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Ray, Ray, Ray, Ray...when're we going to get CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE???
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Posted: |
Jan 30, 2003 - 4:12 AM
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By: |
DylanS
(Member)
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Dylan, FOUNTAINHEAD is on the schedule. And, yes, the acetates for the complete score survive and in excellent sound and condition. By the way, A SUMMER PLACE is produced from magnetic tracks, mixed to mono and preserved by Warners.
Thank you very much for the information Ray, it pleases (and surprises) me greatly that the orignal recording of "The Fountainhead" still exists, and in excellent condition! Can't wait for the upcoming "A Summer Place," and looking immensely forward to "The Fountainhead." Thanks again.
Best Regards,
Dylan
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Posted: |
Jan 30, 2003 - 2:30 PM
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By: |
Howard L
(Member)
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Been waiting for this one a long time.
From 4/25/98:
A Summer Place.
Peyton Place again, this time off the mainland. Cliched? Somewhat. Outdated, even laughable dialogue? Eh, at times (Molly's "naughty dreams"). But the movie unravels the pretentious pseudo-priggish mores of 1950s cinema in a manner that isn't shocking now but surely must have been considered bold for its day.
And then there's the music. Cliched? Only when that sly, leery sax oils its way across the ears while underscoring sexual tension. Repetitive? Well...yeah. Overblown? Maybe. But it's joyous excess. And that's the genius of Max Steiner: his music brings dignity to an otherwise mundane (albeit stylish) B-movie. What does he dignify? Oh, human longings, little things like newly-found love, old love rekindled, unspoken passions, hopes, shattered dreams...and damaged lives. And all with real-live melodies that pull you in, intoxicate and ultimately make you ignore the fact that you're watching a potboiler or that you simply don't give a damn that it's a potboiler.
Dignity. That's what comes to mind first when I think of Max Steiner, Film Composer: elevating soap opera to dignified heights. I think of the Belle Watling Theme when Melanie thanks the madam-with-a-heart in Gone With The Wind; the final shots of Now, Voyager; the love story with the platinum blonde and the big ape; and in A Summer Place the close-ups of Dorothy McGuire, especially the one during the early scene at the dinner table at the inn.
Steiner basically employed variations of four love themes throughout the picture. Let's call them (1) the Adult Love Theme introduced majestically for the dashing opening credits sequence; (2) the Teen Love Theme made memorable and best-selling by Percy Faith and his orchestra; (3) the Sex Theme already alluded to with deference to its arrangement for that old devil's instrument, the sax (and how 'bout them amplified piano triplets--shocking, Mr. Steiner, shocking!); and (4) the Innocent Love Theme first heard during Molly's good-night to Papa.
I recommend you ignore the cloying harp-and-vibraphone arrangement of the latter the first time around and savor the string arrangement the second. Just the same, all 4 melodies are pure listening pleasures. And so what if Johnny's Theme sounds more suited to a pre-teen heading off for a summer camp jaunt than an adolescent with raging hormones who's barely surviving his folks' loveless marriage. The bottom line, friends, is that it's a crying shame that the entire score has never been released, so far as I know. Warner Bros. has an ignominious reputation for discarding original soundtrack sources and it wouldn't surprise if this one is among those lost forever. If worse comes to worse, get the video (the film's a fine transfer to tape) and just watch/listen to the first 45 minutes. Watch and listen to the first 45 minutes. You will not be disappointed. Guaranteed.
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I saw A SUMMER PLACE in the theater when I was 11 years old -- my parents were so unconcerned with what I saw at the movies that I saw ROSE TATOO twice when I was 8 years old. I have few recollections of the actual story (though I do remember wondering what the hell it was that Troy and Sandra could have possibly done when they spent the night together to get all the grown-ups so bent out of shape). What did knock me out about the movie was the incredible music -- that theme just grabbed me like nothing before, and I went home hearing it over and over in my head. I was so excited when Percy Faith's recording of the theme came out, and I was certainly not alone in my appreciation of it -- 9 straight weeks in the #1 spot and 17 weeks in the Top 40. To put that in perspective, not one of the Beatles hits ever matched it, and only two or three of the early Presley hits did better. To think that Max Steiner was 71 years old when he scored A SUMMER PLACE...
Could heaven be better than this? A SUMMER PLACE and Newman's CAPTAIN FROM CASTILE, all at the same time!
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That boot of KING RICHARD AND THE CRUSADERS came out more than ten years ago, I believe. I myself happen to have a copy of it, but I would love to purchase an improved quality recording of the score. The fact that there was a boot would not in any way prevent me from buying an official release.
Adding to the problem of this project is that any sound recordings made from 1959 and back will go into the Public Domain in a vast part of the world as of Jan 1,2009 (Excluding the USA and it's Territories).
That means the moment it comes out, ANYONE can release their own far less costly version using that CD as their master and there isn't anything that can be done about.
The Graphics on the other hand are another matter.
HOWEVER, most international film artwork didn't carry copyright notices until the 1960's...
Such is life in the 21st Century.
Ford A. Thaxton
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