thompson of The Guns of Navarone.

As per reports, initially, Irène was cast in The Greek Tycoon for a fee of US$55,000/- and she had kept herself free for its filming while the preproduction period stretched to a year during which her name was extensively used to attract investors to the movie. But when the production finally started rolling in the summer of 1977, another actress took over and portrayed the role meant for Irène. A book relates that her lawsuit for the contract amount was settled out of court. During this time, the dark-haired beautiful Irène was seeing Greek actor Nikos Verlekis, her young boyfriend.

Irène Papas was cast as Simonetta Palazzi in American writer Sidney Sheldon’s Bloodline (1979). With Terence Young of James Bond movies holding its directorial reins, this thriller told the story of Heiress Elizabeth Roffe (Audrey Hepburn). Neither daft bairn nor a silly-headed lassie, the protagonist Elizabeth was the smart head of the large Zurich-based Roffe & Sons Pharmaceuticals conglomerate who, mind now, finds her life endangered after inheriting the firm. Rated for graphic sex scenes, the movie is a tossed salad of international talent viz. Ben Gazzara, James Mason, Omar Sharif, Romy Schneider, Michelle Phillips, Claudia Mori, Beatrice Straight, Gert Fröbe, Wolfgang Preiss, etc. Music was by Ennio Morricone.

Irène took the role of Mabrouka in the historical epic, Lion of the Desert (El león del desierto, 1981) which recounts the last years of the real-life Omar Mukhtar (Anthony Quinn), the leader of Libyan rebels who resisted Italian rule and Mussolini’s forays into Libya between 1911 and 1931 to create a new Roman Empire.

A Libyan-British production directed by Moustapha Akkad (who began his cinema career as director Sam Peckinpah’s production assistant), and filmed by Cinematographer Jack Hildyard in Libya, it was funded by the assassinated Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi (1942-2011).

Besides the talents of Quinn and Irène, the film also featured an impressive star-cast of Oliver Reed, John Gielgud, Raf Vallone, with Rod Steiger as Benito Mussolini (2). Maurice Jarre (Doctor Zhivago; Jesus of Nazareth) wrote the music score. Out of the three costume designers who did noteworthy costumes for this movie, it was Orietta Nasalli-Rocca who costumed Anthony Quinn as Pope in English director Michael Anderson’s The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968) based on novel by Morris L. West.

Eréndira, released in 1983, featured a cruel fable involving a wealthy but tyrannical grandmother Amadis who loses everything owing to a fire accidently set by her sleepwalking granddaughter Eréndira, an innocent, obedient maiden. To recoup Amadis’ losses worth over $1 million, she forced Eréndira to sell her virginity to the highest bidder in Mexico. The casting is exemplary. Irène Papas surpasses herself as Grandmother Amadis and Cláudia Ohana as heroine Eréndira, while Michael Lonsdale, Oliver Wehe, co-starred in this disturbing black comedy directed by Ruy Guerra. The screenplay is by Colombian novelist Gabriel García Márquez (4) from two of his own stories.

In The Assisi Underground (1985), Irène is the courageous Madre Maria Giuseppina Biviglia (1897-1991), the Mother Abbess of Monastero di San Quirico (le Clarisse, the cloistered Poor Clares), Assisi. It is adapted from the 1978 book, The Assisi Underground: The Priests Who Rescued Jews as told by Padre Rufino Niccacci to Alexander Ramati who also directed the movie. The film depicts true events occurred in 1943-44 during WW2 when Catholics in Assisi, Italy, gave refuge to Italian Jews in the city’s Franciscan monastery/convent, from Nazi Anti-Semitism. This Menahem Golan/Yoram Globus-The Cannon Group production co-stars: Ben Cross, James Mason, Maximilian Schell, etc.

The Assisi Underground is the second collaboration of Irène with director Alexander Ramati. Nearly two decades ago, Irène starred as Ajmi in the Spanish-American production, The Desperate Ones (1967). This chase melodrama was scripted and directed by Alexander Ramati based on his novel, Beyond the Mountains, the title by which The Desperate Ones is sometimes known.

As the story goes, two Polish brothers, imprisoned in a Siberian labour camp escape and heads for Uzbekistan in Asiatic Russia where they contact smugglers who will guide them over the mountainous border to Afghanistan. During their onward progress, their various encounters include the suspicious head (Theodore Bikel) of the local N.K.V.D; a stunning blonde beauty Marusia (Maria Perschy); their benefactor’s wife Ajmi (Irène Papas), etc. Maximilian Schell, Raf Vallone, Fernando Rey, etc, co-starred. Despite the film’s exotic settings, costumes of Asian Russia and the impressive line-up of stars, adverse elements such as faulty scripting, uninspired direction, and soporific editing, badly affected the film’s success.

Irène portrayed the role of Penelope in the romantic comedy, High Season (1987) about a talented British photographer named Katherine residing in Rhodes, Greece and her involvement with obnoxious tourists, a spy, smugglers, etc. The film, with brief nudity and adult themes, marked the directorial debut of Clare Peploe (once married to Italian filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci) and starred Jacqueline Bisset, James Fox, Kenneth Branagh, among others.

The year 1990 marked the release of TV movie, Un Bambino di Nome Gesù (A Child Called Jesus), directed by Franco Rossi. This life of Jesus is an Act of Faith. It compels attention and interest as an attempt to figure out Jesus’ missing years from age 3 to 12. Besides Irène in the role of old Maria, the film centred on Matteo Bellina as Jesus, María del Carmen San Martin as Maria and Bekim Fehmiu as Joseph. Vittorio Bonicelli co-wrote the script of Un Bambino di Nome Gesù which was mainly filmed in Yugoslavia.

Italian TV audiences may recall Yugoslavian actor Bekim Fehmiu (who flaunted shades of Porfirio Rubirosa in Harold Robbins’ The Adventurers) in the role of Ulysse (Ulysses/Odysseus), the wisest of the heroes, and Irène Papas as his faithful wife Pénélope (5) in Dino De Laurentiis production of the 1968 RAI TV Series, Odissea (L’Odyssée/Odyssey), based on Homer’s epic poem. This Teleplay featured an impressive array of popular beauties namely, Marina Berti (Arété), Marcella Valeri (Euryclée), Scilla Gabel (Hélène), Barbara Gregorini/Barbara Bach (Nausicaa), Juliette Mayniel (Circé), Kira (Kyra) Bester (Calypso), Michèle Breton (Athéna), Stefanella Giovannini (Cassandre), etc.

According to Messaggero Veneto, Irène’s last feature film was Portuguese director Manoel de Oliveira’s Um Filme Falado (A Talking Film) released in 2003. However, Ecuba, an Italian language film jointly directed by Giuliana Berlinguer and Irène Papas, was released subsequently in 2004.

Many lives progress in a more or less predictable path. Irène Papas’ journey has been different. Irène was never supposed to be what she became. Should her parents have succeeded to convince her to study architecture; her life would have been different. We all have our stories. The celebrity status of Irène Papas survives and prospers because the world still believes in the mystique of this austerely beautiful stage/movie/TV actress/singer for her talent and versatility. Theatregoers were equally impressed by her repertoire – by the wealth of her stage productions – adaptations and revivals. There really was something for everyone’s appetite. Like Irène, there were not many all-rounders who could sing, dance and act. She was one such trailblazer.

On 07 August 1998, Irène presented her first musical stage show as director of “Apocalipsis, voz de mujer” (Apocalypse, Woman’s Voice) at the International Music Festival at Castell de Peralada, Girona, Spain. Written by Greek author Yorgos Jimonás, the theme of this liturgical scenic act was reflection on the Mediterranean cultural tradition and the history of religions based on Apocalypse of St. John. The event was attended by Queen Sofía of Spain, her exiled brother Constantine II (1940-2023, former King of the Hellenes) and his Queen Anne-Marie of Denmark, Princess Irene (Queen Sofía’s younger sister), and other eminent dignitaries.

In 2018, there were media reports that Irène had been suffering from Alzheimer’s at least since 2013. For this reason she was not seen in public for some time. As her condition worsened with the passing of time, on one occasion, Constantine II, expressed his wish to visit Irène, who, I understand, was a close friend of the Royal family and also a board member of the Anna-Maria Foundation as of 2003. Such sociable visits had to be put on hold amidst fears that Irène might be unable to recognize visitors due to her illness.

Having been established herself securely in the popular imagination, and upon the strength of her national identity, Irène Papas was undoubtedly a source of admiration and inspiration to Greeks. The media wrote about her years in home care at her niece’s residence in Kifissia, a well-to-do green oasis in the northern shadow of Athens. Then again, nothing stays the same forever for there was sadness as the Alzheimer’s intensified towards the end of her life. Her last few years were spent in Chiliomodi, the place she always wanted everyone to remember she originated.

As the autumn of 2022 drifted into Greece and the nature gradually started to change the make-up, it was all suddenly over. Sadly, Irène Papas passed away on Wednesday, September 14, 2022 at the age of 93. Following a well-attended religious service at the Holy Church of Agios Georgios in Chiliomodi, Irène was buried in the village cemetery, next to her beloved parents. Death is emptiness. Antío, agápití mou Eiríni (6). – All for now, Jo

Notes:

The story of the Hebrew patriarch starring Charlton Heston as Moses is told in The Ten Commandments, the 1956 remake of director Cecil B. DeMille’s 1923 silent version of the story of Exodus. Read the book: Moses The Lawgiver by Thomas Keneally;
This is the second time Rod Steiger portrayed Benito Mussolini. The first appearance was in the Italian war film, The Last Four Days (Mussolini Ultimo Atto/Last Days of Mussolini (1977)) co-starring Franco Nero and Irish-Italian beauty Lisa Gastoni;
In March 1977, showings of this film were cancelled when a Muslim sect took nearly 150 people hostage in Washington, D.C. For more details on this hostage crisis: American Caliph by Shahan Mufti;
Gabriel García Márquez (1927-2014) was awarded the Noble Prize for Literature in 1982. Erendira was remade as Erendira Ikikunari (2008)
Iliad, the epic poem attributed to Greek poet Homer, that master of energy of expression and fertility of invention, who lived in 8^th century BC, recount the fall of Troy. Odysseus/Ulysses is a mythical king of Ithaca and one of the leading chieftains of the Greeks. He is the hero of Homer’s epic poem, Odyssey and therein he is depicted as wise, eloquent, and full of artifices. Penelope, the daughter of Icarius and Periboea of Sparta, is, according to Homer, the chaste and faithful wife of Odysseus, a model of all the domestic virtues. Some writers allege her being the reverse.
Goodbye, my dear Irène.
Due to constraints of space, the data compiled had to be chopped to keep the full text at a manageable size. I regret what has been left out and mean no disrespect to the subject of this 6-part episodic tribute. Irène Papas appeared in over 85 movies. The summary of movies stated herein relate only to those movies which are part of my collection;
Up to now, the sources of reference for this concluding part of the tribute to Irène Papas are archives of the past including printed publications and visual media. DVD/Blu-ray of most of the movies mentioned in this write-up is available with some leading dealers.
DVD sleeves/images shown here are only for promotional purpose. Source: Wikipedia, amazon.com, imdb, and from DVD sleeves.
This illustrated article is an affectionate nosegay to the actress and movies referred above. Please refer to “About” of my webpage for more details.

(© Joseph Sébastine/Manningtree Archive)

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers

May14

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers – (StarChoice: 28)

Excerpts from: The Importance of Being Kirk DOUGLAS

…… In one of her memoirs, beautiful actress Lauren Bacall wrote about how in 1945 she met star-finder/star-maker Hal Brent Wallis in the club car of the train while travelling to East with her husband Humphrey Bogart. Wallis, an independent producer since 1944 was on board the Santa Fe Super Chief train, bound for New York to look for new talents there. One night, over drinks in the lounge, she tipped Wallis to take a gander at the young and talented Kirk Douglas – a sort of a young Spencer Tracy – who was in a stage play in New York.

Lauren ‘Betty’ Bacall knew that Wallis always looked for an off-beat quality in his screen heroes.

A man with astute combination of imagination and executive ability, some of the potential actors Wallis found and expertly built them into stars of the screen included Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Charlton Heston, Dolores Hart, Elvis Presley, Polly Bergen, Anthony Franciosa, Barbara Stanwyck, Robert Cummings, Don Defore, Ann Richards, Kristine Miller, Douglas Dick, Betsy Drake, Marisa Pavan, Shirley MacLaine, …..

“People abroad are hungry for film entertainment and share with American audiences a keen interest in new personalities. It is this desire for new faces that has prompted my continued search for talent and the signing of such people as Lizabeth Scott, Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas and Wendell Corey,” Wallis was quoted in 1947.

Betty had a similar story. Taking into heart the All-American dream of every girl in the country at that time, she had come to Hollywood to become a star. In 1943, New York socialite and legendary beauty Slim Hawks, wife of director/producer Howard Hawks, saw the 18-year-old model’s picture on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar (March 1943) and prodded Hawks to “get a hold of this girl” with that “down-under” look. This “great find” was cast with Humphrey Bogart in Hawks’ adaptation of the Ernest Hemingway novel, To Have and Have Not (1944). That had opened a whole new life to Betty.

In June 1945, Hollywood’s “Gentleman Producer” Wallis went to the Broadway production and was impressed by Kirk playing the helpful ghost of the Unknown Soldier of World War I on stage in The Wind Is Ninety (Jun 21, 1945 – Sep 22, 1945). Tellingly, Kirk’s performance earned him best notices for its warmth and sincerity.

At that juncture, Wallis’ company had three films lined up on the production board: The Searching Wind (1946, D: William Dieterle), The Strange Love of Martha Ivers and Perfect Marriage (1947 D: Lewis Allen). Kirk was summoned to Wallis’ office in New York and later to the coast…….

…….Kirk netted his debut role in Hal B. Wallis Productions’ gripping noir melodrama, The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) as the husband of wealthy Martha Ivers, played by Barbara “Missy” Stanwyck, a trouper of vixen roles.

Effectively directed by Lewis Milestone, this exciting movie, from an unpublished story, “Love Lies Bleeding” by Jack Patrick (screenplay by Robert Rossen), told the grim tale of unbalanced emotions in the small industrial city of Iverstown in 1946 where, wealthy, conniving social climber Martha Ivers held a lifelong criminal secret over her weakling, drunkard husband, Walter O’Neil (Kirk Douglas), a district attorney.

During their adolescence years in 1928, Walter had witnessed Martha commit the murder of her bullying aunt Mrs. Ivers (Judith Anderson) in a fit of blind anger.

At that time, the little boy O‘Neil had affirmed Martha’s lie about a man having burst into the house and killed the aunt. In due course, Martha inherits a large family fortune from her dead aunt whom she loathed.

With murder and blackmail ruling the roost, The Strange Love of Martha Ivers is without a trice of comedy to lighten the tension.

Spectators who have seen this movie would recall Kirk’s introductory scene wherein his first dialogue on screen was the customary salutation of “Hello”.

And, with that one all-time favourite word, Kirk Douglas, at about age 30, took off to a promising start of his phenomenal career.

It was a befitting entry into the movie-stardom for Kirk who proved himself a fine actor who could measure up with such veterans as Van Heflin (back from war and on loan from M-G-M) and Barbara Stanwyck, in a role similar to the alluring double-crosser in the movie classic, Double Indemnity (1944, D: Billy Wilder).

Those who liked the smoky blonde Lizabeth Scott (born Emma Matzo in 1922) in her film debut You Came Along (1945, D: John Farrow), would want to see her don the role of Toni Marachek, the probationer from jail seeking love and companionship.

Cast over protests from female lead Stany, Scott’s Toni is the dynamic love interest of Sam Masterson (Heflin in his Johnny Eager (1941, D: Mervyn LeRoy) -type role), a professional gambler who learns that Martha has one murder to her name.

Perchance the true colours of costumes by master designer Edith Head wither their grandeur in monochrome. Setting pace to Victor Milner’s photography is also the music score by Miklós Rózsa which relate each character, setting, or situation to a musical theme.

This post-war period film was released on July 24, 1946 having completed production during October 2 – December 7, 1945. The Strange Love of Martha Ivers had its world premiere abroad TWA’s transcontinental Constellation trip departing Los Angeles on May 24, 1946.

Reportedly, about five months from the film’s release, the citizens of Kirk’s hometown in Amsterdam, N.Y, launched a pre-election campaign urging Kirk’s nomination for an award for his performance in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, although the official Academy award nominations has not yet begun.

You probably wouldn’t prefer to meet any of the selfish, grasping characters of The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, but it’s an edge of the seat evil tale to watch unfold – without children.

Until next time, Jo

Notes:

Given that the abridged version of my write-up “The Importance of Being Kirk DOUGLAS” has by now exceeded 105 pages, it is deemed only fair that the write-up should come out, if possible, in its entirety in a book format. Therefore, only excerpts (movie reviews) from it are posted here.
Some of the DVD/Blu-ray of the movies referred to in this article is available with leading dealers.
DVD sleeves/posters credits: Wikipedia, amazon, imdb and from my private collection. Please refer to “About” of my webpage for more details.

(© Joseph Sébastine/Manningtree Archive)

Mr. Telly Savalas, Back to the Limelight…, Please!

Jan22

Part I

Life with many beginnings and endings is a progression of cycles. Just like the years before, the New Year arrived in the cyclical order – ushering in the divisions of days, weeks, months, various seasons, in conjunction with personal social relationship events such as the dates of birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, etc. Within the past three weeks of January in the present calendar, there were few birthdays (including mine on 18th) and anniversaries of people I have had the privilege of knowing – and also a reminder of more to come as the year progresses – a good number of which must be reinforced by remembrance.

Those with nostalgic longing for movies of the second half of the 20th century would not have to jog their memory much to remember the late Telly Savalas, the Film/Television actor, TV show host and Singer. Telly shared his birth and death in January – on consecutive days of 21^st and 22^nd. In many of us, the image of Telly Savalas was moulded not only from the characters he portrayed in a string of movies or from his presentations in Television, or the music albums but also from the wide attention he generated to himself by display of his images in a wide range of American-International magazines.

Of those movies featuring him in a succession of devious characters, one could easily think of the box-office hit, The Dirty Dozen (D: Robert Aldrich, 1967) which presented Telly as a convict and brutal rapist; he was an earthy renegade killer whose frumpy mistress (Shelley Winters) described him as having “as much feelin’s as a bald-headed hog” in The Scalphunters (D: Sydney Pollack, 1968); a black marketer in Battle of the Bulge (D: Ken Annakin, 1965); a no-good army sergeant in Mackenna’s Gold (D: J. Lee Thompson, 1969), a sadistic bandit leader in A Town Called Hell (D: Robert Parrish, 1971); a crooked narcotics agent in Clay Pigeon (D: Tom Stern, 1971); the cold-blooded assassin in L’assassino… è al telefono (D: Alberto De Martino, 1972)….. and so the list goes on until he came across his alter ago Kojak.

Like the bald headed Hollywood actor Yul Brynner, it is difficult to fully fathom the real story of Telly Savalas since he told a different story in every other interview – a phenomenon I had noticed while researching for this article.

Aristoteles Savalas (a) was born in Garden City, New York, on January 21, 1922 (b). He was the second son of artist Christina Kapsalis (a former Miss Greece beauty queen from the Greek village of Anogia) and to Nicholas Constantine Savalas (originally spelled Tsavalas – hailing from the village of Gerakas), who made a fortune in tobacco, lost the lot and made another fortune in the bakery business. As teenagers, both his parents had emigrated to America in the early 1900s.

The second of five children (three brothers: Constantine Socrates, George Demosthenes, Theodore Praxiteles and sister: Katherine), in his earlier days, Aristoteles who spoke fluent Greek, had to sell newspapers, shine shoes and work as a lifeguard to help support the family. Somewhere along the way, he became regularly known as Telly. Having enrolled in the army in 1941 and following four years of service during the World War II he was discharged duly decorated with a Purple Heart for injuries sustained. How he was wounded in the war is unclear – quite similar to the ambiguity about how his left index finger got slightly mangled.

With the intention to pursue a career in the diplomatic service, Telly graduated in psychology from Columbia University where he had met Katherine Nicolaides. After his father’s death, Telly married Katherine in 1948 and together they had Christina. Following few years work with the Near East Information Services branch of the U. S State Department as host of the Your Voice of America series, ABC (American Broadcasting Company) News hired him as a producer. Having left ABC in January 1959, he had his first TV acting role in And Bring Home a Baby, of Sunday Armstrong Circle Theatre (1950–1963). Burt Lancaster saw his work and drew him to California to appear in episodes of the CBS TV series The Witness (1960-61).

About the age of 39, Telly had forayed into acting in feature films, debuting with Mad Dog Coll (D: Burt Balaban, 1961) which chronicled the career of the Irish American gangster, Vincent “Mad Dog” Coll. Telly portrayed the role of another Lieutenant in the crime drama film The Young Savages (D: John Frankenheimer, 1961), the first of Burt Lancaster’s four picture deal with United Artists (the other three being Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), The Train (1964) and The Hallelujah Trail (1965)).

Luck played into his hands when, impressed by his performance in the roles of Al Capone and “Lucky” Luciano in The Witness in which the life and crimes of America’s notorious rogues are investigated at a committee of inquiry; and also in The Young Savages shot in New York, Lancaster provided him the important role of the solitary row prisoner Feto Gomez of Leavenworth Prison in the prison biography, Birdman of Alcatraz. This breakthrough role earned Telly an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor.

Following his divorce from Katherine, in early 1960s when his film roles were mainly villainous, he got married for the second time to Marilyn (Lynn) Gardner.

When director George Stevens’ cameo-packed dramatization of the life of Jesus Christ, The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) was announced, many eyebrows were raised at the parade of famous actors in unexpected roles. The casting of Telly as Pontius Pilate drew smiles from those who thought that a Brooklyn accent has no place in a Biblical epic.

Stevens thought that the 6’1” Telly would look more virile and powerful in the role of the Roman prefect (governor) of Judaea if he shaved his head. Telly found the proposition extremely attractive and decided to go on with life as it was before retaining his signature bald look he took for his role in this Bible epic. Whyever not?

He simply chose to shave his head for the look. By the way, men generally don’t grow beards because they dislike shaving – but because they think their whiskers make them look better and give them a distinctive image.

He is on record in an interview as saying about the time Telly told his mother Christina vis-à-vis his casting in The Greatest Story Ever Told. She had rounded things off with the remark: “You are joking!” and she continued, “You’ll make a Marvellous Jesus!” She must hold the world record for being the world’s most optimistic mother.

Telly had a memorable role as James Bond’s notorious arch-rival Ernest Stavro Blofeld in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (D: Peter Hunt, 1969) in which stuntman Joe Powell nearly got killed doubling him in the bobsleigh in Switzerland. Two of his co-stars of The Greatest Story Ever Told, Donald Pleasance and Max von Sydow also played Blofeld in You Only Live Twice (D: Lewis Gilbert, 1967) and in Never Say Never Again (D: Irvin Kershner, 1983).

Of his bald head, he once said that “everyone’s born bald.” In spite that Telly was typecast as a villain for being entirely bald, audiences took him to their hearts – believing that in the baddie they saw onscreen rested a sweet nature. His strong features and ethnic look came handy for the role of Shan in Genghis Khan (D: Henry Levin, 1965).

The success of that film gave his career further fillip earning him roles in Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell (D: Melvin Frank, 1968), The Assassination Bureau (D: Basil Dearden, 1969), Kelly’s Heroes (D: Brian G. Hutton, 1970); Pretty Maids All in a Row (D: Roger Vadim, 1971), etc. For the title role of Pancho Villa (1972), the bald look was vindicated by the shaving of his head in prison during the opening sequence.

Since 1974, after a long separation Telly and Marilyn were divorced. According to the mini documentary “Telly Savalas: The Golden Greek”, he had met the beautiful Sally Adams while working on the movie, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (c). In 1973, Cojack with ‘c” hit the TV screens and his luck seems to improve.

Although the bald-headed, deep, gravel-voiced Telly had been acting since the late 1950s, real popularity came looking for him in the title role of the famous CBS TV series Kojak (October, 1973-April, 1978) which was a spun-off from the made-for-TV pilot, The Marcus-Nelson Murders (D: Joseph Sargent, First American Broadcast: March 8, 1973).

Few initial instalments showed him wade through a stereo-typed routine of law-and-order claptrap. But soon Kojak became a prime program as the series turned tough and reasonably true – taking on the look, sound, feel, taste, and smell of the New York crime investigations.

Working out of a Precinct of Manhattan, Telly’s Lieutenant Theo Kojak, in fabulous three-piece suit, displayed a more credible human being. Much of the vicious power and toughness Telly had displayed in his earlier villainous roles were there. But the exception was that, in his new persona as the stubborn and tenacious good guy Kojak with a deep concern for people and justice, his wrath was targeted against the crooks, spooks and killers. Audiences related to Kojak’s passionate belief in equality and fairness and his vehement opposition to police bureaucracy. Well, you know the rest.

While Telly reigned supreme in the role of the chrome-domed streetwise cop’s cop with a sweet tooth for sucking lollipops and a penchant to wisecrack snazzy lines, Telly soon became indelibly identified with the character of Kojak. “Telly and Kojak are one and the same,” Telly said in a TV interview, drawing a parallel between him and Kojak.

His love for the suckers, I mean, his serious attitude towards the lollipops, reportedly to replace Telly’s addiction for long thin cigars, was initially featured in Episode eight “Dark Sunday” of Kojak in December 1973. This addiction for suckers could have its origins in Toledo, Spain and to Italian director Mario Bava, the father of Italian horror films.

This concludes Part I. Part II will follow. Jo

Notes:

The spelling of first name is based on Certificate of Death: 39419004248 dt.22-1-1994 shown in a website although the name on his tombstone differs;
The date is based on his death Certificate;
Some sources maintain that Telly met Sally while working on the movie, The Dirty Dozen.
This article owes its source to various newspapers, books, magazines, visual media, etc.
Films forming part of the collection of Manningtree Archive are highlighted in bold.
Most of the movies and books referred to in this article are available with amazon.com, amazon.co.uk and other leading dealers.
DVD sleeves credits: amazon.com, en.wikipedia, imdb and from my private collection.
This illustrated article is an affectionate nosegay to the movies and performers of the past. Please refer to “About” of my webpage for more details.

WHAT FATE MAY BRING

Jul27

The 240^th anniversary of the Independence of the United States of America went past on July 4, 2016 with traditional fireworks displays, parades, concerts, barbecues, etc. Watching the celebrations on TV brought to my mind the bicentennial celebrations of U.S.A on July 4 forty years ago, when yet another jubilation rang out in some parts of the world related to an incident that lasted one week and ended with a daring rescue at Entebbe International Airport in Uganda which was featured in many print and visual media including the following three streams:

1: VICTORY AT ENTEBBE (telecasted on December 13, 1976)

Scarce anything awakens attention like a tale of cruelty – wrote Dr. Samuel Johnson (The Idler, 1758). The hijacking of the Air France flight 139 and rescue of hostages at Entebbe in 1976 had all the right spice and human drama to inspire more than 15 U.S film production units/studios to cash in on the events quickly. Emmy Award-winner screenwriter Ernest Kinoy quickly drew up a 200-page treatment for David L. Wolper Productions, 50% longer than most scripts, since it was originally planned as a three-hour telecast on ABC Television. Directed by Marvin J. Chomsky with music score by Charles Fox, it was also made into a theatrical film for overseas distribution. This moderate telefilm was originally shot on videotape and transferred to film for convenience in shooting and editing. Shot at Warner Bros. Studio in Burbank, California, its stellar cast consisted of Helmut Berger, Linda Blair, Kirk Douglas, Richard Dreyfuss, Helen Hayes, Anthony Hopkins, Burt Lancaster, Elizabeth Taylor, Julius Harris, etc. However, the film suffered owing to a script laden with clichéd dialogues and characterization which should have been reworked. According to the biography of a crew member, few days into the shooting, actor/comedian Godfrey Cambridge, cast in the role of President Idi Amin, died on the filming stage from a heart attack and was replaced by Julius Harris.

2: RAID ON ENTEBBE (telecasted on January 9, 1977)

Made for television, this was written by Golden Globe award winner Barry Beckerman and directed by Irvin Kershner (The Eyes of Laura Mars, Never Say Never Again). Of the two telemovies that came out five months after Operation Entebbe, this is considered a better paced dramatization of the hijacking and rescue and stars Peter Finch, Charles Bronson, Horst Buchholz, John Saxon, Sylvia Sidney, etc. American actor Yaphet Kotto appears as Idi Amin. The factual production had already started in late June 1976 while the hijacking incident was in progress. Telecasted by NBC, it won a Golden Globe as the Best Motion Picture Made for Television in the 35th Annual Golden Globe Awards. The film which originally ran 152 min. but cut to 113 min. for theatrical release was earlier released in theatres of Denmark on December 26, 1976.

3: MIVTSA YONATAN (ENTEBBE – OPERATION THUNDERBOLT) (released on January 27, 1977)

Nominated for the Best Oscar for Foreign Language Film, this story of the daring commando raid at Entebbe is presented in a simple narrative of good versus evil and concentrates on the rescue of the hostages, the main issue, without dwelling on hijackers’ motives, etc. Crackling with action, the film was directed by leading Israeli producer/writer Menahem Golan. According to a book, Golan had originally requested and was denied permission to accompany Israeli forces to shoot a documentary film, should any orders were given for a rescue attempt. The film was mainly shot at the specially constructed full-size replica of the Entebbe Airport terminal. The cast featured Israeli singer/actor Yehoram Gaon, Assaf Dayan, son of military leader/statesman Moshe Dayan, stage/screen actress Gila Almagor, etc, besides Israeli military personnel and equipment, some people who had actually been on the hijacked plane, including footage of some key Government officials of Israel of that time. German actor Klaus Kinski appeared as the fair-haired Wilfried Böse while Austrian actress Sybil Danning is notable in the role of deeply macho Halima. Kinski’s presence as leader of the hijackers and Dov Seltzer’s music (performed by Israel Philharmonic Orchestra) elevates this adaptation by American screenwriter Clarke Reynolds, above the two rushed-out TV versions. Golan had later told in an interview that the movie depicts exactly how Lt. Col. Yonatan Netanyahu was hit.

The much analysed and debated Entebbe rescue operation has also spawned books, documentaries, movies, web articles, etc, most of which I have virtually gone through, leading me on to specific or general knowledge on this subject based on which a recap is drawn below (1):

The hostage-rescue operation at Entebbe: Just before 9 a.m on Sunday, June 27, 1976, Air France Flight 139 with 228 passengers on board left Lod Airport (Ben-Gurion Airport International Airport) near Tel Aviv, Israel, bound for Paris, France with an unscheduled layover at Athens, Greece. This commercial flight was hijacked by 4 passengers barely eight minutes after it took off at 12:25 p.m from Ellinikon International Airport, Athens from where the 4 hijackers (transit passengers travelling on fake passports who had arrived that morning from Bahrain on Singapore Airlines without any intention of going to Paris), boarded the aircraft with concealed guns and hand grenades taking advantage of the lax in security measures. Since 38 passengers had alighted and 56 boarded at Athens, the flight was then carrying 246 passengers plus the crew of 12. The passengers were informed that the flight was under the command of the Che Guevara Group and Gaza Unit of the PFLP. It was the first hijacking in the history of Air France.

Cutting across the Mediterranean Sea, the hijacked Airbus A300B4S aircraft’s wheels brushed the tarmac of Benina International Airport, Benghazi, Libya, and seven hours later, it took off from there after topping up its fuel and leaving behind a British-born Israeli citizen with symptoms of a miscarriage. No sooner had the flight set on a different course and the radio transmissions ceased from the Airbus, the alert and first reports reached Israel where the Cabinet was in its weekly meeting. While a liaison office to co-ordinate with the hostages’ families was arranged at the Lod airport, intelligence officials were frantically collecting all information and as more developments became known, various possibilities and steps for the release of hostages were being explored.

After a five hour flight, and having been refused permission to land at Khartoum, Sudan, the twin-engined Airbus finally trundled to a standstill on the landing-strip of the Entebbe International Airport at about 0330hrs (Monday, June 28) where the hostages had to wait nearly nine hours inside the aircraft before they were hustled into the main lounge of the disused old terminal building which was soon securely surrounded by the Ugandan troops.

The woman, who was left at Benghazi and flown to England by evening, confirmed that the Airbus was taken over by two South Americans and their two accomplices. It would be later established that the blond-haired man checked-in as Peruvian A. Garcia, was in fact a German called Wilfried Böse, a member of a German Revolutionary cell, while the Ecuadorian woman travelling as Ortega, was Böse‘s former German lover Brigitte Kuhlmann (2) of RZ. Their comrades were of Middle East origin. At Entebbe, the hijackers reinforced their team with the arrival of more associates which would also allow them to work in shifts. President Idi Amin of Uganda, after visiting the hostages, made it known that he offered his services in the sympathetic role of a mediator and hoped the wishes of the hijackers would be accepted.

The demands for the exchange of the hostages was the release of 53 political prisoners held in jails in Israel (40), Kenya (6), France (1), West Germany (5) and Switzerland (1). To deliver the prisoners to Entebbe, the deadline was set for 11.00 am GMT of Thursday, July 1.

On Tuesday, June 29, having moved the Israeli citizens/Jewish passengers of other nationalities to an adjoining room, the captors released 47 non-Jewish passengers, allowing them to fly to Paris on Wednesday on an Air France airplane.

As the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) looked into the feasibility of several alternative military options, they were grappling with the lack of fresh, credible and reliable intelligence information. For starters, specialists of the planning group had prior knowledge about the Entebbe airport and the merits of the Ugandan troops. Not only had Israeli experts helped train those troops, constructions in the Entebbe airport, including the old terminal building, were done by an Israeli construction firm and they had detailed architectural drawings. On the surface, the impending odds lay in the difficulty of retrieving the large group of hostages which would occasion an eight hour flight through the radar range of other countries and the inevitable refuelling of the aircrafts for their trip back home.

Meanwhile giving in to the mounting plea from the families of the hostages, the captors were made known of the intention of Israel to talk. To facilitate arrangements for the exchange, the deadline was postponed to 11:00 a.m. GMT of Sunday, July 4. Soon, selected 101 non-Jewish hostages were allowed by the hijackers to fly out to Paris. The Air France Flight Captain Michel Bacos, claiming responsibility for all passengers of his flight, chose to stay with the remaining 94 Jewish hostages, a decision welcomed voluntarily by his crew (3).

A passenger, who was amongst the 101 hostages released, provided valuable information about how the hostages were kept under guard and the strength of the Ugandan guards at the airport. It was also welcoming to know that the rest of Entebbe airport was operating normally and scheduled flights were still flying in and out.

Intervention through a possible military option called for the element of surprise, an absolute necessity to deny captors any time to harm the hostages. Opportunities don’t happen, you create them. The possibility of sky-dropping troops into Lake Victoria, spread wide at about 69,000 Sq km and touching on Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya, had to be abandoned owing to the lake’s shallow waters (only 100m deep) infested with crocodiles and rampant of Bilharzia. Besides, its shores were then hide-outs for snails which are the host for the parasitic flukes harmful to the body.

Before long, a suitable but daring ‘long-arm option’ for rescue was found feasible to rescue the hostages remaining in the terminal. Named: Operation Thunderbolt, the mission will be under the overall command of Brig. Gen. Dan Shomron. Two days before the deadline, a British-Israeli hostage named Dora Bloch had to be removed to Mulago General Hospital in Kampala when a piece of food accidently stuck in her throat.

With preparations for military option on, a 100-strong rescue team was drawn up from several IDF units including the elite troops. To support the intricate planning and rehearsal drill for the operation, a partial replica of the Entebbe terminal building, based on the blueprints from the construction firm, was immediately constructed. As weapons and gadgets for operational efficiency and safety were decided upon and coordinated, the disembarkation and embarkation procedures were rehearsed on a Hercules aircraft.

Four tactical Lockheed C130 Hercules transport aircrafts, recently purchased from the United States, which have the manoeuvrability and the range, would be deployed with specific assignments. Each soldier all sparked up and in full webbing, would play a critical role. The first Hercules would carry a black Mercedes car, two Land Rovers, a paratrooper force and IDF’s elite Special Forces assault team led by Lt. Col. Yonatan Netanyahu, the unit’s recently appointed commander.

Rolling off the back cargo door of the Hercules, the “break-in crew” riding in the Mercedes and Land Rovers with Colgate air of confidence were expected to pass through the Ugandan airfield without resistance assuming they would be taken for President Amin and his entourage. Through access doors 3 and 4 of the seven points of entry of the old terminal they would storm the lounge where the hostages were held. Once inside, they will eliminate any resistance, free the hostages and secure the building. At the same time, unit members will also neutralise the control tower, its radar room and the machine-gun nest near it.

The other three Hercules aircrafts scheduled to land in close succession five to seven minutes later would be accorded protection on the ground by the units of the first aircraft, Upon landing, the specific assignments of the units of the three aircrafts included providing cover to secure the aircraft and keep Ugandan troops away; secure the new terminal, the new runway, the refuelling station and the adjoining airfield, and also to destroy the squadrons of MIGs parked on the far side of the airfield. They would also facilitate on-board emergency medical treatments, evacuate any casualties and help hostages to emplane the aircraft. Of the two Boeing 707s forming part of the operation, one would act as an airborne command and control equipped with superlative communications and monitor the on-ground mission and simultaneously maintain link with Tel Aviv where the communication equipment would be tuned to the operation’s wave-band. The second Boeing would serve as a full-fledged infirmary unit.

At 14.30 Saturday July 3, the rescue operation was approved. Operation Thunderbolt commenced that late afternoon at Sharm el-Sheikh, the operation’s “jump-off point” at the southern tip of Sinai where the planes had refuelled, having arrived earlier during the day from Ben-Gurion. To escape detection by radar the formation of C130 Hercules aircrafts equipped with American radar jamming devices flew over the Red Sea at very low altitudes (100 feet above the water and at some places at much lower altitude) and then turned inland over Sudan, flying past Ethiopia and above Kenya to approach Entebbe from over Lake Victoria, covering a distance of about 2,500 miles (4,000 km), the first 1000 miles of which was accorded fighter cover by their Mirages and Phantoms.

Wheels on ground at Entebbe at about one minute past midnight Uganda time, things went wrong even before the team could reach the old terminal 2.4kms away. Two commandos of the front vehicle had to shoot down an armed Ugandan soldier with their silenced .22 caliber Berettas. When the wounded soldier unexpectedly got back on his feet and took aim to shoot, reacting to a perceived threat, a commando in a Land Rover neutralized him with a long burst from his Kalashnikov. The resultant sound of the gunfire sacrificed the much required element of surprise. However, in less than an hour from touchdown of the first Hercules, the mission was successfully achieved liberating 102 hostages and crew and finally the last of the rescue aircrafts had wheels up and departed from Entebbe, marking a dramatic victory in the operation.

The casualties included the death of all the hijackers and their accomplices, at least twenty Ugandan soldiers and three hostages.

The best men are so often the first to be killed, because they are in front. Fatally shot in the back by a Ugandan soldier from the control tower, Lt. Col. Yonatan “Yoni” Netanyahu was declared dead (4) by the time the rescuers reached Nairobi, Kenya, from where, after refuelling, they all flew back to a military airfield in Tel Aviv for a rousing reunion with their families.

Dora Bloch (age 73), the passenger on her way to New York for her son’s wedding who was admitted to hospital in Kampala earlier was reportedly killed in Uganda later (5) in reprisal to the successful rescue operation planned and effected within a short space of time surmounting many odds amidst tremendous tension. Fair enough, the operation was subsequently re-named: Operation Yoni (MIVTSA YONATAN) in honour of Lt. Col. Yonatan Netanyahu.

On July 11, the Sunday following the rescue, Ms. Rina Messinger, a 20-year old aerodynamics instructor was crowned as Miss Universe 1976. Coming on the wake of the victory at Entebbe airport, a source of pride and inspiration, she was happily dubbed “Miss Entebbe” by her jubilant countrymen. From pictures I could see that she certainly looked really pretty when she smiled.

Until next time. Jo

Note:

Several authoritative books are available about the Entebbe rescue operation.
The woman hijacker is named as Gabrielle Kroecher-Tiedemann in some films and in the book Counter Strike Entebbe by Tony Williamson.
Captain Bacos was honoured with the Legion of Honour while his crew were awarded with the French Order of Merit.
Yonatan Netanyahu was buried in Mount Herzl National Cemetery, Jerusalem
The remains of Dora Bloch, recovered near a Sugar Plantation 20 miles east of Kampala, were shifted to Israel on June 3, 1979, and were buried with state honours in Mount of Quietudes, (Har HaMenuchot Cemetery) Jerusalem.
The subject is featured in the documentary Operation Thunderbolt – Entebbe (2000) and in movies Follow Me – The Yoni Netanyahu Story (2012): and in The Last King of Scotland (One Episode in 2006)
Most of the movies and books referred to in this article are available with amazon.com, amazon.co.uk and other leading dealers.
Books/DVD sleeves credits: amazon.com, en.wikipedia and from my private collection.
This illustrated article is an affectionate nosegay to movies of the past. Please refer to “About” of my webpage for more details.
This article is dedicated to the defenders of peace – the fallen and the living.